Listing at Christmas?

05/12/2007

At this time of year we come across a lot people thinking of listing but want to wait until spring because, in their words, “The spring market will be better” or, “I don’t want to move until the kids are out of school”. They are also the folks that have had their home on the market for a period of time and think that taking a break until spring is a good idea for the same reasons as stated above. I’m here to tell you this direction of thinking is a mistake.

Simply put, the reason you should list your home now or continue your current listing through the winter, instead of trying your luck in the spring, like everyone else does, is competition. Everyone waits until spring to list. It’s true there are hoards of new listings on the market every spring and there are also hoards of Buyers. So your chances of selling are about the same as everyone else, good – bad – fair, it all depends on the market. But here is a sure-fire way to improve your chances of selling quickly and for more money.

The basic premise of this strategy is that if you always DO what the others DO, you will always GET what the others GET. My suggestion is, if you will change your strategy and go against the grain you will GET something a little better than what the others GET. Namely, an easier time of selling and probably more dollars in your pocket. Allow me to explain.

First of all, since everyone else is waiting until spring to list, you will have your pick of the Buyers that are either left over from the fall market or the new Buyers that really need or want to buy now. It’s kind of like going to WonderLand on a Tuesday night instead of Saturday morning. You practically have the park to yourself and there are no line-ups, it’s great. With less to choose from, Buyers can find themselves on the wrong side of a supply and demand issue which quite often will create a sense of urgency and lead them to be less firm with their negotiations.

Now as for the issue of moving when the kids are out of school. You need to know that getting a five or six month closing in January is far from impossible. As a matter of fact, many Buyers also have children in school and would prefer not to disrupt their studies, but for many reasons need to have their plans set in advance.

As for you the Seller, wouldn’t it be great to know your home is sold firm and you have three or four months of prime house shopping before you need to make a firm buying decision? So you see acting now does have its clear advantages. Thanks for listening.

Till next time this is the Rob Thompson team saying, “Good Luck and Good Selling”! Merry Christmas!

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