There are two basic schools of thought regarding the question, “should we try to sell our home during the holidays?” Neither is totally correct, and ironically it’s because they sit on opposite sides of the same issues.
Some people say you should NEVER try to market real estate during Thanksgiving and Christmas (and Hanukkah and whatever else constitutes “the holidays”). They say no one is in the mood to shop for homes, and it’s a real pain to keep your house in condition to show with all the visitors and traffic. It also requires that you want to sell more than you want to party!
The other person says you should ALWAYS try to market during the holidays. The logic is that although you may not get as much traffic, the people you do get are dead serious about buying or they wouldn’t be spending time looking during the holidays. They also point out that most homes are decorated and smell good during the season, so they tend to appeal more to emotional desires. There is also another important factor, in that many people (i.e. grandma) might like to have a home closer to the grandchildren. We who live here know that people fall in love with the mountains at any time of year. One thing often ignored is that the leaves are down, so it’s easier for prospects to actually see the land they are buying (that might not be an advantage to those who have a Buick or three sitting on blocks in the woods).
So you see, both can be correct, or incorrect depending on your opinion … along with using ALWAYS or NEVER in your thinking. I tend to think you should keep your house on the market until it sells. Your Realtor® should help you screen the serious buyers from the Looky-Loo’s. You can’t time the stock market or the real estate market unless you’re very lucky. When a buyer drives by, you need to have your house for sale if you’re serious … almost always.
We had some interesting sales numbers last month. Listings were relatively flat compared to October 2012. The median listing price is slightly higher at $249,000. The part that caught my eye was how those two figures are steady, but the number of days on market went from 87 last year to 100 this year. I think the reason for that is the median sale price, which went from $97,000 last year to $142,000 in 2013. I think this reflects that we are working our way through cheap inventory, which was heavily influenced by investors. Units sold went from 44 to 34, down 28%, probably for the same reason. I also personally think the government shut down and controversy surrounding the Affordable Care Act dampened buyer enthusiasm.
Home prices are recovering in Pickens, albeit slower than our neighbors to the south. Buyers are a little surprised that they can no longer name their price. Sellers are finally getting closer to consistently selling homes for what they paid for them. If you snooze, you lose!
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