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Replies (12)
- Kate Reilly Lund, "Kate Reilly Lund"
- Contributions:18
Buyers looking for certain types of properties do not look at a calendar to determine when it will be available. You can get much more attention when the market is not flooded with "looky loo Buyers" and with real Buyers and investors who will whether the weather to look at your property.
Sellers lose nothing by listing in the winter and they may gain much.
Sellers lose nothing by listing in the winter and they may gain much.
- EmporiaRealtyGroup
- Contributions:13
Sucessful home sales happen anytime of the year - if the home is priced right, ready to show, and easy to show. When you list your home to sell, you need to work with your agent to help them do their job. Have your home ready for showings, be open to listen to offers, and ask questions about what needs to be done to sell your home.
- Bob Brandt, "BobBrandtRealtor"
- Contributions:1019
Another is not shoveling the driveway and sidewalk, so we have to climb through snowdrifts.
Another is having the heat turned off so we freeze.
Another is no or not enough lights so we can see during the longer nightime hours.
Another is leaving all the blinds closed so it always is dark.
Another is leaving the decorations up till Spring.
Another is not having an area for us to take our snowy shoes off and stay with dry socks.
Another is not treating the ice and having a guest fall.
Another is having the heat turned off so we freeze.
Another is no or not enough lights so we can see during the longer nightime hours.
Another is leaving all the blinds closed so it always is dark.
Another is leaving the decorations up till Spring.
Another is not having an area for us to take our snowy shoes off and stay with dry socks.
Another is not treating the ice and having a guest fall.
- Angie Boggeman, "angie boggeman"
- Contributions:469
The winter buyers definitely seem to be serious. Although it is not as ideal to pack up and move during the cold and snowy months, houses do sell. I agree with Bob's post making the house comfortable to show is important.
- Wes Black
- Contributions:509
The winter usually brings very serious buyers and sellers to the closing table pretty quickly. There really is no bad time in today's market not to list.
- Bert Pope, "bertpope"
- Contributions:66
Come to Florida
- Anthony Gilbert, "Anthony Gilbert"
- Contributions:4
I completely agree! In my market, the pickings are getting rather slim as the number of buyers are increasing and sellers are holding off on listing. I've seen Escalation Clauses in the past couple of weeks, which have been unheard for quite a while.
- Katie Burmeister, "Katie Burmeister"
- Contributions:199
I 100% agree with you. In our market, we saw the highest amount of absorption rate in 2011. Absorption rate is the percentage of homes on the market vs. homes sold. Also, January seems to be a hot time for buyers...are there is a lot less competition. Personally, I am working with a few buyers who are specifically looking to buy in the cold, winter months in St. Louis.
- New_Englander
- Contributions:60
This is interesting and potentially very useful advice for me (as we are thinking of putting our house on the market soon.) But, I wonder, is this good advice for everyone, regardless of where they live (geographic location, and lot type)? We live in northern New England, on about 9 acres of land. The house itself is fine - post-2000 cape - but much of the appeal of the house is the lot. Most of it is wooded, but the majority of the trees are deciduous. We have many perennial flowers and shrubs. During the summer, the yard is gorgeous (but intentionally low-maintenance) and every view from the house is of green. Our elevated deck feels like it's up in the trees. During the winter, if there's no snow, everything is grey, brown, and DEAD. You can see through the trees to the road, while during the summer, there is much more privacy. If there's snow, there's probably a 12' snowbank from plowing, and dirt in the snow, etc.. During the spring and summer, you can easily imagine dinners on the deck, nights around the firepit, gardening, etc.. During much of the day, light streams in the windows. During the winter, it just looks depressing. Not to mention the fact that it gets dark well before 5 pm for several months, so anyone looking after work won't see much.
On smaller lots and with urban homes, there's less of a dramatic difference in appearance across seasons. And, the land is less of a selling point. I have serious reservations about getting the same price in winter as I might have in summer, when the house shows to its best advantage. In my mind, this is somewhat akin to selling a house but not showing the buyer a section of it, like a finished basement, a wet bar, or some other selling point.
On smaller lots and with urban homes, there's less of a dramatic difference in appearance across seasons. And, the land is less of a selling point. I have serious reservations about getting the same price in winter as I might have in summer, when the house shows to its best advantage. In my mind, this is somewhat akin to selling a house but not showing the buyer a section of it, like a finished basement, a wet bar, or some other selling point.
- Nicholas Ribeiro, "NicholasRibeiro"
- Contributions:1807
True!
- Reema Sharma, "ReemaSharma"
- Contributions:927
Nothing to lose, only upside
I think this all depends on where you live. We are in the country 40 minutes outside of the nearest good size city. We are located in the foothills. Beautifu location. Great home with acreage backing to forestland. Home is an older home however has been well maintained and upgraded. Not much traffic where we are located.Off the main area. Would love to list in the winter if I thought serious buyers would see us here!
One mistake potential sellers make in the winter time...
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- 5.0/5.0
- (1 review)
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