Selling a house before Christmas? Top tips for success
Selling a house before Christmas? Don’t miss these 3 powerful strategies
If you’re bang in the process of selling your home, you’re probably aware the market begins to slow building up to Christmas as buyers tend to be preoccupied buying, well, other things. But there are some positives to selling prior to Christmas, you just have to know what they are and how to use them.
Tap into the frustrated buyer
The thing about December is there aren’t many houses on the market and real estate agents tend to shut up shop mid-month. With less properties on the market, your property has an advantage. What’s more, there are buyers out there becoming increasingly frustrated as they’ve been looking to buy since Spring. These buyers are often keen to secure a purchase before the market floods with properties again come Jan/Feb, because they’re all too aware the busy periods come with delayed settlements as banks take longer to process mortgage applications and real estate agents can’t keep up with the workload.
YOU now have an advantage as an owner/seller. So, try to make the process as easy as possible for your interested buyers. Keep negotiations simple and transparent. Be flexible on your settlement period and have all the necessary paperwork prepared and available.
Make things as easy as possible and your buyer might be willing to pay that bit extra to avoid the frenzy come Jan/Feb.
Use your owner/seller advantage
In the build-up to Christmas, buyers can feel disheartened as many real estate agents are already on leave or are slow to respond to enquiries. As an owner/seller, you can offer relief by responding to queries quickly and becoming a window of opportunity for buyers.
Properties do still sell at Christmas. At PropertyNow, one of our sellers even managed to sell their home on Boxing Day! Not everyone celebrates Christmas. For some people, it’s business as usual. And as the rest of the country slows, you can take advantage of this valuable niche market and create the sale you need.
Consider solar panels (or advertise that you have them!)
As the heat of January and February kick in and power plants crumble to facilitate the surge in air conditioning, solar panels become a valuable commodity. Black outs are expected to rise this summer and solar energy offers a reprieve from these blackouts. So, if you don’t have them it could be worth installing them. If you do, make sure people know about them!
Read this article to find out more about the different types of solar panels and which are right for your home.