We all have a lot on our plates this time of year. That reality can make the prospect of trying to sell a home appear daunting.
Who would put their home on the market now, just after Thanksgiving and a little before Christmas? Well, as counterintuitive as it might seem, selling a home during the holiday season can have its advantages.
You can be confident that anyone wanting to look at your home during the holidays is a motivated buyer. That reduces your workload. That should mean fewer instances you have to instantaneously make your home look so spotless it’s as if no one lives in it and then vanish for an hour or so. Prospective buyers could be facing a hard deadline, meaning they will want to complete a deal in good order. Tradespeople and professionals involved in the deal (home inspectors, appraisers, licensed repairmen) might be less busy and more able to take care of what’s needed to get the deal done.
Generally speaking, a home entering the market at this time of year has less competition for a prospective buyer’s attention but has a relatively greater chance of being sold. For each of the last seven calendar years in the Bend market (2009 through 2015), the two months with the fewest new listings have been November and December. But for sales as a percentage of active listings, December was the fourth-best month last year, the third-best month in 2014 and the second-best month in 2012.
Where we live, the holidays might not be the “down” time of year that it can be elsewhere. Every region of the country has its own pace and traditions, and every area has its times of year when trying to capture the attention of people — such as home buyers — is a challenge. In some places, a Saturday or a Sunday in the fall could be a poor time to try to sell a house if the locals are fervent football fans.
Remember, too, that buyers are doing their research on their own, on their own time, via online searches, rather than driving around neighborhoods. The Internet knows no seasons. If your house is appealing to a prospective buyer, that will be evident regardless of the time of year, the weather or road conditions.
Whatever time of year it is, I can help you get the best deal when it comes time to sell your home. Or, if you’re a prospective buyer, my knowledge of the Bend market will help assure you get an optimal deal. To get started with listing your Bend home or to view area homes, contact me at (541) 383-1426, or visit Bend Property Search to connect with me through my website.