Some owners hesitate to market their
homes between Halloween and New Year’s Day, believing the holiday season to be
an off-peak time to sell. But the idea that houses don’t sell in
November and December comes from outdated historical trends.
In fact, several studies show that,
on average, homes listed during this time are more likely to sell, sell more quickly, and sell
closer to the asking price. November, in particular, has some unique advantages
that make it an ideal time to sell. Here are three reasons why Thanksgiving
month might be the best time to sell your home.
More motivation
The idea that homes sell best in
spring and summer stems from the fact that parents want to wait until summer to
move school-aged children. But today, more than half of buyers aren’t married,
so their decisions aren’t necessarily based on kids’ schedules.
If buyers are looking for a home in
November, they’ve either waited through the busy season in hopes of a better
deal, or they’re facing their own time constraints due to work changes or other
reasons. For these highly motivated buyers, the traditional barriers to winter
house-hunting — bad weather, short days, holiday preparations — don’t apply. If
your house is available for them to view in November, these buyers are more
likely to make an offer close to listing price.
Less competition
Because of the misconceptions about
selling during winter, it’s true that many sellers don’t think it’s worth their
time to try and sell their homes toward the end of the year, so they take their
homes off the market. Their loss of a potential buyer is your gain!
Serious buyers have fewer homes to
choose from over the holidays. That means less competition for you — and more
buyers checking out your even more desirable home, either online or in person.
Tax benefits
A house marketed in November may lure
buyers looking for year-end tax breaks. Buyers looking to lower their taxes may
snatch up a home late in the year so they can deduct home purchase costs. That
includes points, interest and property taxes.
And if someone sold a house during the traditional summer
selling season and faces capital gains tax on the deal (because he’s an
investor or lived in the house for fewer than two years), he may be highly
motivated to buy in November since closing on the purchase of another house
within 180 days lets him avoid paying capital gains tax.
November 6th, 2014
Thinking about selling your home? Contact The Ehlen Team today and we will come walk through your home with you to determine exactly what you need to do to get it ready to sell and give you a FREE no obligation home sales analysis.
No comments:
Post a Comment