Selling your home at Christmas
If you’re a bit of a property geek or if you’ve been thinking about selling your home at Christmas, then there’s every chance you’ll have heard this time of year isn’t great for venturing onto the market.
To be fair, it’s not necessarily other agents who are prone to spreading this kind of unhelpful myth.
It may have been true at one time when people used to do their window shopping by driving around neighbourhoods in their cars looking for For Sale boards.
Even if you were house hunting abroad, the other alternative was to fly out to your chosen destination and trudge from one estate agent’s office to another with your “dream house wish list” in hand.
But, if it was chucking it down and cold or if cheap flights were a bit harder to find, then there probably really was a time when enquiries dried up.
Side-stepping the leg work
However, despite the advent of modern communications technology, a lot of people still forget that you can side-step a lot of the leg work just by visiting one of the online portals.
If you key in a few search terms you can usually find a list of homes which match your criteria – all from the comfort of your armchair.
You can even check out what homes have been selling for in your chosen area and, with a bit more research, even who has been selling them.
Yes, it is true that there is still a bit of a seasonal downturn as people’s focus turns more towards Christmas. Yes, we would acknowledge that there has been a noticeable drop in the amount of new homes coming onto the market thanks to the uncertainty caused by the global pandemic.
Time to think again?
But, if you think about it, what does that mean? Should you shut up shop, hunker down and wait for everyone else to start selling again? With all due respect, if you think that’s the best plan, we’d beg you to have another go…
After all, fewer homes available means a narrower choice – and buyers with less choice are more likely to act if they see something which is close to what they’re looking for.
It’s a well-known selling technique to suggest you’re offering something which might not be available tomorrow – and, at this time of year, with fewer properties coming to market, it’s not just sales patter; it’s the truth.
Put your home on the market today and it is likely to be among a smaller number of properties available. Wait until spring and, guess what? Your home may be among dozens more, which may have an impact on price and how quickly you sell.
Wait until after Christmas? Bah humbug! If you have property to sell, we’d respectfully suggest you get it on the market right now! After all, what have you got to lose?
How can we help?
If you’re considering buying property in Turkey or Portugal and you’d like some more hints and tips, feel free to give us a call.
We’re also here if you’d like a heads-up on how to plan or even just a no-obligation chat about the pros and cons of investing in property abroad.
It’s not just about the buying and selling of homes. We can help with the logistics, paperwork and advice before, during and after your move so feel free to get in touch.
Alternatively, feel free to browse our blog for previous posts you may find useful. If you’d like to check out our full portfolio, you can find details of properties currently on our books right here. You can also keep up to date with our Facebook page here.
