The Truth About Selling Your Home During The Holidays

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Today's blog comes to you from Elk Grove, California, where I was visiting family for the Holidays! We hope you had a very happy Thanksgiving, and we wanted to take the time today to wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year as well! 

Today, we want to debunk the common myth that the holidays are a “bad time” to sell your home. Real estate agents love to say, "There are 20 AMAZING reasons why you should sell your home during the holidays!" I don't find that to be very helpful. Rather, I'm going to run through some of the pros and cons of selling during this time.

Economics 101

Remember your sophomore year High School economics class? Selling your home is all about supply and demand. Lots of supply and little demand pushes prices down, while low supply and high demand push prices up. It goes without saying that everyone wants the highest price for their St. George home. 

Truth 1: There are indeed FEWER BUYERS out in December. Of course there are, it’s Christmas! But….

Truth #2:  There are also fewer homes FOR SALE, meaning the supply is low…meaning that competition is low. This is illustrated by comparing last December, when 165 new homes hit the market, to last January, when 423 listings hit the market. 3 times as many families put their home on the market in January as in December…all waiting until “after the Holidays”….thus creating a much more “cluttered” St. George real estate market in January than was experienced in December.

Holiday buyers are serious - they're not taking time away from Christmas shopping to look at homes for fun. They NEED to do it. 

If you want to put your home on the market to take advantage of those buyers, but have concern about being hassled showing it during the Holidays, remember that 

You have complete control over when your home is shown - so we recommend you isolate and restrict showings on specific dates or times, like December 24-26 for instance.  If you have family gatherings or events, tell us and we'll work around your schedule.

Having your home on the market during the holidays isn't the end of the world, and it could even be a great thing for you because of the lack of competition.

Also, if you decide that now is the right time to sell, check out our blog post on 10 Steps to the Best Decorated Home for the Holidays!

If you're looking to make a move in St. George, would like to discuss your options, or have any general real estate questions, don't hesitate to give us a call at (435) 215-4533 or shoot us an email at LarkinGroup@GoStGeorge.com. We look forward to hearing from you soon!