Are the holidays a good time to sell a home?

Towards the end of October and the beginning of November, I am often asked "Are the holidays a good time to sell a home? Should I hold off until spring? What will the winter real estate market be like this year?”.

The answer may surprise you. Keep scrolling to find out.

With so much going on at the end of the year… Holiday parties and family gatherings. Living in a home on the market can be a pain in any season, and more so during the holidays. So, if you (or your real estate clients) are in no hurry to sell, it may make sense from a convenience standpoint to hold off until the festive season is past. On the other hand...

There are some good reasons why the holidays are actually a great time to sell a home.

The first of the year is a common time for new job starts, so the weeks leading up to that are a prime time for some house hunters. With the school break, families have an opportunity to relocate with minimal learning days lost. They may also have vacation days that expire at year-end, so this is their window to find a new home.

Yes - the recent mortgage rate increases have slowed some buyers down, but buyers who are still looking are serious buyers. These buyers are often from out of town and are more likely to have a relocation package or submit a cash offer. They are motivated buyers.

Is it OK to style with holiday decor in homes staged for sale?

Try to keep holiday decorations simple, minimal, and non-religious when a home is on the market. Think greenery and possibly a poinsettia. This is true only for showings. MLS photos are another story!!

Listing photos should not have any holiday hints visible.

This goes for any other season as well. When you have any type of holiday decor on display, this can give a clue about when photos were taken and put a visual time-stamp on those images. This tells a prospective buyer about how long the home has been on the market.

Let's put a dollar value on a Christmas tree in a house on the market.

A major factor in home value is the price per square foot. The average Christmas tree consumes about 15 square feet of floor space. Crazy, right? Let’s say the home is priced at $200/sq ft. That means that the tree is concealing $3000 in perceived value. source

All of our reindeer, Santas, and garlands make a home feel so cozy, but in real estate, 'cozy' equals 'small and cluttered'.