I’ve met countless owners who hesitated to market their homes between Halloween and New Year’s Day, most of whom were under the impression that the holiday season is an off-peak time to sell. Unbeknownst to most sellers, outdated historical trends are responsible for the widespread belief that houses don’t sell in November and December, and in fact, several studies show that homes listed during these two months are more likely to sell (and in less time). November, in particular, has a number of advantages that make it a great month to sell a home.
Here are a few reasons why you’ll want to take advantage of the time you have between now and Thanksgiving:
Motivation
Many would-be sellers are under the impression that homes sell best in the Spring and Summer, due largely to the fact that parents prefer waiting until the Summer to move children in school. More than half of buyers aren’t married, however, so their decisions won’t necessarily be based on kid’s schedules. Chances are good that the potential buyers for your home have either waited through the busy season in hopes of a better deal or are facing their own time constraints. Either way, the increase in motivation will do wonders for cutting the traditional barriers to winter house-hunting, such as short days and holiday preparations.
Competition
Because most sellers view the Winter to be a bad time to sell, they often take their homes off the market. This shift in supply makes it easier to sell a home in that period to the audience that’s maneuvering to buy their new house in a short period of time, especially given that the remaining audience of buyers will feel the pressure to make an offer.
Taxes
Buyers looking for year-end tax breaks will often find themselves looking to purchase a home, as doing so will allow them to deduct home purchase costs (including points, interest and property taxes). Anyone that sells a home during the summer selling season might face capital gains tax on the deal, which would likely increase their motivation to buy in November (since closing on the purchase of another house within 180 days lets them avoid paying said capital gains tax).
It can be difficult to nail down the best time to sell a home. Sure, the Fall can be brisk and there’s often a lot of work involved in preparing for the holiday season. However, each season has its own challenges, and in my experience, there’s no better time to sell (or buy, for that matter) than now.
Source: Trulia