Merry Christmas! Buyers get Agressive, Sellers be Patient!

Merry Christmas & Happy Holidays from mine to yours! The Christmas Holidays is an excellent time to spend with family, exchange gifts with loved ones, feast on turkey with all the fixings, and head up to Whistler to shred the slopes, but what about Real Estate?

I have received a few inquiries from clients interested in listing this December, and I have told them all the same thing, wait until the 1st or second week of January 2011. I strongly believe the first week of a listing is a critical period. In the first week all Buyers who have been searching and waiting for a property like yours with come to your open houses and request showings to view the property. If you are listed at the right price and your home is staged and shows well, then often in this first week you will receive a very good offer or ideally, multiple offers and sell for over asking. Therefor, December, when Buyers focus on their Christmas lists and entertaining guests, is not a good time to list as your critical first few weeks are compromised and when January comes around Buyers tend to jump on the New Listings while yours may appear as a dead listing with people skipping or driving by it with the assumption it hasn't sold for a reason.

As for listings that haven't sold, I would say it is personal preference to take off the market for Christmas or not. There is a benefit to canceling and re-lisintg in January as it will appear like a fresh listing and catch more eyes, but you also risk missing out on a motivated Buyer over the Holiday Season. I would cancel on Christmas Eve and re-list on the first Monday of 2011.

The other side of the game is the Buyers. There are a couple of reasons why I believe December to be a great time to write offers. Often Sellers who are listed at this time are motivated for a variety of reasons, and the thought of getting the sale over with before Christmas and New Years is very attractive. Often Sellers may need to close before year end for financial reasons. Another factor is uncertainty of the market in the New Year as December is often slow and Sellers can feel pressured to sell fearing a downturn or a slowstart to 2011. The final reason is the less likelihood for competing offers. A Buyer has a lot of power in a negotiation until another Buyer enters into the picture. Buyers, like Sellers, are busy during the Holidays and often wait until January when their lives ate less hectic and when product will undoubtedly come on the market. If you are a qualified Buyer who sees something you like then December may be the time to get an extra discount in a non-competitive situation. If you don't see the right place, then by all means wait until January and in the meantime meet with your mortgage broker to get pre-approved so you can win you dream home if a multiple offer scenario unfolds.

For all you Vancouver Real Estate inquiries please contact me anytime at 604.562.0532 or write me at stu@stubell.com.

Happy New Year Vancouver! Lets make 2011 unforgettable!