Holiday Tips for Homeowners & Sellers

Sunday, November 6, 2011 Buyers are buying homes during the holidays! The calendar says November and that the holidays are here again the first snow fall may be blowing in soon you can never tell with our weather here. So if your home is currently on the market and has yet to sell or if you have just gotten orders out of the country what do you do? Rent or List? Here are some friendly tips from your community advisor.....Jamie At first inclination most sellers opt to withdraw their home from the market believing that the preoccupation with the holiday season puts few buyers in the market. While there is a grain of truth to this, sellers can be ignoring another more important situation: Any buyer looking at houses during the holidays will be VERY serious buyers. There are not many tire-kickers running around with a REALTOR® when there are dinners to plan, cookies to bake, and gifts to wrap. November, December and January showings are an opportunity for a traditional seller. Most homes that buyers visit at this time of the year are vacant. A buyer’s choices are down to model homes, empty relocation properties and foreclosures. A welcome home filled with the colorful sights, delightful sounds and wonderful aromas of the season, give a unique opportunity for those wanting to sell. Tips for Showing & Selling During the Holidays: 1.Decorate! Tastefully of course. This might not be the year that you do the Griswold display of lights as in National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, but a decorated tree, candles and wreaths can add a special touch. 2.Bake and leave out Christmas Cookies. Why should Santa have all of the extra calories? 3.Make sure the fireplace is burning bright, warm and welcoming! 4.Play holiday music. Leave out the barking version of Jingle Bells and go for instrumentals or uniquely Washington D.C. and the surrounding area. 5.Shovel and salt the driveway if necessary. No one wants to spend the holidays in the emergency room with a twisted ankle. 6.Turn the heat up for showings…Let them know the furnace really works. It is such a treat after visiting vacant foreclosed homes! 7.Leave the front light on! Don’t forget it is dark out during those early evening showings. Make certain buyers and their agents are able to see their way to your front door and be able to open the lockbox.