Conventional wisdom dictates that you sell your home during the Spring, and keep your house off the market in the Winter; everybody is nestled in the warmest onesie, and nobody is looking to buy- that’s what conventional wisdom tells us. Conventional wisdom also tells us that if we put our homes on the market in the Winter, we should expect serious buyers only but not a bidding war. The thing about conventional wisdom, is it is borne from conventional times; we’re not pushing the envelope by saying that 2020 has been anything but conventional, no matter how you measure it. This article will look at what conventional wisdom says about selling in the winter, and conclude by pointing out that 2020 has made Winter selling extremely competitive… you can bet the gifts under your tree that this winter is a great time to sell.
Traditionally, there are less homes on the market in the winter because most people follow conventional wisdom (e.g., sell in the Springtime); this includes buyers and sellers alike. As such, low inventory is really a boon for the Seller – only serious buyers are looking for homes in the winter, and there’s only a handful of homes with sellers “crazy” enough to sell during the winter. The net result is pairing a serious buyer with a serious seller, and sparks fly. Of course, in normal times, people are not rushing to buy your home – “there will be no bidding wars during the holiday season” the conventional truth-sayers say.
However, the conventional truth-sayers can say whatever they want, 2020 is not traditional and it is not conventional. There has been low-inventory the entire year, and every buyer is serious – they have put off buying during the pandemic and are dead set on getting into a new home. As we are sure you can see, this means that the winter is actually a great time to list your home this year. Low inventory, paired with the ever dropping interest rates, has the perfect scenario for sellers, leading to bidding wars for the majority homes currently being listed.
At the Chernov Team we understand that knowledge is power, and knowledge of a myriad of factors that give us insight into the reality of today’s housing market is powerful knowledge indeed. At the Chernov Team we know whoever comes to the table most prepared leaves with the most, and the Chernov team always leaves the table with the most.