When you’ve been in real estate as long as I have, you notice seasonal patterns—and as much as you’ve heard about spring being the hottest season for home sales, you can actually sell your home any time of the year if you make some adjustments to your staging and strategy. There are pros and cons to selling in each season, so here are my tips:
Winter
People often take their homes off the market in winter, thinking they won’t sell. This is actually a good thing for those who list in the winter because the general inventory is lower, even when people still need to buy homes. The key is making sure your home stands out amongst the others that are on the market. Play up the warm touches in your home, keep the drive and walkways cleared and turn the lights on, inside and out. Click here for more winter home staging tips.
Spring
More homes are going to be on the market, so you have to make yours catches the eyes of potential home buyers (in a good way). Excise all of the clutter, take care of some of those minor home improvement projects that can add value and spring clean like crazy! Remember to spruce up the yard with bright pops of spring color and tout your home’s proximity to all the cool things to do in Philly in the spring.
Summer
People get busy in the summer, so oddly, the housing market sometimes gets a tad cool. If you’re selling in the summer, make sure your air conditioning and ceiling fans are in tip-top shape so that your home stays pleasant. But don’t shutter the windows or leave the lights off; bright spaces always attract more buyers than dark ones, even in the summer. Keep the yard lush and stage any patio or backyard spaces to highlight the gracious outdoor living aspects of your home.
Fall
This is actually a nice time to sell a home; there’s usually a slight uptick in action from the summer a little before the holidays. Light up your home, inside and out. Rake up all the leaves, trim and tidy the yard and always keep clutter at bay. Focus on tasteful fall decorations instead of the mega haunted house extravaganza. Visit my last blog for more fall real estate staging tips!
If you need to sell your home any time of the year, give me a call and I can help you accentuate your home for whatever season it is!