The holiday season is a boon for consumer sales and family time, but in Real Estate, it’s the slowest time of year. According to the National Association of Realtors (NAR), the seasonal trends of Real Estate are that the spring accelerates toward the peak summer months while the fall begins to slow, and the slowest months are the wintertime coinciding with the holidays.
Why does winter buying and selling of Real Estate trend down? The slowing trend of winter only makes sense if one thinks about it. Nobody wants to move when it’s cold, the weather is poor, and people plan to travel or host family and friends. Also, people tend to overextend themselves by purchasing gifts and hosting parties during the holiday months, impacting credit and liquidity.
Even with that trend, there is still an active Real Estate market, and the educated buyer and seller can even see some favorable deals during those months.
With fewer homes on the market available, the scarcity can create a minor seller’s market where potential buyers compete with one another for the same property driving up the price and other benefits for the seller.
Knowing that historical trend, the McRight/Wagner building in Venice was recently put up on the market. Blue McWright built the two-unit home and office for his office and living space with his spouse and is reported to be priced at $4 million.
Regardless of whether you have a multi-million dollar residence or if you have a detached single-family home, knowing how to prepare your home for a potential move is essential.
Moving out is more than just packing your things. It involves a whole slew of things to consider, from changing your mailing address to updating your utility company, among others.
Understanding the best practices before moving from your current residence, you need to consider the following:
Mail: Change your mailing address first. You need to notify your post office of your move and give a forwarding address. This step is crucial if you have bills, delivery, or payments you expect by mail.
Utilities: Notifying your utility companies is the second thing you should do before you move. Notifying them ahead of your move will help you avoid any unnecessary overages, fees, and installation costs for your new residence to prevent any lapses of services.
Movers: Scheduling a moving company well before you’re moving out and packed is crucial. By scheduling ahead of time, you avoid the unnecessary scramble for moving services and have to overpay for the move.
Inspection: If you’re selling your home, or leaving a rental, schedule an inspection for the walkthrough. Some of the things you should focus on before any inspection takes place (and after you have the place emptied) are to clean every room, repair any minor dings, cover holes from nails and screws, add light paint (if necessary), and get all your crawlspaces and attics cleaned out. In addition, you may want to consider hiring a professional pest removal specialist to take care of any and all rodent clean up services that you may have.
Prioritize: Take a moment and prioritize your rooms that need to be packed. The last thing you want to do is pack your bedroom first and end up sleeping on the floor. Instead, focus on the least utilized areas such as a living room, and do some others in part, such as packing portions of your kitchen. Prioritizing your packing order will help you get all the rooms and items prepared for the move without putting you into too much discomfort.
An added benefit to prioritizing your packing is that you’ll have more time to spend on packing without scrambling at the end. Unless you have time off from work and other life activities, you’ll be balancing your packing with your regular life, so creating a packing plan, especially if you’re moving during the holiday season.
Keep ahead of schedule with your moving and Real Estate needs, especially during the busy holiday rush. Even though the market may slow down during the winter months, your time will be even more compromised with parties, dinners, and moving. Create a plan so that you can effectively prepare and balance life, work, and moving at the same time.
