This is a question sellers ask themselves and their realtors every year. Is it a waste of time and effort for my home to be on the market during the winter months?
Here are some reasons to withdraw your home from the market during the winter and to wait for the spring to put your home back on the market:
1. If you aren’t motivated to sell your home. “you don’t need to sell your home”.
You would be just as happy living where you are if at the end of the day your home doesn't sell. If that is the case,you should tell your realtor so he/she doesn't continue to pump money and energy into selling a home you don't want to move out of.
Maybe you haven't identified your new home or if you have,your purchase is not contingent on selling your current home. Or perhaps you can't get the asking price on your, but you don't need to sell because you are in financial position to continue paying your current mortgage.
2. If you are covering the mortgage with your salary and/or if you have rental income and you haven’t received any reasonable offers.
3. If buyers aren’t coming in because the weather is too bad for them to go out house hunting. It is hard to gauge this and it is probably more of an individual’s habits. There hasn’t been much traffic on your home and it could be (1) weather, (2) price, (3) property condition,(4) other.
4. While your home is off the market, you focus on home improvements,curb appeal and market activity so your home will look better and be positioned better when it goes back on the market.
5. You don’t have to worry about buyers tracking snow, rain and dirt into your home during the winter, although it can rain any time and you for snow you would be shoveling for yourself anyway.
6. Because it gets dark outside earlier in the winter there is less opportunity for buyers to look at homes and so hopefully more buyers will come out after the clock changes and the sun sets later.
Reasons to keep your home on the market during the winter and wait for the spring to put your home back on the market.
1. The spring market is upon us as we speak. There is also increased market activity with the $8000 first time home buyer tax credit being extended and the $6500 repeat buyer tax credit. Buyers trying to take advantage of the $8000 first time tax credit and/or the $6500 repeat buyer tax credit (where you need a contract by the end of April 2010 and need to settle by the end of June 201) may buy other homes that are on the market. You may lose opportunities with serious buyers.
If your home isn't attracting these buyers,then you should look at ways to make your home more appealing in appearance and price.
2. Other home owners have given up/may be giving up on selling their homes during the winter, withdraw their homes from the market, which results in less competition-less houses on the market. You could be one of the homes people notice more when other homes go off the market.
3. There are no assurances that the market will be better than it was in the winter. “Real estate forecastors” are mixed on whether the market will be better, the same or worse. The proof is in the pudding.
4. You are unable to cover your mortgage. If you take your home off of the market, you will continue to lose money each month,falling further behind. Taking your home off the market doesn't eliminate this issue. It tells buyers to look elsewhere.
5. January is a month that many people start jobs and if they are either renting locally or moving from out of town, they may consider buying. People start jobs at different points during the year and people's situations change. People start jobs throughout the year in Metro DC. There could even be buyers renting month to month waiting to find a home.I've had a buyers renting month to month and they just had to give notice to their landlords when we found their home.
6. You never know if one person may randomly during any time your home is on the market fall in love with your house and make an offer.
7. Interest rates are still historically low. If interest rates go up while your home is on the market, then buyers will be able to “buy less house” and may not be able to afford your house.
8. If your home is not on the market and your buying a new home depends on the sale of your current home, then you won’t be in position to buy and have to hope interest rates don’t change much if not get better.
9. Even if your home is off the market for a several months, many agents and buyers will probably remember your home from the first time around and no that you tried to sell your house before. People can even look on the internet for history of homes, for when they sold, when the owner tried to sell and so forth. So, if you are withdrawing your home instead of lowering your asking price and in hopes that people will forget that you tried to sell your house before, you probably won’t accomplish that goal. If your home is off the market for less than 90 days, when it comes back on the market, buyers will see in MLS the total of numbers of days you have been trying to sell your home from the first day I put your home on the market in October.
10. What if real estate prices have fallen while your home was not on the market? You would have to price your home even lower than you considered lowering it in order to be in line with other homes that sold during that time or dropped in price during that time.
The only reasons I see to take your home off the market are if:
1. You have changed your mind about selling.
2. If you want to withdraw your house from the market while working on home improvements like painting, curb appeal and to finish packing and moving your goods out of the house.
3. I think to withdraw your house from the market just for the purpose of withdrawing and planning to go back on the market in several weeks without doing anything to your house in terms of home imrprovments and adjusting the price doesn't accomplish anything. You could lose potential buyers who are looking now.
Adam
adambashein@mris.com
www.basheinhomes.info
301-943-4370
Adam Bashein
Licensed in MD & DC
Weichert Realtors
7821 Tuckerman Lane
Potomac,MD 20854
301-718-4100 ext. 132
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