Although Spring is known to be the best time to put your home on the market, it is not always a possibility. For some, Fall and Winter ’tis the season to be selling! Now that Summer has come to a close, we must alter our home selling strategy in order to sell your house fast while getting the most money possible during the fall and winter seasons. Here are a few tips to optimize your home selling experience:

1. Curb Appeal

Even though people tend to press pause on the maintenance of the exterior of their properties while embracing the fall and winter spirit of leaves scattered across the front yard, it is important to still mow your lawn, rake leaves up regularly, and keep your gutters clear. Instead of storing patio cushions, chairs, and umbrellas under the covered patio, make sure to neatly store them in a shed or garage so as not to cause the buyers a distraction from the beauty of your home. Keeping your front and back yards well maintained will boost your curb appeal and show buyers that your yard is easy to maintain.

2. Avoid Rainy Day Photos

From a marketing standpoint, it is particularly beneficial to present your home in the best light. With so much of our marketing done online in this day and age, great photos that capture the value of your home are essential to getting buyers through your front door. Unfortunately, with the rainy season ahead and leaves falling from your trees, it is important – if possible –  to schedule your photographer on a clear day while your landscape is looking green.

4. Work with Daylight Savings

As the days get shorter, there will be less time for buyers to view your home in complete daylight. Purchase extra floor and table lamps and install new lighting fixtures as needed in order to appeal to buyers.

5. Be Flexible

With families going back to school, holidays scattered throughout fall and winter months, obstacles in weather, and deadlines for the end of the year, it is crucial as a seller to be flexible with showing times, inspections, repairs, and the closing date. For many buyers, an inflexible closing date due to holidays, family or work obligations could be a deal breaker. With a fraction of buyers actively searching the market these months, you want every buyer who is interested and qualified to purchase your home to have a fair chance to negotiate these terms. Although there is a smaller buyer pool, these buyers are sometimes more motivated than spring and summer buyers due to these deadlines.

6. Embracing the Holidays

With the holidays approaching, there are a few things to consider while having your home on the market during these festive times. Try to limit your holiday décor so that buyers can better picture themselves in your home – you wouldn’t want the inflatable snowman on your roof to distract a buyer from the fact that you just had your roof replaced last year. Play up the holidays by showcasing the functionality of your fireplace, entertaining space, guest bedroom, and garage. Between Thanksgiving and New Years Day, buyer tours almost completely cease to occur. We sometimes recommend temporarily taking your home off the market until mid-January when buyers begin searching again… probably due to that New Year’s Resolution of buying a new home. Then, you can also focus on your family and friends during the holidays – leaving you commitment free to property tour schedules!

However, with each new year in a given city comes a new market. In your particular area, some of these rules may not apply. To ensure a successful home selling experience, it is absolutely essential to team up with a Realtor who knows your neighborhood well and can give you advice tailored for your needs. Contact a Realtor today to find out what your home is worth in this market.

Happy Fall! Go enjoy that Pumpkin Spice Latte and trip up to Apple Hill.

Christy Grellas

Christy@TheMurphyTeam.net