Holiday Listings

Each year, about this time, Realtors across the country hear those same three little words “…after the Holidays”. The real estate market tends to go into an economic hibernation for a couple of months as activity slows down. Our focus shifts from seeking listings and promoting sales activities to turkey and hanging out with the family. We spend more time in the car trying to GET to the mall, than we spend in the mall itself, and those lights aren’t going to hang themselves. We plan our cross-country trips, buy gifts for our loved ones, and make sure that we are stocked up on eggnog. Mmmm, eggnog!

Years ago, I would send out a postcard to my farm area entitled “8 Reasons to List during the  The intent was not only to promote myself and the services I could provide, but also to create a shift in the mind of the seller who had already decided to put off listing until the New Year. I would also send the little card to my current listings who I knew might expire during this period. I will share a few of those ideas with you.

Holidays”.

First, the listed home is already looking pretty! No need to “tidy up” before company comes over or make the place look festive, or bake wonderful smelling cookies in the oven to make it all seem like home. It already does. The owners did you staging for you! As professional marketers, our intent is to allow the would-be buyers see themselves living there. What better family time to make them think of than the Holidays?   There’s also no need to cut the grass just before a showing appointment.

Another good consideration is the Holiday schedule itself. Many times, manufacturing plants and other businesses will completely shut down for a couple of weeks.  This means those “by confirmed appointment” sellers are now much more flexible, and easier to reach by phone. Most offices in the Middle Tennessee area have some sort of appointment system that a client could simply block out important family days and sub-Holidays like New Years Eve. Buyers are in the same boat, so there is not a need to wait until the weekend to set appointments.

In my first few years in the business, I made myself available to anyone and everyone who want to buy or sell. Without fail, I always picked up new clients at this time because everyone else had their phones turned off. Consistently, I heard stories of how people must have called a dozen agents, but no one picked up or returned their call. Well, I did, and I got new clients out of it, too. Many of them were people relocating to the area in a few weeks or months, and had this time to look for properties. I always did business!

Yes, there are a lot of points to consider during the Holiday season, but your mental default should not be that of “Nobody wants to buy or sell during the Holidays”.  By working smart and being available, you just might be able to put a nice little bow on the end of your business year.  

BlaineSpeaks@gmail.com