How To Cope With The Housing Holiday Blues
Estate Agents throughout the land (at least those not on holiday) will finally be getting up to date with their filing, rearranging window displays and improving their ranking on Candy Crush. Yes, it’s August again.
The property market gets hit with the triple whammy of school holidays, buyers abroad and solicitors taking annual holidays meaning not only are there fewer new sales, but even those already sold are going to take longer due to a shortage of lawyers.
It is of course perfectly normal, it happens every year just as it does near Christmas, but (and I speak from experience) sitting in a hot agency office for 31 August days when the phone doesn’t ring isn’t a lot of fun.
Properties do still sell albeit at a slower and lower rate. There’s some good news for sellers. Fewer properties come on to the market in August meaning that although many buyers are away, they have less to choose from so you’re with a better chance.
There are also some things you can do to improve your chances further still;
- If you have a garden, August is a great time to get it looking good so the viewer can picture themselves there on a long, hot Summer day. However, things can look a bit brown and scorched so brighten it up with some pot plants or baskets
- If your home is near a good school make sure you let the agent and buyer know as many families are thinking about next year’s school at this time of year
- Think about a small price reduction to freshen up the details and it will be sent out to applicants again by the portals such as Zoopla
- If your home has been on the market for a while, get the agent back to change the photos – a Christmas Tree in the lounge in August is a dead give away!
- Get a board up. There will likely be new people in your area on holiday or visiting relatives – let them know they can buy your house!
If you aren’t lucky enough to sell in August don’t despair – September is one of the market’s busiest months. So with all these buyers on holiday, perhaps it’s a case of ‘if you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em!’
