Listing your house for sale in the run up to Christmas might not seem like the most obvious time, however, research by Rightmove shows that the festive season and New Year are peak times for website views.
According to their statistics, Rightmove attracted 1 million viewers to its website on Christmas Day last year, and the figures on Boxing Day were even more impressive with millions more logging on to look for their dream house.
In addition, the research shows the popularity in house hunting continued into the New Year with 3 million visitors flocking to the site once the Bank Holiday was over and a total of more than 110 million visited the site in January overall, proving the pre-Christmas period really is a good time for listing your home for sale.
There are a number of factors that make the festive period an excellent opportunity to list a new property, with the most popular being the fact that many people have time off over Christmas, giving them more opportunities to start looking for a new home and to do the necessary research. In addition, Christmas is also a good time for the property owner to start marking plans if they have decided they wish to move in the New Year.
The main advice for property owners looking to sell their home in the New Year is to start before Christmas and begin the preparations early, as they’ll certainly be plenty to think about. As well as looking at estate agents in Carshalton to handle the sale or researching the online options for listing a property, you will also have to get paperwork in order and arrange any assessments that are required by law, so you’ll need to start as early as possible.
One important thing you will need to do is obtain an energy performance certificate. In order to receive one of these, you will need to contact an accredited assessor, who will then determine what the energy rating of your house is. This is a legal requirement whether you are selling, renting or building a house.
Moreover, to prepare for your sale, you’ll also want to ensure your property is in pristine condition ready for those professional photos that need to be taken. If you have time to spare over Christmas, it is also a good idea to start cleaning up the clutter and tidy up your garden, as well as listing all of the other minor repairs that might be need doing; this will all add value to your home when it comes to both the valuation process and negotiating the sale price.
Sounds like a lot to do, doesn’t it? Well, selling a property can be one of the most stressful things you will do in your life, and doing it at Christmas time certainly doesn’t make it any easier. But, knowing the benefits that it brings to market at this time of year, it is definitely worth getting a professional to assist and guide you as much as possible.
Our friendly team works hard over the Christmas and New Year period to help people just like you. Whether it is getting your home listed on the right websites, help obtaining your energy performance certificate or a professional valuation request, we can help.
Call our team of estate agents today on 0208 773 2929 to find out more about our home selling process.
