As a REALTOR® in the north and east Minneapolis/St Paul
area, I hear it all the time...Potential home sellers lamenting about how it is
too late in the year to sell their Minnesota
home. It’s late October now, so soon the snow will fly and no one will be
buying. “We missed the market this year so we will have to wait until spring to
sell our house now!”
My response is quite simple. “If you can list your home now,
you REALLY should.”
And the reasons are equally simple:
- Low Inventory
- Continued Demand
The Minneapolis/St Paul metro area has become a year round
market. Sure, more people do move in spring and summer but traditional sellers
have an opportunity to shine if they list their homes when there are mostly
distressed homes on the market. These very low interest rates and increasing
news reports about how home prices are edging up, have gotten buyers off the proverbial
fence and into the market. Home buyers are waiting for well maintained and well
priced homes to hit the market. This is an opportunity few home sellers will
take advantage of because they think people do not want to move in the winter. And
some people don’t want the inconvenience of showings during the holidays.
But in my experience, the buyers looking in the fall and winter months are very serious
about buying a home. Home buyers are tired of viewing bank-owned properties that
need work and have no disclosures. They are frustrated with short sale homes
that they will have to wait months for possession. Most buyers prefer to buy
from a traditional seller….and buyers do worry that prices and interest rates
could edge up in the spring. So home buyers are looking in October and will be
looking in November, December and January too. But a well prepared home seller
might not have to wait that long. In the past few weeks, homes that I have
listed received offers within days of hitting the market. Pricing and preparation were key to getting
the quick offers. These are not flukes either. I have seen many
well priced listings fly off the MLS in October.
Quick Staging Tips for Selling Your Home this Fall:
- Rake leaves and clean gutters—Unfortunately, this may need to be done daily if you are getting lots of showings. But buyers cannot assess the condition of the lawn, sidewalk and roof if it is covered with leaves.
- Heat up cinnamon sticks—Put a few cinnamon sticks in a pan on the stove or in a microwave dish with water just before a showing so it smells like an autumn festival!
- Turn on the gas fireplace—If you've got it, flaunt it! A crackling fire adds ambiance and makes a house feel like home!
- Pumpkins and mums—Accent the entry with a pumpkin, colorful mum or other fall décor to give seasonal curb appeal.
