Holidays can lead to stronger Real Estate sales

I have written about it before, other would be real estate experts have done so, but for whatever reason the general population of real estate pro’s look at the holidays as wastelands and take the time off from their normal pursuits and business practices to wait for the end of the holiday season to get back in the saddle. This holiday syndrome or Christmas crisis has been around since before anyone can remember and it seems to have become common place in 99.9% of all Realtors and loan officers.

Remember the famous quote about “Going where the others aren’t ? that quote has always haunted me when I think about taking time off when the rest of the real estate world is sitting around stringing popcorn. I know I sound like a Scrooge but I have personally taken advantage of the down time most Real Estate agents take, and I would make more money by creating more quality Real Estate leads than any other time of the year. While the rest of the industry is sucking down eggnog the homebuyers that are out there shopping for Real Estate in November and December are three or four times more likely to convert from a real estate lead to an actual transaction.

Homebuyers that are willing to take time off of shopping at the mall are serious and these serious buyers find it hard to connect with agents that don’t reply to a request with “Lets start looking after the holidays” or “The seller isn’t in town” or whatever the excuse. A seller is willing to look at a contract on their home on Christmas day and ask the kids to be quiet so that they can read. A Seller is more motivated in December than any other month of the year. And a home buyer trying to close before the end of the year is motivated by taxes and turning over a new leaf and still in many cases providing their family with a new home rather than a gender neutral Easy Bake oven.

Don’t overlook the potential Real Estate leads generated in December and don’t shy away from taking a couple of steps toward getting them what they want for the holidays and enriching your own. In the worst case scenario you will wind up with a very healthy January.