The holidays are a busy—and at times, stressful—time of year. Who wants to add buying a home into the mix? Actually, you might want to. Buying a home during the holiday season can be a smart and financially savvy decision.
Here are five reasons to buy a home during the holidays.
Competition is at a minimum
One of the biggest perks to buying a home during the holiday season is that you’re likely not going to run up against too much competition. People are busy during the holidays, which means that more often than not, buyers opt to postpone their search until the spring.
For you, this is terrific! It means you’ll have plenty of time to explore homes, ponder the pros and cons, and determine a competitive-but-comfortable offer on that home you love.
Sellers are motivated
There are primarily two types of sellers during the holiday season: those who have to sell (e.g., moving for work) and those left over from summer or fall. Both types are usually pretty eager to make a deal. While lowball offers usually aren’t recommended, you might be able to still get some pretty favorable closing terms.
A flexible buyer working with eager sellers is the recipe for a good deal! A seller looking to close quickly might be receptive to anything from a price reduction to paying closing costs, to including appliances, furnishings, and more.
Mortgage rates are good
The end of 2018 saw rising mortgage rates climbing quickly towards 5%. Experts anticipated a continued climb going into 2019, but there was a surprise twist, and rates actually fell… and fell, and fell! Current rates for a 30-year fixed-rate are sitting right around 3.7%, which is significantly lower than the predicted 5%+.
For you as a buyer, this means that a $200,000 home will literally cost you less today than it would have one year ago. It means that buying now and locking in that low interest rate will save you big money versus buying when rates climb again come spring.
You’ll get a realistic picture
Buying a home during spring or summer, you see the yard in bloom, feel a pleasant breeze drifting through the open windows… but during the winter, you might notice that those closed windows are still letting in a breeze or that the 70-year old furnace kicks up quite a bit of noise (and probably isn’t very efficient).
Seeing a home at its worst doesn’t seem like a pro, but getting a realistic picture of how a home holds up during the worst conditions can help you determine whether a home is a sound purchase… or you’re better walking away from a big maintenance project.
Your agent will have more time
You might be busy come holiday season, but with the slowdown in the real estate market, odds are, your real estate agent won’t be! During spring and summer, your agent is likely juggling more than a small handful of clients, rushing from showing to inspection to closing, back to showing, all in one day.
Don’t want to be dumped halfway through your closing so your agent can run to an inspection? Buy during the off-season!
Thinking of Buying a Home in Baltimore?
Are you thinking of buying a home in the Baltimore area this holiday season? I’d love to help! Give me a call to find out more about how I can help you find the perfect home in just the right location.