Summer Real Estate

by Darrin DeRoches July 14 - 20, 2011

It is the time of the year to enjoy the cottage and take that well deserved vacation. So who is buying or selling right now? A prospective client called me last month to do a market analysis on their property since they want to sell and move to the country. They figured they would be ready in two weeks and let’s get it sold! Two weeks pass and I contact to arrange a time to list their property and I wait for the response. A week passes and the response is  “we cannot agree to sell right now, he is still fixing the attic, and we think we should talk after Labour Day.”     What might seem like an excuse, isn’t really. Who in their right mind wants to be working in the heat in the attic right now?  It is hard enough to get through the week without losing it. Once the weekend comes around, the last thing you want to do is work on the house.     The timing of selling a house can really affect the price.  If this particular property was ready to sell today we would have very little competition and I would believe we would sell before Labour Day. The home is located in a great family neighbourhood close to schools and I am sure there are families out there looking for a home they can move into before school starts. So we will wait to after Labour Day and the home will still sell, but it will have way more competition and may not reach its full value. It is just a missed opportunity.     Buyers who are looking for a property can start to see prices dropping in the coming weeks.  If a property has been on the market for a little while they have become “stale.”  These properties will not be getting too many showings and the sellers will start to wonder if they should be dropping the price.  Summer is a slow period in real estate and some buyers may have to sell and they will be more willing to drop the price to get the deal done.  So if you are considering on buying this year, now is the time to give a broker a call and look to see if there are deals to be made in your desired area.  A good agent can do some research and find that diamond in the rough.     Life gets in the way sometimes, but if you are looking to buy or sell this year, the next six to eight weeks can be a great opportunity. It may be tough to get all the things done to sell but it will be worth it.  If you are looking to buy, it is a good time to at least look to see if there are any deals out there right now – worst off you can educate yourself and be ready to buy when the time is right.   V      Darrin DeRoches is a local real estate and mortgage broker. He can be reached to answer questions, comments or stories about real estate experiences through this weekly column at mail@uniquerealty.ca.