Inventory of homes for sale might be lower, but so is your competition. Find out why you might want to buy a home during the winter.
The holiday season can seem to go by at warp speed with all the shopping, traveling, baking, and gift wrapping that goes on … in addition to everyday life. So selling or buying a home probably isn’t at the top of your (and most people’s) to-do list. That means low inventory but also mild competition, which presents an opportunity for the savvy buyer in cold-weather markets like 12 South and Donelson. Here are several tips on saving money!
Negotiating Confidently
When you know you’ve got the upper hand in a deal, you should welcome the negotiation process. And during the winter, buyers typically have the upper hand. Given the luxury of choosing any time of year to sell, most sellers probably wouldn’t pick wintertime. So if someone is listing their home during winter, they probably need to sell it quickly, or their home has been sitting on the market for a while, and the seller is probably more than ready to negotiate.
Brave the Snow for the Best Homes
Many buyers don’t want to trudge through the snow to find their dream house. Plus, it’s difficult to see a home’s curb appeal with snow hiding everything. Savvy buyers can look past dirty snow heaps and picture instead spring daffodils. You can bet the sellers are getting pretty tired of shoveling snow and paying high heating bills for a house they no trying hard to sell.
Negotiate Price Carefully
You might be calling the shots as a buyer of winter realty, but that doesn’t mean all sellers are willing to just roll over. Offer a relatively low, but not a lowball, price. What’s the difference? A low offer might be 90% of the home’s price, but a lowball offer would be downright insulting. Even a small difference in price can mean significant savings for buyers in the long run. Another option: ask for perks such as furniture or closing perks.
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