East Bay Real Estate: 2009 Fourth Quarter Can = BIG Results!

November 22, 2009 by Jim Walberg · Leave a Comment

Jim Walberg - East Bay Real Estate For the past 20+ years Jim Walberg has followed the advice of his mentor given him in 1989, “Why not have the fourth quarter be your BIGGEST real estate sales quarter each year?” That advice was given without me understanding that it was contrary to the belief of most Realtors in our region. If you listen to the conversations that typically happen with Realtors during this time of year, you will discover the talk is about how slow the market is. My experience is that those conversations are based on that fact Realtors would like to take more time off during the fourth quarter for the many holidays packed into these three months as opposed to it actually being a true statement. The fourth quarter has been our BIGGEST quarter over a half of the time the past 20+ years!

The way the fourth quarter can be the number one quarter in real estate sales for the year takes detailed planning and a commitment to serving clients at an extremely focused level all through October, November and December. An example of our detailed planning is we allocate about 40% of our marketing resources between August 15^th and November 15^th. We “touch” our clients and database 15 or more times during these twelve weeks. Also, we council our Buyers and Sellers not to participate in the following myths.

MYTH: Listing inventory typically gets to it’s lowest levels of the year because Sellers have been told the market slows down and why not take their homes off the market during the Holidays.
MYTH: Buyers are not very interested in purchasing homes during the fourth quarter because there is so many activities happening that would not make a move convenient during this time of the year.

Actually, here are the facts as to why the fourth quarter is the best time to Buy or Sell a home:

FACT: Because listing inventories are at their lowest levels of the year from October through December, the Sellers who have their homes on the market have much less competition from which Buyers are able to select their home purchases. Homes on the market during the fourth will receive more showings from very serious Buyers than any other quarter.
FACT: Buyers DO purchase homes during the fourth quarter of the year. Here are the four reasons why. 1) The make a purchase in October to have Thanksgiving in their new home. 2) They purchase a home in November so they are able to spend Christmas in their new home. 3) They make their home purchase in November and December in order to close escrow before the end of the year so they can enjoy the tax benefits of home ownership in this calendar year. 4) The Buyer is moving into the area and needs to make a home purchase by the end of the year so they can register their kids in schools for the second semester.

So, Sellers who have their homes on the market during the fourth quarter will have showings from very serious Buyers. The homes on the market during the last three months of the year are typically priced right at current market levels as opposed to homes that are on the market with prices that are in the category of “pretend pricing” because the Seller is hoping market conditions will change in the next few months so why would it matter if their home is over priced. The Buyers and Sellers who are actively in the market during the fourth quarter will get results. The Realtors who are with them in the market will greatly benefit from the number of homes that close escrow by the end of the year. We just put four more homes into escrow in the past three days. It doesn’t feel as if the market is slow for us. CLICK HERE if you would like more information as to how we can serve your real estate needs. Enjoy your week.