What to Expect from the Sacramento Winter Home Selling Season

Downtown Sacramento is often a busy market in the winter home selling season.

Coming soon to Trulia is an article about what to expect from the Sacramento winter home selling season. Part of it will probably include comments from Yours Truly. To round out opposing or supporting views, other agents will undoubtedly chime in as well. I have very specific views, developed from decades in the real estate business. Most people, I’d venture to guess, never think outside of themselves, in particular, many agents share this guilt. If you ask a Sacramento Realtor whether a seller should sell in winter, just about every single agent will tell you YES. Why? Because when the home sells, they get paid.

I say for some sellers the Sacramento winter home selling season is not the best time to sell, and for others it most certainly is.  Consider the two extremes: the remodeled house and the non-updated home. These are typically at opposite ends of the spectrum. One is a buyer’s dream home, featuring every bell and whistle imaginable, over which buyers drool. The other is your typical non-exciting home with oak cabinets, white tiled counters, carpeting, white appliances, gold-toned fixtures and faucets: the stuff buyers want to rip out and redo except they have no energy, no vision and no money.

Usually, during the Sacramento winter home selling season, inventory increases and demand decreases, and days on market go up. But homes still sell.

Depending on the situation, it might make more sense for the seller of the remodeled home to wait until spring to sell. That’s because there will be more buyers in the marketplace in the spring. More buyers increase odds of multiple offers and buyers fighting over the house, which results in higher prices. However, if that seller also needs to buy, prices are likely to be higher in the spring. But there will also be more options, so that trade-off might make it worth it regardless to wait. Who really cares if it costs a few dollars more to buy a home you really want versus having to settle for what’s available?

On the other hand, a seller of a somewhat unappealing property, a home without any upgrades, that seller might consider putting her home on the market during the Sacramento winter home selling season. That’s because there will be reduced competition, fewer homes for sale during the winter than in spring. Because in the spring, this type of home will be one of 50 or more. But in the winter, the numbers reduce, so it could rank in the top 5 homes. One in 50 means your home will fall off the radar as buyers tend to gravitate toward the updated homes. But one in 5 increases your odds of selling.

Interest rates? Still relatively low, under 4.375%. Economists expect a rise in interest rates at some point over the next few years, along with more stable prices. Whether this is a good time for selling a Sacramento home during the winter depends on your personal objectives and goals. Some sellers absolutely need to sell in the winter and some buyers absolutely need to buy in the winter. Unlike states where it snows, causing dormant markets, Sacramento is a year-round real estate business. To discuss further, call top Sacramento Realtor Elizabeth Weintraub at 916.233.6759.