Real Estate: Tips for Buying or Selling this Winter

By Matthew Trudel

Buying or Selling during the winter is not impossible, but it can be a little more challenging.  A large majority of people tend to avoid looking to purchase a home during the holidays.  So, if you are thinking of selling and putting your house on the market right now, this means you may have a smaller pool of buyers to work with.

On the other hand, if you are looking to buy a house right now, this might mean you have less competition with fewer buyers out shopping.  Either way, there are several other things that both buyers and sellers should be aware of and take into consideration if they are going to move forward right now.

Buying a house in the winter when there is two feet of snow everywhere can present several challenges and concerns.  One is that it is pretty hard to complete exterior inspections when there is snow all around the house and foundation.  Also, if the roof is covered in ice and snow then is pretty much impossible to inspect the shingles and determine the life expectancy of them. 

Another issue is being able to see the yard, landscaping, and condition of the lawn when it is covered with snow.  There are some positive aspects to looking at homes during the snowy winter months.

One thing you will be able to see about a home when we have a lot of snow is how easy or hard the snow removal process might be.  For example, is there adequate room to plow or shovel the snow?  You will likely be able to tell where there might be issues with ice dams on the roof.  The steepness and ice build up on the driveway is another potential issue you can identify.  Does the driveway get a lot of sun light which might help melt any ice build-up on the driveway?

Selling a house during the cold snowy months of January or February has its own set of challenges and can be a lot of work.  Keeping all the walkways and driveways cleared of ice and snow is just the beginning.  Keeping a path cleared around the house so buyers can get around the house easily can be very time consuming.  Hopefully you took some nice pictures over the summer of the landscaping and yard so buyers can see what it looks like in the warmer months.  Unless of course your lawn doesn’t look so good then it being covered in snow might be a positive thing.  Keeping your house clean is a little harder when you have buyers coming in with snowy or slush covered boots. 

You will also want to keep the heat close to 70 degrees or a little higher for showings.  A warm home sells a lot better than a cold house does.

There are some positives for selling your house this time of year.  There are fewer homes on the market which means you have less competition on the selling side.  There are fewer homes on the market because most people don’t like moving in January or February when you have to deal with snow, ice, and bitter cold weather. 

On the upside, this means the buyers who are out there looking at homes are serious buyers. 

So, whether you are a buyer or a seller and think you want to get in the game now, make sure you find yourself a REALTOR to work with and assist you in the process - someone with experience and knowledge of the area who has the time to devote themselves to whatever your real estate goals might be.  Remember that interest rates are still at all time lows, so buyers have more purchasing power which results in higher selling prices.  <

This article was written by Matthew Trudel, the Owner of Five Star Realty in Windham. Call him at 207-939-6971.