The million dollar question is and has always been "when do I put my home up for
sale?"
This is of course after you have made up your mind that you definitely want to
sell your property.
Even though there are many views as to the best time, the question remains, is
there really "a best time?" or is there a month or months in the year when it is
more advisable to put your property on the market.
The answer is, it depends on several factors and realistically the factors that
we will examine will produce different result depending on where your property
is situated but since we are mostly concerned with Caribbean real estate we will
mostly concern ourselves with the factors that affect real estate sale in the
Caribbean.
As we examine the factors that affect market
activity at different times of the year in the Caribbean , keep in mind that some of these
factors are in no way predictable, economic factors, natural disasters and area
differences being on the top list. On the other hand there are some factors
that are consistent.
One very strong factor that is very important to keep in mind is the period of
the year and the holidays that occur during those specific periods, for instance
the fourth quarter of the year ( this of course depends on where you live) is
cramped with several holidays and because of the several holidays enveloped in
it, buyers' priorities are often shifted towards other focuses like
celebrations, vacations, family activities thereby pushing down house purchases
to the bottom of the list.
Corporations, Businesses and entrepreneurs are more concerned with end
of year financial responsibilities and deadlines than anything else. Finally in
the Caribbean people are spending more times indoors with their family
especially with the kids all home from their semester break and so are less
enthusiastic about going out to show property.
As the wheel of the new begins to grind and the first quarter is ushered in
people return with new and intensified goals and many are ready to achieve what
they did not achieve in the previous year, also many leases are due during this
time often causing first time home buyer to reconsider their housing situation
and begin to search often quietly for affordable homes to purchase, they scan
the papers occasionally, ask friends and look out even though not in a very
aggressive manner.
You notice a lot more of drive-by potential buyers ( buyers simply driving
through neighborhoods to see houses that have the "for sale" signs on them)
there are a lot more new families- just married couples and soon to be mothers
whose husband want a home for their soon coming child. There are also families
that have grown bigger and are looking for bigger spaces.
Carnival in the Caribbean is another factor that should be put into
consideration, across the Caribbean carnival is held in different parts of the
Caribbean at different times of the year so one has to be sure when it is held
in the island where their property is situated and generally know that during
these times attention is mostly focused towards the Carnival and even those who
don't participate in it are affected by it.
At the beginning of the second quarter hurricane seasons strolls in and of
course has everyone holding on to their money, people are generally in a
watching and waiting mood so this is not a good time to expect buyers to come
calling at your door to see your property. People are at this time following the
news and monitoring the hurricane path if any to see where it is headed, if
their island is in the clear they are happy and return to their spending mood
else they remain in the watching and waiting mood until the season is clear.
Also some islands have more tourist influx during certain periods of the year
than others while others have tourists all year round and so if your target is
foreigners you are better of listing your property during when the tourism
season is in its full swing, if this is not your case or if you dont care whom
you sell to then then this factor is not important to you.
So far the three main factor as far as the Caribbean is concerned that one
should consider as they consider putting up their property for sale can be
rolled in one and that is what time of the year is it, because this determines
if it is Hurricane, Christmas, Carnival or Tourism season but by far the most
important is the Hurricane season.
In conclusion, the best time therefore to list your property for sale in the
caribbean we is before or after the hurricane season, all other factors you have
to weigh yourself and factor in accordingly. Please do review the most common
mistakes made by sellers below.
<b><center>Home Seller Mistakes:</center></b>
Your asking price should be based on the true value of your property not
on needs or emotions. Avoid trying to get back what you paid for the
property or what you have invested even though this can be tempting as this can
be a very regrettable move that can leave your property on the market longer
than it should be and hence eventually yielding you less money than it should
instead contact a professional Real Estate Agent who can assist you in
evaluating and pricing your home correctly.
Prepare your home to be seen.
Before showing your home make sure that it is in great shape or be prepared to
lose money because statistics has shown that for every $100 worth of repairs
that should or could have been done by the home owner, the potential buyer will
deduct between $300-$500 from their offer-don't forget that while you are trying
to make money the buyer is trying to save money and get the best deal that they
could so they will looking out for any reason to reduce the buy price. Also
first impressions are the most important. so thoroughly clean and prepare your
home before putting it on the market to get the best price for it.
Take the first offer into serious consideration or at least pretend to.
Yes, once your house is up for sale offers will begin to come and most sellers
are misled to believe at this point that the first offer made mightn't be the
best and tend to want to wait for a much better offer. While there is a
possibility of a higher better offer, the longer the property stays in the
market the less likely the possibility of getting a better price for it. often
and most times too late the first offer that was once rejected turns out to be
the best offer, so once the first offer is within an acceptable range consider
it.
Don't choose the wrong agent and don't choose an agent for the wrong
reasons.
Don't choose an agent that is not reputable simply because he tells you every
thing that he knows you want to hear bout your home and don't list with an agent
because he/she is your friend instead try to list your home with the agent or
company with the best marketing plan and track record to sell your home.
Don't ignore "small" legal points.
This is really important, when it comes to signing that contract that transfers
the ownership of your house or property to someone else, it is imperative that
you read between the lines as carefully and as many times as possible, better
yet and even more advisable is that you contact and work with a knowledgeable
professional who understands the "ins and outs" of your Real Estate transaction.