Buying a home in December? Are you crazy?

Real estate wisdom has always been that things are wicked slow from Thanksgiving through New Year's. Buyers have a lot going on in their lives, and looking at homes bumps way down on the list unless a buyer really needs to move. We tend to warn our home sellers that any buyer looking at this time of year is extremely serious, so homes must be staged well for every showing.

Buyers can use this conventional wisdom in their favor, making this a great time of year to purchase a home.

Why?

So few buyers want to look right now. Home sellers are aware of this fact, and so they are more likely to work with an offer and negotiate than they might be at other times of year. If sellers get an offer in early or mid-December, they are highly aware of the fact that this will likely be the only offer they see for the next four to six weeks. This is another one or two mortgage payments or a delay in a seller's own relocation. Sellers do consider these extra costs as they negotiate.

If you can fit the time to look at homes into your schedule, give some thought to writing an offer in December. It can be just the edge you want in the negotiation process.