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Why is July 1st a significant day for the real estate market? Because it is exactly 45 days prior to kids going back to school again. So, what? In other words, anybody with a family with children who need to start school in August needs to close escrow and either sell or buy a house (or both) by then. Typically, what happens this time of the year is a flurry of activity during July and August. However, after August, the market starts to cool very quickly. By October and November, we see that the decline in sales occurs even more rapidly and it feels like, “Who turned the lights out?”

Another reason why July 1st is an important date for sellers is because, depending on the competition, your motivation to sell your house can directly affect your “bottom line” (i.e. how much you will net from selling the home). Given how long your house has been on the market for sale, or whether you are just coming on the market, you have to price your house aggressively (lower than the competition) in order to sell it within the next 45-60 days. If you are one of those sellers who has been on the market longer than 45 days and has had no offers, now is the time to rethink your strategy. The dream price that you have been asking has turned out that the highest bidder for your property is you.

What should you do as a seller? If you are just coming on the market, you need to call me for a professional 30-minutes consultation at no charge. I will provide you with a list of points that you need to consider given the current market situation. If you have been on the market with another real estate agent, it is the time for a reality check. My advice, pull up all of the houses for sale in your category – your competition. Forget about the competition currently in escrow and the price they are in escrow for, and lower your asking price to a number that makes your house far more desirable than any of your competitors.

For buyers, July 1st  is significant because, the same as for sellers, to get the kids in school, start a new job close to the new location, and get settled by then, this is the time to re-evaluate your position. If you have been trying to buy a house within the last 45 days, you, too, need a reality check. In most cases, what you can afford or are willing to spend and what you want to buy, does not exist.

You need to either be willing to spend more money or lower your expectations. In the next 45-60 days, most of the really good-priced houses are going to get sold. That is why during October, when the market has slowed down, the market is still full of fantasyland buyers and sellers. Those people, who are truly motivated to buy or sell by the end of the year, will do so in the last week of October and the first two weeks of November (the holiday season is coming). In December, we still have some activity, but the volume of sales usually drops drastically by about 50%. This is the time to think about family and generating new year’s’ resolutions, not to track the real estate market.  January 1st is always a start of a new year.

So, if you are thinking about real estate and are in the position of a seller or buyer, you are looking for the right person to give you the best advice based on experience and paying attention to the market, call me: James Harvey, (714)-612-9535. My advice could save your thousands!