As we swing into fall, many people feel it's too late to get their properties on the market and decide to wait it out till the following year. So what are they missing out on?
Most people tend to look at the real estate market as being seasonally influenced. Decades ago, especially in Quebec, the prime moving date was that big July 1st exodus and relocation of a wide populace finding new dwellings as their leases were to term. This caused what was widely known as the “first time” buyer market, where new buyers who were previously tenants decided to purchase their first house. Given that the law required them to notify their landlord prior to April 1st (3 month notice), they were actively looking to secure a deal before that date, which meant they had to start their shopping process early in the new year.
As this first time buyer market sprung into action, it usually caused a domino effect onto the “upgrade” market which were those sellers that needed more space for their growing family who hence bequeath their homes to these buying rookies. The upgraders would then buy from the empty nesters and the nesters would buy smaller, and so on and so forth.
So historically, we could always rely on the seasons to be key influencers of the real estate markets.
Yet today, that paradigm no longer holds. As immigration grew and new arrivals did not necessarily rent property on July 1st, an important amount of leases now vary in dates and terms, which lends less credence to the seasonality effect.
So what does listing your property in the fall mean and what benefits can there be?
Well let’s look at who the potential fall buyers could be. First, immigrants are obviously uninfluenced by market timing. They land here constantly and sporadically and are an important part of the market. Second, are corporate transferees. Many corporations who transfer employees aim at doing so before year end and insist their people be ready to start working into the new fiscal year. These consumers usually shop during their summer holidays but mostly in the fall months in order to secure their home arrangements in time for the Xmas holidays. They are also an important part of the market and less sensitive to pricing as most corporations cover most of their moving and acquisition costs. The third market is aimed at revenue property for the most part. They are the investors or consumers who wish to obtain additional revenue within the plex market and in some cases occupy them for residential purposes. In these cases, if their intentions are to evict existing tenants from the property, they must notify them 6 months in advance of the end of their lease renewal. In order to do so, they must become the legal owners of such property in order to notify the tenants, which means they have to buy it before year end, especially if the leases end on July 1st.
The fall market is an opportunistic one. If many sellers who are stuck in the old paradigm decide to wait it out till the beginning of the next year, that means less competitors for your home and hence access to many more buyers.
Don’t “fall” into the trap but into opportunities.
IN-JOY Your Fall Season!
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