22 September, 2010

Window closing fast for pre-Christmas home sale

Property experts are urging homeowners considering a pre-Christmas property sale to put their homes on the market now.

Raine & Horne’s head of operations for NSW/QLD Sean Green said the traditional selling season was slow off the blocks this year as the majority of homeowners waited for a Federal Election decision.

“There are now only 13 weeks left until Christmas Day, which this year falls on a Saturday,” said Mr Green.

In Sydney, for example, real estate research firm PriceFinder, reports that the average property currently listed has been on the market for around 51 days.

“If we assume the average Sydney home takes more than six weeks to sell via private treaty and 42 days to settle, homeowners must get their skates on to ensure a home sale before the holiday season.”

Real estate trainer Josh Phegan said this timeline was particularly important for homeowners with school age families looking to upgrade to a new location.

“The real estate market usually takes a break between Christmas and Australia day, which makes it difficult to sell a home in this period," Mr Phegan said.

“If parents don’t make a decision to put their home on the market now, they risk the issue of relocating young families early in the new school year which can be particularly unsettling.”

Mr Green said using the auction process could fast track a property sale.

“Generally speaking, an auction campaign will deliver a swifter sale than private treaty. An auction also allows buyers and sellers to determine a property’s true market value,” Mr Green said.

Raine & Horne is an iconic Australian property firm, with more than 400 offices worldwide. Also an established Superbrand along with the likes of Qantas, Vegemite, Woolworths and Myer, the company has four distinct property service brands including Raine & Horne Residential, Raine & Horne Commercial, Raine & Horne Financial Services and Raine & Horne Rural.

For further media information contact:

Sean Green, principal Raine & Horne Randwick on 02 9398 5522 or 0408 025 053

Anna Truman, Marketing & Communications Co-ordinator on 02 9258 5448