The Puslinch Market – Always in Full Swing!
Over the last 5 years the number of properties sold in January in Puslinch ranges from 1-5 homes – based on data from the Guelph and District Real Estate Board. So, as a Realtor with a strong focus on the local market what am I doing all winter while my colleagues in Guelph are running like crazy selling student rental properties?
Besides catching up on paperwork and last year’s spring cleaning I spend a great deal of time talking to prospective sellers – those folks who are thinking this is the year they are going to make a move. And I really think this a good thing for sellers. I spend time researching comparable sales, helping establish a suggested listing price, advising on how to find the next home and helping prioritize updates and the decluttering needed to get homes market ready. All so Sellers are ready to hit the ground running when the Puslinch market reaches full swing!
And when is that exactly? When is the Puslinch market in full swing? While there is no hard and fast rule, experience and market data tell me that May typically has the highest number of properties sold compared to other months with June a close second. Activity tends to slow down a bit over the lazy days of summer while families are off on vacation and gearing up for a new school year. With the brisk and sunny days of October there is often another upswing in sales as buyers look to make their move before the snow flies.
When you take into account that on average rural properties have a longer marketing period – the number of days a home is on the market before it sells – it is definitely a good idea to start making plans while the snow still flies.
While we can take a look at trends and data there is another key component to deciding when is the best time to list. As a seller you want to list when inventory is low and demand is high. The timing of that, particularly in rural properties, can depend on a few things. Mother nature is a key one – an early spring can bring the buyer’s out sooner, while a winter that just doesn’t leave can keep people at home instead of out driving in the country. Keeping an eye on the activity by monitoring the number of enquiries for buying in Puslinch, the number of showings and open house attendees and watching when the older inventory, homes that were listed early or are still on the market from the previous year, starts to move is a good way to determine when activity is starting to ramp up. For a seller that already has a plan in motion this makes it easy to jump in quick when the market starts to pick up.
So while some planning early in the year can go a long way to being ready for the full swing rest assured that properties sell all year long in Puslinch.
