Little do many buyers know, but there is in fact one day of the year in which it’s significantly easier to purchase the house you’ve been eying for the past few weeks, with limited push back from the seller involved, a serious chance for price negotiation, and very little competition.

The day in question is Christmas day. For a number of reasons, specifically the three mentioned below, it’s a whole lot easier to snag the house of your dreams on Christmas day than at any other time of the year. So if it’s coming up to the festive period and you feel like you must put an offer in before the big day… hold your breath, wait a little, and consider the following three reasons for putting in an offer on everybody’s favourite holiday:

People are Happy, and Thus Feeling Generous

This is crucial, as the happier a potential seller is the more likely they are to accept an offer that, under any other circumstances, they may be quick to turn down. Holiday cheer is all around during he festive period, with this being even more prevalent on Christmas day itself, meaning if a certain seller has had their home on the market for some time, there’s a good chance they they would see getting a fair offer on Christmas day as a sign, and be happy to accept the offer there and then.

The key above is that you give a fair offer. Though you’ll certainly be able to offer less than you would normally, don’t go crazy in your valuation, otherwise all you’ll accomplish is annoying the seller on one of the happiest days of the year.

Sellers are Serious about Negotiating

If somebody puts their home on the market over the Christmas period, there’s a very good chance that they’re open for negotiations in terms price, as chances are they’re looking for a quick sale in order to get the home out from under their feet.

For this reason, make sure the professionals you are speaking with in the lead up to purchasing a house know that they may have to be available to you on Christmas day, or the days immediately after it, including your mortgage brokers and anybody else you’ve bought on to advise you, as if you get into a negotiation on Christmas day you’re going to want it to finish swiftly, so you can both get back to enjoying the company of your individual loved ones.

Buying Competition is Low

Buying competition on Christmas day is incredibly low because:

• Most buyers don’t even consider looking online on Christmas day, assuming nothing will be happening.
• The vast majority of buyers give themselves this day off.
• Family commitments mean buyers can’t continue their search, even if they wanted to.

In this situation you create your own little buyers market, meaning you have all the power. If you put in an offer below the asking price on a particular house on Christmas day, it’s very unlikely that anybody else will put in a counter offer, therefore the only options they’ll have will be to take to leave it.

In conclusion, little do many buyers know, but there is in fact one day of the year in which it’s significantly easier to purchase the house you’ve been eying for the past few weeks, with limited pushback from the seller involved, a serious chance for price negotiation, and very little competition. The day in question? Christmas day.