Boxing Day, that hangover from Christmas Day in more ways than one and that sees us gathering around the table again for another gut-busting feast, some more games, a few more drinks and – house buying. Apparently.
And I don’t mean in a Monopoly kind of way.
Yes, it’s become a well-worn edict in the media that the 26th of December is the ‘best day to sell your home’. Many estate agencies now encourage their potential clients to list their home in the few days before Christmas in order to take advantage of this ‘super opportunity to get your house sold on the busiest day of the year’. And which is one of the most stupid things I’ve ever heard, akin to still believing that a fat bloke in a red suit breaks into your house and leaves your kids presents that his elves have just knocked up (in this age of stranger-danger this in itself is surely a myth that needs re-looking at?)
Actually, I suspect that this phenomenon has been created by the PR agencies of Rightmove and Zoopla rather than it being based on any reality and must tenuously relate to itchy fingers becoming a little bored after a few days off whilst also being temporarily excited about their shiny new ipad.
The thought that poor unsuspecting sellers are currently sitting there a few days before Christmas Day with adrenaline fuelled expectations of an asking price offer whilst the turkey is still warm, is, as we all know, ****** ridiculous and so let’s stop lying to the public about this nonsense. After all, honesty would be a great starting point in righting property industry reputation and this festive fakery needs to stop accordingly.
The truth is that estate agents aren’t even open on Boxing Day nor in the many days thereafter, and so who are you kidding in peddling this rubbish? In fact glancing in the windows of some of my local agents this week reveals a plethora of days with the word ‘closed’ joyfully scrawled against them until what seems to be the end of time – or year end at least. And so any enquiry from the aforementioned idle hands will inevitably be ignored by most agents for several days.
And just imagine a poor unsuspecting applicant trying to arrange a viewing appointment for the day after Christmas – LOL. That would certainly be met by a ho-ho-ho at the other end of the ‘phone, wouldn’t it?
Whilst we are at it, let’s also bin the fabled Easter Weekend as being crazy for buyer activity (when everyone is away).
Anyway, bah humbug and I hope you all have an ok Christmas – I suppose.
Russell Quirk is the cheery, Christmas loving co-founder of ProperPR, the property specialist PR agency
Finally, someone speaking sense. This has always been an obvious line of tripe. It makes me giggle every year to see the ‘list for Boxing day’ posters in the corporates windows.
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Ha, well said Russell. Zoopla’s new TV ad, which has just been announced, is launching on Boxing Day because of their predicted ‘boxing day bounce’!!! Really!?!
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Oh come on you Scrooges – Boxing Day without estate agents hype is like Christmas Day without crackers!
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Why such a big deal about this, and what’s the better option? Launching now? Its not exactly a frenzy currently. Launching on 4th Jan? When we are all told there will be an instant new year ‘bounce’ but there rarely is. Or should we just advise sellers to hold if indefinitely?? Not all agents will have promised their sellers results over the Xmas/new year break, but what they have done here is used rightmove/Zooplas data to secure new listings. The fact you are so against might go a long way to explaining your past performances in estate agency roles.
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The GRINCH of the ‘Boxing Day Boom’.
Agree with Barnabus, when is a better time. Why wouldn’t companies make the most of the marketing out there to pull in the crowds.
We all know its going to be a hard year and there really isn’t any rhythm to the market.
To be honest with you I don’t want any more viewings until after Christmas 🙂 hohoho.
Mr Quirk, try and find something original to write about.
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We’re going on the second or third week of January when there is a larger number of serious buyers to work with.
We’ve got other things to be getting on with than ringing through a list of enquiries from ‘buyers’ who first need the particulars resent to them because they have entirely forgotten the property they saw come to market a week prior.
If people are serious about moving home they are still looking at new listings in January when agents are back to work.
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If the public who are looking for houses hear it enough, they will have a look at what has been listed on boxing day. I know I will.
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I once left my office on Xmas eve, accidentally leaving my mobile on charge on my desk…. I realised once I got home but opted to spend my three day break ‘phoneless’…
However, by Boxing Day, the cold turkey had kicked in and I couldn’t resist driving across town to pick it up… looking in the window was a young couple, eyeing up an empty property… we chatted, I took them to the property, they offered, I called the vendor, we agreed a sale….
it could happen to you…..
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And if I sit in the office 24hrs a day, seven days a week I could probably tie up a sale-or-two earlier than if I had waited to pick up all of the enquiries during office hours the next working day. Doesn’t mean agents should.
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Now I am only playing (so big pants on everyone), but that was a **** ending to your post…
That story could have been eeked out soooo much more:
You also secured a mortgage lead, which signed up to full protection and then only months later the couple decided they had outgrown that home (much sooner than expected) and they remembered you did what you did for them previously on that cold Christmas Eve.
So they listed it with you and you sold it again, but this time to someone who you had bumped into on the following Good Friday (when you were not working) but still decided to help them and they too signed a mortgage deal. In fact you had the complete chain of 3 properties in this unbelievable turn of events.
All parties used your recommended solicitors and removal people and you still to this day get recommendations from the family and friends of the people who started this fantastical Christmas story…
It could happen to you too…. every nod, every smile and every stranger might one day become your next banked fee.
Ah, that’s better.
PS – Please tell me the deal fell through, because they realised they were actually just bored on boxing day and you actually wish you had never ****** bothered.
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Let’s be honest, most of this is born out of the fact, launch before Christmas and the property looks “old” due to Rightmove’s knack of making EA’s like me slightly deranged over the “added on date”. Who wants to be a month old and trying to explain 3 weeks of that was Christmas.. so it’s only been on a few days really!
The solid argument is a serious buyer will never take a day off, so list it straight away… why dangle the carrot when the entire country dangles theirs?
Surely there is more logic in launching when nobody else is, “supply and demand and all that”.
But alas, it is quiet, it is Christmas and yes 95% of Rightmove users will return bored on Boxing day… but can they view your new listing, or talk to you about it? Your probably/possible closed 26th/27th, then open a couple of days before NY but probably/possibly have limited availability to show the hoard of boxing day house hunters you’ve just hooked the house!
So, because you will make em waiting until 3rd January, there has got to be more logic in listing the first week of January (perhaps the 2nd) and being able to say “Just listed” and as the weeks turn by, “only came on last month, or only came on this year”…
Obvs we all do whatever we want to be fair… but RM hits… erm! Actual viewings from hot active buyers!
For me – Launch to your mailing list immediately so a genuine hot buyer sees it (you might even sell it without RM before Christmas) and then save the vanity listing for 1st / 2nd week January and you will still get as many “hits and calls” if not perhaps more!
Thank you, you’re welcome!
oh and Happy Christmas and NY to you all…
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The idea of a fat man dropping down a chimney still isn’t as ridiculous as the complete support you threw behind Truss & Kwarteng’s brief Reign of Error !
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Bring back the comedy duo Corbyn and Abbott I say.
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Im sure this subject gets covered every year with pretty much the same responses. Great instruction winner if you use it but only because every other sheep is so agents live in fear of being the odd one out!
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Negativity never created a great Estate Agent…in fact usually creates a down-ward spiral in performance and thinking…
Merry Christmas and good luck avoiding the ‘Neg-Ferrets’ in 2023
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Not a chance, my staff and I deserve a break after all the hassle over the other 363 days in the year. Buyers don’t stop buying because the store is closed, they wait till it opens and more interested in the sales (well they used to be sales!).
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