"Homes don't sell during the holidays." That statement is yet another urban legend that the real estate industry would like to see erased from the minds of buyers, sellers...and REALTORS®.

Low interest rates, a booming resale market, high unemployment, low inflation, and the increase of first-time homebuyers, transferees and empty nest homebuyers entering the market have combined to create a record-breaking year for the real estate industry. Is there any reason this positive selling environment has to change for the holidays?

According to the professionals at Coldwell Banker, the holidays are proving just as active as other times of the year. Several reasons point out the reasons for this trend - an increased demand for homes, the proliferation of non-traditional buyers, and a heightened emotional connection to home life during the holidays.

"During the winter, people looking for homes are those that are serious about buying. There may be fewer lookers and homes on the market, but the ave rage sale time remains the same winter or spring - about 90 days," says Curtis Irving, broker/owner of Coldwell Banker Curtis Irving Realty in Oregon.

In some regions, homes are selling even faster during the holiday months. In the Dallas market, homes sold in an average of 68 days in November, down from last year's 81-day DOM. Currently listing levels are at record lows with less than a two and a half month inventory in a market that normally averages six months or more on hand.

The real estate business used to be seasonal, with families waiting for warmer weather and for the school year to be over to make their moves. Summer is still the biggest moving period of the year for families with school-age children. June is the leading month, with 13.1 percent of all moves, followed by August, at 12.6 percent.

But more and more people are choosing to move after the school year has begun in September, especially over the age of 45, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. First time buyers and trade up buyers split the market, and each group has non-traditional members who are gaining an increasing hold in buyer demographics. The empty nester, for example, has shown a preference for moving in late fall or late winter. Many of these buyers who are in "tight" real estate markets are actively looking for homes during the holidays and they are serious.

Non-traditional buyers are an increasingly important factor in the home buying market, according to a survey by the National Association of REALTORS® completed in 1997. Although married couples with children continue to make up the majority of home buyers (64 percent) only 25% have young children or babies. Single women accounted for 18 percent of homebuyers, and single men came in at 11 percent. Unmarried couples accounted for five percent of homebuyers.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the average household has dropped from 3.5 people in the 1970s to 2.5 people, meaning that fewer than half of all households have even one child in residence. The divorce rate of 50% is adding to that figure, as families with primary custody are producing households with non-custodial parents who need extra room for children on "visiting" days but who actually have no children in permanent residence.

Between singles, empty nesters and non-traditional couples, there is little incentive to rush into home buying during the spring and summer months, when prices are at their highest and when services such as movers, window treatment installers and landscapers are the most difficult to obtain. To these buyers, the winter months pose an advantage, when they can obtain customer-hungry services without the pressure of competing families.

Winter is the ideal time to negotiate a home. Because the trees are stripped of their leaves and shrubs are less full, the buyer can actually see more of the home during the winter months. If the home shows well during the cold, buyers are confident that it will be beautiful in warm weather.

Add in the romance and sentimentality of the holidays, and you have a recipe for a sale.

"Tastefully decorated, the holiday season makes a home feel warm and nice," notes Irving." There's a different aroma and a different feel to this time of year. Gingerbread in the oven, a fire in the fireplace and extra outside lights are all appealing. Prospective buyers make a connection by envisioning their family at happy gatherings."

Homes do sell during the holidays.

Published: December 21, 1998

Use of this article without permission is a violation of federal copyright laws.

Blanche Evans is the award-winning senior editor of Realty Times, the Internet's leading independent real estate news service. She is featured daily on the Realty Times Video Network in the "Realty Viewpoint" segment. Blanche has been named one of the "25 Most Influential People In Real Estate" by REALTOR Magazine, and has been twice recognized as a "notable." In 2005, she was named "Top Reporter Covering the NAR" by Delahaye-Bacon's. Blanche is a renowned author of five real estate books. Her newest, Bubbles, Booms and Busts: Make Money In Any Real Estate Market, McGraw-Hill, was rave-reviewed by The New York Times. She was also selected from hundreds of real estate experts to contribute to Donald Trump's book, Trump: The Best Real Estate Advice I Ever Received: 100 Top Experts Share Their Strategies, Rutledge Hill Press, and is featured on page 68. Order Now Review - Honors In 2006, Blanche was selected among scores of candidates to author two consumer real estate guidebooks for the National Association of Realtors: The NAR Guide to Home Buying, and The NAR Guide to Home Selling, Wiley & Sons. She is currently planning two new books for the NAR and its members.       Known for her keen insight into real estate industry issues and for her ability to make complex subjects easy to understand, Blanche is a sought-after keynote and continuing education speaker. Real estate organizations from MLSs, to brokerages, to franchisors, to associations hire her to provide up-to-the-minute analysis of real estate industry news and advice on how to improve revenues. Her passionate delivery, peppered with stinging wit, is a huge hit with audiences and fans. Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors, Blanche Evans, Richard Courtney, president 2007, GRAR "The GNAR membership meeting last week featured Blanche Evans as the keynote speaker. Her comments and insights resonated extremely well with those in attendance and we have had many requests for copies of her PowerPoint Presentation. She was a terrific part of the membership meeting and convention program!" - Don Klein, CEO Greater Nashville Association of Realtors Coverage from WSMV, Nashville - 8-14-2007 That Interview Guy - Get Inside The Head Of Today's Generation 2007 AE Institute Session - To purchase 2006 AE Institute Session - Parts 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 HouseValues Mastermind call - Parts 1 2 Blanche's fireside chat with Jeremy Conaway, HAR - Click here. To contact Blanche, email her at . For more articles by Blanche, click here.