Landlords – why you should list your property before the Christmas period

Christmas is fast approaching, but before you get fully immersed in all of the festivities – if you’re a landlord looking to let your rental property in the new year – put down those mince pies and list your property now to give it the exposure it deserves. December has always been a popular month to list a rental property – particularly the period between Boxing Day and New Year – when lots of people have more time on their hands to browse for their perfect rental property. Schools are out and many people choose to take this time off work – so you could really maximise the number of eyes on your property if you get it listed before then. After examining the data from recent years and what is expected for this year, we take a closer look at why now is the right time to take the plunge and put your property on the market. Increased surge in property traffic in December December is known for its spike in interest on the major property portals – and last year was no different, according to data released by Zoopla. Last Boxing Day, Zoopla witnessed a record 70.5% increase in traffic – a bounce which was even bigger than 2019’s 61% upsurge in traffic on the same date. Although the ‘Boxing Day Bounce’, as it has now been coined, and the following week, are often the busiest for online property traffic, during December 2020 – up to and including the 26th – – there was a 33% increase in searches for property in comparison with December 2019. The portal also revealed that in December 2020, £62 billion more worth of homes had sales agreed than in 2019 – making it the busiest run up to Christmas in over a decade. Elsewhere, Rightmove also experienced its busiest ever Boxing Day last year, with traffic increasing by a huge 54% in comparison to the same day in 2019. Following a similar pattern to the Zoopla data, visits from 1-28 December were 57% higher than they were for the same period the year before – whilst between December 26 and December 28, visits were up by 18%. This massive increase could, in part, be attributed to the fact that many families spent time apart last December due to the Covid-19 lockdowns – meaning that potential renters might have had more time on their hands than normal to look for properties. Whether the data has been slightly skewed by lockdowns or not, what can’t be disputed is that potential tenants and homebuyers are visiting these portals in their droves during December – whether that be snatching a few moments to have a browse in between grazing on the Christmas leftovers or the more serious renters who are dedicating a few hours each day to see what is available. To list or not to list If you’re a landlord looking to put your property on one of the portals, you would be missing a trick by not listing it in the next couple of weeks. By choosing to list it now, this will mean you’ll also have everything in place for January – which is tipped to once again be an incredibly busy month when it comes to property portal traffic. If you’re a landlord looking to give the property the exposure it deserves – not just around the festive period but all year round, then look no further than Letting Solutions, West Lothian’s first dedicated lettings agency. We can advise you on how to best take care of your rental property. We are continuing to operate throughout the pandemic. You can find out more about our current hours of service and our current ways of working here. Please don’t hesitate to contact us, even if you are not a current client. You can ring us on 01506496006 where our team are waiting to help. Or you can email us at: rent@letting-solutions.co.uk.