Rockefeller Center in Midtown (Credit: Anthony Quintano/Flickr)
The second week of the December is one of the busiest of the real estate calendar.
Contract signings jump about 10 percent on average that week, with buyers and sellers looking to take advantage of price cuts and tax incentives associated with the end of the year, according to national survey by Realtor.com.
The holiday season in general — from Thanksgiving to New Year’s Day — sees about 20 percent fewer deals at $1 million and higher, compared to the peak summer months of May and June, and listings spend about 35 percent more days on the market. But the following months are generally even worse, with volume falling an additional 10 to 20 percent below December’s numbers, the Wall Street Journal reported.
Buyers are driven by end-of-the-year price cuts. They also gain tax advantages. Buyers who finance their purchase will get benefits sooner from deductions of they close before January. And sellers who have suffered investment losses can lower their tax bills by logging gains from real estate sales the same year. [WSJ] – Ariel Stulberg