WHILE spring is widely considered the peak season for South Australian real estate, there are still great opportunities leading up to Christmas.

That’s the opinion of leading Toop&Toop sales partners Grant Wills and Kirk Fernandez.

“It’s definitely not too late (to list now),” says Wills, who has been with Toop&Toop for almost 20 years.

“In fact, historically, I’ve found that November and the first half of December can actually be fantastic times to create sales.

“I’ve seen buyers make decisions a lot quicker knowing that the Christmas/New Year period is coming in.

“I don’t think there is a cut-off period … but you might see the market slow a little around, say, the 20th of December.

“But, at that time, you’ll also start to get different types of buyer. You’ve got people in happier moods because they’re on holidays, so over the Christmas/New Year period and into the early part of January … it continues to provide some great opportunities for vendors.

“I remember having some wonderful outcomes when it was about 45C three weeks in a row. What you’re really getting is the real buyers coming out who are wanting to purchase.

“If you’ve marketed the property correctly, you’ve priced the property correctly, and you’ve created the opportunities for buyers to come in, then you’ll get them.”

Fernandez, a sales and marketing expert with more than 25 years’ experience, says vendors with families also have extra motivation to list their properties before the end of the year.

“People want to get their properties on before Christmas, with their objective to settle 30 days later - before the start of the new school year,” he says.

Lenders offering record-low interest rates on home loans have also changed the late-spring dynamics.

“There are buyers who didn’t think they were ready to buy that are getting their finances reassessed and, because of the interest rates, they can buy more than they could have, say, three, four, five months ago,” Fernandez says.

And vendors who want to sell can have their homes ready to take to market within a week if the property only requires basic styling assistance.

Even properties that require more significant maintenance work can often be listed within a fortnight.