Use these scripts and dialogues for real estate agents to overcome seller objections when clients are waiting to sell or buy a home. REALTORS® must always use due diligence to provide their clients with all of the material information possible in order for them to make an informed decision about the purchase or sale of property. So when clients clearly want to move but claim that they need to “wait to sell or buy”, it is imperative that real estate agents make them aware of the potential financial consequences of waiting to take action. Before examining some of the key scripts & talking points to overcome these seller objections, watch as our panel of top real estate agents reveal their favorite “waiting to sell” objection handlers in this video.

1. Mortgage Rates Rising

Since most economic experts are predicting mortgage rates to rise, it is important to overcome seller objections by pointing out that a mere 1% interest rate increase from 4% to 5% amounts to an extra $120 per month in mortgage payments. This can amount to an extra $40,000 paid over the life of a home loan. So waiting until the kids are out of school on summer break to buy a home can truly be an expensive delay. Also, remember that home sellers typically become buyers after they sell, so waiting to a put home on the market for convenience’s sake can be equally costly. Finally, sellers that stall to put their home up for sale risk their buyer pool being diminished since the vast majority of home buyers purchase at the top of their range of affordability, as shown in Keeping Current Matter’s graphic below.

2. Housing Inventory is Low in Off-Seasons

Seller objections to putting homes on the market in the Fall and Winter are typically made for convenience’s sake by uninformed home sellers. The fact that most homes are put up for sale in the Spring creates a herd mentality that allows people to get through the holidays and the colder months without the added stress of selling their home. Yet this too comes at a cost. There is far less competition in the Fall and Winter months. Off-season buyers are much more serious since they can’t be as selective or difficult in negotiations because their options are limited due to a lack of available housing inventory. As shown in SmartZip’s graphic below, the popular Spring months are typically the least ideal for home sellers.

3. Increasing New Construction Starts

Home builders gain confidence with each year that passes since the housing recession. More and more new housing subdivisions are being started with each passing month and year. This causes increased competition for resale home sellers that can not provide the same builder financing concessions, custom features, floor plans, upgrades and amenities in desirable new school districts that builders can. The opening of a few new subdivisions creates entirely new options for buyers even if they are located a long distance away from a resale home on the market. Getting ahead of this increased competition by putting a home up for sale beforehand can save resale homeowners tens of thousands of dollars. As shown in the graphic below, although new home construction is steadily increasing each year, we can anticipate significantly more new home starts based on the historical average.