12/02/2025
🥶 December is here, so it's time for the age-old Seller questions...
1️⃣ Actives: Do we pull the listing and re-list in Jan when the market picks up?
2️⃣ New: Do we list in December or wait until the new year?
👀 I took a look at the data, and here are my thoughts on these two scenarios.
😉 I'll start with my suggestions before we get into the data for all you doom scrollers.
🙏 If you make it to the end and find it helpful, a like, follow, or comment is greatly appreciated!
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⛔ If your listing is stale or aging on the market:
🤔 Consider pulling it by Dec 7th and relisting on Jan 9th.
• The current buyer pool has already seen and passed on the home
• New buyers flood in after the New Year
• January brings a strong surge in showings
• A reset on DOM and CDOM boosts visibility
• You relist into lower inventory
🟢 If you have not listed yet and you are targeting early-mid Dec:
🚀 Go ahead and list.
• You capture the serious buyers still searching
• If it sells, great!
• If not, you clear through existing buyers before the Jan wave
• December has fewer new listings
• I would still avoid listing Christmas week
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📊 Now the data behind the recommendations.
**I used ShowingTime and Columbus MLS.
**My suggestions follow the data, but sellers should also consider the work of keeping a home ready for showings during the holidays when deciding to keep, pull, or list in December.
🔵 Showing patterns around Christmas week:
• Christmas week sees a 25% drop in showings
• New Year’s week rebounds with a 16% increase
• Two weeks after Christmas, showings climb roughly 50%
• Activity builds into January as levels quickly normalize
🔵 On average over the last 2 years:
• Showings were up 23% after the holiday window
• New listings up 11.1%
• Under contracts down 7.2% 😵💫
• Mortgage applications flat
• Active inventory down 7.4%
😮 One thing did surprise me. Under contracts fell 7.2% even though showings rose 23%.
Here is why that likely occurs: 🤷♂️
• New & returning buyers are in information-gathering mode
• They tour homes but wait for the Jan inventory wave
• Inventory drops after the holidays, so there are fewer solid options to write on
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📅 The calendar matters too. The day of the week that Christmas and New Year’s fall on changes when the slowdown hits.
2023: Both holidays fell on Monday
• The slow period was the weekend before Christmas
2024: Both holidays fell on Wednesday
• The slow period shifted to the weekend after Christmas
This year, both holidays fall on a Thursday
• Buyer behavior will likely track closer to 2024
• The slowest activity should be the weekend after Christmas
• Expect the holiday lull between Dec 26-31
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🔵 Why Dec 7th to pull and Jan 9th to relist? This allows us to reset both DOM and CDOM.
• The MLS uses a 31-day lookback.
• Day 32 is the earliest possible reset day, although I swear I tried it once and it did not reset.
• Day 33 is the safe rule.
• Want a different re-list target? Just go back 33 days from your target listing date to get your cut-off to pull the listing.
I hope this helps as you work through your December listing strategy!
Happy Holidays!
