January is known as one of the worst times to try and sell your home.

It’s cold outside, and no one wants to go trudging around in the cold looking at other people’s houses. We did that in December during all the holiday parties, and we’ve seen enough.

Furthermore, the yard looks awful, the shrubs need shearing, and there is not an azalea to be seen anywhere.

Finally, it gets dark around five o’clock in the afternoon, and it’s hardly worthwhile to look at any house in the dark.

Real estate professionals know this, and plan their vacations for this time of year, even though they insist that the selling market is just fine, thank you.

The statistics tell a different story.

According to Steve Palm of SmartNumbers, the volume of metro Atlanta residential closings peaks each year in July, and follows a typical annual decline in the fall. Things hit bottom in January and stay slow until March, traditionally speaking.

On the other hand, even when things are comparatively slow, there are still a lot of homes selling. Last July, metro Atlanta saw approximately 10,000 homes change hands. In December and January of the prior season, each month produced sales of approximately half that volume.

But five thousand homes is a lot of real estate. That means one thing: people are buying year round in this town, and waiting for summer may mean missing a sale.

So what can a seller do to get his house sold in the winter marketplace? Over the next three weeks, we will look at suggestions in three subject areas: condition, marketing and price.

I believe that the primary reason that many homes don’t sell is that the house is not in proper condition to be sold. In other words, the prospective buyer can not imagine him or herself living in the subject home.

Sellers often put on blinders when it comes to the condition of their own home. Their attitude is since they have had to put up with a problem area for many years, it is only natural that the new owner would expect to do the same.

Another common mistake is to assume that the buyer wants to make their own decisions about decorating and therefore it is unwise to paint or redecorate.

The truth is that buyers have little or no imagination, and want the house to be in near-perfect condition. Failure to meet that high standard will result at best in lowered offering prices, and at worst in no offers whatsoever.

Remember that in a vibrant real estate market like the Atlanta metro area, buyers have a wide choice of homes from which to choose. Just because your home was built right after World War II and just because your plumbing has leaked for twenty years does not mean that today’s buyer is willing to accept this condition.

In fact, refusing to address issues of condition can actually backfire on the owner who thinks he is saving money.

What is most likely to happen is that the buyer will hire an inspector, who will point out those systems and conditions which are likely to need attention in the near future. The buyer is then likely to reduce their offer by more than enough to make the needed repairs.

The seller could probably have saved money by fixing his house in advance. In addition, the house would likely sell for more and in a shorter period of time.

By offering a home in less than excellent condition, you are inviting investors to make lowball offers in hopes that you are desperate and that you will accept anything to be done with the property.

There are two markets in residential real estate: wholesale and retail. Homes that are in unacceptable condition draw offers only from those hoping to get a great deal on the house and willing to take on a renovation project.

The bottom line is this: most people buy real estate emotionally and then justify it logically.

Today’s sophisticated buyers are using inspectors and appraisers to assist them with the logical part of the decision. But if the buyer can not imagine him or herself living in the house happily in the first place, they may never get to the offer.

Add to that high level of expectation the fact that the weather is not cooperative and that nature’s lights go out around five o’clock in the afternoon, and you have a perfect recipe for no sale.

My advice, especially at this time of year, is to have your home inspected by a professional home inspector, and use that inspection as a basis for your pre-sale fix-up. Then you are in an excellent position to say the magic phrase:

"We didn’t really know the condition of our home, so we had it inspected. Here is a copy for you. We have had repaired everything that was found to be in less than good condition, so you won’t have any problems."