Baton Rouge Agents Get Creative To Close More Deals This Christmas Season

December has always been considered as real estate market's "slow" period; but some are trying to change that notion, reports Ryan Broussard of Business Report.

In the hopes of debunking how the real estate market is during the holiday season, some residential real estate brokers go on the mission of clearing their inventories; some entice buyers with incentives, others try to reach out to previous clients and hope to close on homes before the year ends.

"We're doing all those touchy-feely kind of things you need to do for your clients," says Pat Wattam, past president of the Greater Baton Rouge Association of Realtors and residential broker for RE/MAX First.

While the market is very active right now, it will begin to dry up as Christmas nears which means that brokers will have to walk a fine line during this time of year, says Wattam.

"You have to walk that balance of making sure the house looks spacious and not cluttered because of the decorations," says Janet Anderson, another broker with Re/Max First. "We have to just, again, have to work around them being able to have their life, while doing the things that need to be done."

Anderson is trying to close 4 listings for this year, of which three are vacant. In December of last year, she made a personal record by closing 11 homes in a span of one month.

She attributes the successful streak of sales before January 1 by offering special incentives which could be to have seller cover some of the closing costs.

"During this time of year we do, as agents, have to get real creative," she says.

For other realtors, the busy holiday season is the perfect time to reconnect with former clients either through email, snail mail, or a quick call. It is also important stay on top of potential sales that are winding down by reminding involved parties as people usually get busy during the busy celebrations.

"We're very busy with all that kind of activities that keep us in touch with our clients," Gaspard says.

The same trend is experienced in commercial real estate, as businesses usually focus on sales rather than finding a new location in December, says Chris Pike of Mike Falgoust & Associates. But according to him, this month has been nothing but slow and is even the busiest December of his 13 years as real estate broker.