Q. I’m thinking of selling my property but still not sure what time of year is best, do you think I should maybe wait for the spring or do you think generally the New Year brings out the buyers?

A. Reflecting on past experience and other years the state of the market financially will always have some impact on how the property market is fairing. This time last year was absolutely dead; there was very little activity at all on the sales front as the credit crunch bit tighter and people’s fears of seeing the market drop even further became a reality. This New Year however seems far more positive. The tail end of last year saw a real drought of good quality properties for sale, so plenty of buyers although ready to purchase were simply not able to find their desired abode. With that in mind I’m confident that January will see the return of those buyers hoping that the New Year will present a fresh stock of properties. In general the spring too should be a good time to sell so it’s really going to be down to what works best for you and your personal circumstances. The most important factor is that your property is pitched at the right price; this is paramount if you want to achieve a sale within your desired time frame. Too often, sellers want to try it a bit higher just to see how things go, but its far better to place it on the market from the outset at a realistic price – especially in this frugal market, that way a sale is secured in a reasonable amount of time rather than the property sitting on the market and losing its momentum.