Brian Holt’s novel way to boost sales in the new year

Brian Holt manager Julie Philpot struck on the idea to help overcome the January blues suffered by many home sellers at this time of year when people are coming round after Christmas and waiting for the warmer weather to arrive.

She has arranged a series of New Year open days for a number of properties, with the aim of encouraging a speedy sale and showcasing a variety of different styles of properties available in Kenilworth.

Julie says the benefits are several fold.

“Firstly, it means the owners only have to tidy up once – rather than constantly having to keep the place looking immaculate. Secondly, it’s a more effective use of staff time.

“And finally – and most importantly - it focuses the minds of would-be buyers so they can make a decision fairly swiftly, rather than mulling it over for a few weeks, by which time the house may have gone.

“By doing this for several houses across a number of weekends in January and February it also means buyers can blitz a shortlist of potential properties more easily.

“We have run many successful open days – but usually it’s one or two here and there. This is different because it’s quite a few in one short space of time.

“The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors is predicting a better year for the housing market in 2013, with prices even picking up a couple of percentage points across the country.

“So let’s hope our New Year’s plan is just the start of a brighter year for everyone.”

The series of open days kicks off tomorrow (Saturday) with a £275,000 house in Laburnum Avenue, followed on January 26 by Long Row in Ashow in the morning, which has an asking price of £348,000 and Mountbatten Avenue in Kenilworth at £475,000 in the afternoon.

The final pair of open events are on February 9, when a Stoneleigh Road property, on the market at £279,000 can be viewed in the morning and a Warwick Road house at £270,000 in the afternoon.

Pictured: Julie Philpot