After a computer programmer in his late 60s became legally separated from his homemaker wife, the couple was compelled by the divorce court to sell their large bi-level property located on a leafy, bucolic lot in a high-end Minneapolis suburb.

The homemaker was especially resistant to the mandate because the court is demanding the property go on the market before the end of 2024 -- which means a holiday listing.

“I’m really comfortable and happy here. That’s why the thought of selling between Thanksgiving and New Year’s Eve is especially painful. My next place will have to be a small apartment. It will be disappointing to spend the holidays there with my kids,” the homemaker says.

The woman, in her mid-50s, also worries about the financial implications of a wintertime sale. Though her neighborhood is considered desirable, she’s aware that prices have slipped slightly since the pandemic ended. Had she and her husband sold months ago, they would have netted more.

“I need to walk away with enough cash to buy another place,” she says.

It’s very common for homeowners to resist the need for a wintertime sale that disrupts the holidays. But Kate Foster-Bankey, a Compass real estate agent, says it’s wise for wintertime sellers to face squarely the realities of the current home sales market.

“In the winter -- particularly during the holidays -- you’re going to have a smaller buyer pool than in the spring. The number of transactions also drops and buyers get more picky,” Foster-Bankey says.

To make the most of a holiday-season sale, she encourages owners to cover the costs of basic upgrades. She also stresses the importance of pricing a home according to recent sale statistics rather than focusing on prices garnered during the pandemic-period bidding wars, which ended in most areas in the fall of 2022.

“Buyers are a million percent more picky now than during the pandemic,” Foster-Bankey says.

Here are a few pointers for both voluntary and involuntary sellers:

-- Make sure you paint with current tastes in mind.

“Young buyers don’t like bright colors or gray rooms. It’s much better to paint your rooms in soft creamy white tones that are calming. Also, use the same neutral color throughout the house rather than using different colors in the various rooms,” Foster-Bankey says.

In your kitchen, she recommends you replace dated Corian or laminate countertops with quartz or granite. Also, upgrade bright brass hardware handles to ones in a muted metal tone. From your primary bedroom, she encourages sellers remove old ceiling fans, “which can look very old and grimy.”

What’s more, she says it’s important to update bathroom lighting and to replace old-fashioned Hollywood-style light bars with more contemporary fixtures.

-- Don’t try to second-guess the advice of a seasoned listing agent.

Those facing an involuntary home sale are especially likely to challenge the counsel of the listing agent they engage. They frequently seek a higher listing price than what their agent recommends -- on the basis that they can “test the market” and see how it responds. They’re also inclined to question the need to spend on presale home improvements, such as painting or carpet replacement.

“Of course agents aren’t perfect, and there’s always room for discussion. But when it comes to pricing, it’s in your interest to listen to an experienced listing agent who is intimately familiar with your community,” says Eric Tyson, co-author of “House Selling for Dummies.”

But people who face a compelling need to sell should try to avoid conflicts with their agents. The best way to do so is to carefully select a listing agent they trust to give them the best possible advice on their sale.

Tyson says there’s usually good reason to trust an agent who’s sold property in your area for at least two to three years. Also, ask for references of clients who’ve worked with the agent in the recent past.

-- Don’t avoid holiday decor.

For many owners, one plus to showing their property during the holidays is that it can look especially attractive -- assuming it’s tastefully decorated.

“Don’t hesitate to put up colored lights and bring in pine boughs if that’s what you usually do. You can also use a Christmas tree if you’d like, but avoid an oversized tree that can make your place feel crowded,” Tyson says.

-- Ensure that your home is fully accessible as long as it’s up for sale.

These days, many prospective buyers -- especially those with an urgent need to move due to a long-distance job change -- are able to wrap up their property search quickly because they prescreened properties on the internet.

“The internet is vital for home sales in 2024. That’s why most out-of-town buyers have fully researched their target area before they arrive in your town. You could miss the chance to sell to them if you close your place to visitors due to holiday gatherings,” Tyson says.

“You’ll regret it if you preclude out-of-town buyers from seeing your place when their time is short,” he says.

(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)

For more than two years, an Oregon couple -- a hair salon owner and her lawyer husband -- have hankered to sell their craftsman-style house. But only this fall did the pair complete their prep work -- decluttering and painting -- allowing their listing to happen.

Now the couple -- both in their late 60s and eager to move near their grandkids in Ohio -- wonder if they’ve waited too long to maximize their profits from the property. That’s because home prices are dipping slightly in their suburban hamlet.

“We procrastinated for the longest time about decluttering, which slowed us down. Also, we were overly meticulous about making every square inch of our house perfect, which set us back,” the lawyer says.

Given the delays, the couple worries about how to price their property correctly during a transitional period when mortgage rates are fluctuating on a daily basis and many more homes are hitting the market.

At Realtor.com, the home listing service, economist Jiayi Xu says active inventory has increased 31.9% above year-ago levels. Meanwhile, available properties spent seven days more on the market compared with this time last year.

She says another benchmark rate cut by the Federal Reserve could give more buyers bargaining power and further reduce seller leverage as an increasing number of rival listings emerge.

Danette Johnson, a longtime real estate agent based in eastern Utah, doesn’t know the Oregon couple who’s worried about pricing their property accurately. But she cautions that picking an overmarket price could ultimately hurt them at their bottom line.

“Sellers are always the last to figure out what’s going on in the market. But where prices are drifting downward slightly, an overpriced house could develop a stigma and become stale in the minds of buyers,” Johnson says.

She urges sellers to avoid a “testing the market” strategy to see whether an inflated price will still bring offers, an effective approach during the first two years of the pandemic when properties were in short supply and many wished to move out of dense urban areas.

She recalls how during the worst of COVID-19, one listing in the mountainous resort area of Moab, Utah, received 17 prospective offers from would-be buyers. But she insists that few such bidding wars are currently happening in most parts of the country.

Here are a few pointers for would-be sellers:

-- Gain information on current pricing trends promptly.

Dorcas Helfant, a past president of the National Association of Realtors, says you may wish to interview up to three local real estate agents to get their assessments of your property’s value and learn what repairs and upgrades are necessary to make the most of your sale.

“It can make a lot of sense to get more than one viewpoint, particularly on pricing a place that is quite different from most properties in your neighborhood,” says Helfant, who co-owns several Coldwell Banker realty offices.

Those who plan ahead for their sale can often avoid the sort of crisis that requires them to move before they’re ready, says Mark Nash, the author of “1001 Tips for Buying and Selling a Home.”

Once you know you’re definitely going to move, Michael Crowley, a broker in Spokane, Washington, says it’s wise to commit to the listing agent of your choice.

“Giving your agent at least a couple of months can help that person to help you get fully prepared to make the most of your listing,” Crowley says.

An agent with ample notice of your selling plans can better advise you on the steps you’ll need to take to achieve the best possible outcome.

“It’s always better to arrange for your contractors with plenty of lead time,” Crowley says.

-- Ask for data on selling times.

To better plan ahead for your move, Helfant suggests you request statistics on the average selling times for homes in your community.

“The only numbers that count are the ones for your immediate neighborhood. Beyond that, the statistics aren’t relevant,” she says.

Take these numbers, known as “days on market," and chart them over a six-month period. If selling times are gradually increasing, this could indicate a cooling of demand and should signal caution to prospective sellers.

“If you determine that your market is gradually slowing down, you’ll want to allow yourself extra selling time to ensure a smooth transition,” Helfant says.

-- Start packing as soon as you know you’ll be moving.

Nash contends that the majority of home sellers procrastinate on the property prep process.

“Getting your home ready is both laborious and stressful. So it’s no wonder many owners typically put it off. Only when a deadline looms do many people finally mobilize,” he says.

Besides painting and repairs, nearly all homes should be purged of clutter to show well. Your first step should be to remove any excess furnishings that crowd your interior space. Then box up smaller items and place them in your garage or a rented storage unit.

“Sellers are usually really surprised at how few of their belongings they actually need while their home is on the market. That’s especially true of clothing because most people dress casually these days so elaborate wardrobes are mostly unneeded anyway,” Nash says.

(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)

During the pandemic, mortgage rates plummeted to historic lows, a period Wall Street investors called “The COVID refinance boom.” Fully one-third of all outstanding mortgage balances were refinanced during the first two years of the pandemic.

Most homeowners with exceedingly low mortgage rates are “happy campers” with no intention of moving, says Eric Tyson, the coauthor of “Mortgages for Dummies." Indeed, they’re so pleased with their low rates that they plan to stay put indefinitely -- what real estate specialists term the “lock-in effect.”

Obviously, not all homeowners with mortgages managed to refinance during the opportune pandemic period. They’re still in the market for a lower-rate mortgage, as are those who bought property after the pandemic ended.

Take the case of a couple in their 30s -- a lawyer married to an event planner. Last year the pair spent $600,000 on a fully renovated Cape Cod they financed with a 30-year mortgage bearing a 7.1% interest rate.

“We’re really jealous of our neighbors who have rock-bottom rates. So we’re hopeful of lowering our rate now that they’re coming down again,” the lawyer says.

In hankering for a lower-rate mortgage, this couple is hardly alone. As reported by the Mortgage Bankers Association, more than half of all new mortgages originated in the United States now involve refinances. While few owners can obtain home loan rates as low as those available during the pandemic, many can do better than what they have now.

Are you interested in a refi? If so, here are a few pointers to help you qualify:

-- Think through your long-term plans for your property.

Way back in the 1980s, a futurist named Faith Popcorn coined the term “cocooning” to refer to those who wished to nest in the comfort of their property rather than venturing outside any more than necessary. Many retreated from the less commodious and sometimes crime-ridden outside world.

During the pandemic, when lockdowns were prevalent, some homeowners adapted so fully to the restrictions that after COVID-19 that they were reluctant to go back to their former lives.

Are you so at ease as a nester that you plan to hold on to your current property rather than move in the near future? Then you could be a good candidate to bear the up-front costs and time needed to refinance your mortgage to a somewhat lower rate. On the other hand, think twice about refinancing now if you plan to sell in a few years.

“Remember that there’s more to refinancing than simply bagging a lower rate. Crunch the numbers about costs and try to avoid lengthening the term of your mortgage,” says Keith Gumbinger, a vice president at HSH Associates (hsh.com), which tracks mortgage rates throughout the country.

-- Familiarize yourself with your credit standing.

Before they settle on the right lender to refinance their property, savvy consumers, Tyson says, should review their credit picture to see if flaws or mistakes crop up.

Under federal law, you’re entitled every year to one free credit report from each of the three large credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion. To obtain these, just go to this website: annualcreditreport.com.

You’ll probably also want to access your credit scores. Such scores, which draw on data from the credit bureaus, provide lenders with a quantitative measure of a person’s credit risk. Most lenders use FICO scores, pioneered by the Fair Isaac Corp.

Generally, you must pay a fee to obtain your credit scores directly. One approach is to buy these through the Fair Isaac website, myfico.com. You can also receive credit scores through the credit bureaus directly or potentially free through a bank or credit union where you have an account.

There are multiple reasons to examine your credit before shopping for a mortgage lender. Most important is the fact that self-knowledge will gain you the respect of any lender with whom you choose to make your loan.

-- Question the claims of online lenders.

No one who uses the internet can miss the many colorful ads promising low mortgage rates to homeowners who want to refinance. But should you take these offers seriously?

Tyson says it’s conceivable you could find an online lender who offers both excellent service and low rates. However, he urges you to exercise caution in dealing with any online lender who promises much lower rates than are available through traditional lenders in your local market.

“Bait-and-switch tactics are a real possibility,” Tyson says.

In addition, there can be servicing problems available with online lenders.

“Some online lenders refuse to take phone calls. They’ll only communicate through email, which could be problematic if complications develop,” Tyson says.

Another possible issue, he says, is that any out-of-town lender might undervalue the property you’re seeking to refinance.

-- Consider an array of potential lenders.

Veteran real estate agents in your community could be helpful in suggesting the names of solid mortgage lenders. But Tyson urges you to look beyond the real estate community for referrals.

“Ask for referrals from any business adviser whom you trust, whether that be a lawyer, tax preparer or financial planner. Also, ask your friends, neighbors or work associates,” Tyson says.

Once you’ve come up with a short list of potential refinance lenders, Tyson says it’s better to have a face-to-face meeting with them than to evaluate them through phone conversations alone.

“Because refinancing your mortgage can be time-consuming, you might wish to take a vacation day from work to do it right,” Tyson says.

(To contact Ellen James Martin, email her at ellenjamesmartin@gmail.com.)