It's a Seller's Market!
What To Expect When Selling Your Home.
If I could collect a dollar every time I have heard, “take advantage of the market”, over the last couple years, I would be a millionaire! For those of you who are actually in a position to do just that, I figured it would be nice to know what to expect as a Seller. So let’s help you navigate through the home selling experience, from listed to sold.
Step 1: Deciding to Sell
First things first, do you really want to sell? Making the decision isn’t always easy. It might take a couple weeks to come to a conclusion, or for some, it takes months. Never act on impulse, regardless of what is happening in the market. Make sure your decision is well thought out! I usually like to create a pros and cons list when I need to make some difficult choices; seeing it all in writing in one place does wonders!
Side note #1: Buy first, then sell. Some people might think this is a gamble, but when you’re dealing with a Seller’s Market, this is the way to go. By buying your new home prior to selling, you won’t feel rushed into settling for a sub-par home, or even worse, having to seek alternative temporary housing until you find the right fit. Just ensure you give yourself a little more time for the closing date!
Side note #2: Always best to have a conversation with your financial advisor. Know what your buying power is for the new home and definitely get a pre-approval - it will make the process much easier moving forward.
Step 2: Choosing The Right Real Estate Professional
Currently, the Toronto Real Estate Board has around 58,000 Realtor members. Based on this, it’s safe to say it’s pretty easy to find a sales representative. However, let me hit you with some hard stats…
34.6%, which is around 20,116 agents did zero deals last year; 44.3% (25,753 agents) only did 1-5 deals; and only 1.78% (just under 1000 agents) closed 26+ deals.So how do you find the agents that are apart of those upper percentiles to get you the best deal possible, while providing outstanding service? It’s called, HOMEWORK. When meeting with a potential Realtor, you should start by asking these questions:
Are you a full-time real estate agent?
How much experience do you have in my neighbourhood and can you provide references?
How many homes have you listed and sold in the last year?
What services and resources do you offer?
How does the home-selling process work and what is expected of me?
How long are homes in my neighbourhood on the market?
How would you price and market my home?
What does the listing agreement entail and what is your fee?
What happens if I’m not happy with your services?
Last, and most important (in my opinion), ensure your personalities are compatible! Not everyone is meant for everyone, and that is totally okay! You will be working closely, and quite often with whomever you chose to represent you, so make sure you get along well before you give them your full commitment.
Studies show that home sellers who use a licensed real estate agent to represent them generally get a better price than those who sell the home themselves. Step 3: Prepare to List
Now that you have picked your Realtor, it is time to get to work!
First comes the property tour. This is where we walk the home, take notes, list certain things that need to be fixed, highlight upgrades or special features, mention anything that is special to you, etc. Then comes number crunching! Based on your home, and an intensive market analysis review, we select a price to list. Almost every home owner thinks their house is worth more than what the market will bear. Remember your home is only worth as much as the buyer is willing to pay. This is why positioning your home, price wise, is so crucial. You are more likely to benefit by determining a fair value and sticking close to it than by asking an unrealistic figure.
Then naturally, all the paperwork! But we won’t get into that fun stuff….
Step 4: Prepare Your Home
You have done all the paper work, now it is time to take photos and videos to market your home effectively. Once this is done, your Realtor will submit your listing - Show time baby!!
Here are some suggestions to make your home more presentable, and allow the buyer to envision themselves in your space!
FIX minor flaws and imperfections. Buyer’s don’t want deferred maintenance issues.
REMOVE excess furniture and clutter. Less is more; you want to make more usable space and your rooms appear larger. It is also a best practice to remove all personal photos - you want the buyer to come into a neutral space where they can envision themselves living.
CLEAN. Buyer’s look everywhere. Make sure you clean all your spaces and organize accordingly. Also doesn’t hurt to get your windows washed (if they need it!).
BRIGHTEN your space. Pull back your curtains, draw up the blinds and let all that natural light shine through! If you have darker areas, flick that switch and turn on the light!
PAINT. A fresh coat of paint never hurts. Especially when you have loud colours. You want your home to be painted in neutral tones so buyers can envision their colour preferences when they are walking through the spaces.
MANAGE your yard, shovel, mow the lawn, bag the leaves, maybe even plant some flowers. Curb appeal is just as important, if not more! It’s all about the first impression.
Side Note: Showing your home to potential buyers might be the most tedious part of the process. Your spaces always need to be clean, beds made, dishes done, blinds raised, you have to leave your home during the appointment, and I can guarantee it will always feel inconvenient. But be diligent! You might get a showing while you've stepped out of the house, or you can't make it back in time to tidy up, etc. It's a short-term pain, for a long-term gain; you just need to keep your eye on the end goal!
Step 5: Offer Process
With any offer, you have three choices:
Accept | Reject | Counter
These decisions are not always the easiest, but boy are they exciting! Best advice I can give is to know what your bottom line is (your takeaway value after all the fees paid), have realistic expectations and be patient with the process!
Step 6: Closing Time
After negotiations, and signed contracts.. you are in the home stretch! Majority of times, in a seller’s market there are not many conditional offers. This means, the house will sell firm, with not much work on your end other than maintaining the home. However, there will be times an offer is conditional upon certain things, like a home inspection satisfactory to the buyer. But for your eye's sake, we won’t get in to that aspect right now! Just be sure to avoid common glitches by keeping abreast of progress with your Realtor.
Happy Listing my friends! Give me a shout if you need a little more advice or clarification… Always happy to help, and a phone call away.
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