How to Sell a Home

When it’s Time to Sell…

Selling can be a highly-emotional time.

There’s a lot of overwhelm that comes with these big changes. People often wonder about:

• How much is my home worth?

• How much will it cost to sell? (e.g. realtor fees, updates, staging etc).

• How long will it take to get a good offer?

• How do I make sure I get the most return possible?

We’ll walk through each of these in detail, so you can feel more prepared - and therefore -

more confident, to make your big move.

A Home Becomes a House Again: A Realtor Can Help You See Your Home as an Asset

It can be hard to see your home as a buyer would. After all, you set it up perfectly for you: so who wouldn't want it, just as-is?

But, it's important to realize that you are no longer the target market for your house, and what you love may not be what the ideal buyer is looking for. Those who take the time to position their house to appeal to the market can reap many benefits, including quicker sale and a better return on their investment

Having a professional consultation before embarking on any updates, renos or work you're thinking of for maximizing your resale value, can actually be worth its weight in gold.

A real estate agent can help you see what buyers are looking for, as well as leave you with a list of priorities to tackle so that you know that you're focused on the right steps to take to get you the best return.

Steps to Selling

1. Contact a realtor to get an assessment of value that will tell you how much your home is likely to be worth on today’s market. Your realtor will also give you a list of improvements to make and documents to gather before the sale.

2. Prepare your home for listing

3. Get photography, listing details, and more.

4. Allow for showings/open houses

5. Review offers received and negotiate (if necessary)

6. Place your home under contract (sold!).

Getting a Realtor

There are a lot of realtors to choose from, so it’s important that you find someone who works in a way that works for you.

For instance, some realtors work exclusively with luxury listings, or commercial properties, while others do business across all property types.

When you sign on with a realtor, you’re putting someone under contract to work for you. You should feel a sense of trust and mutual respect.

You can contact a realtor and ask them for a listing presentation. During this complimentary meeting, they’ll go over:

• What your home could be worth on the current market

• Pricing strategies to garner the most interest and best offers

• What documents to gather (e.g. utility bills). Get a checklist of documents to gather before posting your house for sale here

• Suggested improvements and maintenance to complete in order to get the most for your home

• A list of recommended professionals and/or service providers to help you get your home ready (e.g. home stagers, contractors, hvac/plumbing, storage, etc).

• Their fee structure for providing their services (note that most agents in Ontario charge between 4-6% commission as standard. This amount is actually split between your agent, and the buyer’s agent (e.g. each agent would get between 2-3% each).

• And more.

After the listing presentation, if you want to work with an agent, you’ll be asked to sign a contract, that your realtor will walk you through in plain language.

Preparing Your Home for Sale

While each home will have its own unique list of maintenance and improvements to complete, there are several preparation steps that are universal.

1. Put (some of) your furniture and things in storage: A lot of people will tell you to ‘declutter,’ but what’s clutter to one person and what’s a precious essential to another can vary. When your realtor does a pre-listing walkthrough of your home, they’ll make suggestions as to what to consider removing, securing, or storing. Some home stagers will also work directly with the items that you already own, instead of renting furnishings, ultimately saving you money while also ensuring your home looks its absolute best.

2. Deep clean: This may be obvious, but it’s also hard to prioritise. There’s nothing like prepping your house for sale to incentivise you to pull out the fridge, go through your cupboards and organise your closets, but believe me, it’s worth the effort on many levels. Not only will your home show better, it will also reduce the amount of work you have to do before you move as well.

3. Maintain, fix, or update your interior: It can be amazing what a big impact even small changes can make. As a realtor, I often encourage people to forgo expensive updates in favour of pouring some well-deserved care and attention into the details, to really highlight pride of ownership. Small updates, like changing out floor registers (to all matching ones) light switches and fixtures, and even electrical plugs, offer subtle hints of a home well-cared for. Other maintenance like refreshing caulking around tubs, showers and sinks, as well as filling nicks in the wall and putting up a fresh coat of paint can make a world of difference in how your home feels.

4. Boost your curb appeal: First impressions are everything, and nothing makes a better first impression than a welcoming exterior. Trim the hedges, and remove dead plants. Keep your lawn mowed, and go over the perimeter with an edger, for an extra special touch. Place a planter near the entrance and throw down a welcome mat. And if you have the time and capacity, make sure that wood decking is freshly stained, any chipped paint repaired, and that windows are sparkling. All of these small but noticeable touches will all amount to a home that says “come on in.”

5. Remove personal items: When your house became your home, you likely filled it with photos and personal items that made it feel cozy and familiar. Family photos, special souvenirs from your trips, kids’ artwork on the fridge, religious symbols close at hand. But now that your home is being transformed into a house that’s for sale, it’s time to store away those signs of your personal life, and allow someone else to envision where they’d place their own personal items instead.

Cost to Sell a Home in Ontario

With the above in mind, you can see that selling your home can come with some costs. This range can vary widely depending on the home, but for the sake of budgeting, consider:

1. Minor interior home repairs: If you DIY this step, you’ll still be spending on paint (approx. $50 CAD a gallon), putty ($10 small tub) caulking ($10-$15 a tube), electrical plugs ($3/plug), light switches ($3-$15 switch), registers ($15-$25 each), and various tools to do the job (if you don’t have them or don’t have a friend who can lend them). I’ve also had clients update some larger fixtures such as bathroom vanities ($1000 - $1,500) to fridges, and more.

2. Deep cleaning: If you do this one yourself, it may be cheaper, but it will take you longer and is an investment in your time. In London, Ontario, a deep cleaning service could run anywhere between $150 to $250 or more, depending on the size of the home.

3. Updating curb appeal: Planters ($50-$150), welcome mat ($20-$50), and landscaping service ($ varies), and more.

4. Storage: Typically charged by the size of the storage locker, you may also wish to rent a truck in order to haul your items away at once. Budget approximately $300-$500 for this if you’re doing it on your own, and expect monthly charges for storage in the hundreds of dollars.

5. Staging: Prices for home stagers can vary depending on the number of rooms being staged, as well as whether the home stager is using your own furniture and decor, or providing rentals. Budget anywhere from $1,500 or more for this service.

6. Realtor fees: As mentioned, most realtors in Ontario charge between 4-6% to sell your home.

What to Expect at Showings/Open Houses

Showings can be one of the most challenging aspects of selling your home because of the way they can disrupt your life, especially if you’re not prepared.

Here are a few aspects of showings to keep in mind:

• It’s best to be out of your home while showings are happening. Potential buyers are using this time as a low pressure period to examine the house and imagine living there, and that’s harder to do when the current occupant is there.

• You may want to hire a cleaner to come in frequently. Keeping your home pristine 24/7 can be challenging, especially when you have kids and pets, but a pristine house that’s clean and tidy with no crumbs on the counter, dishes in the sink, or unmade beds show much better.

• Have a plan for your pets. You may have the most friendly, low-key pet in the world, but showings can be a stressor. Ensure that your realtor is aware of your pets and has made a note of them so that touring agents and their clients are aware, and that you either have a safe area (kennel) for your pets to be, or that you take them with you.

• Lock away your valuables: Even though realtors are there with their clients, people are unpredictable. If you have valuables in your home, it’s best to keep them in a safe, or even store them in a safe location outside your home (safety deposit box) while your home is on the market.

In very active markets, you may be lucky enough to get dozens of requests for showings, each of which could be between 30 minutes to a full hour.

With any luck though, this period of activity could be short - and end in an attractive offer.

Reviewing Offers

By following all of the tips and tricks above, you should be well on your way to ensuring that your home is best positioned to get the most return.

Hopefully, this value will be reflected in a flood of offers.

Sometimes, home sellers decide to only accept offers on a certain date (aptly named the offer date), but other times, offers can be submitted at any time.

Holding an offer date is often a strategy employed when you want to drum up a lot of interest over a short period of time, hopefully receive several offers all at once. With this strategy, buyers may feel the heat of competition and come with their best offer in hand. This can allow you to quickly determine which offer is best for you.

On the other hand, accepting offers at any time may allow you to get a deal more quickly, as potential buyers feel the pressure of knowing that someone else can ‘swoop in’ at any time to buy the home.

It’s important to note that:

• Price isn’t necessarily the most important aspect for everyone: Sometimes, you need the right closing date (e.g. to move within 30 days instead of 90), fewer, or no conditions, or even to know that your home is going to be occupied by people in a special situation (e.g. some people may wish to sell to a young family).

• Not every offer strategy works for everyone. You get to choose.

• If an offer comes in that is attractive, but not your ideal, you can negotiate. For example, if the highest priced offer has a longer closing date than you would prefer. You can sign the offer back with a shorter closing, and see if the buyers are flexible. This puts the ball in the buyer’s court, and they’ll get to decide whether to accept the new terms, submit a different offer back to you, or walk away from the deal completely.

• Sometimes no offers come in. In this instance, your realtor will work with you to assess what steps to take next. They an also solicit helpful feedback from other realtors, such as those who have come through your home in a showing with their clients, or via hosting an agent open house, which is an open house just for agents.

Once You Accept an Offer…

At long last, the day you’ve dreampt of is here: You’ve received an offer on your home and accepted it! Congratulations.

Now, you need to make sure that any conditions on the offer are satisfied (e.g. home inspection, financing, etc). Once they are, your deal should be firm, and you can prepare to move on to your next big adventure!