Selling Your Home or Property

Selling your home or property is a major decision that can be influenced by the need for a bigger or smaller space, relocation to a different community, for income, health reasons, or simply because you feel like it.  It is important, once you’ve decided to sell your home to really consider the benefits of hiring a REALTOR® to help prepare, market and sell your property. 

As your real estate brokers, Katia & Tracie will help ensure your property stands out on the MLS®, by offering staging services, state of the art photography & videography, a great marketing plan, thorough market knowledge of available and sold homes in your neighbourhood.  Together with you, Katia & Tracie will help determine the appropriate marketing techniques to advertise your home or property.  They will show your property to colleagues within their brokerage and to other Realtors® in the area in order for other brokers and sales representatives to keep your property in mind for buyers searching for a home like yours.  In general, having a REALTOR® represent your interests in the sale of your property offers the most efficient way to get your home sold at the highest price in the shortest amount of time.  

 

Determining a List Price

A Comparative Market Analysis (CMA) will help determine a suitable listing price for your property exposed to the open market today.  Katia & Tracie can provide you a with report containing similar listings which are currently for sale, have recently sold, or have failed to sell, along with features that differentiate your property from others.  The results of the CMA, are an estimate of the value of your home under current market conditions.  A CMA takes into account aspects of the property itself, as well as a number of other factors which affect value including competition, location, interest rates, and market conditions (supply and demand).

The market value, as established by the CMA is relative to all of the above factors and is rarely what you paid, and does not always recognize the investments you have made over the course of your ownership.

 The value of your property is determined by…what a buyer is willing to pay, under TODAY’S market conditions

In order to expose your property to a willing Buyer, Katia & Tracie will work together with you to manage the factors you cannot control including competition, location, interest rates, and market conditions and those you CAN control, including listing price, marketing plan, overall condition of the property and reasonable terms and conditions.

 

Preparing Your Home For Sale

They say with Real Estate it’s all about location, location, location.  While this is true, it is important to keep in mind that a well-kept home that shows pride of ownership will spark the interest of Buyers much quicker than one that requires a lot of work.  Less is more when it comes to personal belongings, packing away excessive picture frames and knick-knacks will help Buyers visualize themselves living in your home, rather than picturing themselves as visitors in someone else’s house. 

Small repairs that need to be done should be completed before the house is put up for sale.  Things like broken eavesdrops, chipped paint or outdated trim can make or break the sale of your home for a particularly observant buyer.  Keeping the grass mowed, airing out the house, changing the lightbulbs and washing the windows seems like small details, but they show pride of ownership and home buyers want to know they are moving into a home that was well taken care of.

Another important factor that you will need to consider when listing your home for sale, is what you will leave at the house for future owners to use, and what you are not willing to part with upon your departure to your new home.  Sometimes offers come in conditional upon those valuables being left behind, so it is always a good idea to make a list of which fixtures or appliances you are not willing to part with.

As your REALTORS®, Katia & Tracie can provide you with a list of lawyers, cleaning services, contractors, painters and any other service providers you may require to ensure that you are given enough resources to make the listing and completion process to go smoothly.  Upon listing, Katia & Tracie may also suggest professional staging or staging consultations which will allow you to get a grasp of what it will take to increase the appeal of your home and will give us the opportunity to consider staging your home in preparation for the sale.

 

Marketing Your Property

Coming up with a marketing plan that works for your particular property is a vital part of the process in selling your home.  A waterfront condominium will require a different marketing plan than a rural chalet.  Getting together to discuss the approach that will best suit your property will ensure that we have mutual expectations.

 Some of the ways your property may be exposed to the market include:

  • MLS® (Multiple Listing Service) systems which will include Realtor.ca, along with all major individual brokerage and real estate websites.

  • Century 21 Millennium, Brokerage website

  • Social Media outlets, which may include

    • Facebook,

    • Instagram,

    • X

    • paid social media

  • Professional Photography

  • Drone Footage

  • Input or light staging from a professional interior designer

  • A multimedia presentation of the property

  • A ‘For Sale’ sign erected and maintained on the property (if allowed)

  • Open House sessions on weekends when traffic may be elevated

  • Your property will be introduced to sales staff through daily bulletin postings and/or in-house sales tours at:   

    • Century 21 Millennium Inc., Brokerage

    • One Point Association of Realtors®

    • Toronto Regional Real Estate Board®

    • …and more

With a well-prepared marketing plan, your property WILL be seen!