Selling your property is a big decision, and there is a lot to consider; timing, costs, market trends, as well as pricing and marketing strategies.
If you are contemplating selling your property this section will provide you with some great information, tips and tricks of the trade and important things to consider throughout the process.
Thinking
If you’ve just started considering a sale this section will provide you with some great information, tips and tricks and this is a great place to start researching and planning your move.
There are many costs to consider when selling a property, we’ve put together a list of a few important ones that you should budget for. Here are a few important ones to consider:
Preparing for Sale
- Repairs and updates
- Carpet Cleaning and a Fresh coat of paint
- Staging and Accessorizing
- Storage
Selling Costs
- Real estate commission
- Mortgage Payout Penalty
- Mortgage Discharge Fees
- Legal Fees
- Disbursements
Moving Costs
- Movers / Truck Rental
- Packing Supplies
Preparing
Before your home hits the market it’s important that you have taken the time to prepare.
Homes that are staged typically sell faster and for more money than those that aren’t. Why is staging important?
The saying you only get one chance to make a first impression could not be more true than it is for real estate. Buyers decide almost instantly how they feel about the home. When they pull up does the property look inviting and well kept? Are they excited to get inside and see the rest? Or is the impression that they get a less than positive one? If they have already started a to-do list walking up to the front door, rest assured that will continue once inside.
Momentum is a powerful part of human nature, it’s easier to continue feeling positive or continue feeling negative than it is to completely reverse from your initial feelings. Knowing this you can work towards making sure that every impression is the right one.
One of the best ways to ensure that the impressions your home gives to potential buyers are the right ones is to have a professional home stager come in for a consultation. It’s hard to see your own home through the eyes of a buyer, having an unbiased and experienced third party come and make recommendations will make the task of preparing your home for the market much easier.
Homes that are staged typically sell faster and for more money than those that aren’t.
Listing
What to Expect When You Hire Eaton Realty
Our guarantee to each and every one of our clients.
Through honesty, integrity, and roll-up-the-sleeves hard work, we strive to ensure that every one of our clients gets the results they expect and feels like part of our family before, during, and after a sale. Accessibility and consistent communication between us and our clients combined with a straightforward, no gimmick approach to real estate will help make the process of selling your home very smooth and as stress-free as possible.
Pricing your home is one of the important components to ensuring you receive top dollar and complete a successful sale. This graph illustrates the relationship between the number of perspective buyers relative to the percentage above or below market price that the property is listed at.
Here are a few of the most common misconceptions about pricing a home:
We can always drop the price later…
True and many people test the market in this way. What usually happens in this situation however is that the house sits on the market for an extended period of time.
You will have your highest level of activity and most buyer interest, generally speaking, in the first three weeks. If you overprice your house it dissuades what might otherwise be interested buyers from even viewing the home then in order to attract interest and attention back to your listing you must reduce the price. Most of the time your home will end up selling for less than if you had priced at market value to begin with. Don’t forget to consider the extra carrying costs you have incurred during that extended marketing period, this is of particular concern to those sellers who are not living at the property.
My neighbours listed their house at…
Sellers can set any asking price they want, the truth; market value is what a buyer is willing to pay within a reasonable amount of time.
This means that the comparable properties that have recently sold are the best indicator of what the market value is in any given neighbourhood. Adjustments do of course need to be made in relation to individual property characteristics– such as a quieter street, more bathrooms, finished basement, etc.,
When pricing your home we will give you all of the facts and information and advice needed to create a pricing strategy to help you reach your goals.
We Will Not…
Tell you that your home is worth more than it is to get your listing
We Will Not…
Tell you that your home is worth less than it is to satisfy a guarantee to sell
We will…
Give you the same honest advice we would give our family.
Selling
An offer was received, now what?
First things first, take a deep breath! Usually we will have no Indication on the contents of the offer in advance, so while it is always great to get an offer, it may not be what you are expecting to see. Almost everyone wants to ‘get a deal’ and many people will play the game by offering lower than the asking price and negotiate up.
For years all presentations where done in person by the Buyer’s agent to the Seller and their agent, usually at the Sellers’ kitchen table. Most offers now are emailed to us to present to our clients. This is preferable to most sellers.
In deciding how to proceed with the offer you have 3 options: you can accept it, counter it, or reject it.
There are pro’s and con’s to all three and it will be through our discussions that we will help you make the best choice possible.
Terms and conditions are a fundamental component to an offer and can make or break a deal.
There are quite a few options when it comes to the terms and conditions in an offer. Your Realtor should have a thorough understanding of how clauses and conditions work and be able to explain them in layman’s terms.
A few common conditions include, the arrangement of financing by the Buyer, completion of a home inspection, arrangement of insurance, condition of the Buyer selling their house. Other terms or clauses commonly contained in an agreement include; the Buyer right to revisit the property, the inclusion of other documents (eg. survey), and a warranty on the property and things included in the sale.
Making sure that you have hired a Realtor that fully understands the contract and the contents of its terms and conditions is imperative to making sure you are protected against future liability.
Closing
Closing the transaction is where your solicitor comes to the table. We’ve asked Mike Miller of Mattlow, Miller, Harris, Thrasher LLP, to answer a couple of common questions sellers have for their lawyers:
What can I expect when closing the sale of my property?
When acting on the sale of a property, the Seller’s lawyer communicates with the Buyer’s Lawyer to ensure that all steps are taken to transfer the property from the Sellers to the Byers. The Seller’s lawyer will complete the following tasks:
Receive and review the Agreement of Purchase and Sale.
- Communicate with the Seller to obtain all relevant information about the property.
- At the earliest stage possible, the Sellers should contact their lawyer to review the agreement, discuss information and obtain a quote for the sale fees and costs.
- Communicate with the Buyer’s lawyer.
- Communicate with the Mortgage Company to obtain payout statements for all mortgages/lines of credit registered on the property.
- Preparation of closing documents including the Transfer (deed).
- Ensure that all items registered on title (mortgages, liens, expired agreements) have been removed from title.
- One to four days before closing, the Sellers will meet with their lawyer to sign all paperwork and provide keys for the house. Sellers should meet with their lawyerwhen signing final documents. Some law firms allow a secretary to meet with the clients to sign final paperwork. Sellers should demand that they meet with their lawyer.
- At the final meeting the Sellers will provide 1 key to the house. All remaining keys, mail keys, alarm codes, garage door openers, manuals etc. can be left on the kitchen counter when the Seller leaves for the final time.
- The Sale will be completed when the Buyer’s lawyer has deposited the purchase money into the Seller’s Lawyer’s Trust Account and the Transfer (deed) has been registered buy the Buyer’s lawyer.
- The Sale will be completed some time between 11:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. due to a number of different factors.
- The sale proceeds are available when the transaction is completed (between 11:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. and can be deposited directly to the Seller’s bank account (exceptions: PC Financial, trust companies, credit unions).
- Sellers should plan to be out of the home before 12:00 p.m. (Noon) on the day of closing.
- The home should be left empty, clean and in a broomswept manner.
