Tips to make the big sale

Curious About What Your Home is Worth Today?

Sun, 15 May 2011 22:25:54 +0100

If you’re curious about what your home may be worth, here’s an easy way to find out what homes like yours are selling for in today’s market.  Plus: Get a FREE report with up-to-the-minute statistics based on all the homes for sale and sold in YOUR Neighbourood over the last six months in all price ranges.  To get your FREE February 2011 Report on Mavis Bristol Area Mississauga House Prices, simply fill out the form below and we'll send it to you right away.

Best Time to Sell Your Home

Mon, 9 May 2011 21:33:55 +0100

The Best Time to Sell Your Home
Homes are listed and sold all through the year in the Mississauga, Brampton & GTA area. However, the greatest number of potential buyers will be shopping during the months of March, April, May, June, and July. It’s during these months that you can expect your home to sell most quickly and with better offers.
Once the snow melts off the roofs and the weather turns warmer, potential buyers begin to drive through neighbourhoods, attend open houses, and make serious calls to their Realtors. Springtime buyers are in a “mood” to buy and want to move into their new home before September, when school or new job commitments begin. The market looses momentum once fall hits and will dwindle steadily until the Christmas Holidays are over.
Transfers, or other unplanned situations, often make it necessary to put a home on the market at a less desirable time. This doesn’t mean that you’ll receive less money, but it may take longer to sell your home during a period when fewer buyers are shopping for homes.
The following will give you an idea of the home shopping patterns in the Ontario Real Estate market.
January and February  The Holidays are over! Potential buyers are looking at what’s available on the market. Buyers may not be in a hurry at this time, but they are likely to make an offer on a home that is exactly what they’re looking for.
March and April  It’s Springtime and people are getting more excited about finding a new home. Buyers are beginning to find more choices, but are also aware that those homes won’t remain on the market very long. You can expect some serious action during these months.
May, June, and July
These are the “peak” months. The weather is nice and the days are long. This is the most active period for sellers and buyers.
August  August begins like July, but suddenly slows down as Labor day approaches. You’ll probably wish you hadn’t waited to list your home this late in the season.
September and October  Although the most enthusiastic buyers have already filled their needs, you will continue to get viewings. Warm weather and beautiful days will keep people looking, but fall activities will also be a drain on their time. Buyers may not be in any hurry to make a purchase.
November and December  You have competition - the Holidays, hunting season, Christmas shopping, shorter daylight periods, colder weather, and sporting events all conflict with home shopping. Fewer buyers have time to look at homes during these two months.

Holding a Successful Open House

Mon, 9 May 2011 21:15:26 +0100

There are four steps to follow for a successful Open House. The first three are planning, promotion and presentation. Once you’ve done all that, the only step remaining is to cross your fingers and hope for good weather!
As with most things in real estate, planning is critical to your success. Check your calendar and pick a date that won’t conflict with other events that could divert your potential visitors. You won’t get many home browsers on Super Bowl Sunday or Mother’s Day! Ask your real estate professional for advice on how to showcase your home to its best advantage. Remember, when it comes to showing appeal less is more. You want to create an atmosphere of spaciousness. Get rid of the clutter to maximize your space. Have a garage sale, empty the closets and take the time to give those things away to charity. Besides making your home look great for showing, it’ll give you less to do on moving day.
Remember that a home that looks well kept will create favourable impression. Make sure you cut the grass or shovel the sidewalk as the season requires. Plan on doing a little spot painting to perk up problem areas, oil squeaking hinges, tighten loose screws, and all the other little things that show a home is cared for.
Then it’s time to start promoting. Your real estate professional is the expert here, and can advise you what marketing techniques will be used to promote your event. Whether it’s direct mail, advertising in Home Guides or the newspaper, or website promotion, your representative will effectively promote your event. However, you can add to the process by partnering in the promotion too. Post notices on bulletin boards in supermarkets, libraries or community centers. Anyway that you can spread the word will add to the process.
For your Open House day, your representative will also counsel you on how to present your home to its best advantage. Leaving on all the lights, having a fire burning in the fireplace, soft background music playing, and coffee brewing all add to the ambience and make a welcoming impression. But as any real estate professional will tell you, the best thing that you can do to make your open house a success is to get out and stay out! All joking aside, you’ll get better results when your visitors feel free to poke about, linger, and ask very direct questions of your real estate agent. If you’re present, they’ll feel more constrained, and your sales representative may not even get an opportunity to identify any concerns they may have, and attempt to offer them options and solutions. So pack up the dog and the kids, and enjoy your day away trust your real estate professional to do the job right. After all, they’re the experts!

Little Improvements Can Mean Big Returns

Mon, 9 May 2011 20:58:38 +0100

It’s always a good idea to spruce up the exterior and interior of your home before listing it for sale. But that doesn’t mean you have to undertake major and/or expensive project.

Just a little effort will greatly increase the perceived value of your home. After all, if you wanted to undertake a large-scale project, you probable wouldn’t be selling!
Here are some simple steps you can take to increase the perceived value of your home and make a great first impression.
Exterior Appearance
■ Keep lawns cut
■ Trim hedges and shrubs
■ Weed and edge gardens
■ Clear driveway and clean up oil spills
■ Clean out garage
■ Power wash
■ Touch up paint
■ Plant colourful, inexpensive flowers in pots if  necessary

Create Space
■ Clear halls and stairs of clutter
■ Store surplus furniture
■ Clear kitchen counter and stove top
■ Clear closets of unnecessary clothing and stuff
■ Remove empty boxes and containers
■ Put away personal photos so buyers can envision the house as theirs

Maintenance
■ Repair leaking taps and toilets
■ Clean furnace and filters
■ Tighten door knobs and latches
■ Repair cracked plaster
■ Apply fresh coat of paint or touch up where necessary
■ Clean and repair windows
■ Repair seals around tubs and basins
■ Replace defective light bulbs
■ Oil squeaking doors
■ Repair squeaking floor boards

At the Front Door
■ Clean porch and foyer
■ Ensure door bell works
■ Repair any broken screens
■ Fresh paint or varnish front door
■ Repair door locks and key access

Create a Buying Mood
■ Make sure your home smells fresh and clean
■ Turn on lights
■ Turn on air conditioner/heater
■ Open the drapes
■ Light the fireplace

Squeaky Clean
■ Clean and freshen bathrooms
■ Clean fridge and stove (in and out)
■ Clean around heating vents
■ Clean washer and dryer
■ Clean carpets, drapes and window blinds
■ Eliminate pet odors and stains

How do I price my home?

Mon, 9 May 2011 20:51:00 +0100

Here are six strategies to help you figure out how much your home is worth:
1. Abandon your personal point of view. How much will a ready, willing and able buyer be willing to pay for your home? Buyers don’t care how much you paid for the home, how many memorable moments you and your family shared in the home, how much cash you need for the down payment on your next home or how much time and money you’ve invested in your home’s hardwood floors, fresh paint, lush landscaping or other improvements.
2. Get a couple of CMAs. Invite at least three real estate agents to visit your home and give you their opinion of its likely selling price. Ask for a “comparative market analysis” (CMA), which shows the prices of comparable recently sold homes, on-the-market homes and homes that were on the market, but weren’t sold. The on-the-market homes are the “competition” for your home. Ask the agents why each home was included in the CMA and whether any other comparable homes were eliminated from the CMA. Price recommendations based on CMAs aren’t gospel. Some agents will tell you to under-price your home in hope of sparking a bidding war. Others will suggest a flatteringly high price to “buy” your listing only to demand a price reduction a few weeks later.
3. Do your own market research. Go to open houses in your neighbourhood and try to make an impartial assessment of how those homes compare to yours in terms of location, size, amenities and condition. Assuming all the asking prices were the same, would you buy your home or someone else’s?
4. Calculate the price per square foot. The average price per square foot for homes in your neighborhood shouldn’t be the sole determinant of the asking price for your home, but it can be a useful starting point. Keep in mind that various methodologies can be used to calculate square footage.
5. Consider market conditions. Are home prices in your area trending upwards or downwards? Are homes selling quickly or languishing? Will your home be on the market in the spring home-buying season or the dead of winter? Are interest rates attractive? Is the economy hot or cold? Will you be selling in a buyer’s market or a seller’s market? Is the local job market strong or are employees fearful of staff reductions?
6. Sweeten the transaction terms. Some buyers have needs that go beyond the bottom line. If you’re willing to close escrow quickly, you’ll attract buyers who want to move in right away. If you can offer seller-financing, your home will appeal to buyers who need to stretch their financial resources. A lease-option can help first-timers who need down payment assistance. The more creative and flexible you can be in meeting the buyer’s needs, the more success you’ll have in pricing your home to sell.