After multiple interest rate hikes in 2022 by the Bank of Canada, mortgage rates have increased steadily over the past year, and the Government of Ontario launched a series of policies to cool down the market frenzy, the Toronto real estate market is transitioning to a buyer’s market. How can sellers still list their homes for sale, sell them fast, and get the top dollar in this housing market?
Here are the 6 steps to working with a trusted real estate agent and selling your home.
Step 1. Choose the right listing agent
Just like a company interviews for employees, you should start by interviewing several real estate agents to represent you and your property listing.
Check past clients’ reviews
At the beginning of the interview process, you should check the real estate agents’ reviews of their past clients. A good, experienced real estate professional agent should have numerous reviews with high ratings.
Have a Solid Marketing Plan
When you are meeting with the agents, pay attention to their marketing plan, not just meaningless verbal promises on how much your house can be sold for. Ask the agents where they will promote your listing, and if there are any additional value-added services, such as staging, photography and videography, that they provide.
Setting the Listing Price
The appropriate listing price is determined by comparing recent real estate transactions of similar properties in the same neighbourhood. Part of the listing agent's duty is to ensure that the seller's expected price is aligned with the fair market price. If, for any reason, the seller hopes to sell for much higher than the market, then the real estate agent may suggest the seller wait until the market catches up with the price growth.
The reason the listing price should not be set too high, is that the listing may remain active for a very long time, leading potential buyers to think that something is wrong with the property.
The highest offering price is what the market is willing to offer, since the listing is public for all motivated buyers to bid on.
2. Signing the Listing Contract
Once you have found a listing agent, the seller should sign the listing contract.
The listing contract should clearly state the Real Estate Commissions for both the buyer and sellers agent, as well as a list of duties carried out by the agent.
There are two types of listings a real estate agent can put on. The first type is private listing, where the agent will only promote your listing in his or her database, and the second type is to list through the Multiple Listing Service (MLS).
The agent may also choose to set a certain period of time of exclusive listing, meaning the agent will promote your listing in his/her own database, before putting it on the MLS.
The seller should provide all the key information on the property to be displayed on the MLS.
3. Listing and Showing
During showing time, ensure that the property is clean and clear of personal items, which allows your listing agent to arrange for a staging service.
The agent may also arrange for professional photos and videos to be taken at your property to further promote the listing.
As an experienced seller agent, I recommend the property be vacant, so the buyer agents have more availability to show the property. More showing often correlates to more offers, which increases the chance of receiving a high quality offer.
4. Reviewing Offers
During a seller's market, many seller agents use a bidding strategy to specify an offer day when they collect all offers. The listing agent encourages all interested parties to bring their offers on the specific offer day, when all offers will be reviewed. The highest quality offer will be chosen and accepted by the seller.
Another bidding strategy is to welcome offers at any time. In this case, the property is listed at a sale price very close to what the seller expected, so whoever brings an offer, the seller can accept the offer if it matches expectations.
5. Negotiating For the Best Sale Price
As a seller, you want to ensure all the clauses and conditions are reasonable. For example, the closing day can match your plan to move.
Most often, the prospective buyer will have a written clause ensuring all electronic appliances are in good working order, so ensure that during closing that this condition is met, or else the potential buyer may ask for credit to compensate.
6. Closing and Receiving Funds
When the title is transferred to the buyers successfully, our seller's real estate lawyer's trust account will receive all the funds paid by the buyer.
The buyer's deposit, which is paid to the listing real estate brokerage's trust account, will also be refunded to the seller after deducting both sides' agents' real estate commission fee.
Unlike other property markets, the seller only receives all the funds on closing day, but not before. So ensure that your financial planning is according to this schedule.
Buying and Selling Toronto Real Estate
Whether you are buying your first condo, or selling a single-family home, Team Priscilla Han Realty can help you.
We are proud to serve the whole Greater Toronto Area (GTA), including but not limited to the CIty of Toronto, North York, Markham, Richmond Hill, Vaughan, Aurora, Scarborough, Mississauga, Oakville , Pickering, and Oshawa.
We help research properties that are best tailored for home buyers, providing them with instant notification of newly available properties, access to exclusive deals that are not on the MLS.
For property sellers, we have a database of thousands of buyers-in-wait, 20,000+ combined subscribers on YouTube TouTiao. Our "Your Home Sold Guaranteed, or I'll Buy It" program provides seller with a worry-free selling process. Our professional staging, photography, and videography service help sellers present their property at their best and maximize exposure to potential buyers!
Reach out to us at prishanrealty@gmail.com, or call/text: 647-360-8963 for a free consultation or home evaluation. Visit our website, https://priscillahanrealty.com for more up - to - date videos, blogs, and listings.
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