January 2012 REBGV Stats Package

Selection broadens and demand eases to kick off 2012 in the Greater Vancouver housing market

VANCOUVER, B.C. – February 6, 2012 – Greater Vancouver home sellers were more active
than buyers in January and overall home prices, according to the new MLS® Home Price Index
(MLS® HPI), continued to experience more stability and less fluctuation compared to the
beginning of 2011.

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential property sales in
Greater Vancouver reached 1,577 on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in January 2012.
This represents a 4.9 per cent decrease compared to the 1,658 sales recorded in December 2011,
a decrease of 13.3 per cent compared to the 1,819 sales in January 2011 and an 18 per cent
decline from the 1,923 home sales in January 2010.

January sales in Greater Vancouver were the second lowest January total in the region since
2002, though only 146 sales below the 10-year average.
“We’re seeing trends emerge in our market that favour buyers, such as increased selection and
more stability in pricing compared to this time last year,” Rosario Setticasi, REBGV president
said. “Last month’s activity tells us that competition amongst home buyers was reduced in
January, which means that individuals looking to purchase a home had more time to do their
homework, consult with their REALTOR®, and make a decision.”

New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver totalled 5,756
in January. This represents a 19.9 per cent increase compared to the 4,801 new listings reported
in January 2011, and a 253.3 per cent increase compared to the 1,629 new listings reported in
December 2011.

Last month’s new listing count was the highest January total in Greater Vancouver since 1995.
The total number of properties currently listed for sale on the Greater Vancouver MLS® is
12,544, a 12.5 per cent increase compared to December 2011 and an increase of 20.2 per cent
compared to January 2011.

New MLS® Home Price Index launches in Canada

Today marks the launch of the MLS® Home Price Index (MLS® HPI), the best and purest way
of determining price trends in the housing market. The MLS® HPI was pioneered by six
founding partners: the real estate boards of Calgary, Fraser Valley, Greater Montreal, Greater
Vancouver, and Toronto and the Canadian Real Estate Association. The partners contracted with
Altus Group to develop the MLS® HPI which measures home price trends in the five major
markets serviced by those boards.

The new index replaces the MLSLink Housing Price Index, which had been used by Greater
Vancouver and Fraser Valley REALTORS® since the mid 1990s. MLS® HPI statistics should
not be compared with previous MLSLink HPI statistics.1

“The MLS® HPI is a national collaboration intended to give the public a more reliable and
comprehensive tool to understand home price trends across the country,” Setticasi said.
The MLS® HPI benchmark price for all residential properties in Greater Vancouver currently
sits at $660,600, up 5.7 per cent compared to January 2011 and down 0.1 per cent compared to
December 2011. The MLS® HPI also tracks home prices across the Lower Mainland.2 The
benchmark price for all residential properties in the Lower Mainland is $593,300, an increase of
5 per cent compared to January 2011.

Sales of detached properties on the MLS® in January 2012 reached 659, a decline of 16.9 per
cent from the 793 detached sales recorded in January 2011, and a 6.5 per cent decrease from the
705 units sold in January 2010. The benchmark price for detached properties increased 11.3 per
cent from January 2011 to $1,034,700.

Sales of apartment properties reached 657 in January 2012, a decline of 7.9 per cent compared to
the 713 sales in January 2011, and a decrease of 26.3 per cent compared to the 891 sales in
January 2010.The benchmark price of an apartment property increased 2.4 per cent from January
2011 to $371,500.

Attached property sales in January 2012 totalled 261, a decline of 16.6 per cent compared to the
313 sales in January 2011, and a 20.2 per cent decrease from the 327 attached properties sold in
January 2010. The benchmark price of a townhome3 unit declined 0.5 per cent between January
2011 and 2012 to $468,000.

Editor’s notes:
1.) The new MLS® HPI will be indexed to equal 100 in January 2005. The previous MLSLink HPI was
indexed to 2001. Sales prior to 2005 will not be considered in the MLS® HPI. Click here to view more
detailed information on the MLS® HPI.
2.) The Lower Mainland includes the areas serviced by both the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver
and the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board, and is comprised of communities from Whistler to
Abbotsford.
3.) Townhome properties are similar to attached properties, a category that was used in the previous
MLSLink HPI, but do not included duplexes.

The real estate industry is a key economic driver in British Columbia. In 2011, 32,390 homes changed ownership in the Board’s area, generating $1.36 billion in spin-off activity and 9,069.2 jobs. The total dollar value of residential sales transacted through the MLS® system in Greater Vancouver totalled $21 billion in 2010. The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver is an association representing more than 10,900 REALTORS® and their companies. The Board provides a variety of member services, including the Multiple Listing Service®.

Looking for More Stats?! Check out all the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver Stats from May 2010!

Lowest 5 year Fixed Rate Mortgages in Canada Ever!

The Finance Minister and the heads of the Big Canadian Banks have recently been alluding to the fact that the property market in Canada, particularly in the real estate markets in Vancouver and Toronto may be getting a bit too hot for their liking based on the very low interest rates we are seeing in Canada right now.

And then came this…

2.99% on a 5 Year Fixed Mortgage? Whats the Catch?

This is the lowest 5 Year Fixed Rate Mortgages have EVER been!

I recently interviewed Vancouver mortgage broker, Chad Watts about the ultra low mortgage rates that the big banks are offering, primarily the 2.99% 5 Year Fixed Rate Mortgage.

When I heard about these mortgages, I thought:

A) “Whats the Catch?” and,

B) “How can the Banks afford to offer money this cheap?” and apparently others shared my thoughts on that question.

The Catch.

But today we are talking about the “Catch” with these 2.99% 5 Year Fixed Mortgages, and here’s what it is:

1. Amortization: No amortizations longer than 25 years. Investors looking for the longer 30 to 40 year amortizations still allowed with non-insured low ratio mortgages will need to look elsewhere as will those who like the lower payment a longer amortization offers.
2. Prepayments: Borrowers can only pay down 10% per year with this mortgage rather than the standard 20% per year.
3. Closed Mortgage: You can only get rid of this mortgage if you sell the property.
4. Renewal: You can only renew into a very limited range of mortgages offered by the bank if you choose to renew. Very often these options may not be all that good.
5. Not Portable: If you want to sell the property the mortgage is on, you will not be able to port the mortgage over to another property
6. Non-Assumable: You can’t sell the mortgage with the property.

The basic catch is that these mortgages may be great for specific property owners, but their lack of flexibility may not work for many home owners who may have changing housing and investment needs over the next 5 years (which is a long time).

If its Too Good to be True, It is!

Very often it is possible to get mortgages at a slightly higher rate that will allow far more flexibility and can SAVE a borrower a lot of money should they need to make changes to the mortgage in the future.

Looking for Advice on Buying a Property? Check out these great videos for New Home Buyers in Vancouver!

Thinking of Selling and Don’t Know Where to Start? Have a look at the Informative Videos on How to Sell a Property in Vancouver!

Chinese New Year and Vancouver Real Estate

I recently had the pleasure of interviewing Jonathan Fung, a Mortgage Specialist with Vancity who was kind enough to discuss Chinese New Year with me and its impact on Vancouver’s real estate market.

Chinese New Year or Lunar New Year is the most important Holiday of the year for Chinese people as well as for many Chinese-Canadians here in Vancouver. It’s a time to celebrate with family and friends and reflect on the previous year, and there is a heavy emphasis on making the upcoming year a good/prosperous year in terms of wealth.

How does Chinese New Year affect the Vancouver Real Estate Market?

During Chinese New Year, many celebrants will be looking to acquire new wealth (buy real estate) and upgrade their investment holdings (sell real estate). Chinese New Year is seen as a time of good fortune and investments or sales made during this time are believed to benefit from this.

The traditional busy time in the Vancouver property market is Spring, followed in ascending order of business by Autumn, Summer, and Winter.

With the increased activity in the Vancouver housing market due to Chinese New Year late Winter/Early Spring based on 2011′s numbers, almost as busy as the traditional Spring market.

Historically January and February are slow months for the Vancouver real estate market, but in January and February of 2011 sales were significantly higher than the 10 year average. As the article mentions, many people from Mainland China and elsewhere used the time over Chinese New Year to visit Vancouver and buy property.

According to media reports the Chinese economy and real estate market that is not as hot as in early 2011, so Chinese New Year 2012, The Year of the Dragon may not be as busy as 2011, but sales activity in the Vancouver real estate market could very well be again above the 10 year average.

That said, Economist Tsur Sommerville had this to say about what could happen for Chinese New Year 2012:

“There’s a sense in China that the property market there is slowing down, so that can play out here in terms of people who are looking to perhaps invest someplace else that’s more attractive.”

Mr. Somerville added these property buyers are primarily wealthy immigrants with enough money in the bank to pay for properties immediately.

“They’re not going to be able to get a loan here for it and they can’t get a loan at home for it.”

Will Chinese New Year Continue to by a Busy Season in the Vancouver Housing Market and Will House Prices Increase?

This is a very difficult thing to predict and as you may have noticed, I am not one to make predictions on Vancouver’s housing market.

That said, I am very interested to hear YOUR OPINION in the form of a comment down below.

Happy Lunar/Chinese New Year and Gung Hay Fat Choy!

New Buyer? Looking for Advice? Check out these great Videos with First Time Home Buyer Advice!

Looking to Invest in Pre-Construction Condos? Check out these great Vancouver Presales with Video!

December 2011 REBGV Stats Courtesy of Mike Stewart Vancouver Realtor

Balanced real estate market prevailed through much of 2011

The 2011 Greater Vancouver housing market began with heightened demand in regional hot spots and concluded with greater balance between seller supply and buyer demand.

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that total sales of detached, attached and apartment properties in 2011 reached 32,390, a 5.9 per cent increase from the 30,595 sales recorded in 2010, and a 9.2 per cent decrease from the 35,669 residential sales in 2009. Last year’s home sale total was 6.3 per cent below the ten-year average for annual Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) sales in the region.
The number of residential properties listed for sale on the MLS® in Greater Vancouver increased 2.7 per cent in 2011 to 59,549 compared to the 58,009 properties listed in 2010. Looking back further, last year’s total represents a 12.8 per cent increase compared to the 52,869 residential properties listed in 2009. Last year’s listing total was 11.1 per cent above the ten-year average for annual Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) property listings in the region.
“It was a relatively balanced year for the real estate market in Greater Vancouver with listing totals slightly above historical norms and sale numbers slightly below,” Rosario Setticasi, REBGV president said.
Residential property sales in Greater Vancouver totalled 1,658 in December 2011, a decrease of 12.7 per cent from the 1,899 sales recorded in December 2010 and a 29.7 per cent decline compared to November 2011 when 2,360 home sales occurred.

More broadly, last month’s residential sales represent a 34.1 per cent decrease over the 2,515 residential sales in December 2009, a 79.4 per cent increase compared to December 2008’s 924 sales, and a 12.6 per cent decrease compared to the 1,897 sales in December 2007.

The overall residential benchmark price, as calculated by the MLSLink Housing Price Index®, for Greater Vancouver increased 7.6 per cent to $621,674 between Decembers 2010 and 2011. However, prices have decreased 1.5 per cent since hitting a peak of $630,921 in June 2011.

“Our market remained in a balanced state for most of the year, although higher levels of demand for detached properties in the region’s largest communities caused prices in certain areas to rise higher than others,” Setticasi said. “For example, the benchmark price of a single-family detached home experienced double-digit increases in nine areas within the region over the last 12 months.”

New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver totalled 1,629 in December 2011. This represents a 4.1 per cent decline compared to the 1,699 units listed in December 2010 and a 49.4 per cent decline compared to November 2011 when 3,222 properties were listed.

Sales of detached properties in December 2011 reached 630, a decrease of 18.1 per cent from the 769 detached sales recorded in December 2010, and a 30.2 per cent decrease from the 902 units sold in December 2009. The benchmark price for detached properties increased 11.2 per cent from December 2010 to $887,471.

Sales of apartment properties reached 774 in December 2011, a decline of 4.6 per cent compared to the 811 sales in December 2010, and a decrease of 32.9 per cent compared to the 1,154 sales in December 2009.The benchmark price of an apartment property increased 3.7 per cent from December 2010 to $401,396.

Attached property sales in December 2011 totalled 254, a decline of 20.4 per cent compared to the 319 sales in December 2010, and a 44.7 per cent decrease from the 459 attached properties sold in December 2009. The benchmark price of an attached unit increased 4.2 per cent between December 2010 and 2011 to $511,499.

Looking for More Stats?! Have a look all the REBGV Stats from May 2010!

November 2011 REBGV Stats Mike Stewart

Historically normal activity keeps the Greater Vancouver housing market in a balanced state

The Greater Vancouver housing market saw relatively typical home sale and listing activity in November.

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential property sales of detached, attached and apartment properties on the region’s Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) reached 2,360 in November. This represents a 5.9 per cent decline compared to the 2,509 sales in November 2010 and a 1.9 per cent increase compared to the 2,317 sales recorded in October 2011.

Looking back further, last month’s residential sales total is 5.8 per cent below the ten-year average for sales in November.

“The pace of home listings entering the market eased slightly in November, compared to recent months, while sale levels remained fairly normal for this time of year,” Rosario Setticasi, REBGV president said. “November activity helped put our market firmly in balanced territory.”

New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver totalled 3,222 in November. This represents a 26.3 per cent decline compared to the 4,374 new listings reported in October 2011, but a 6.3 per cent increase compared to November 2010 when 3,030 properties were listed for sale on the MLS®.

Looking back further, last month’s new listing total is 2.1 per cent above the ten-year average for November.

The total number of properties currently listed for sale on the Greater Vancouver MLS® sits at 14,090, a decline of 9 per cent compared to October 2011 but an increase of 13 per cent when compared to this time last year.

The MLSLink® Housing Price Index (HPI) benchmark price for all residential properties in Greater Vancouver over the last 12 months has increased 7.2 per cent to $622,087 in November 2011 from $580,080 in November 2010.

Since reaching a peak in June of $630,921, the benchmark price for all residential properties in the region has declined 1.4 per cent.

Sales of detached properties on the MLS® in November 2011 reached 916, a decrease of 12.8 per cent from the 1,050 detached sales recorded in November 2010, and a 21.3 per cent decrease from the 1,164 units sold in November 2009. The benchmark price for detached properties increased 11.4 per cent from November 2010 to $890,204.

Sales of apartment properties reached 1,000 in November 2011, a 4.9 per cent decrease compared to the 1,052 sales in November 2010, and a decrease of 28.4 per cent compared to the 1,396 sales in November 2009. The benchmark price of an apartment property increased 2.7 per cent from November 2010 to $399,686.

Attached property sales in November 2011 totalled 444, a 9.1 per cent increase compared to the 407 sales in November 2010, and a 15.1 per cent decrease from the 523 attached properties sold in November 2009. The benchmark price of an attached unit increased 4.5 per cent between November 2010 and 2011 to $510,960.

Looking for more Vancouver Real Estate Statistics for months gone by?

I have detailed REBGV stats from May 2010 to the present Here!

How to Sell Your Vancouver Condo 6 – Home Staging

In How to Sell a Condo 5, we discussed the minimum requirements to prepare a suite for sale in the Vancouver real estate market.

Today we’ll discuss the next level of preparing your condo for sale – Professional Home Staging.

Speaking of professional home staging, Ron Sowden of Dekora Home Staging was kind enough to come and discuss with me how Home Staging can help sell a condo in Vancouver.

What is Home Staging?

Dekora’s site has a great definition:

“The art and science of selling a home in the shortest time for the highest value. Staging is about optimizing furnishings, lighting and decor to turn your home into a product with the most appeal to buyers.”

Professional Home Staging companies like Dekora have teams who can take a completely empty suite in rough condition and furnish it, colour coordinate, and equip it to look like a home out of Dwell or HGTV.

A Home Staging company can also take a furnished suite and make it “pop”, and this includes suites that are presently lived in.

How Can Home Staging Help Sell Your Condo?

In the last episode, I stressed the critical importance of a good first impression to create a positive perception of your condo in the mind of a prospective home buyer.

Suites that look good, and that are priced right will sell sooner for more money.

A professional Home Staging company will ensure that your condo looks the best it can to make that critical good first impression.

Is Home Staging a Cost or an Investment?

Home Staging is like anything in life: you get what you pay for.

I am a fan of Home Staging to get a property looking great, but it involves cost and may not be for everyone or for every property.

That said, for condo owners who don’t have the time or inclination to get their property in top shape for sale, an investment in Home Staging can make a property look perfect in a very short period of time (usually within a few days of the Staging contract being signed.)

A great looking property will stand out and sell for more money sooner than comparable condos. When making the decision as to use a Home Staging company or not, its advisable to ask yourself whats most important to you the Seller.

Do you have the money available to pay for the staging? Does your Realtor think staging is necessary? How much competition from other condos is there? Is the suite in really rough shape? Are the furnishings dated and in bad condition and will they hold and otherwise great property back?

Asking these sorts of questions will simplify the decision to stage a condo for sale.

Disclosure

I have used Dekora and other companies to stage condos that I have listed and sold and Home Staging helped the sale immensely. The Home Staging work quickly and efficiently and I using stagers on a case by case basis.

Thinking of Buying a Condo in Vancouver? Check out this great series of Videos on How to Buy a Condo in Vancouver!

Looking for Presale Condos? Have a look at these great Pre-Construction Condos in Vancouver!

Jameson House Automated Parking Garage in Action

I found this very cool video of the automated parking garage at Bosa Properties new Jameson House condo at 838 West Hastings Street in Coal Harbour. This style of robotic parking garage is the first of its kind in in this city and could be an indication of things to come given the high price real estate in Vancouver

Jameson House is a unique modernist luxury condo tower in Coal Harbour by internationally renown Foster and Partners of London. Jameson House is Foster and Partners first residential development in North America and they aimed to impress, which they have. Bosa has a great reputation for quality in Vancouver with a long track record of success with concrete high rises.

Looking for Advice on Buying a First Condo in Vancouver? Check out these informative videos on How to Buy a First Condo in Vancouver!

Need Advice on Selling a Condo in Vancouver? Have a look at these great videos on How to Sell a Condo!

I STRONGLY Encourage Comments Below!!

Vancouver Condo Buildings I Like!

The Freesia at 1082 Seymour Street in Downtown Vancouver.

This is the first in a series of video blog posts on Vancouver Condos I Like.

The Freesia at 1082 Seymour Street is a personal favourite of mine. I like it so much that I even built an entire website dedicated to 1082 Seymour Street, complete with Listings, Floor Plans, and Strata Information.

Why Do I Like 1082 Seymour Street?

• The Developer – I started selling at the Freesia when the building completed in the summer of 2006 and I was extremely impressed with the attitude of the Developer of the building. The Developer, Magellan 20/20 took a keen interest in the building after it completed, how it was run and most importantly how the suites were faring the in the real estate market. Members of the developers family actually lived in the building and were available to answer questions and they stood behind the product.
• Quality & Design – 1082 Seymour Street, at the time of writing, has had not major problems and has been wearing very well and I think that can be attributed to the attention to detail and quality on the part of the development team. Furthermore the interior finishings and appliances are high quality yet relatively inexpensive to repair and easily sourced. 
• The Location – The Freesia is located at the corner of Seymour and Helmcken Street and is two blocks from the centre of Old Yaletown and a block from the Granville Street Entertainment district. Nesters Market is a block away at Smithe and Seymour and Choices is two blocks away at Richards and Davie and the retail options in Yaletown and all over Downtown are the best in the Lower Mainland. For pet owners, the location is great as well. Emery Barnes Park, which has a great doggy park is a half a block away.
  View Larger Map
• Investor Friendliness – The Freesia was originally designed for first time home buyers and real estate investors and this attitude has been continued by the present Strata Council and Management Company. The building common areas are always clean, neat, and in a good state of repair. Rentals are encouraged and supported.
• The Concierge – The Concierge at 1082 Seymour are available 24 hours a day and are a professional, helpful, and friendly team. The Concierge is great for building security as they are constantly patrolling the building and monitoring the security cameras. They also can accept and hand out suite keys as well as handle deliveries and service people on behalf of building residents (No more spending the day waiting for the cable guy!). For Investors, an extra set of eyes on their rental properties allows them to know if they have bad tenants sooner and if a tenant needs something, very often the Concierge can deal with it. In my opinion, this makes the building about as good as it gets for both owner occupier and rental properties in Vancouver.
• Simplicity – For investors and cost conscious owner occupiers the simplicity of the Freesia should mean low cost ownership going forward. This is due to the lack of a pool, sauna, and hot tub, etc which are expensive to run and maintain as well as to fix when they inevitably break down

I would love to hear your thoughts and comments on the Freesia at 1082 Seymour Street below.

Thinking of Selling at the Freesia? Check out these Great Videos on How to Sell a Condo in Downtown Vancouver!

First Time Buyer and thinking of Buying at the Freesia? Check out these Great Videos for New Buyers in Vancouver!

October 2011 Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver Statistics Mike Stewart

Greater Vancouver at lower end of balanced housing market

With a sales-to-active property listings ratio of 15 per cent, the Greater Vancouver housing market continues to hover at the lower end of a balanced market and has been trending in that direction over the past five months.

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential property sales of detached, attached and apartment properties on the region’s Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) system reached 2,317 in October, a 1 per cent decrease compared to the 2,337 sales in October 2010 and a 3.2 per cent increase compared to the previous month. Those sales rank as the second lowest total for October over the last 10 years.

“Right now, prospective home buyers have a good selection of properties to choose from and more time to make decisions,” Rosario Setticasi, REBGV president said. “Home sellers should be mindful of local market conditions to ensure they are pricing their properties competitively.”

New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Greater Vancouver totalled 4,374 in October, which is on par with the 10-year average. This represents an 18.3 per cent increase compared to October 2010, when 3,698 properties were listed for sale on the MLS®, and a 23 per cent decrease compared to the 5,680 new listings reported in September 2011.

The total number of properties listed for sale on the Greater Vancouver MLS® system currently sits at 15,377, which is 9.3 per cent higher than the 14,075 properties listed for sale during the same period last year. October was the first month that the total number of property listings showed a decrease this year.

The MLSLink® Housing Price Index (HPI) benchmark price for all residential properties in Greater Vancouver over the last 12 months has increased 7.5 per cent to $622,955 in October 2011 from $579,349 in October 2010. However, since reaching a peak in June of $630,921, the benchmark price for all residential properties in the region has declined 1.3 per cent.

Sales of detached properties in October reached 974, which represents virtually no change from the 976 detached sales recorded in October 2010, and a 34.5 per cent decrease from the 1,487 units sold in October 2009. The benchmark price for detached properties increased 11 per cent from October 2010 to $884,778, but decreased 1.3 per cent compared to the previous month.

Sales of apartment properties reached 958 in October, a 2.6 per cent decrease compared to the 984 sales in October 2010, and a decrease of 40.4 per cent compared to the 1,607 sales in October 2009. The benchmark price of an apartment property increased 3.2 per cent from October 2010 to $402,702, but decreased 0.7 per cent compared to the previous month.

Attached property sales in October totalled 382, a 1.3 per cent increase compared to the 377 sales in October 2010, and a 37.4 per cent decrease from the 610 attached properties sold in October 2009. The benchmark price of an attached unit increased 6.5 per cent between October 2010 and 2011 to $519,455, and increased half a per cent compared to the previous month.

Looking for more Vancouver Real Estate Statistics for months gone by?

I have detailed REBGV stats from May 2010 to the present Here!

Preparing Your Vancouver Condo for Market – What to do!

In Episode 4 we discussed how to price your Condo to meet your goals. Today we’re going to discuss what to do to get your condo ready to go on the market.

When selling a property perception is reality and you only have one chance to make a great first impression.

Properly preparing your condo for sale will get you a better Offer sooner.

Using Perception to Bring Value

Most buyers purchase condos based on how they feel about a property.

Buyers want to feel comfortable and fall in love with the space (or want a space tenants will like) and want to feel they are getting value. Buyers paying top dollar expect a clean ready to move into property.

When buyers are looking at condos, physical space is valued whether it be actual square footage or perceived size. Preparing your suite correctly will make it feel bigger for buyers thus adding perceived value.

Here is a list of what to do when preparing your condo for sale:

What to Do – Clean, Tidy, De-Clutter, Fix, Upgrade, Depersonalize, and Paint!

• Clean – Your suite should sparkle! Your condo be as clean as possible for the showing times and video/photography sessions. The cleanliness of all nooks and crannies of you home may not matter to you, but many buyers check these sorts of things and it may matter to them. If you don’t like to or can’t clean, bring in professional cleaners. Avoid strong air fresheners and get rid strong pet or other odours by having the carpets professionally steam cleaned. If you smoke, do it outside while the property is being marketed.
• Tidy - Tidy spaces look bigger than messy places. Perceived size impacts perceived value. Everything in the home should be put away in its place and all the beds should be made. Security of your home and possessions is priority one for your Realtor! Ensuring that small valuable items like watches, electronic devices, jewellery, perfume are put away will ensure they stay yours.
• De-Clutter- Small spaces look bigger when they are not cluttered. Creating the perception of volume and size will give you an advantage over your competition in the condo market.
• Minor and Required Repairs – If you have been meaning to get around to fixing that leaky faucet or damaged or worn out out flooring now is the time to do it. Many buyers will either not understand how simple and easy minor repairs are to fix and may be scared off or may not want the hassle. More sophisticated buyers will use the fact they have to make minor repairs to negotiate your price down. If everything in your suite is in good working order, prospective buyers will have less leverage in the offer negotiation. A suite ready for sale will have all the appliances and in major systems in good working order.
• Upgrade – If you’re suite has immaculate original Avocado Green appliances from when it was built in 1980, it might be time to upgrade. Stainless steel appliances are popular with buyers and can be found for quite good prices with a little research. Upgrades should be simple and cost effective. Consider hardwood floors only if the existing flooring is in bad condition. Laminate flooring can work well on a limited budget. New light fixtures can be an inexpensive way to upgrade a suites look. Have a dated looking kitchen or bathroom? Changing cupboard doors and counter tops can make a huge difference with a well coordinated coat of paint on the walls. Bringing in an Interior Designer or Stager for colour and design tips can often bring a huge return come offer time. Be mindful of costs and consult with your Realtor when deciding on upgrades. Its very easy to spend a lot of money quickly that may not be recouped in the sale!
• Paint – A coat of paint can make an old suite look new. If the walls of the suite are marked, damaged, dirty, or just a dated colour, a fresh paint job with neutral colours can go long way to making the suite look new and fresh and make that critical good first impression.
  
• De-Personalize – When preparing your home for sale, its advisable to put away all personal and family pictures that are on public display in your home. The less prospective Buyers know about your personal life and affairs the better, especially when it comes to negotiating an offer.
  

Make sure to Check out How to Sell a Condo 6 were we discuss Home Staging Condos!

Looking for Advice on Buying a Condo? Check out these great videos for Condo Buyers in Vancouver!

Searching for Presale Condos in Vancouver? Have a look at these New Vancouver Presales with Video!

I STRONGLY Encourage Questions and Comments Below!