5 Ways to Get a Head Start on the Spring Market!

1. Start Your Spring Cleaning Early. 

If you’re looking to list your place in the spring, now is the time to clear out all the excess clutter. It also makes sense to get any minor repairs and cosmetic touch-ups taken care of. Painting your walls a neutral colour, doing fresh caulking in the bathrooms, fixing scuffed flooring and damaged appliances ensures that when the time is right to list you’ll be in good shape.

2. Keep an Eye Out. 

Casually keep an eye on listings to get yourself acquainted with the market. If you have a realtor in mind they can assess your neighbourhood’s comparables as well as the comps in the neighbourhood you'd like to buy in. List prices and sold prices can be very different so pay attention to the sold prices for reference. Real estate agents can help you with this and sites like Redfin are also a good resource for checking out sold prices. 

3. Get Your Financing in Order. 

When the time comes to get serious about buying or selling it’s nice to know your financing is in place. Meeting with a mortgage broker or your bank will help you establish a realistic budget before you fall in love with something you can’t afford. If you need contacts, I can recommend some!

4. Make an Effort EVEN in Bad Weather. 

Once the birds are chirping and sun is shining everyone starts visiting open houses. Open house during a snow storm or a really yucky day? That’s great news for buyers because it can mean less competition. Last March there was a snow storm on offer night and as a result my clients were the only offer on the table. It allowed me to negotiate under asking price and under market value for them. Some of the strongest sales happen at the start of the spring market so don't wait too long to list. You may want to avoid getting into June when people's attention turns to summer vacations.

5. Chat with a Real Estate Agent. 

When the spring market really starts heating up agents get very busy — I’m never too busy to help, though. It doesn’t hurt to reach out now because the good agents won’t make you feel pressured. It’s just an initial conversation!