Selling Your Home in London Ontario

For most families, their home is their largest financial asset, and deciding to sell it is a big decision that involves a lot of preparation and work. When you're ready to sell it's important to have an experienced real estate professional handle the details involved in the successful sale of a home for top dollar. As an experienced professional who has helped many London residents sell their homes, I know how to handle every aspect of the sales process - from strategically marketing and showcasing your home to making sure everything's signed, sealed and delivered by the closing date. Providing you with comprehensive, high-quality listing service is my top priority. So when you decide to sell your home, please contact me and let's get started!

Market Analysis

Local real estate market conditions will have an impact on the amount you can get for your home and how quickly you can sell it.  It helps to understand how market conditions can affect your position as a seller.

Understanding Market Conditions

Pre-listing Preparation

Preparing your home for listing, take a look at your home with the eyes of a potential buyer.  What's your first impression? What needs to be cleaned, painted, repaired, or put to the curb to make your home as attractive as possible?  A small investment in repairs, decorating and de-cluttering can add thousands of dollars to your property value.

Maximizing Exterior and Curb Appeal

When preparing to put your home up for sale, your first concern is the home's exterior. If the outside, or "curb appeal" looks good, people will more than likely want to see what's on the inside.

Here are some tips to enhance your home’s exterior and curb appeal to buyers:

• Keep the lawn edged, cut and watered.
• Regularly trim hedges and weed lawns and flowerbeds.
• Be sure your front door area has a "Welcome" feeling.
• Paint the front door.
• In spring and summer, add a couple of pots of showy annuals near your front entrance.
• In snowy areas, keep walks neatly cleared of snow and ice.
• Check foundation, steps, walkways, walls and patios for cracks and deterioration, and fix any problem areas.
• Remove and repaint any peeling paint on doors and windows.
• Clean and align gutters.
• Inspect and clean the chimney.
• Repair and replace loose or damaged roof shingles.
• Repair and repaint loose siding and caulking.
• Reseal old asphalt.
• Keep the garage door closed.
• Store RVs and old cars elsewhere while the house is on the market.

Maximizing Interior Appeal

You want your home to look as spacious, bright and clean as possible. Also the home should look neutral – without a lot of your personal and sentimental objects - so buyers can begin to imagine living there.

Here are some tips to enhance your home’s interior appeal to buyers:

• Give every room in the house a thorough cleaning and remove all clutter. This alone will make your house appear bigger and brighter. Some homeowners with crowded rooms actually rent storage garages and move half their furniture out, creating a sleeker, and more spacious look.
• Use a professional cleaning service every few weeks while the house is on the market.
• Remove the less frequently used and even daily-used items from kitchen counters, closets, basement and attic to make these areas more inviting.
• Make sure that table tops, dressers and closets are free of clutter.
• Pay special attention to the kitchen and bathrooms: they should look as modern, bright and fresh as possible. It is essential for them to be clean and odour free.
• Repair dripping faucets and shower heads.
• Buy showy new towels for the bathroom, and put them out only for showings.
• Spruce up a kitchen in need of more major remodelling by installing new curtains and cabinet knobs, or applying a fresh coat of neutral paint.
• Clean walls and doors of smudges and scuff marks.
• If necessary, repaint dingy, soiled or strongly-coloured walls with a neutral shade of paint, such as off-white or beige. The same neutral scheme can be applied to carpets and linoleum.
• Check for cracks, leaks and signs of dampness in the attic and basement, and fix any problem areas.
• Seal basement walls if there are any signs of dampness or leakage.
• Repair cracks, holes or damage to plaster, wallboard, wallpaper, paint and tiles.
• Replace broken or cracked windowpanes, mouldings and other woodwork.
• Inspect and repair the plumbing, heating, cooling and alarm systems.