If you have equity in your home, and similar homes have sold for a similar price to what you paid (or more), now could be a great time to sell your home.
In Vancouver it is currently a hot seller’s market, with a lower inventory of homes on the market, and the number of home sales significantly up from this time last year. It is important to look at what is going on in your neighbourhood, and with similar homes to yours.
Deciding to sell your home is a complicated decision in usual circumstances let alone if you factor in our current situation in Vancouver with COVID still continuing to impact society. Given this is ultimately a personal decision and can only be answered from your perspective, here is a list of questions you might consider when making the decision only you can make:
1. Are you also buying a home?
When you are listing it is important to understand if you are buying in the same market or not. If you are selling and buying in today’s Vancouver market, you will likely make more on the sale but need to pay more to buy as well, leaving you in a similar financial position. If you are buying in a different market or moving to a rental, you will need to understand the micro-market trends on both the buy and sell-side.
2. What is the home market doing?
In Vancouver, Spring and Fall are typically thought of as the best seasons to sell in, however experts are saying that winter is still a great time to sell a home this year given the current state of the market! . Looking at average prices and sales across a big city like Vancouver is too generic to extrapolate how that impacts the saleability of your home. Instead, you need to understand what has happened in your neighbourhood. What has sold? For how much? How comparable is this home to yours?
3. How much equity do you have?
To understand your full financial picture, it is important to evaluate how much equity you have in your home. This will tell you how much capital you can extract from a sale and how much the bank will take back.
4. What will it cost to break your mortgage?
This is an important penalty you should be aware of ahead of listing your home. Depending on the contract these fines can be quite hefty and might make a sale a non-starter.
5. What are your costs of transaction?
Touch-ups – This is 100% dependent on the condition of your home. You may decide to do minor repairs – paint a wall, weatherstripping, fix dings in walls (~$500) or major jobs (repairing a roof, resurfacing a floor, electrical, or plumbing work. It is a good idea to get a quote from a reputable pro for this work.
Photography & Measurements – Professional photos are highly encouraged and measurements are needed if you want to post on MLS. All in, these will cost anywhere from $150-350+ depending on the size of your home. If you list with Bōde, we currently cover the costs of professional photos and measurements. Schedule your free photos here.
Staging – To stage or not to stage? Staging can run from $1,500+/month depending on the size of your home and how much you decide to stage. They typical home sells in 2-3 months. Find a stager here.
Agents– If you decide to sell your home with an agent, they typically charge 7% on the 1st $100,000 and 2.5% on the balance of the sale price for properties in Vancouver. Around half (50%) of the 7% on the 1st $100,000 and 2.5% on the balance is payable to a buyers agent who brings the seller an offer that completes at the Land Titles Office. There are other options to avoid some of these costs. If you chose to sell with a traditional agent you will typically incur the costs of the buy side agent. Of course, if you sell without an agent, or sell to a buyer without an agent there are significant savings there. People who sell their home with Bōde, save an average of almost 50% of the commissions. Sellers are also more successful in selling their homes than using an agent.
Lawyer – You will need a lawyer to finalize the deal as well as clear disbursements. This fee can be $1,500 +. Need a lawyer? Click here for the top rated lawyers with upfront pricing. Find movers here.
Moving – the costs of movers is extremely variable from Kijiji (~$500) to professional movers and organizers (~$2,500+ depending on volume).
6. What is the current value of your home?
Lastly, it is important for you to determine the value of your home. This analysis is now possible with online tools and a good exercise for every homeowner to go through on a regular basis. Understand your neighbourhood trends as well as look at the individual and comparable home sold prices.
Why Bōde?
Want to Buy or Sell Your Home Without an Agent?
Welcome to Bōde
Bōde has created a marketplace to allow you to get transparent home data, set your price, and list your home on MLS (and 1000+ more sites). We will advertise your home and walk you through the whole sale process for 1% up to a ceiling of $10K, only when the home sells.
Looking to buy? Bōde allows users to purchase any home listed on MLS in Alberta – at completely no charge.
With your free Bōde account, you don’t need an agent – you are completely in charge of your home sale or purchase and get to keep more of the money you invested in your home!
Get started at bode.ca
