How to determine the value of your Property?

This is going to take a little bit of work on your part. It helps of course, to watch the market, the neighbourhood, the average selling price for your community, city etc. You can do this by looking at flyers, your newspapers or watching the news - even chatty neighbours who always seem to know what the "guy down the street sold his house for".

Remember that everyone's home is their castle BUT to a buyer - your castle may just be a lot of work ahead of them.

Before you can determine the value of your property - you must check the following items:

1. Is your home clean, fresh, bright? Does it get a lot of sunshine? Does it smell good? Is it inviting? Does it feel warm and friendly?

2. Does your home offer extras such as gas fireplace, finished basement, extra bathrooms, extra parking, double car garage, central air conditioning, air purifiers or cleaners, water softeners, city sewers (instead of septic), high efficiency furnace (or other forms of heating).

3. Are you close to schools? Shopping? Parks? Hospitals? Doctor/Dentist Offices, Community Centres? Bus Stops? Libraries? This is important for people with families, or elderlies.

4. Do you have bonus items such as paved driveways, landscaping, big backyard full of trees, flowers, garden? Do you have privacy fence? Well-Maintained patios or decks? Swimming Pool?

5. Do you have any pets? Do they live inside the house or in the backyard?

6. Is your home tastefully decorated or do you have purple and blue walls?

These are just a few items that are considered by buyers when shopping around for a home.

The first impression a buyer gets as soon as they walk in the front door is -Does it feel like home? Also, does it feel warm, inviting, cozy, comfortable, etc.

Once they get past that then they start analyzing everything - walls, paint, flooring, tiles, heating and air conditioning, windows, roof tops, basement, is the kitchen large enough to entertain, are there any cracks in the foundation, does the house smell of pet odour, are the bathrooms run down, etc.

If your home is move in condition - you can get TOP dollar for your home. If your home is NOT in a move-in condition and the buyer, after moving in, has to spend money fixing broken items or upgrading outdated items, etc. of course this will reflect in your selling Price.

Put yourself in a buyers situation - if you walked into a home - what would YOU be looking for?

The best option or route I suggest you take is to clean up your home BEFORE you decide you want to sell it - give it a fresh painting or touch up (you can do this yourself for next to nothing and it will increase the value of your home by so much more!).

Once you feel your house is up to par, then contact an Agent and ask them to give you a Property Evaluation. Don't just stop there. Invite more than 1 Agent from DIFFERENT companies and Real Estate offices to give you a Property Evaluation. (Don't worry - these are FREE to you and Agents will beat down your door to give you one because it could mean a potential listing!)

Ask for 2 things in particular - 1. What do they feel the house could be listed for? and 2. What do they feel the house could actually SELL for? The Agents will also tell you (if they are honest enough!) what you could do to improve your home or if it is fine the way it is.

If you get 3 Agents and you get 3 different prices - then you need to invite yet another Agent and find a medium price that will make YOU happy and your Agent willing to list your home with the hopes of selling it.

Come back tomorrow where I will talk about "Putting your house on the market"



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