In an ideal world, no one would be rushed when listing their house for sale. In the real world, however, life happens! Sometimes people choose to move for reasons that may require a quicker move, for example, they could be expecting a baby or planning to move closer to a new job. If you have approximately two months to play with you can benefit from a helpful timeline for selling a house. Here’s my timeline for selling a house so you can feel engaged at every step of the process.
Timeline for Selling a House – Start -> Finish
Two Months Before Listing
- Research Your Local Market
Use listing websites like Realtor.ca to provide some basic information about properties for sale in your neighbourhood. This can give you an approximate price range for your own home. - Evaluate the Condition of your Home and get your Home Ready
Today’s market strongly favours turnkey properties. Tour your home with a critical eye (even have a friend help you if you can) and look for three main types of problems: cosmetic, functional, and irreparable.Cosmetic changes are easy fixes with minimal costs. These can be painting some walls that have seen better days, ripping out old carpet to expose underlying hardwood floors, mending torn windows screens or crooked light fixtures, etc. An on-trend colour scheme can make a world of difference to potential buyers!Functional repairs are a little more expensive but can really make a difference to a buyer who is anxious about doing their own home renovations. For example, if you have a gorgeous house but your kitchen appliances are dated and look as if they belong to a different generation, a potential buyer might be less inclined to buy the property because they are unsure of the cost of replacing these appliances soon after moving in, and they may even be turned off by the way it looks. Ruthlessly examine your appliances, plumbing, electrical system, heating and air conditioning, roof and the structural elements of your home. If you would be afraid to buy a property with a certain issue, chances are other buyers will, too. Repairing and/or replacing functional issues removes big reasons for potential buyers to reject your home.
Irreparable issues are things that no matter what you do, you cannot change. This can be your home’s location, your neighbours, the school district, noise and traffic patterns. Look hard at all of these important factors and heavily weigh these when you are arriving to a price for the sale of your home.
Six Weeks Before Listing
- Hire a Real Estate Agent
An important step in the timeline for selling a house is interviewing a few candidates to find the real estate agent who is the best fit for you. This might take more time than you think! Do some research into top local agents rather than just signing up with whoever is sending the most advertisements to your home. Find someone who understands your needs and who meshes well with you. Selling your home is one of the biggest transactions of your life and you want to work with someone you feel comfortable with.
One Month Before Listing
- Establish a Price with your Agent
Given your own homework and your agent’s understanding of your neighbourhood, as well as all the last-minute improvements to your property, arrive to a price both parties feel comfortable with. - Start Moving Out!
There are two very good reasons to start the packing process early. Firstly, a decluttered home is universally acknowledged to show better. The easier it is for someone else to envision a property as their own home rather than your home is a step in the right direction. Secondly, it will help you with your eventual move, as you will not be overloaded with packing up your entire life in a short time. You can store your packed boxes in a storage unit or in your utility room until you actually need to move them. - Tell Your Neighbours
Telling your neighbours you are moving is a great heads up to friends who will be sad to see you go. But it also gives them a chance to think about whether any of their own friends who love the neighbourhood might want to consider purchasing a great home in a vetted area.
Two Weeks Before Listing
- Check Your Financial Picture
Figure out how much you still owe on your current property so you can determine what your sales proceeds will be.
One Week Before Listing
- Declutter and Clean
Although you have already started to pack up your belongings about a month ago, continue to do so intensely during this period. Your home now needs to be sparkling at any given moment for potential buyers to stop by. Get used to making every bed in the house every day and try not to use your kitchen too often so that you can disappear at a moment’s notice for viewings. - Stage
Staging is a personal preference. Some elect to hire professional stagers to make their home as stylish as possible for potential buyers while others simply use their own furniture. This shouldn’t impact the timeline for selling a house.
Listing Day and Beyond
- Keep Cleaning!
By now you have done the bulk of the cleaning, but you will need to maintain that level of clean from listing day onwards. Even if you tell your agent to provide a few hours’ notice, there may be instances where this is not possible, and you do not want to miss out on a potential sale. - Get Feedback After Every Showing
Your agent should provide feedback after every viewing. This will give you a good indication if your house needs some tweaking in terms of staging, repairs or price. The sooner you sell, the higher the price you can get for your property so you want to be very receptive to any and all feedback you receive.
The timeline for selling a house is not set in stone and can definitely be altered based on your needs, but I hope this can alleviate stress for you when putting your home up for sale. Staying engaged and in continual communication with your agent can make all the difference.
