What It Takes To Sell These Days. With A Story.

A little throwback story circa 2009. And how this market reminds us of those days…..

Trying to understand this market brings us back to our early days of 2009, when real estate just began to recover from the 2008 correction. Properties were listed several times, price drops were common, and lengthy days on the market were expected. Figuring out what to do to sell a property was like an investigative mission. You had to do whatever it took.

I will never forget our second listing ever. It was a stacked townhome at Bay and College, and had been listed four times over a year and a half with three different agents. It wasn’t selling and received zero offers during its listing period. The Seller was frustrated, and walked into our Yorkville office looking for local agents and a new strategy.

When we inspected the property we couldn’t help but notice the skittle-coloured walls and the bright red kitchen. The property was listed for a year and half and was never staged. So Paul and I took our brand new furniture out of our Yorkville condo and moved it into this townhome. We were new agents, ‘green’, and super motivated. We personally painted the walls to neutralize the palette. The red kitchen stayed as is, as there wasn’t a renovation budget. We put in a generous marketing budget ourselves and listed the property at the exact same price it was listed for previously. Our client was firm on his asking price.

Sure enough, and maybe with some new agent luck, an offer came in around Christmas, about two weeks after we listed it. The property ended up selling for 98% of the list price, without a price reduction. Paul and I quickly learned the importance of presentation, staging, marketing, and all the fine details that matter and can turn a result from good to great. In that market and in this one, it’s the difference between selling and not selling.

I’m sharing this story as this market brings us back to those early days. The days of tossing a property up on MLS and having it generate multiple offers effortlessly are now over.

On a separate note, we are humbled this week by our own generalizations. A week ago and throughout this fall market we have stressed that buyers do not have any sense of urgency and can take their time house hunting. Well, today our buyers watched a house they viewed yesterday receive a bully offer today and sell for a healthy price well above what they would have bid for. The lesson we all learned, is watch those generalizations. Because when you find the house you want, it doesn’t matter what the market is doing. You want that house. And in some unique circumstances, certain properties are still selling fast.

Any questions? Feel free to reach out for an informal chat.

Cheers,

Cari and Paul