We thought a lot of different eye-catching real estate headlines for this blog post.
16“Over 9% Increase in Average Prices for Markham Homes of All Types in 2018”
Or
“Markham Homes Selling 37% Faster Since the Start 2018”
First, just to prove those headlines to be true, here are the numbers behind them according to statistics released by the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB).
1. Over 9% Increase in Average Prices for Markham Homes of All Types in 2018
a. $873,538
The average price listed by TREB for all types of Markham homes in January 2018.
b. $952,486
The average price listed by TREB for all types of Markham homes in March 2018
c. 9.03%
The increase in prices so far in 2018
2. Markham Homes Selling 37% Faster Since the Start 2018
a. 37
The average number of days that homes of all types in Markham spent on the market in January, 2018
b. 23
The average number of days that homes of all types in Markham spent on the market in March, 2018
c. 37.87%
How much faster Markham homes of all types sold, on average, March 2018 vs January 2018, expressed as a percentage.
Good News for Markham Real Estate
Considering all the somewhat gloomy real estate headlines you may have read recently, seeing some really positive numbers are like a ray of springtime sunshine. If nothing else, they are proof that you should always look for the truth behind real estate headlines before making any decisions based upon them.
News outlets are in the business of getting you to read their stories and, believe it or not, bad news usually attracts more attention than good news – especially when it comes to residential real estate.
Why Didn’t We Use One of the Good News Real Estate Headlines?
While they are literally true, we didn’t use one of the ‘good news’ headlines for two reasons. First, there is no denying that the real estate market in Markham and across the GTA isn’t what it was just a year ago. While a 9% price increase might sound similar to what was happening every month through 2016 and 2017, today it really just relates to what’s happened so far in 2018. And it doesn’t really reflect the recent overall changes in the market.
The second reason is that, regardless of the market, it always pays to use ‘best practices’ when it’s time to sell your home. If there was a downside to the record real estate markets of a year ago, it may be that they made home sellers a little lazy.
Basic rules more maximizing the value of a home in any market, like staging the house, were simply ignored.
Tips for Selling Your Markham Home
Now that home sellers must be more careful to get top dollar for their house, here’s just a short list of some of the things they can do.
1. Stage the Home
To learn more about why this is so important, check out our series ‘How Staging Your Home Helps it Sell Faster & for a Higher Price’.
2. Maximize its Curb Appeal
This may be especially important at this time of year when your house might not look its best after a long winter. Many potential buyers make a decision about liking a home within seconds of seeing it from the road. If you’re planning to sell this spring or summer, start making the exterior of your house look its best right now.
3. Take Care of Your ‘To Do’ List
Take care of all those little things around the house that might need fixing or sprucing up. A buyer might look at that small crack on the wall that you’ve lived with forever as a sign that the home might need expensive foundation repairs.
4. Keep Your Kitchen and Bathroom Clean and Fresh-Smelling
Even the slightest stain in the bathroom could be mold. Food scraps in the sink will be noticed long before, and leave a more lasting impression, than your beautiful granite countertops.
Our sense of smell is the only one directly connected to the emotional response centre of the brain. One bad odour and your house may be off the list.
5. Get Help from Real Estate Professionals
Even when markets were setting new records, this would have been important to get the highest price for your home. But in less heated markets, it might be most important of all. Everything, from the price you set, to the features you highlight, can be crucial to getting the most value from your home.
The real estate professionals on The Tar Team have been buying and selling homes in Markham through all kinds of markets. Get in touch with us and let us show you how we can help.