• Decide when to sell
  In real estate, timing can influence your home’s selling price. Factors like how quickly you need to sell, whether it’s a buyers or sellers market and seasonality all play a role in your home’s final selling price.
• Find a REALTOR® who is right for you
  The REALTOR® who helped you buy your home is a good place to start. They already know your home and they know you, so you’ll be saving time right from the start. Or look for names on “For Sale” signs in your neighbourhood or ask your friends and family. Make sure to interview two or three candidates and choose the one you like best.
• Sign a Listing Agreement
  This authorizes your REALTOR® and their brokerage to market and sell your home. It will define the legal relationship between you and the real estate brokerage and also set a time limit for your REALTOR® to sell your home.
• Determine your home’s asking price
  The right asking price will attract buyers and pay you a maximum return. Setting too low a price means you could miss out on thousands of dollars. Setting too high a price will scare away buyers. Your goal is to find fair market value.
• Add some specialists to your team
  Similar to when you bought your home, it’s essential to have a notary public or a lawyer handle all the various documents that change hands and make sure your best interests are being protected at all times.
• Prepare your home for sale
  First impressions matter. Now is the time to see your home through a buyer’s eyes: get ride of the clutter, clean and repair as much as you can, within reason. Remember, weigh the cost of all your improvements versus the potential financial return.
• Let your REALTOR® do what they do best
  Your home has never looked so good and now it’s time for your REALTOR® to market it to potential buyers. This happens with a “For Sale” sign, open houses, newspaper ads, a listing on the MLS®, the internet, and, of course, through your REALTORS®’ relationship with other REALTORS®.
• Prepare your finances
  Will the buyer “assume” your mortgage or are you “discharging” it? If you’re buying a new home, is your mortgage “portable”? What taxes are involved? These are important questions to ask your REALTOR®, your mortgage lender and your notary public or lawyer.
• Receive an offer
  Although your REALTOR® will walk you through the process, be prepared for some stress. You will see every offer since it’s required that your REALTOR® show you every offer that’s submitted. You will have three options: you can accept, you can reject or you can “sign back” or “counter”. Ask your REALTOR® what these terms mean. Happy negotiating!
• Close the deal
  You were successful and have drafted a legally binding agreement. Are you done? Not quite yet. Contact your lawyer or notary public, contact your lending institution and consult your REALTOR®. Immediately start satisfying any conditions of the agreement that require action on your part. On closing day, your lawyer or notary public will finalize all the details and give you a cheque for the net proceeds.

With the weather unseasonably cold and rainy as it has been, it’s easy to forget why we live in Vancouver. Vancouver real estate is among the most expensive in the world, after all, so what exactly are we paying for?

Lifestyle in Vancouver, British Columbia

Vancouver is consistently named one of the top places to live in the world, landing as number one on several surveys. We have a beautiful, clean, safe and environmentally friendly city in an economically and politically stable country. While beautiful scenery surrounds Vancouver, we are also blessed with world-class shops and restaurants, offering something for everyone.

Ocean Front Life

Situated on the coast of the Pacific Ocean, Vancouver residents enjoy more than just a gorgeous view. We have fabulous beaches such as Spanish Banks and Third Beach, one of the longest seawalls in the world, and innumerable islands to explore, all accessible by boat. Cycle the seawall, join a beach volleyball team, or play Pitch and Putt in Stanley Park overlooking the ocean. Sure, it’s colder than usual for this time of year, but it’s still possible to enjoy these summer activities!

Mountains Surrounding

The stunning backdrop of the mountains over Vancouver’s skyline makes our city one of the most beautiful in the world. Residents of Vancouver, however, know the mountains provide more than this panorama. Although skiers and snowboarders revel in the countless hours of fun the ski season brings, these mountains are enjoyed by all year-round. Mountain bikers and hikers have a playground at their doorstep, and tourists venture from all over the planet to catch the view from the top of Grouse Mountain.

Culture

Vancouver is a melting pot of cultures from around the world, and summer is the best time to experience a taste of what some of these cultures have to offer. Italian Day takes place on Commercial Drive, and Greek Day on Broadway.  Caribbean Days light up North Vancouver, as does the Lantern Festival in Deer Lake Park. The Night Market in Chinatown occurs every weekend in the summer, where visitors can sample Asian Fare and browse merchandise. The Celebration of Light features international competitors offering extravagant fireworks displays that can be enjoyed from points all around Vancouver.

Choosing an agent can be confusing, especially when there are so many to choose from. Among questions about an agent’s experience, local market knowledge credentials, cost and marketing plan, here are 13 questions to ask an agent before deciding he or she is the right one for you.

• Do you work full-time or part-time as a real estate agent?Full-time work typically means more attention for you.
• How many homes have you sold in my neighborhood?An agent who specializes in the area in which you are selling your home is preferable. This agent will be the most familiar with recent sales activity and will be able to recommend a good market price for your home.
• How many other sellers are you representing now?The busiest agents often are the most efficient.
• Will you handle all aspects of my transaction or will you delegate some tasks to a sales associate or administrative assistant?A knowledgeable assistant can be invaluable, but make sure you connect with your agent regularly.
• How much can I expect to pay?Commissions are negotiable depending on what kind of listing arrangement you have with your agent.
• At what price do you think my home can sell given the current market?This will allow the agent to display his knowledge of your market.
• Can you give me a comparative market analysis (CMA) of recent sales in the area and homes currently on the market?This should contain listing and sales prices for recently sold homes as well as listing prices and the listing dates of homes currently for sale. It also should include detailed property descriptions (such as square footage and numbers of bedrooms and baths).
• What does your marketing package contain in addition to a comparative market analysis?Listing presentations should also include a suggested asking price, information on the local housing market, advertising plans, a discussion of various listing agreements, and an analysis of sale proceeds at various price points and commission levels.
• Can I list the house with you for 60 to 90 days?Most consumer experts agree that a three-month listing period, or less, is best. You can always renew the listing agreement at that time.
• Is your license in good standing?You should check an agent’s certification yourself with your state’s Department of Real Estate. Many states provide this information online.
• How many years of education and experience do you have?Experience and continuing education typically make for better agents.
• Are you also a broker and/or a Realtor?Brokers have more stringent licensing requirements and responsibilities. Realtors are voluntary members of the National Association of Realtors, a trade group.
• Can you provide me with the names and phone numbers of past clients who have agreed to be references?Insights from past customers can help you learn more about an agent and give you a greater comfort level.

You ought to expect adequate service from any licensed realtor, but how do you get the absolute best real estate professional? Are you wanting a sympathetic ear, a sophisticated market analyst, a tough negotiator, and a flawless contract writer on your side? Your agent should have the experience and confidence to know exactly what to do, the humility to switch gears when the fickle market proves him or her wrong, and the trouble-shooting skills to deal with issues which invariably arise. It’s hard to say which personal traits are the most important ones in choosing a realtor, because there are dozens of things that have to be done before a sale goes through, and you need an agent who can do all of them well—a considerable challenge!

In choosing a realtor, the most popular way to start is to get recommendations from friends and relatives. Good, experienced realtors usually get 20% to 80% of their business from referrals like this, and it’s a recommended approach to finding a reliable person.

What if a friend or relative is a realtor and you decide you do not want to use their services, yet you do not want to hurt their feelings? In this situation, a good strategy is to ask your realtor to agree to pay them a “referral fee”, keeping everybody happy. A referral fee is a portion of the sales commission payable on the completion of your purchase, which may be from 10% to 50% and is currently most commonly 25%.

Another popular approach with which many clients feel comfortable, is to phone a realtor with large, impressive ads. Such a realtor may have hundreds of sales each year and be very knowledgeable on pricing. Unfortunately, they will be pretty short of time. In contrast, a realtor with few sales will be able to spend days or weeks combing the market to find exactly what you want, but may be less adept in other respects. Surprisingly, the average realtor has only about three to nine sales a year in this area. To get a realtor with ample market experience but still plenty of time to spend on your behalf, you may want someone who, if asked about their number of sales per year, reports a number above average but not extremely above average, and may have a strong team behind them.

A realtor with many years of experience in the business is likely to be good at negotiating, while a realtor fairly new in the business is likely to be up-to-date on current laws, regulations, and realty computer technology. A compromise recommended by one Real Estate Board instructor is to choose someone with an intermediate number of years of experience.

A cautious person will sometimes approach several realtors for assistance, fearing to rely on just one. Unfortunately, in practice this often leads to poor service and may result in missing out on an opportunity for your dream home at a good price. According to an article provided by the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board, “If you’re a buyer, getting involved with several REALTORS can create unnecessary and confusing duplication of effort. In fact, buyers who deal with several REALTORS may miss out on the high level of interest and comprehensive service one is entitled to expect by working closely with a single, competent REALTOR.” Realtors find out almost immediately when they are not the only realtor you are relying upon, and are likely to give you minimal service from then onwards. To avoid unintentional difficulties, tell them up front if you are soliciting information from multiple realtors.

Many clients prefer a big company, such as RE/MAX, the largest real estate organization within Canada. There’s some security in such an approach, but ReMax offices and those of many other realty companies are independently owned and operated, so service varies somewhat from one office to another. What’s more significant than the company, is the individual realtor with whom you will be dealing.

Above all, it’s important to find a realtor with whom you feel at ease. Preferably interview several and choose the one you feel comfortable with, both personally and professionally. Such a person is likely to feel comfortable with you, understand what you are looking for intuitively, and make your priorities their own. If you can give your agent your trust and loyalty, they will give you greater dedication.

Rather than interviewing realtors before engaging them, buyers seldom bother to do so! By contrast, when people are choosing a realtor to help them sell a property, they often hold formal interviews of up to two hours each with two or three realtors. Yet, people choosing a realtor to help them buy property generally do not hold such interviews, even though there is just as much money involved when buying as when selling. Instead, buyers typically choose a realtor after chatting for a few minutes, usually on the telephone, or sometimes at an “open house”.

After starting to work with a realtor, if a person becomes dissatisfied while searching for a home they can easily switch to another realtor. It seems too much trouble to hold one or more lengthy interviews just to choose a realtor, as compared with just trying one out and seeing how it goes. However, if they are shown their dream home by a less than ideal agent, someone not up to doing the best negotiating job, what then? They are well and truly stuck. Therefore, if at all possible, interview a realtor who prefers to start with a meeting of an hour or two, to get to know each other and determine if you are a good match.

Of course, if you are relocating and going to buy in a different province or country, it may be impractical to interview a realtor in person before you start working with them by phone, fax and e-mail. In this situation you may wish to contact a realtor where you live, tell them a little about your specific needs, and have them “refer you” or put you in touch with a suitable realtor located where you wish to buy. You can then decide, after talking by phone with your prospective realtor, whether you would be comfortable working with them. In most cases the referring realtor will receive a fee from your new realtor as a thank-you. Your new realtor, for their part, will strive to give you excellent service, in order that the referring realtor will continue to send them referral clients, who are much appreciated.

If you live in Vancouver and are considering real estate as a career, look into becoming a Realtor as well. In Canada, a Realtor is a licensed real estate agent who is a member of the Canadian Real Estate Association and adheres to a set of rules known as the Code of Ethics and Standards of Business Practices. In addition to the degree of trust that is associated with the Realtor designation, you will have access to benefits not available to general real estate agents in Vancouver.