In this space, we often discuss what goes into selling a home. More frequently than not, we’re going to be referring to an owner occupied home. In the cases we’re not, the conversation is likely going to be centred around investment properties, and the more nuanced of those investment properties to sell are tenanted homes, something we’ve touched on recently.
You can read our post about selling a tenanted property right here.
How Selling a Vacant Home is Different
What do you do though, if you are a homeowner in Toronto looking to sell a vacant property? Whether you’ve inherited it, moved elsewhere, or invested in real estate, selling a vacant home comes with its own set of challenges and opportunities. These considerations are even more important in today’s environment, with the recent introduction of the vacant home tax, as well as all the noise we’ve been hearing about the challenges of being a landlord. In this blog, we will discuss the process and considerations of selling a vacant property in Toronto, from preparation to closing.
Get Assessed
The first step to selling a vacant home is getting an honest an unbiased assessment of the situation, including understanding what the home is and how it fits into the marketplace, and what the financial and legal considerations you might need to be aware of. As mentioned, Ontario has a newly introduced Vacant Home Tax, and in many cases a vacant home is an estate sale, so partnering with and leveraging the expertise of a lawyer and an accountant is critical to ensure no details are overlooked.
Learn more about what it’s really like to sell your home with these posts next:
- How Much Work is it to Sell a Home in Toronto?
- Should I Get a Pre-Listing Home Inspection?
- Should I Renovate My Home Before Selling?
When it comes to assessing the property itself, many times owners themselves are influenced by personal biases and emotional connections, so again partnering with an experienced and capable Realtor will create the most comprehensive understanding of what the property is, and what it can sell for in the market. Understanding all of those three considerations in harmony from the outset will ensure the smoothest and most successful sales process.
Presentation is Everything
From there, the process turns to ensuring your property presents as well as possible (and ultimately achieving the highest sale price possible), and this doesn’t look much different than any the same process any other occupied home. The requisite painting, cleaning, touch-ups and fixing of any broken items, combined with staging the home and capturing all the hard work with professional photography will result in a property which stands out in the competitive Toronto Real Estate landscape, and shows off the home at its full potential.
Should you invest in staging? Read our post about it right here.
Pricing is Key
Once the house is prepared and ready to go, pricing and marketing of the house will follow, and these are crucial steps to ensure the property gets as many views as possible, and those views are reaching the right eyeballs.
A vacant property offers more flexibility than tenanted properties, as there is a larger buyer pool, so a broader amount of pricing strategies are at the seller and their Realtor’s disposal. Similarly, a vacant property allows unfettered access to both potential buyers (which is crucial) but also allows more options for filming content to promote the home, or hosting multiple open houses or events at the property. A vacant property offers a blank canvas to work within, both for pricing and marketing, and if that is leveraged property it can be a very powerful tool.
Find out the secret to successfully pricing your home with this post right here.
Handling Offers and Negotiations
After following all these steps, the home will receive offer(s), and through the negotiation done by your Realtor will reach an agreement to sell that is satisfactory. From there, keeping the legal and tax professionals informed of this will be critical, to ensure all paperwork is handled to protect the interests of the seller, from the day the purchase agreement is reached to the day the property closes, and changes hands.
Still have questions about selling? Read these posts next:
An Experienced Real Estate Team is Your Secret Weapon
Selling a vacant home in Toronto requires thoughtful and deliberate planning and preparation, but with the right approach, it can be a rewarding experience. By partnering with a a qualified real estate professional, and following all the steps outlined above, one can successfully sell a vacant property and move on to a new chapter, avoiding any potential tax or legal pitfalls, and maximizing the sale price of the home.
If you happen to have a vacant property to sell Toronto, or you have thoughts or questions on any or all of above, please contact us today. We’re always more than happy to discuss our opinions, and help whenever and wherever we can!
Looking for home selling advice? We’re ready to help. Reach out at any time by calling 416.642.2660 or emailing admin@torontorealtygroup.com. We’re always happy to chat!
Want More Insights From TRG Experts?
Sign up here to receive Insights Magazine delivered to you. This resource is full of market advice and industry intuition from our team and colleagues to keep you up-to-speed on the ever-changing Toronto real estate market.
