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Kelowna Real Estate: A Comprehensive Guide to Selling Your House in BC's Beautiful Okanagan Valley

Kelowna Real Estate: A Comprehensive Guide to Selling Your House in BC's Beautiful Okanagan Valley

How to Sell Your Home in Kelowna

If you're looking to sell your house in Kelowna, BC, there are a few things you NEED to know – the city's real estate market is has shifted, demand for homes and properties in the beautiful Okanagan Valley has dropped and it is more important now than ever to make sure you are ready and aware of what you need to do before you list your Kelowna home for sale.

Whether you're looking to sell your home to upgrade to a larger property, downsize to something more manageable, or simply move on to a new location, Kelowna has plenty to offer.

But selling a house can be a daunting process, especially if you're doing it for the first time.

From determining the right asking price to getting your home ready for showings and dealing with potential buyers, there's a lot to consider.

That's why we've put together this guide on how to sell your house in Kelowna, BC

Step 1: Determine the Right Asking Price

One of the first – and most important – steps in selling your house in Kelowna is determining the right asking price.

You want to get the best price possible for your home, but you also don't want to overprice it and turn away potential buyers. So how do you find the sweet spot?

There are a few factors to consider when setting your asking price:

  • Market conditions: The state of the local real estate market can have a big impact on your asking price. If demand for homes in Kelowna is high and supply is low, you may be able to ask for more. On the other hand, if the market is slower, you may need to be more flexible on price. You can get a sense of the current market conditions by talking to a real estate agent or looking at recent sales data for your area.

  • Comparable sales: Another way to gauge the right asking price is to look at comparable sales in your area. This means finding homes that are similar to yours in terms of size, age, condition, and location, and seeing what they sold for. This can give you a good idea of what buyers are willing to pay for a home like yours. You can find comparable sales data through a real estate agent or by searching online databases.

  • Home improvements: If you've made any updates or renovations to your home, they can also impact the asking price. For example, if you've renovated the kitchen or added a new bathroom, you may be able to ask for more. It's important to keep in mind, however, that not all home improvements will necessarily increase the value of your home. A real estate agent can help you determine which improvements are likely to have the most impact on the value of your home.

Step 2: Get Your Home Ready for Showings

Once you've determined your asking price, the next step is to get your home ready for showings.

This means making any necessary repairs or updates, and staging your home to make it as attractive as possible to potential buyers.

Here are a few tips for getting your Kelowna home ready for showings:

  • Make small repairs: Take care of any small repairs that need to be done, such as fixing leaky faucets or repairing holes in the walls. These little things can make a big difference in the eyes of potential buyers.

  • Declutter and depersonalize: Remove excess clutter and personal items from your home to make it feel more open and inviting. You want buyers to be able to envision themselves living in your home, so it's important to remove

  • Get Your Home Professionally Cleaned: Trust me on this, having a cleaner come in prior to photos will take a lot off of your plate and will ensure that the house or condo is going to shine when it comes time to getting the photos completed. You only get one chance to make a good first impression


Step 3: Get Yourself Ready for Showings

Of course we aren't suggesting that you go out and get a hair cut, a pedicure and a new wardrobe in order to get ready to sell your home. What we mean is to get in the right headspace, selling your home is not always easy especially with how the market has shifted here in Kelowna in 2023. Here are a few tips to help you get your mind right before your Kelowna home goes on the market: 

  • Set Your Expectations: Your Kelowna Realtor should have educated you on the state of the market, so you should know what to expect as soon as you go live on the MLS. Being that we are now in a buyer's market, don't expect the door to be knocked down the first day or the first week.
  • Make sure the House is Ready: Make sure you have a game plan to ensure the house is ready before you go to work. Clean and make sure the house is ready to go before you go to bed or prior to leaving for the day to go to work. It's up to you if you want to leave the lights on, I don't suggest all of them, but maybe the power rooms. Alternatively you can pick up remotes for your plug in lights at Home Depot for about $20, put the lights on a timer so they aren't on all day long.
  • Be Accomodating: Something that a lot of seller's don't realize is that the buyer's and the buyer's agent will typically have a schedule for their tour. If you cancel showings because it's not convenient, you might be losing out on a showing in a market that has a lot more competition than it did in 2022 or 2021. Make sure you are ready to go as soon as the request is made, if you need an hour or two to make sure the house is ready to go, then make that clear with your Kelowna Realtor prior to listing.

Step 4: Dealing with Offers, Contract & Closing

There is a saying that a lot of us live by and that is: "The first offer is typically, the best offer". Not becuase it is the best offer, but becuase you got an offer on your home. In any market it is essential that you not turn that buyer and that offer away, it is imperative that you try and work with that buyer to come to an agreement. There is a caveat of course, and that is, if the number is ridiculously low and you don't feel you can come to an agreement, then feel free to let the buyer walk.

  • Respond, Don't Ignore: When you get an offer, it is important to let the other side know that you received the offer and that you are working on a response. Keep in mind that buyer has probably looked at multiple homes and have decided that they loved yours the most so we need to show them that respect by being responsive
  • Counter Offer: Unless the offer price is at full ask or on the dot at your number that you'd let the property go for, you HAVE to counter the buyer's offer. At this point, you should have already worked out a strategy with your Kelowna Realtor so that you have an idea of what the buyer will come in at and how you will respond. The trick is to keep the buyer interested while moving them to your number, this is where a master negotiator would be good to have in your corner.
  • Acceptance & Deposits: In order to have an accepted offer you need initials and signatures by both parties to the contract. If you don't have signatures, you don't have an agreement of purchase and sale. Also, keep in mind that in BC (which is very different from Alberta) that deposits are typically delivered AFTER conditions are removed. THIS is completely negotiable and doesn't have to be this way, make sure you are informed before you accept.
  • Recission Period: This part sucks but can be beneficial for you as a seller if you and your agent understand the rule. The buyer will have a 3 day period after acceptance of the offer to decide whether they want to rescind the contract. If they decide to do this, they wind up owing you, the seller, money. For more information on this new rule for BC Real Estate, watch the video I did here.
  • Conditional Period: Typically you will find most buyers will need 7-10 days to waive their conditions. They will need a home inspection or a condo document review along with a financing condition. In the market we are in now, you might start to see a sale of the buyer's home condition as part of an offer as well.
  • Closing & Possession Days: A lot of times, these two days are different but they don't have to be. It seems lawyers like to see the day the money is transferred to be the closing day and the possession day to be the following day so that they can make sure there are no hiccups. If this is in the contract, know that the day your home has to be ready for key release is the possession day!

Selling your home in Kelowna is not always an easy thing to prepare for, especially if you are a first time seller. Interestingly enough, this is an area that I specialize in, at some point in the last 4-7 years you were a first time buyer and now you are a first time seller.

There's a first time for everything, I can help you get prepared and feel confident about moving forward, whether you are looking to upsize, downsize or rightsize, you need an experienced guide.

If you are interested in downloading our pre-listing plan, then you can do that right here.

Want to chat about selling your home in Kelowna? Let's schedule a call, you can email me kelley@kelleyskar.com or you can give me a call at 778-716-7527

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