Mississauga Real Estate BLOG

52% of buyers said the kitchen had the most significant impact on their purchasing decision - effective staging will address this!

In today’s Mississauga real estate market the staging of homes prior to going on the market is quickly becoming a hot button. If you are considering selling your home here are some facts that may be helpful in determining whether to “stage” or “not stage”!

• 58% of buyers made a decision to buy after seeing 10 properties—effective staging keeps your house on the list of must-see properties.
• 54% of sellers are willing to spend more than $2000 to get their house ready for sale and of those, 25% were willing to pay over $5000—working with the right staging consultant maximizes your return on investment.
• 63% of buyers were willing to pay more money for a house that is move-in ready.
• 86% of those surveyed said storage space is important to potential buyers—effective staging maximizes space and spaciousness.
• Top three interior features for selling were freshly painted walls, organized storage space and current flooring—effective staging will address all three.
• 52% of buyers said the kitchen had the most significant impact on their purchasing decision.
• 79% of buyers indicated they would be willing to pay a premium for a home with an updated kitchen.
• Men (41%) are more likely to place a premium on updated décor than women (30%).
• 77% of people view homes first on the Internet.
• 75% of buyers who searched on the Internet went on to view or drive by the homes.
• 40% of paint sold is as a result of incorrect color choice—CSPTM have Staging Safe ColourTM palette specifically chosen for successful staging.
• When deciding to view a house, 78% of objective elements are generally pre-determined before viewing: they are location and size—both things are outside of a seller’s control.
• Elements that create 72% of the first impression inside the home are within the control of the seller—well-trained staging consultants know how to show these to their best advantage.
• Moderately priced home improvements, ranging from $80–$2800, made in preparation for sale, yielded the highest returns when a house was sold.
• Homes that were staged sold in 13.8 days.
• Homes that were not staged sold in 30.9 days.
• The staged homes realized on average a 6.4% increase over the list price.
• 87% of people said that home presentation makes a difference in most sales.

So if you’re looking to sell your home in Mississauga, Etobicoke or West Toronto area definitely consider home staging as part of your selling strategy and don’t hesitate to contact the top Mississauga Realtor Cynthia Shaw.

Be sure to visit my website for more information about the factors the influence the sale price of a home.

Mississauga real estate market conditions look very promising with the strong sales levels and record low intereste rates!

January is typically the time of year when the real estate market tends to slow down as buyers and sellers take a moment to plan their year, pay their Christmas bills and focus on getting back to a day to day routine after the festive December season. In spite of many predictions that the market for 2012 is going to slow down the sales results for the first month of the year thru out Mississauga and the rest of the GTA are quite the contrary.

Sales recorded by the Toronto MLS system were up by 8.8% over January 2011. The average price paid for a home was $463,534 which is up by almost 9% over the average posted in January of 2011. There is strong interest in all different price ranges with the most popular range falling between $400,000 and $500,000 and homes in the $300,000—$400,000 coming in at a close second.

The specific sales number in Mississauga were up 17% whereas Oakville and Etobicoke were up 23%.

The continued strong sales figures can in part be attributed to the record low fixed interest rates that lending institutions are offering. Currently 5 year fixed rates are available at 2.99% and 4 year rates at 2.89% both lower then the current prime rate of 3%. Variable rates are much of a deal at the moment with the average discount being offered at .10% below prime or at prime.

With the strong sales levels, low inventory of homes for sale in Mississauga, Etobicoke, West Toronto and the expectation that interest rates will remain low into 2015, the year ahead in real estate looks very promising.