A buyer spends about fifteen minutes in your home on a first visit. In that time they decide whether to come back, and roughly what they would pay.
So I don't start sellers with a list of projects. I walk them through their own home the way a buyer will, in the same order, and we look at what each stop costs to get right. Here is that walk.
Stop 1: The sidewalk
Buyers usually arrive a few minutes early and wait outside. They are already forming an opinion.
They look at the front door, the porch light, the house number and the path. A door with peeling paint or a number they can't read makes them wonder what else was left alone. A coat of paint on the door, a new light, a swept walk and one tidy planter cover it for a couple of hundred dollars.
In October and November, rake the leaves and clear the eavestroughs. Full gutters are visible from the street.
Stop 2: The front hall
The first breath matters as much as the first look. Homes carry the smell of the people and pets who live in them, and owners can't detect it. Ask a friend who doesn't visit often to tell you the truth. Then clean the soft surfaces, wash or remove old carpet, and air the house out.
Next is brightness. Use the same warm white bulb in every fixture on the main floor so rooms don't shift between yellow and blue. Wash the windows. A bright hall makes the whole home read as newer.
Then walls. If the paint is marked, dark or different in every room, repaint the main spaces in one soft neutral. Of everything on this page, paint gives the most back for what it costs.
Stop 3: The kitchen
Buyers open things in a kitchen. Drawers, the cupboard under the sink, the dishwasher.
They want it clean, working and uncrowded. Empty the counters almost completely. Fix the drawer that sticks and the tap that drips. Look under the sink for any old water mark and deal with it, because buyers read a stain there as a leak that is still happening.
If the cabinets are solid but tired, new handles and a professional spray finish change the room for a fraction of a renovation. A full new kitchen right before selling is rarely worth it. More on that below.
Stop 4: Bathrooms
Bathrooms are judged on the edges. Grey caulking around the tub, dark grout lines, a rust mark at the drain, a fan that rattles.
A handyman can redo the caulking, clean or regrout the tile, and swap a worn faucet in a day. Add white towels and clear everything personal off the vanity. The room will look years younger without a single tile being replaced.
Stop 5: Bedrooms and closets
Every buyer opens every closet. If yours are packed, they conclude the home is short on storage, whatever the square footage says.
Pack half of what is in each closet and take it off site. Remove extra dressers and chairs so each bedroom has a bed, two side tables and space to walk. You are moving anyway, so this is packing you have only started early.
Stop 6: The basement and the furnace room
This is where buyers of older Toronto houses slow down. They look at the base of the walls, the floor around the drain, the electrical panel and the age sticker on the furnace.
You don't need a finished basement. You need a dry, bright, empty one. Put in brighter bulbs, clear the storage away from the walls so buyers can see them, and sweep.
If you had water in the past and repaired it, leave the invoice and any warranty on the counter. If the furnace, roof or windows are near the end of their life, get a written quote for replacement. Buyers subtract far more for an unknown than for a number on paper.
What the inspector writes down
Most offers on houses involve a home inspection at some point. Inspectors list the small things owners live with: a loose stair rail, a window that won't stay up, a missing smoke or carbon monoxide alarm, an outlet with no cover.
Each one is minor. A long list of them gives a buyer a reason to ask for money off. Spend a Saturday going room to room and fix everything that doesn't open, close, latch or switch on the way it should.
Projects I usually talk sellers out of
Tempting project | Why it rarely pays before a sale | What to do instead |
|---|
New kitchen | High cost, and the buyer may not share your taste | Refinish cabinets, change hardware, clear counters |
Bathroom gut | Weeks of work for a room buyers often redo | Caulking, grout, faucet, lighting |
Finishing the basement | Slow, and below-ground space is valued lower | Make it dry, bright and empty |
New deck or patio | Hard to appreciate in fall and winter | Tidy, prune and repair what is there |
There is one exception. If a kitchen or bathroom is in such poor shape that buyers would compare your home with fixer-uppers, a bigger job can make sense. That is a judgment about your street and your price range, and it is worth a conversation before you commit.
If you are selling a condo
The walk is shorter but the competition is closer. A buyer may see three suites in your building in one afternoon, all with the same layout.
What separates them is paint, flooring condition, lighting and how open the rooms feel. Book trades early, because most buildings need notice, an elevator reservation and proof of insurance before work can start.
A realistic timeline
Most homes can be ready in two to three weeks.
Week one: pack and remove extra belongings, then walk the empty rooms and note every repair.
Week two: repairs first, painting second.
Final days: lighting and hardware, a professional clean, staging, then photos.
Keep to that order. Repairs made after painting mean painting twice.
Before you hire anyone
If you are thinking of selling in Toronto in the next few months, call me first. I'll do this walk with you in your own home and tell you which jobs will come back to you in the sale price and which ones to leave alone.
Anne Hermary, Weston Realty Partners Brokerage 647-355-2175 · ahermary@westonrp.com · annehermary.realtor
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