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Should you accept a private offer or list your property on the market?

Should you accept a private offer or list your property on the market?

Let’s talk private offers.

Here’s the scenario: You’ve been thinking about selling for a while and suddenly, as though it could be divine intervention, a neighbour comes to you with a private offer for your home. It must be fate! But wait, could this offer be too good to be true? How much could you get for your house on the open market? It might be tempting to accept that private offer (all those zeros look awfully good) and avoid the hassle of prepping and staging, and having dozens of strangers march through your home; But, what could you be missing out on?

This is a scenario that comes up quite often and our latest sale may sway your opinion.⁠

Our client had been approached by their neighbour with a private (verbal) offer for their home. A very respectable $1.45 million. They were actually shocked at this number considering the house right next door– which was identical, sold last year for $1.36 million.⁠

One of the family members was a past client of ours and helped to convince the rest of the family that they should at least have a chat with me. We did our research, looked at the market conditions and were confident that we could do better. (FYI, in past situations we have recommended that our clients take the private offer. We’ll give you the honest advice either way.)⁠

We laid out our plan and they ultimately decided to list the property. After one week on the market we were able to generate 20 offers and a sale price of $1.7 million 😮🎉 Now, that’s cause for celebration!⁠

Before we get up in arms about the astonishing cost of real estate in Toronto (we can debate whether or not it’s worth it later) for the purpose of this post, let’s focus on some of the numbers. Even factoring in what our client spent on commissions and key preparations, they still made $150k+ more than they would have had they taken the private offer. Safe to say, the decision to list was the right move. ⁠

And, there’s a feel-good element to this story: In the end, the sellers accepted an offer that was NOT the highest price, but came from a family looking to buy to be closer to their daughter and grandkids (rather than a developer who would flip the house).⁠⁠

A few lessons for those of you looking to buy or sell:⁠

1. A little preparation goes a long way– even for a vacant/empty house⁠
2. Tugging at the heartstrings could tip the scales in your favour on offer night, and⁠
⁠3. It pays to list with us. Literally⁠

If you’re considering a move, let’s talk. It could pay off.

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