Ottawa sellers: don't miss out on busy spring relocation market
We are on the cusp of the busiest few weeks in Ottawa real
estate as March draws to a close. With
the new Federal budget year starting April 1st, comes the beginning
of prime government “moving season” which sees a large number of military and
RCMP personnel relocations happening between April and August.
Up to 1,000 moves in to Ottawa and the same number move out
annually, many of these originate in April and May. Those relocating on the Integrated Relocation
Plan (IRP), typically must sell their existing property (with a firm agreement
of Purchase and Sale) at point of origin before making their house hunting trip
to Ottawa.
Those moving to Ottawa would typically be seeking July or
August closing dates to facilitate school registration.
When relocating employees visit Ottawa for their formal
house hunting trip, they have a very truncated period to make a purchase
decision, normally a week or so. This
puts a lot of pressure on the family moving and their real estate team,
particularly if the family is not familiar with Ottawa.
What often happens is that these buyers try to cram as many
house visits as possible in to their first few days (15-20 houses daily is not
uncommon!) and then narrow their search down as quickly as possible. Trying to schedule and juggle timelines is a
real job for the Realtor and also can be a mind boggling exercise for the
buyer(s)!
Sellers (especially FSBO’s) can lose out if:
-their house is not on the market when out of town buyers
activity is most concentrated (mid-late April-early June)
-their property is not listed on MLS®. Virtually 100% of
these buyers will be represented by Realtors and it is typically much easier
for a buyer to schedule a property showing for an MLS® listed property with
Realtor and brokerage support.
-they are not able to manage showings on short notice or be
flexible in showing times/duration or other scheduling issues.
-overpriced listings may miss key search parameter levels of
incoming buyers and therefore not even get consideration from this important
segment.
-poorly maintained or presented properties or other unique
properties will also have trouble as most of these buyers want “move-in-ready”.
-they are not able to accommodate a buyer closing date, as
this is probably tied to both their existing home sale and their report date
here in Ottawa.
-sellers who wait too long to adjust their plans or pricing
may miss the wave. If you don’t sell
your midrange property in 30 days or less at this time of year then something
is wrong. Talk to your Realtor and take
some definitive action!
If you know anyone moving in our moving out of Ottawa this
year, by all means please send them our way, if they are not already working
with another Realtor! We can often also
assist in finding a Realtor for them in their destination location.
Gord McCormick, Broker of Record
Dawn Davey, Broker
Oasis Realty Brokerage
www.oasisrealtyottawa.com
@oasisrealtyOTT
https://www.facebook.com/oasisrealtyottawa/
613-435-4692
oasisrealty@rogers.com