Upsizing your home in BC can be a big undertaking. You may be looking to upsize because your family is growing, your income has increased, or you simply need more space.
The process of doing this smoothly is both an art and a science that you’ll want to familiarise yourself with the detailed steps that it takes to make your upsize easy.
Let’s jump in!
When is the Right Time to Upsize?
Timing plays a major role when upsizing your home in BC. The decision involves both personal readiness and market conditions that can significantly impact time on market and when you should be lining up the purchase of your next home.
Personal Factors
Typical personal factors for upsizing include a growing family, career advancement and relocating to higher-end neighbourhoods, or lifestyle changes, such as working from home, might require dedicated office space. You may feel that you’ve simply outgrown your current property and want more room for entertaining or hobbies.
Financial Factors
Along with being personally ready, it’s just as important that you’re financially ready. Ideally, you should have built substantial equity in your current home, at least 20% of its current value.
Your income should also comfortably support a larger mortgage payment, property taxes, and maintenance costs. Having savings for moving expenses, closing costs, and potential bridging financing is also a key consideration.
Market Factors
Market conditions in BC can vary significantly by region and season. Generally, spring and early summer see increased activity, with more inventory and motivated buyers. However, this also means more competition. Fall and winter markets often have less inventory but may offer better negotiating opportunities.
Other market factors like interest rates, employment levels, and government policies also influence timing. Lower interest rates make larger mortgages more affordable, while rising rates may encourage earlier action.
Ready?
Consider your local market specifically. Vancouver’s market behaves differently from Victoria’s, which differs from smaller BC communities. Understanding these nuances helps you time your move effectively.
How to Sell Your Current Home and Upsize to a New Home in BC
Passed the ready test and ready to understand what it takes to sell your current home and buy a larger property? Here is what you need to consider:
Step 1: Planning and Preparation (2-3 months before)
1. Assess Your Financial Position
Before beginning your upsizing journey, you need a clear picture of your financial situation. You can calculate your home equity by taking a ballpark estimate of your property’s current market value minus your outstanding mortgage balance. This equity forms the foundation of your upsizing budget.
If you’re looking for something similar, begin by taking the assessed value, or work with a realtor to have a comparative marketing analysis done.
Next, determine your budget for the new home. Consider not just the purchase price, but also the down payment requirements, closing costs, and moving expenses. Most lenders require at least 5% down for homes under $500,000, 10% for the portion between $500,000 and $1 million, and 20% for amounts over $1 million.
Getting pre-approved for a mortgage is crucial. This process helps you understand your borrowing capacity for the larger home and shows sellers you’re a serious buyer. Speak with multiple lenders to compare rates and terms. Learn more about the documents needed for mortgage pre-approval in BC.
BC has specific costs you must account for like Property Transfer Tax (PTT), , especially for higher-value properties. Legal fees, home inspection costs, and other closing expenses typically range from $2,000 to $5,000. Factor these into your budget planning.
2. Research the Market
While conducting market research may be best left up to your trusted realtor, here is how you can conduct some basic research yourself to get a grip on some rough numbers.
First, you’ll want to understand if we’re currently in a buyers or sellers market. This will influence your pricing strategy, how fast you’ll have to act, and when you should be submitting offers on other properties to buy.
You can try to do this by comparing recent sale prices, available amenities, school districts, and market trends. Some areas may be appreciating faster than others, affecting your long-term investment potential.
Consider seasonal patterns in BC’s real estate market, too. Spring typically brings increased inventory and buyer activity, while winter may offer less competition but fewer choices. Your specific region may have unique patterns worth understanding.
3. Choose Your Strategy
You have three main approaches when upsizing your home in BC, each with distinct advantages and challenges.
Option A: Sell First, Then Buy
This conservative approach involves selling your current home before purchasing your new one. The advantages include knowing your exact proceeds, having a stronger negotiating position as a cash buyer, and experiencing less financial stress from carrying two mortgages.
However, you may need temporary housing between transactions, and time pressure to find your new home can limit your options or force quick decisions.
Option B: Buy First, Then Sell
This approach involves purchasing your new home before selling your current one. The benefits include no rush to find your new home, smoother transition for your family, and the ability to move directly from one property to another.
The downsides include requiring bridge financing, higher financial risk from carrying two mortgages, and potential pressure to accept a lower offer on your current home.
Option C: Simultaneous Transactions
This complex approach involves coordinating the sale and purchase to close on the same day. The advantages include coordinated timing, a single moving day, and avoiding temporary housing or bridge financing.
The challenges include complex coordination requirements, higher stress levels, and the need for comprehensive backup plans if either transaction faces delays.
Option C is typically the best and your realtor can work with you to make that happen
4. House Hunting
Start your search early if you’re selling first. Begin looking at properties before your home sells to understand the market and identify your preferences. This preparation helps you move quickly when you’re ready to buy.
You’ll want to have a list of preferences for your new home, the wants and needs, desired neighbourhoods and areas, and other desired features, like school accessibility, vicinity to work, etc.
Step 2: Preparing Your Current Home for Sale
5. Home Preparation
By preparing early on, you may be able to get a more favourable price, too. At the least, begin with the basics, decluttering and depersonalizing. Remove personal items, family photos, and excess furniture to help potential buyers envision themselves in the property.
Then, you’ll want to budget for and schedule any necessary repairs before listing. The last thing you want is to get an offer that requires you to come down $50,000 to fix an old rough or budget for an upcoming potential unit assessments.
6. Professional Services
Hiring a qualified realtor is one of the most important decisions in your upsizing process. Look for experience in your area and price range, strong marketing skills, and excellent communication abilities. A skilled realtor like Daniel John can provide valuable market insights, pricing strategies, and negotiation expertise. Understanding how real estate agents help you during this process is crucial for success.
They’ll be able to handle your entire transaction, and even with any other home preparation items like staging, other suggested curb appeal updates, etc.
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Step 3: Marketing and Selling Your Current Home
7. Listing Your Home
Setting competitive pricing based on your CMA and current market conditions is crucial. Overpricing can lead to extended time on market, while underpricing leaves money on the table. Your realtor should provide detailed pricing recommendations based on recent comparable sales.
Create a compelling listing description that highlights your home’s unique features and benefits. Focus on what makes your property special and appeal to your target buyer demographic.
Schedule showings strategically to maximize exposure while minimizing disruption to your daily life. Consider hosting open houses to attract multiple potential buyers simultaneously.
Be flexible with viewing times to accommodate serious buyers’ schedules. Evening and weekend showings may be necessary to reach working professionals.
8. Managing Offers and Negotiations
Review all offers carefully, considering not just price but also conditions, timing, and the buyer’s financial qualification. Sometimes a lower offer with better terms provides more security than a higher offer with numerous conditions.
Negotiate strategically on price, possession date, conditions, and inclusions. Your realtor should guide you through this process, helping you understand the implications of various offer terms.
Handle multiple offers according to BC real estate disclosure requirements. Your realtor must inform all parties about the existence of multiple offers while maintaining confidentiality about specific terms.
Accept the best overall offer, which isn’t always the highest price. Consider the buyer’s financing strength, flexibility on conditions, and timeline compatibility with your upsizing plans.
Step 4: Finding and Purchasing Your New Home
9. House Hunting
Now it’s time to actually narrow down your property search and find that home you’ll submit an offer on. As one of the first steps was to begin looking, you and your realtor should have a good idea of the type of properly, location, and budgets you have in place for making that move. Get out there and see some homes that fit if you haven’t and you’ll need to get ready to make an offer.
If you’re in a sellers market, you’ll need to act quick as real estate transactions are typically fast-paced and require you to make offers with less conditions or higher offerings.
If you’re in a buyers market, you may have the opportunity to take your time, as your current home may sit on the market longer, this also gives you more time to shop around and make an offer with those important conditions to sell and buy simultaneously.
10. Making an Offer
When it comes to making the right offer, your realtor will guide you through the process for what the offer strategy should be.
If you’re looking to sell your current home and buy another property simultaneously, you can look to add conditions like subject to sale of your current home for the offer to take effect.
Other appropriate conditions could include financing, home inspection, and insurance.
You’ll also need to consider possession dates carefully, coordinating with your current home sale timeline. Flexible possession dates can make your offer more attractive to sellers.
Ultimately, be prepared to negotiate, as sellers may counter your initial offer. Have a clear understanding of your maximum budget and deal-breakers before entering negotiations.
Recommended Reading: Red Flags to Watch Out for When Buying a Home in Metro Vancouver
Other Tips for Upsizing in BC
Begin with a Plan
Successful upsizing requires comprehensive planning that extends beyond simple house hunting. Start by defining your goals clearly. Are you upsizing for more space, better location, or investment potential? Understanding your motivations helps guide decisions throughout the process.
Create a detailed timeline that accounts for preparation, marketing, selling, and purchasing phases. Build in buffer time for unexpected delays, which are common in real estate transactions.
Develop contingency plans for various scenarios. What if your home sells faster than expected? What if you can’t find your ideal new home immediately? Having backup plans reduces stress
The main important things to follow
- Start planning early: Good preparation reduces stress and improves outcomes
- Build in buffer time: Real estate transactions rarely go exactly as planned
- Maintain financial reserves: For unexpected costs or timing issues
- Communicate regularly: Keep all parties informed of changes or concerns
- Stay flexible: Be prepared to adapt your plans as circumstances change
- Don’t rush major decisions: Take time to think through important choices
- Get professional advice: Realtors, lawyers, and financial advisors are worth the investment
Final Thoughts
For those considering the process, learning about selling your Vancouver home can provide additional insights into the BC market dynamics that will influence your upsizing strategy.
