If you live in California, Texas, Arizona or Florida and are planning to put your home on the market, there is a whole group of potential buyers to consider: Canadians! Yes, your friendly northern neighbors (sometimes referred to as ?snowbirds?) are looking for second homes south of the border. If you are selling a property that has it all, then you do not want to ignore these buyers. Here are four tips to help your property appeal to Canadian homebuyers.
What Canadians Want
Simply put, Canadians are looking for reasonably priced homes in warm climates. Popular destinations include those mentioned above, with Florida being the most popular of all.
The Canadian dollar is strong right now, and Canadian investors are looking to take advantage of current low housing prices in the United States. Most are looking for an investment property ? something that will increase in value in the long term.
However, because of U.S. property tax implications, and because many are planning to keep their homes in Canada as well, we?re not talking about luxury home investors. Most are looking for a home priced in the $300,000 to $500,000 range.
Because these properties are long-term investments, Canadian homebuyers are looking for a place to retire that is easy to maintain and conveniently located close to services. Ideally, the property shouldn?t be too large, and ground-floor bedrooms are highly desirable.
Finally, because Canadians can only stay 182 consecutive days in the U.S. without a visa, they search for properties that will be easy to rent out for long stretches of the year.
Prepare to Wow Canadian Investors
To appeal to this potentially lucrative market, there are a few things to keep in mind when preparing and listing your home for sale.
Carefully examine your location
Examine your location and be perfectly honest: Will your home?s setting appeal to a Canadian looking for a vacation home?
Accessibility is key, and if you?re too far from an international airport, your home may not be right for a foreign buyer.
Evaluate your home?s appeal based on its proximity to services such as hospitals, shops, tourist destinations, leisure activities, etc. When it comes to Canadian homebuyers, the old adage is true: location, location, location!
Set the right price
Canadians are looking to invest and will not overpay for a property. Consider asking a real estate agent to do a ?comparative market analysis? of your home.
In any home sale, correct pricing is key. If you overvalue or overprice your property, you can be sure Canadian buyers will look elsewhere for their dream home.
Write an excellent listing description
Once you?ve evaluated your property and set your price, it?s time to prepare a thoroughly detailed listing.
Clearly describe any home features that will appeal to foreign buyers. Few will want to buy a home without seeing it, but they won?t even schedule a visit if they don?t get enough information from the listing.
Provide as much detail as you can about each room, the climate control system, the water system, latest upgrades and the last time things were updated (e.g., the last time you had the roof redone).
Be prepared to provide copies of bills and receipts for all work done and appliance upgrades. Transparency is the best policy: If one bathroom needs an upgrade, say so! Your honesty will make an impression.
Be visible online
Most Canadians will begin their U.S. home search online. List on websites and with Canadian agencies that specialize in helping Canadians find homes in the U.S.
Social media is another great way to give your listing visibility to Canadian buyers. Advertise your listing on Twitter, Facebook and any other social media platform you use. Choose appropriate keywords from your listing and ?hashtag? them for more exposure. You can even consider creating a blog or website for your home sale, and use keywords to show up in search results.
If your home is in the right location, you can bet your listing will attract attention from Canadian snowbirds. Make it easy for them to fall in love with your home by showcasing its features and being highly visible online.
This guest post was written by?Jane Kennedy,?the social media manager at ComFree.com, the largest commission-free real estate network in Canada. For tips, advice and useful information about the Canadian real estate market, check out ComFree Living.
Source: http://www.realestate.com/advice/how-to-appeal-to-canadian-homebuyers-66367/
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