October 8, 2025 | Selling
How to Prepare For the Spring Housing Market
As fall arrives, you might find yourself thinking about selling your home. This is common around this time of year because kids are back to school, and empty nesters, in particular, are experiencing newfound space.
With that in mind, if you are considering selling your home in the coming spring market, now is the time to start getting ready.
Getting a House Ready to Sell in the Fall
The most common question we receive as real estate agents, besides questions regarding where the market is at, pertains to “how can I get my home ready to sell?”. Here’s what you need to know.
Take Photos Before the Snow Falls
There are a few preliminary steps that potential sellers can take to be prepared, regardless of the season. The first of these is outdoor photos.
With the beautiful fall colours beginning to shine and desirable weather conditions, the fall is a great time to take exterior shots of the home, including the front and backyard, to store and save until the time of listing. When photos are taken during the winter, they will not highlight the entirety of the property’s outdoor potential. This is one of the many reasons why the market picks up as the weather warms.
Improving Curb Appeal
Increasing your curb appeal during the transitional months leading up to winter will also help you save time in the spring. We recommend keeping on top of outdoor maintenance, whether this is mowing the lawn or tending to flower beds and landscaping. This will all depend on the size and property type you own. Cleaning out the eaves troughs, touching up exterior paint and or power washing the sides of the home and any sheds/garages are all small projects that you can tackle previous to listing.
Want to sell your house for top dollar? Find more helpful advice in these blogs!
- Is Your Home Priced to Sell?
- How to Choose a Realtor When Selling
- Tips for Showing Your House While Living in it
Updating Your Home
Once the exterior photos are done, consider having an agent or staging consultant provided by your agent walk through the property and provide their professional opinion regarding how to prepare the home.
This is a great in-between time to focus on ongoing renovations, decluttering and repairs. If you choose to work with a stager, their consultation process will also walk you through the furniture they recommend keeping vs swapping out, as well as various professional opinions on lighting, flooring, paint colours, etc.
As real estate agents, we are here to help you get the top dollar for your home. The sooner that you begin making these changes, the better your home will look.
Lighting and Warmth
Increasing the lighting and warmth in your home is a less common suggestion, but it makes a world of difference in photos, cinematography/video and how your home is going to present itself to prospective buyers. There are more intricate ways of going about doing this, such as replacing centre pieces in the main living areas (dining room, kitchen, foyer) and or venturing into bedroom lighting and addressing dated ceiling fans, ceiling lights and wall sconces.
In terms of small upgrades, consider replacing light bulbs with soft/warm light bulbs instead of bright white LED bulbs. Particularly in the colder months, enhancing the lighting will help warm up the space, inviting buyers to see the potential.
Setting a Realistic Timeline
The next step is to give your Realtor a timeline. Once your agent has a general idea of the time you would like to move, they will continuously monitor your neighbourhood for ongoing activity, ensuring they are on top of sales and listings around the corner from your home.
In the same way, you can also take this time to begin refining what you are looking for in your next home. The time period before your home comes to market is a great time to evaluate your needs as well as your future plans.
Moving can be a stressful time, which means the more planning and preparation you dedicate to it, the smoother the process will go.
Selling your home soon? Check out these blogs for more advice.
- Should You Buy or Sell First?
- Is It The Right Time To Sell My Home- Here’s What You Need to Know
- Beyond Four Walls: How to Leverage Community Amenities When Selling Your Home
Think About Logistics
Once you and your Realtor have established a timeline for listing your home, you will want to dive into the logistics. Consider questions such as, Where are you at financially? How can you plan ahead to continue budgeting for a move and your future home? This is a great time to consider the use of a moving company and ask your Realtor for their recommendations.
Once you have a clear plan, you will find that the processes flow together much more seamlessly. More than logistics, however, is the emotional preparation. Depending on your reasons for selling/moving, the process can be very multifaceted. Since moving is not always linear, it is so important to put your home and your trust into a dedicated, trustworthy professional.
Consider hiring a team of Realtors to help ease the transition. With a team, you have constant support, a larger network of internal buyers and access to internal support without the hassle of long waiting times between responses.
When is the Best Time to Sell a House?
Now… When is the best time to sell my house? It is a question that we hear more than ever. The answer is simple: when it is the right time for you to move, and the numbers make sense for you financially.
The market will continue to ebb and flow. Traditionally, we see peaks in the spring, summer and fall, with the winter remaining slower. However, so much of your home selling is dependent on other factors too, including the community, the style, the interior and exterior appeal, the amount of living space, the backyard area and more.
Sell Your Home With Capstone REPS
At Capstone REPS, our trusted team of full-time Realtors boasts extensive experience in our local community, combining over 70 years in the industry and over 700 million dollars in sales.
When you choose to work with us, we will provide you with extensive client services, including a staging consultation, home walk-through, and professional exterior photography.
Ready to sell? We can help! Reach us by email at info@capstonereps.com or call 519.824.9050.
Ready to Get Started?
Thinking about buying or selling a home in Guelph or Wellington County? Start the conversation with our team today.
