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Real estate in the Greater Montreal area

FAQ Real Estate with the Équipe Lauzon: Buying, Selling and Advice

Discover our FAQ dedicated to the most frequently asked questions about residential real estate in the greater Montreal area, including Lachine, the central districts and the South Shore.

You’ll find clear answers about buying, selling, financing and the personalized services offered by the Équipe Lauzon to accompany your real estate project from start to finish.

Buying a property

When you use a real estate broker, you benefit from local market expertise, sound advice and complete administrative and negotiation support.

The Lauzon Team will help you identify properties suited to your family needs or for a first purchase in Montreal and surrounding areas, saving you unnecessary stress. Visit our properties page to discover current opportunities.

Many neighborhoods are popular with families, including Lachine, Verdun, Hochelaga-Maisonneuve and Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie. These neighborhoods offer quality schools, green spaces and a vibrant community life.

Choosing the ideal neighborhood depends on several factors: budget, desired mode of transportation (proximity to the metro, easy access to the highway), nearby daycare services or schools, and the type of property sought (single-family home, condo, duplex, etc.).

There are also some excellent neighborhoods on Montreal’s South Shore, such as Brossard, Longueuil or Saint-Lambert, that offer a good balance between quality of life, accessibility and competitive prices. We’ll help you choose the right neighborhood for your needs and lifestyle.

An effective offer to purchase must include a competitive price, clear purchase conditions and mortgage pre-approval.

L’Équipe Lauzon will help you draft your offer, taking into account the current state of the Montreal real estate market to maximize your chances of acceptance.

Over and above the purchase price, you’ll need to factor in additional costs such as transfer duties (welcome tax), notary fees, property inspections, and possibly moving and fitting-out costs.

We’ll help you estimate these costs accurately to avoid any unpleasant surprises.

The very first step, before you even start looking at properties, is to obtain a mortgage pre-approval from a financial institution. This crucial step allows you to know exactly what your purchase budget will be, and demonstrates your seriousness to sellers.

As experienced real estate brokers, we can recommend trusted mortgage specialists. Once your borrowing capacity has been defined, we can efficiently target homes that match your needs and means, whether you’re looking for a family home on the South Shore or a condo in Lachine.

This greatly optimizes the search process and puts you in an advantageous position when it comes time to make an offer to purchase.

The length of the buying process can vary considerably, from a few weeks to several months. Several factors influence this timeframe, such as the strength of the real estate market in the Greater Montreal area, the precision of your search criteria and your responsiveness.

On average, allow between 2 and 5 months from the first visits to the signing at the notary’s office. Your Équipe Lauzon broker will help you speed up the process by quickly presenting you with targeted properties and keeping you informed as soon as a new listing comes on the market. Although platforms such as Centris are publicly accessible, we often enjoy privileged access just hours before their general release, which can make all the difference in a competitive market.

Our in-depth knowledge of Montreal neighborhoods, from Lachine to the South Shore, enables us to guide you to the best opportunities and simplify the administrative steps.

Yes, absolutely, it’s highly recommended. A pre-purchase inspection is a fundamental step in protecting your investment. It provides you with a detailed picture of the property’s condition, from foundation to roof.

A qualified building inspector will identify potential problems, necessary repairs and items to watch out for. This expertise enables you to make an informed decision, negotiate the purchase price if major defects are discovered, or even withdraw from the transaction. For a first-time buyer, it’s essential protection.

We work with a network of certified and reliable inspectors across Montreal, and can guide you through this step with complete confidence.

Sale of a property

The ideal selling price depends on many factors, such as the condition of your home, its location and local market prices. The Équipe Lauzon performs a thorough evaluation, based on recent comparable sales in your area, to determine a competitive price.

Some minor renovations can significantly improve the perceived value of your home. It doesn’t always have to be a major undertaking: often, targeted improvements such as a fresh coat of neutral paint, updated lighting, new door and cabinet handles, or new faucets can make all the difference.

Good deep cleaning, landscaping (curb appeal*), and effective decluttering also have a strong impact.

Home staging plays a key role in creating a “coup de coeur” effect: it helps potential buyers project themselves into the space. A refreshed kitchen, a spotless bathroom and an overall impression of brightness and cleanliness are elements that instantly enhance the value of your property.

Équipe Lauzon will advise you on the most strategic improvements to help you sell quickly and at the best price.

Curb appeal refers to the overall impression a property makes when first viewed from the outside, usually from the street. It’s a key factor in real estate, as it immediately influences a potential buyer’s perception of value.

What enhances curb appeal:

  • Clean, well-maintained facade: fresh paint, bricks or siding in good condition.
  • Welcoming entrance: repainted front door, visible civic number, elegant light fixture.
  • Neat landscaping: mowed lawn, trimmed hedges, colorful flowers or planters.
  • Driveway and stairs in good condition: no cracks or debris.
    General cleanliness: no litter, clean mailbox, repaired fences.

A good curb appeal makes you want to visit the house, and can even positively influence the decision to buy before you’ve even walked through the door. Équipe Lauzon can advise you on the best exterior improvements to make to maximize buyer interest.

First impressions are crucial. A clean, decluttered and welcoming home sells faster and for a better price. We recommend depersonalizing spaces by removing family photos, maximizing light by opening curtains, and carrying out minor repairs.

Home staging can also be a profitable strategy. The goal is to enable potential buyers to imagine themselves living in the property.

The Équipe Lauzon offers you concrete, personalized advice to enhance every room in your home and seduce visitors as soon as they walk through the door.

Selling times vary according to neighborhood, property type and real estate market conditions. On average in the Montreal area, a well-positioned home sells in a few weeks.

We implement targeted marketing strategies to maximize your property’s visibility and reduce the time it takes to sell. Our goal is to help you achieve a fast and profitable transaction.

Traditionally, spring (March to June) and fall (September to November) are considered the best seasons to sell a property in the Montreal area. The market is generally more active, with a greater number of buyers, particularly families looking to move before the start of the school year.

However, the Montreal real estate market is dynamic all year round. A well-presented and fairly-priced property will find takers even in winter. The Équipe Lauzon performs a personalized market analysis to determine the optimal marketing strategy, whatever the season, in order to maximize your selling price.

Setting the right price is the most strategic element of the sale. Too high a price will discourage visits, while too low a price will cost you money. To determine the market value of your home, our real estate brokers carry out an in-depth comparative market analysis.

We study similar properties recently sold in your neighborhood (Lachine, LaSalle, South Shore, etc.), current local market conditions and your property’s unique features.

This free, professional evaluation ensures that your property is competitively positioned to attract serious offers and sell as quickly as possible.

Financing and procedures

Mortgage pre-approval is obtained by consulting your bank or a mortgage broker. It evaluates your maximum financial capacity to purchase a property. The Équipe Lauzon can refer you to qualified professionals to simplify this essential step.

Although the terms are similar, there is a major difference. Prequalification is a simple estimate of your borrowing capacity, based on information you provide verbally. It’s quick but unreliable.

Pre-approval (or pre-authorization) is much more solid: the bank analyzes your credit file, income and debts to give you a precise amount and a guaranteed interest rate for a given period (usually 90-120 days).

For any purchasing project, we insist on the importance of obtaining pre-approval. It’s this document that gives weight to your offer to purchase and allows you to store with confidence.

A property inspection identifies the home’s physical condition, while an appraisal establishes its current market value. We always recommend these two steps in any transaction to protect your interests.

If your offer is rejected, you can negotiate a counter-offer or adjust your terms and price. Our team will advise you strategically to improve your chances in your next purchase attempts.

In addition to the down payment, there are a number of other costs to consider. Commonly referred to as “start-up costs”, these include notary fees for the transaction, real estate transfer duties (the “welcome tax”), building inspection fees, and adjustments for municipal and school taxes.

It’s wise to set aside a budget equivalent to approximately 3% to 5% of the purchase price to cover these costs.

As your broker, we’ll provide you with a detailed estimate of the costs associated with the property you’re interested in, so you can plan your budget with peace of mind and no nasty surprises.

The OACIQ is the Organisme d’autoréglementation du courtage immobilier du Québec. Its mission is to protect the public by regulating the real estate brokerage profession.

All Équipe Lauzon brokers are licensed by the OACIQ and are bound by a strict code of ethics, including obligations of transparency, loyalty and competence. Doing business with an OACIQ-certified broker guarantees you a secure, professional transaction.

If you have any questions about brokerage practices, the OACIQ is the reference organization.

Team services

For first-time homebuyers, we offer comprehensive, tailored support at this important stage. We take the time to explain every phase of the process, from finding your first property to signing at the notary’s office.

We help you understand your financing options, anticipate the costs involved, and go through all the administrative procedures with confidence. Our goal: to make your first home-buying experience simple, clear and stress-free.

If you have any questions or would like to make an appointment, please visit our contact page. Our team will be delighted to answer you promptly and to help you with your real estate needs.

Yes, to make your search easier, we offer virtual tours on most of our listings, allowing you to explore many properties in detail from a distance.

However, some properties may not offer a full virtual tour, particularly those we visit directly with our buyers. This is particularly useful for busy customers or those living outside the Montreal area.

The Équipe Lauzon  offers attentive, structured support, where every detail counts. Thanks to our fluid collaboration and efficient organization, we are able to ensure high availability, increased responsiveness and rigorous follow-up at every stage.

You benefit from a cross-sectional view of the market, constant support and a tailor-made strategy to achieve your objectives with complete confidence.

The next step is simple: let’s talk! Whether you have a clear project in mind, or you’re just beginning to think about it, a first discussion doesn’t commit you to anything. It will enable us to understand your objectives and explain how we can help you in concrete terms.

You can reach us easily by filling in the form on our contact page. We’ll get back to you as soon as possible to arrange a meeting. It’s the first step towards realizing your real estate project with a passionate team at your service.

Areas served

Our core business is based in Lachine, but our expertise extends to many neighborhoods and cities in the greater Montreal area. We actively support our customers in the South-West boroughs, including LaSalle, Verdun, the entire island of Montreal and Montreal’s South Shore.

Our local knowledge enables us to effectively advise families and first-time buyers on the best opportunities in these dynamic areas. We’re your local experts in finding the property that perfectly suits your lifestyle.

Yes, absolutely. We understand that many families are looking for the space and tranquility of the South Shore, while remaining connected to Montreal. That’s why we serve several key South Shore cities, including Longueuil, Brossard, Saint-Lambert and Châteauguay.

Whether you’re looking to sell your South Shore property or buy the home of your dreams, our team has the local market knowledge to guide you. Take a look at our properties for sale to discover current opportunities.

Choosing a broker who has mastered a specific area is a considerable advantage. A local expert knows not only market prices, but also the soul of the neighborhood: the best schools, parks, services, development projects and even the quietest streets.

This in-depth knowledge enables us to better target your search and negotiate more effectively on your behalf. For Team Lauzon, being experts in Lachine and the surrounding area means offering you relevant advice that goes far beyond bricks and mortar.