Should You Make Repairs Before Selling Your Okanagan Home?

By Amanda Tak

Amanda Tak is a Sales Consultant with Vantage West Realty, bringing her experience in real estate, business administration, and psychology to every transaction.

Everyone tells you to fix up your home before you sell. Nobody tells you what that work is actually worth to you. Here in the Okanagan, that answer matters more than it used to, because two very different buyers are out there right now, and they want opposite things from you.

Most sellers treat repairs like a math problem: spend this much, get that much back. But that isn’t really the choice you’re making. When you decide whether to fix things, you’re choosing which buyer you’re selling to.

The trouble starts when you try to be both. You do half the work, price it like it’s finished, and then the move-in-ready buyer walks away because it isn’t done, and the deal hunter walks away because it isn’t cheap. In a market like ours, where buyers have choice and time, that’s the home that sits.

Move-in-ready homes command a premium. The buyer doesn’t have to lift a finger, so they’ll pay for that. A home that needs work sells for less because the buyer prices in every project they can see. Heading into 2026, that gap has only widened. Buyers are weighing rising renovation and labour costs before they ever make an offer. The lesson is simple: finishing the work earns you a little, and skipping it can cost you a lot more. The gap is the whole story, and most sellers have never seen it laid out that way.

Buyers here have real choice right now. Inventory is sitting well above where it was a couple of years ago, so buyers are taking their time and being selective. Homes that are priced right and shown well are still selling, and the ones that aren’t are sitting. That’s why homes here are selling at around 96% of list price on average, and why what your home is actually worth matters more than any number on paper.

Sellers are already giving a little at the negotiating table. When a buyer can see the work a home needs, that discount only grows, because they’re the one who’ll pay for it out of pocket after closing, not roll it into a 30-year mortgage.

You don’t get to skip the repair. You only get to choose when you pay for it and who sets the price. Skip it before you list, and it shows up on the inspection report, and now you’re negotiating with the buyer who has you under contract and knows you want to close. The bill comes either way. The only question is whether you pay it at your number or at theirs.

So before you spend a dollar, answer one question yourself: which buyer am I selling to? If it’s the one who wants it done, the work isn’t a cost; it’s positioning. If it’s the one who wants a project, that’s fine too. We just price it that way from day one. What doesn’t work is landing in the middle.

If you’re weighing this on your own home, reach out and walk me through it, and I’ll tell you honestly which way I’d take it. Knowing which buyer you’re selling to before you list is the difference between setting your price and having it set for you.

My name is Amanda Tak with Vantage West Realty, and I’m here to help with all your real estate-related needs. Call or text me at 250-801-4322, email me at amanda@vantagewestrealty.com, or visit amanda.vantagewestrealty.com. Whichever way your home leans, I’m here to help you sell it well.