Ban those for sale signs

Resist the temptation, folks. When you call me or another realtor to sell your condo apartment, please don’t ask us to put “for sale” signs in your window and at the sidewalk. Come to think of it, your neighbour on one side should be told to take that aluminum foil off his bedroom window. And the one on the other side should find a new place to store those bicycles. Oh, and his collection of beer bottles, too.Hmm, what about the satellite dish on another suite over?

My message is already clear by the above illustration. Signs, clutter and outdoor storage are not allowed under condominium bylaws, but these rules are often ignored. Failure to enforce the bylaws can set off a spiral of declining standards and competing for sale signs. While a few more people might come and look at your property, it becomes less likely that they’ll actually find it desirable enough to buy, or to pay what it should be worth.

Enforcement is one of the most difficult areas for condo boards. It may be a board member or the board chair themselves who needs to sell their home. Well, a rule for one is a rule for all. And if one sign or dish is allowed, where does it stop?It doesn’t, of course. Imagine a condo building or townhouse development with 50 for sale signs, satellite dishes, half of the bedroom windows blacked out with aluminum foil and 100 or more bicycles chained to balcony railings. Yuck!

Don’t worry. The lack of for sale signs should not limit the marketing of condo homes. First of all, most condo homes are sold by realtors through the Multiple Listing Service (MLS). This markets electronically to every realtor member of the local real estate board, which in Calgary and Edmonton runs to thousands of agents. Second, the abridged public Realtor.ca on the internet reaches a world-wide audience. And third, condo-specialist realtors (ahem) have sophisticated websites viewed by thousands of condo buyers who are looking for specific condo properties, exclusive (non-MLS) listings and/or specific buyer services in that particular city. All of these mechanisms can post multiple colour photos of the property interior and provide detailed information. Somehow a sign out by the sidewalk doesn’t compete, does it?

Most condo bylaws also specifically allow open house signs for limited hours. So, marketing on weekend afternoons is not prevented, but enhanced, because shoppers will easily see a single open house sign, uncluttered by other realty signs. All of this might come under the standard real estate guideline for décor when selling, namely to keep it light, bright, uncluttered and simple. This applies inside the home, and outside, as well.

Just as there are good options for condo sellers needing marketing, there are also alternatives for those who create the other clutter that can affect condominium appearances. Bike racks can be bolted to concrete walls in parkades, in front of parking spots. Beer lovers (yea, me too) can visit the bottle depot more often than once per year. Those who work nights who require darkness during the daytime can visit a hardware store to fetch inexpensive blackout roller blinds in an off-white finish.

Lastly, TV and movie buffs can subscribe to cable, upgrade to full-tier cable, or subscribe to pay-per-view services. They can also see if a single dish hidden atop the roof could serve the entire building, and undertake a subscription drive in-house to see if enough owners would subscribe. It’s even possible that their small dish could be mounted inside their suite pointing through the picture window. Ugly? Yea, but that’s why we don’t want it mounted outside.

I help to sell and buy a lot of condo properties. As a matter of policy, I won’t use a for sale sign to do it. Create a level playing field in your condo community by enforcing the no-signs bylaws so no one else will, either. And purge the other clutter while you’re at it.

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