When is the right time for a senior to sell the family home in Ottawa?
The right time to sell is when the home stops serving your life — not when the market, your neighbours, or even your children say so. In my 28 years guiding Ottawa seniors through this decision, the families with the smoothest transitions share one thing: they started the conversation twelve to eighteen months before they actually wanted to move.
The signs it may be time
Most people expect a dramatic moment of clarity. In reality, it’s quieter than that. The upstairs bedrooms have been closed for years. The garden that once brought joy now brings a to-do list. Winter maintenance feels heavier each season. You find yourself living in three rooms of a ten-room house. None of these means you must move — but together, they’re worth an honest conversation.
Why planning ahead changes everything
A rushed move — prompted by a health event or a family crisis — leaves you making major decisions under pressure. A planned move gives you choice: time to visit residences or condominiums until one feels right, time to sort a lifetime of belongings with dignity rather than deadlines, and the ability to bring your home to market in its best season and condition. In Ottawa’s current balanced market, well-prepared, well-priced homes are still attracting serious buyers, while unprepared ones sit. Preparation is the difference.
What about the market itself?
Market timing matters less than most people fear, because you’re usually selling and settling into your next home in the same market. What matters more is the timing of your life: your health, your energy, and having the people you trust around you. That said, a proper evaluation of your specific home and street — not a citywide headline — should anchor the decision. I provide that without cost or obligation.
The first step
It isn’t a for-sale sign. It’s a conversation — often around your kitchen table, sometimes with your adult children present — about what your ideal next chapter looks like and what your home would realistically achieve. There is no timeline attached and nothing to sign. If it turns out the right answer is to stay a few more years, that’s a good outcome too.
Lucie Clermont is a bilingual REALTOR® with RE/MAX Hallmark Realty Group and has spent 28 years helping Ottawa seniors right-size with clarity, discretion and care. Reach her at (613) 290-9090 or Lucie@CuratingLifestyles.com.