I'm a third-generation realtor with The Webbers at Pemberton Holmes in Oak Bay. Before this, I was an electrician, so I look past the staging at how a house actually works: the bones, the systems, and the problems a coat of paint can hide. Buyers get fewer surprises. Sellers get a clear read on the house before it goes to market.

I work across Greater Victoria and the Cowichan Valley. The approach does not change by neighbourhood. Straight answe...