I’m usually a pretty upbeat guy, but lately I’ve been feeling a little grumpy because of some of the things I’ve been seeing in the real estate market. Maybe grumpy isn’t the right word. Perhaps disheartened and frustrated would be more accurate. I contemplated not writing this until I’m feeling better, but sometimes you just have to say what you’re thinking so here goes:

It’s time for the spring market. It runs from about April til June and is usually the busiest time of year. The spring market has been fairly predictable for the past number of years. There have been more buyers than sellers so the market has been hot, there have been plenty of multiple offers and prices have increased. This year feels different.

The market is still strong and prices don’t seem poised to go down. If anything, they’ll likely increase a little, but the market is not nearly as predictable as it has been. It doesn’t matter if you’re buying or selling, you just don’t know what’ll happen. In this kind of market, the potential risk of striking a bad deal if you’re not working with a highly knowledgeable and experienced Realtor is heightened significantly. What do I mean by a bad deal? You could pay way too much for your new home or you could sell your home for way too little. And I’m not talking about $10,000 or $20,000. I’m talking about potentially much larger sums because this market is volatile. I also mean you could buy a home that isn’t right for you and that you’ll want to sell much sooner than you anticipated. And I mean you could sell your home to a buyer who shows all sorts of signs of being shaky and who doesn’t close. There are a million things that can go wrong.

I’ve been doing this for about 27 years and have seen this kind of market before, albeit at much lower price levels with less costly mistakes. So what makes this year different? I’ll tell you. There are 50,000+ Realtors who are members of the Toronto Real Estate Board and not all Realtors are created equal.

It’s not a bad time to buy or sell a home. If you know what you’re doing and are prepared, it’s a good time. But in an unpredictable market like this, be very, very careful about who you choose to represent you because it can make an even bigger difference to your result than you may think.

As always, I’d be happy to talk to you about your options if you’re thinking of buying or selling in the near future. Also, if you know anyone who is interested in learning how the market works and would like to receive the kind of help that involves honest answers, straightforward advice, no pressure and being treated like family, please let me know the best way for me to connect with them because I’d like to offer them this kind of help. And as always, don’t be shy if you have any questions or comments about this post! Thanks for reading.