One of the questions I get asked most frequently at the beginning of every year is this: “Should we list in the Winter or wait for the Spring?” Well, if this question has been on your mind, you might want to check out this short video that contains my answer, along with some tips about […]
Have I told you about the time that another buyer appeared out of nowhere at 11:30 pm to scoop my client? It was about 1993 and multiple offers were non-existent because it was a buyers’ market, if you can believe it. My client had been looking for a bungalow for several months. We finally found […]
So where were we? Right. Our sellers had just accepted one of the fifteen offers they received for their property. The buyer was a builder who had given a significant deposit. And the documents had been sent to the parties’ respective lawyers. (For a full recap of what happened, see It Finally Closed! A Real Life […]
It finally closed!! The deal I thought might never close. The deal that took as much of my time as 10 other deals. The deal that should be in the real estate training manual for all the things that can be learned from it. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Let’s start at the beginning. […]
When it comes time to estimate the fair market value of a home, all that matters is this: “How much are similar homes selling for?“. Why is this all that matters? Because if you’re buying, why would you pay more for Home A when you can buy Home B, which is very similar, for less money? […]
Residential real estate is a mine field. There are so many things that can go wrong it would be impossible to list them all. That’s why it’s important to recognize potential problems in advance and know who to call for advice so they can be avoided. You may need to speak with a plumber, an […]
Preparing your home for market involves a lot of work. At times, you may feel overwhelmed by the amount of work you have to do and might be tempted to leave some things undone. Resist that temptation! Here’s why: A few weeks ago, a client asked me “Do I really need to fix that little […]
For different reasons, some people prefer to sell their homes without listing them on MLS. It may be because they don’t want the hassle of buyers parading through their homes or because they think they’ll save on the commission or for some other reason. Whatever their preference, my view is that they’re entitled to do […]
How would you feel if you thought you bought a brand new home, but found out later that it wasn’t really all brand new? I know how I’d feel, but I can’t use words like that in a blog like this. In the older parts of Toronto, some builders incorporate part or all of the […]
The media’s focus on bad news often results in good news and good people going unnoticed. This is true in real estate, as well. One of the things I enjoy most about being an agent is learning about people because buying or selling a home often reveals a person’s true personality. My client (let’s call her Sam) […]
When it comes time to buy or sell your home, you have to be prepared to negotiate. You may get lucky if the person on the other side of the table offers you everything you want, but that doesn’t happen too often. Most of the time, you’ll have to decide if you should take an […]
How many times have you heard someone try to justify unethical behaviour by saying “but it was okay to do that because it was business”? I don’t know about you, but I don’t buy that. Not at all. There isn’t one set of rules for our personal personas and another for our business personas. Ethics […]
If you’re buying a home in a hot real estate market like the one we have in central Toronto right now, you should be prepared for multiple offers. Because there are more buyers than sellers, it’s not uncommon to find yourself up against other buyers when you find a home that you like, especially if […]
If the three most important things in real estate are location, location, location, then the fourth, fifth and sixth most important things are timing, timing and timing. Some timing issues are fairly obvious. For example, don’t try to time the market perfectly because that’s pretty much impossible. Also, if you have a choice, don’t list your home […]
We’ve already discussed what staging is all about in Is Staging Necessary? so I’ll assume you agree it’s a useful and necessary component of the house selling process. At this point, the question running through your mind is probably something to the effect of “how much is this staging business going to set me back?“. That’s […]
When should you list your home? I hear this question almost as often as I’m asked How’s the Market? The best time to list your home depends on your circumstances. Do you live in Toronto? In what area? What kind of home do you have? Do you need to move by a certain date? There’s […]
So you’ve read Part 1 about bulls and Part 2 about bears and don’t think you fit neatly into either category? That’s perfectly okay. Maybe you’re a regular person, which is probably the best thing to be when it comes to residential real estate. It’s time to find out! You know you’re a regular person if you […]
If you read Part 1 and don’t think you’re a real estate bull, then maybe you’re bearish on the Toronto real estate market. How can you tell? Here are a few signs to look for to determine if you’re a bear: You know you’re a bear if thoughts like these cross your mind…… 1.You’re of the […]
There are as many opinions about the real estate market as there are people who have opinions. Some people are bullish (prices will keep going up), some are bearish (prices and the sky will soon fall) and some are in between. Which way to turn and who to believe? Or should you form your own […]
Everywhere you look someone’s talking about the real estate market. What do you make of this quote from a recent article in the Globe & Mail (Feb. 25, 2013): “Manhattan is in the throes of a boom in ultra high-end condos that has drawn wealthy people from around the globe and shattered previous sales records. The […]
