Then: “We’d like a good solid home that hasn’t been recently renovated so we can add value to it by renovating it over time.” Now: “We’d like a home that’s been completely renovated so we can move right in because we don’t have time to do any work ourselves.”
You’ve decided it’s time to make that move you’ve been contemplating and need to hire an agent. Question 1: Would you a) hire your friend or relative; OR b) keep business and personal separate? Question 2: If you prefer to hire your friend or relative, which of the following best describes your reason for doing […]
My accountant is great. We’ve been together since the beginning of Advocate Realty – over 20 years now. I planned on interviewing a few accountants and then choosing the one I liked best, but sometimes you just know. It took 10 minutes with Laurie to know I had found the right guy because it was obvious that he […]
This is the third post on this subject, otherwise known as “He Who Hesitates May Get Lost”. You’ll remember that Part 1 was about the second buyer who appeared out of nowhere at 11:30 pm just as the seller was about to accept my client’s offer and Part 2 was about the negotiations that carried […]
People often ask me what I think the market will be like in the future. It’s a good question because it’s helpful to know this when you’re trying to determine the best time to buy or sell. I usually have a pretty good idea of what the residential real estate market in central Toronto will […]
I was watching House of Cards the other night when one of the characters said something that really struck a chord with me. When asked if his decision was based on emotion, he replied: “You don’t make decisions based on emotion. Decisions based on emotion aren’t decisions. They’re instinct.” I love a show with good […]
Sometimes you just don’t know what you’ll do until you actually find yourself in a certain situation. And residential real estate has a way of putting you in all sorts of different situations. Situations you would never have dreamt possible. It’s easy to say “Oh, I would never have done that!”, but how do you know […]
You may not be interested in Lytton Park specifically, but what’s going on there right now is very helpful in understanding how the residential real estate market works in central Toronto. Lytton Park is undervalued. It hasn’t been scientifically proven, but that’s what I think. Here’s why: First, some background. Lytton Park is an established, […]
Ask me anything. Anything at all. And I promise you an honest, straightforward answer. I’m here to help and I’m happy to do so. Don’t be shy because there’s no such thing as a stupid question. If you haven’t been selling real estate every day for the past 20+ years like I have, no one expects you […]
There’s an old adage in real estate that your first offer is always your best offer. It’s a line typically used by a buyer’s agent to try to convince a seller to accept the buyer’s offer, usually when the property hasn’t been listed very long and usually when the buyer’s offer is low. The premise […]
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 […]
No, it’s not Fall yet, but the Fall market in central Toronto IS just around the corner. The unofficial start is after Labour Day and it usually runs until the beginning or middle of November, which is when things begin to slow down for the holiday season. I was recently contacted by a couple of […]
The Summer Real Estate Market has officially arrived! Not that you’d know it by the weather. Or by what’s going on in the real estate market, which is unusually active for this time of year. Although the real estate market in central Toronto hasn’t slowed down yet nearly as much as it has in past years, it’s […]
To pick up where we left off, it’s now about a month before closing and the buyer had just called ME, even though he wasn’t my client, to tell me that he was having trouble arranging financing. If you’d like to review all the details and all the lessons learned so far, and there were […]
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 […]
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 […]
