Real Estate Word -- Tips For a Smooth Move
June 2008
The GTA market continues at a solid pace
We are continuing to see average sale prices increasing about 4% ahead of last year’s record levels. Unit sales volumes are running below the record level that was set last year, but still at a pace that is well ahead of historical sales. Overall, it looks like this year’s sales will come in at about 80 to 83,000 units, the second highest level in history.
The market today can best be described as a balanced market where sellers do not have the same advantage over buyers that they have enjoyed for most of the past five years. If you set your expectations reasonably your home will sell in a normal period of time. Price it too high and you will be looking at price reductions and a longer and more frustrating time on the market.
It is very important now to price your home correctly when you first list it. Buyers are very well educated today and are reluctant to offer on homes that are overpriced and refusing to participate in multiple offers to a much greater degree. They are prepared to be patient and take more time to find the right property at the right price. When getting ready to list your home for sale, talk with your Realtor about the best way to market your property.
One very positive note is the current direction of mortgage interest rates. We are seeing a steady decline and a five year mortgage can now be found at 5.2%, while open mortgages are now as low as 4.0%. Needless to say, more and more buyers are now opting for open mortgages.
Your referrals are an increasingly important part of my business and I would like to thank everyone for placing your confidence in me by referring me to your families and friends.
Best wishes,
Armand Gilks
In This Issue...The Smooth MoveTime Flies When You're Having FunThe Perfect Picnic
The Smooth Move
Although moving can be an exciting life change, it can also be a very stressful event. To ensure things go smoothly, start a detailed checklist at least two months before your actual move as the more organized you are, the easier it will be. Here are a few points to keep in mind:
Two Months Before
Make a complete inventory of all the major items you'll be moving.
Get some estimates and book the movers. You may also want to start sucking up to friends and family for help!
Moving is a great time to get rid of clutter; you know, the stuff you forgot you even had! Don't make the mistake of hauling it to your new home. Instead, have a garage sale or donate it to charity.
One Month Before
Update your insurance, medical and school records to your new location.
Arrange to disconnect and reconnect utilities and telephone/Internet services.
This is a good time to start tackling the administrative details. Change your address with the post office and email friends and relatives with your new contact details.
A Few Weeks Before
Plan meals so all the food in your fridge and freezer gets used up.
Start getting boxes and packing materials together.
Pack items you don't regularly use such as books and games.
Arrange for someone to look after your pets on moving day.
Return library books and DVD materials.
The Final Week
Water your plants a couple of days before you move.
Start packing up your belongings and make sure to clearly label the fragile items.
Gather together all your personal items such as legal documents, photos and other valuables and transport them yourself for safe keeping.
Label a box of items you'll need for the first few nights. The last thing you'll want to do when you get to your new home is hunt for your toothbrush.
Day of the Move
Double check the movers have your new address as well as your cell phone number.
Unscrew light bulbs from all your lamps.
Make sure you have your new keys.
Have lots of refreshments on hand for your busy helpers!
During a move, you may experience emotions ranging from deep sadness to extreme excitement. Although moving can seem like a daunting task, being prepared and organized will save you a lot of stress. With the help of the above checklist, you can now breathe a sigh of relief and enjoy this exciting new phase of your life!
Time Flies When You're Having Fun
If you have young children, flying has likely taken on a whole new meaning and fun probably isn't the word that springs to mind! Having an enjoyable flight with little ones in tow means being prepared and staying relaxed, so read on for some ideas on how to do just that.
Get All the Info - When you book your ticket, ensure you have all the necessary information such as whether or not a car seat's required and if so, what kind. Also, ask about policies regarding strollers and if they can be gate checked. Finally, reserve the bulkhead seats if you're traveling with an infant and ask if they have a baby bed you can use.
How Much Stuff?! - Before you leave, make sure each child has their own backpack to take some of the pressure off yourself. Bring more of everything including snacks, sticker books, crayons, toys and a change of clothes in case your flight's delayed. Put diapers and wipes in a separate bag so you won't have to lug your entire backpack to the bathroom.
Get a Move On - One effective strategy for coping with the confined space during the flight is to keep your children moving from the moment you get to the airport right up until you board the plane. They'll burn up lots of energy which will keep them from kicking the poor person's chair in front of you.
Fasten Your Seatbelts - Once you've boarded the plane, put some items in the seat pockets so you're able to reach them in case there's a period of turbulence and you're unable to access the overhead compartment. A familiar blanket or stuffed toy will also come in handy if your child becomes frightened. Don't forget to give the little ones a drink to relieve ear pressure during take off and landing.
Despite the faster pace of life that goes along with parenthood, it takes so much longer to do anything with kids in tow so leave lots of extra time. Although you may think you'll have an eternity at the airport with check-in, snack time, bathroom breaks and other activities, it'll be time to board before you know it. Keep a cool head, breathe deeply and you're sure to enjoy a smooth, fun ride!
The Perfect Picnic
With the warm weather upon us, why not spend a day with friends and family enjoying some outdoor fun! Local parks and nature areas offer picnic shelters which usually include a covered area, picnic tables and grilling equipment. One of the hardest parts of organizing a picnic is remembering everything so make a checklist which should include:
food, drinks & condiments
plates, cups & paper towels
eating & serving utensils
a cooler with lots of ice
BBQ equipment
garbage bags for clean-up & ziploc bags for leftovers
blankets and/or chairs and lots of games
Parks and other natural areas offer a great opportunity for children to have fun exploring and most will have all the amenities required to host a great event but make sure to reserve ahead of time just to be sure. If you're throwing a children's birthday party you could even plan a nature activity or treasure hunt for the younger ones. Remember your checklist and have fun!
Friday, June 6, 2008
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
MLS Rental Activity Continues to Increase
Toronto Real Estate Board Update:
May 2008
In the first four months of 2008, leased condominium
activity transacted through the TorontoMLS system
increased nine per cent to 3,075 townhouse/apartment units.
Rents trended upward during this period, increasing in all
categories except three bedroom apartment units. Benchmark
two-bedroom apartments rose four per cent to $1,852 per
month, and one bedroom apartments rose the same amount to
$1,445 per month.
TREB's Central area saw the most leased transactions in
the first four months of 2008 with 1,794. About half of these
(870) took place in C01.
The overall Central figure was up six per cent compared
to the same timeframe in 2007, which saw 1,690 transactions,
with the entire increase being real and not the result of rental
units becoming available in new buildings.
Central Area
• The majority of apartment transactions in the Central area
were of one (1,026 leases) and two (620 leases) bedroom
units, which rented for an average of $1,514 and $2,135
respectively. One-bedroom units were up five per cent
and two bedrooms were up six per cent from a year ago.
East Area
• Leased apartment transactions in TREB's East area
numbered 238, up seven per cent over the January to April
2007 period. The majority (128) were two-bedroom units
that rented for an average of $1,430 per month, up three per
cent from last year.
There were also 91 one-bedroom units leased; these
averaged $1,213 per month.
North Area
• The North area saw expanded activity in the January to
April period, with 289 leased apartment transactions. This
is up 46 per cent over the same reporting period last year,
largely due to the completion of several new buildings in
the Warden/Highway 7 area.
• Most leased units in the North area were one and two bedroom
units. One-bedrooms rented for $1,271; twobedrooms
rented for $1,642. Both categories were up two
per cent over the January to April reporting period
in 2007.
West Area
• The West Area remained, after TREB's Central districts, the
most active part of the GTAfor rental transactions. A total
of 587 apartments were leased, up 11 per cent over the first
part of last year.
• Most rental apartments in the West were one and two
bedroom units. One bedrooms rented for an average of
$1,310 per month, up four per cent from last year.
Two bedrooms rented for $1,610 per month, up three percent.
May 2008
In the first four months of 2008, leased condominium
activity transacted through the TorontoMLS system
increased nine per cent to 3,075 townhouse/apartment units.
Rents trended upward during this period, increasing in all
categories except three bedroom apartment units. Benchmark
two-bedroom apartments rose four per cent to $1,852 per
month, and one bedroom apartments rose the same amount to
$1,445 per month.
TREB's Central area saw the most leased transactions in
the first four months of 2008 with 1,794. About half of these
(870) took place in C01.
The overall Central figure was up six per cent compared
to the same timeframe in 2007, which saw 1,690 transactions,
with the entire increase being real and not the result of rental
units becoming available in new buildings.
Central Area
• The majority of apartment transactions in the Central area
were of one (1,026 leases) and two (620 leases) bedroom
units, which rented for an average of $1,514 and $2,135
respectively. One-bedroom units were up five per cent
and two bedrooms were up six per cent from a year ago.
East Area
• Leased apartment transactions in TREB's East area
numbered 238, up seven per cent over the January to April
2007 period. The majority (128) were two-bedroom units
that rented for an average of $1,430 per month, up three per
cent from last year.
There were also 91 one-bedroom units leased; these
averaged $1,213 per month.
North Area
• The North area saw expanded activity in the January to
April period, with 289 leased apartment transactions. This
is up 46 per cent over the same reporting period last year,
largely due to the completion of several new buildings in
the Warden/Highway 7 area.
• Most leased units in the North area were one and two bedroom
units. One-bedrooms rented for $1,271; twobedrooms
rented for $1,642. Both categories were up two
per cent over the January to April reporting period
in 2007.
West Area
• The West Area remained, after TREB's Central districts, the
most active part of the GTAfor rental transactions. A total
of 587 apartments were leased, up 11 per cent over the first
part of last year.
• Most rental apartments in the West were one and two
bedroom units. One bedrooms rented for an average of
$1,310 per month, up four per cent from last year.
Two bedrooms rented for $1,610 per month, up three percent.
Sunday, May 25, 2008
Before buying check survey for boundaries TheStar.com
May 24, 2008 Bob Aaron
Taking the law into your own hands over a property line dispute can be dangerous to your bank account, as one Toronto homeowner discovered recently.
Sharon and Marino Zorz and Katherina Attard are neighbours on Baby Point Rd., near Jane and Annette Sts.
The two houses were built about 80 years ago, and the old fence separating them was not constructed on the property line, but 15 inches west of the actual boundary.
The original deed to the Zorz house included a right-of-way over that adjoining (or easterly) 15-inch strip of the Attard property. For about 80 years, the fence between the houses enclosed the strip of land making it appear that the Zorz land was 15 inches wider than what was shown on the paper title.
In 2001, the properties were converted by the government into the Land Titles system, which effectively froze any rights to adverse possession or squatter's rights as they existed on the date of conversion, but it did not end those rights.
In the fall of 2006, Attard renovated her home and constructed an addition. During this process she removed the old fence and replaced it with a new one on the property line – east of where it had been for the previous 80 years.
As a result, the Zorz family could no longer access their garage, and sued Attard in November, 2006. Later that month they obtained a judge's order requiring Attard to remove the fence. Sometime afterward, the fence was removed and then reconstructed. In March, another court order required the second new fence to be removed until the case was heard.
The case came before Justice Ellen Macdonald in Ontario Superior Court in June last year.
Macdonald decided that the Zorz family had acquired adverse possession (squatter's rights) to the 15-inch strip of land east of the original fence line. The Zorzes and the previous owners of their home had demonstrated continuous, uninterrupted, open and "notorious" use of the disputed strip for many years, to the exclusion of Attard and the prior owners of her property.
Those rights existed in 1990 when the Zorzes bought the property. Even if they didn't acquire the rights at that time, the rights came into existence by their own occupation of the strip of land for more than 11 years from their purchase in 1990 to the conversion to Land Titles in 2001.
Taking all the facts into consideration, Macdonald awarded Sharon and Marino Zorz $7,500 in damages "on account of trespass, nuisance and invasion of privacy."
As well, she ordered the replacement of the fence at the same location as the original fence removed by Attard. Costs of $7,500 were awarded to the Zorzes in addition to the damages.
The case presents some valuable lessons for property owners who find themselves in a boundary line dispute.
Taking the law into your own hands to settle a boundary dispute is risky. Relocating a fence without agreement from the neighbouring owner or a court order is never a good idea.
Always review an up-to-date land survey when buying a house, so that you will know where your boundaries are, and aren't.
Bob Aaron is a Toronto real estate lawyer.
He can be reached at bob@aaron.ca or visit aaron.ca.
New delayed closing rules good for buyers TheStar.com
May 24, 2008 Michael Moldenhauer
How do you get nearly 400 home builders, real estate lawyers, brokers, agents and lenders into a room first thing on a Tuesday morning after a long weekend? You promise to explain the complex new regulations pertaining to delayed home closings or condominium occupancies coming down from the Tarion Warranty Corp., effective July 1.
The new rules are good news for buyers, albeit difficult to follow without a lawyer – which might be a good thing, since you should always engage the services of a lawyer for a real estate transaction.
From the builders' standpoint, our role and goal is to understand the new rules so we can make adjustments to our agreements of purchase and sale and to our business practices to be fully compliant by the effective date.
Former Consumer and Business Services Minister Gerry Phillips started this whole thing a year and a half ago when he wrote Tarion demanding more consumer protection in the area of delayed closings. Tarion responded by completely rewriting the rules, taking them from about seven paragraphs to seven pages (legal size) that must be included with every agreement of purchase and sale.
Tarion has actually produced four mandatory addendums depending upon whether the agreement is for a freehold or condo home and whether the agreement states a firm closing date or a tentative closing date. Unless builders are selling an inventory unit, GTA new homebuyers will generally see the tentative closing date addendum.
Effective July 1, buyers will enjoy the benefits of far more up-front disclosure, including a statement of critical dates, more ongoing communication, and more advance notice of any change in the tentative or confirmed closing date, and more compensation in the event of a delayed closing.
On the disclosure side, new areas of up-front freehold disclosure include whether or not there is sufficient water and sewage capacity to service the development and the nature of the approval or the issues to be resolved if approval is pending. Both addendums require the builder to disclose when construction is expected to commence and then notify the purchaser within 10 days after the actual date of commencement of construction.
The mandatory statement of critical dates requires the builder to set out every milestone date right up to an outside closing date, as well as disclose the purchaser's rights every step of the way.
At the risk of getting it wrong, I won't even attempt to summarize the specific notice provisions with respect to tentative and confirmed closing dates. Suffice it to say that the purchaser will always know where they stand with plenty of time to make key decisions such as listing their existing home for sale or giving notice to their landlord.
As for compensation in the event of a delay, it is rising from $100 per day, maximum $5,000, to $150 per day, maximum $7,500.
Getting back to the effective date of the changes, for freehold homes, if you buy before July 1, you are subject to the old rules and if you buy on or after July 1, the new rules are in effect. With condos, you will need to check when the building went on the market because if just one unit was sold before July 1, every unit in the building will fall under the old rules.
While the new rules will take some getting used to by everyone involved, the minister's demand for more consumer protection has been met, if not exceeded.
Michael Moldenhauer is president of the Building Industry and Land Development Association. The views expressed are those of the president.
Email: president@bildgta.ca
May 24, 2008 Michael Moldenhauer
How do you get nearly 400 home builders, real estate lawyers, brokers, agents and lenders into a room first thing on a Tuesday morning after a long weekend? You promise to explain the complex new regulations pertaining to delayed home closings or condominium occupancies coming down from the Tarion Warranty Corp., effective July 1.
The new rules are good news for buyers, albeit difficult to follow without a lawyer – which might be a good thing, since you should always engage the services of a lawyer for a real estate transaction.
From the builders' standpoint, our role and goal is to understand the new rules so we can make adjustments to our agreements of purchase and sale and to our business practices to be fully compliant by the effective date.
Former Consumer and Business Services Minister Gerry Phillips started this whole thing a year and a half ago when he wrote Tarion demanding more consumer protection in the area of delayed closings. Tarion responded by completely rewriting the rules, taking them from about seven paragraphs to seven pages (legal size) that must be included with every agreement of purchase and sale.
Tarion has actually produced four mandatory addendums depending upon whether the agreement is for a freehold or condo home and whether the agreement states a firm closing date or a tentative closing date. Unless builders are selling an inventory unit, GTA new homebuyers will generally see the tentative closing date addendum.
Effective July 1, buyers will enjoy the benefits of far more up-front disclosure, including a statement of critical dates, more ongoing communication, and more advance notice of any change in the tentative or confirmed closing date, and more compensation in the event of a delayed closing.
On the disclosure side, new areas of up-front freehold disclosure include whether or not there is sufficient water and sewage capacity to service the development and the nature of the approval or the issues to be resolved if approval is pending. Both addendums require the builder to disclose when construction is expected to commence and then notify the purchaser within 10 days after the actual date of commencement of construction.
The mandatory statement of critical dates requires the builder to set out every milestone date right up to an outside closing date, as well as disclose the purchaser's rights every step of the way.
At the risk of getting it wrong, I won't even attempt to summarize the specific notice provisions with respect to tentative and confirmed closing dates. Suffice it to say that the purchaser will always know where they stand with plenty of time to make key decisions such as listing their existing home for sale or giving notice to their landlord.
As for compensation in the event of a delay, it is rising from $100 per day, maximum $5,000, to $150 per day, maximum $7,500.
Getting back to the effective date of the changes, for freehold homes, if you buy before July 1, you are subject to the old rules and if you buy on or after July 1, the new rules are in effect. With condos, you will need to check when the building went on the market because if just one unit was sold before July 1, every unit in the building will fall under the old rules.
While the new rules will take some getting used to by everyone involved, the minister's demand for more consumer protection has been met, if not exceeded.
Michael Moldenhauer is president of the Building Industry and Land Development Association. The views expressed are those of the president.
Email: president@bildgta.ca
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