I’m a Realtor, yet for many friends, clients and ad readers, I am the keeper of information that has become too much of a bell weather for their financial health. When I give my answers, I can hear their minds tally the spreadsheets and refresh the new totals.

As an immigrant from another part of Canada, I think that Torontonians are too obsessed with “market” and have forgotten the “estate” part of “real estate market”. No matter what the size, your home is where you entertain friends, express your private relationships, and raise your children. It should be your haven and not be judged by its fluctuating financial worth.

When I open my townhouse door, I feel happy to be HOME. That fuzzy warm feeling is the thermometer that you should use when you buy. No matter how good a price you bought for or could sell for, if that warm fuzziness is not there, you are missing the whole point of home ownership.

We’ve just gone through the holiday party season. Every year, as we get closer to party time, I start to cocoon. I intend to make it to all those invitations but often find excuses. I’d like to go talk about movies, food and the other interests that encompass my life. I’d love to talk about cars, furniture and all of those wonderful things that we buy every day, enjoy and gladly depreciate monetarily. However, I know that by the time I have my coat off and hit the bar, someone I don’t even know is asking me, “How’s the real estate market?” I also realize that Realtors have the power to cause a suicidal depression or a Holt Renfrew shopping spree.

And how do I respond? If I say that the market is good, in light of what is going on in the world, then I’m either lying or feel I should be filled with some sort of survivor guilt because I have had sales. If I say it’s bad, then I’m completing a self-fulfilling prophecy. Seeing that I don’t like being around negative people, even I want to walk away from me. I usually try to dodge the questions, but as the evening lengthens, my answers get crisper, my temper shorter, and I start yearning for the magic time when I won’t be the first to leave the party.

The Real Estate Council of Ontario is getting stricter about “agency” or fiduciary duty. It tells you that under their rules, any comment that Realtors make and act upon brings both parties into an agency relationship. Nothing deadens a party like a lengthy explanation of agency relationship, when it’s the response to “How’s the market?”

As the years go by, fewer invitations come my way and I’m drawn down south over the holidays to a place where no one knows that I sell real estate in Toronto. I can breathe easy, pretend to have a million other careers, and never face the scrutiny that exists as a Realtor in Toronto.

Don’t get me wrong. I absolutely love my city and especially my business. But, what I love about it is being able to put someone in a home, watch his or her families grow, and be part of that process. There are few highs that can compare. Speculating on fluctuating value is not one of them.

In light of the many issues in the world, let’s hope we move to focus on the quality of life in our homes and less on their value. I hope that next holiday season, more of my clients will remember that real estate agents like to party too!

Richard Silver is a Toronto Realtor with Bosley Real Estate Ltd. www.richardsilver.com; email  mail@richardsilver.com.

posted: 2/1/2004

1. Remove all clutter. Visually simplify each room. Let a purchaser imagine their decor in your home. As well, you limit your market if your home is too strongly decorated.    

2. Check your home for obvious issues like water spots on the ceiling and get them fixed. They will tip off Purchasers or Inspectors to a problem that may no longer exist.    

3. Repair everything that needs to be repaired…do not renovate. Try to paint any major areas to brighten your home. Remember that most purchasers will want to see your home during the day and light is an issue. If the home needs too much work, then don’t “throw good money after bad”.    

4. Make sure that all your appliances are in good working order. Most offers will ask that all appliances be in good working order. A four-burner stove must have four burners that work.    

5. Clean the house and keep it that way. Make it sparkle! Most agents and purchasers will move the bath curtain to see whether you have mildew on your bathtub.    

6. Do everything to make it inviting. Check your lighting. Make sure all your light bulbs working and make sure their levels set higher than normal. Remember that you are not preparing for a romantic evening but a showing.    

7. If exterior sounds are an issue, leave some music on. However, if you are a buyer and you hear music playing make sure that it is not covering some problem.    

8. Be careful of Dog or cat smells…especially clean the litter box everyday and make sure that there are no presents in the back yard for anyone to step in.    

9. Wash all windows inside and out. Please hire professionals to do it. This is a big job and should be done safely with the proper equipment.    

10. You may want to call a Building Inspector like Carson and Dunlop and depending on size, you could have your house pre-inspected for as low as $350.00. This will alleviate any offers being Conditional on Building Inspections and also give you some items that you may be able to address before listing.    

11. If your home has unused “knob and tube” wiring have it removed. It will save another issue on a building inspection and insuring for any new purchasers.    

12. Leave enough areas for people to wipe their shoes. Removing shoes can be an issue for some purchasers. Put a welcome mat in the front outside and inside.    

13. Clean your yard front and back, wash down all decks and out door furniture. Set it up as if you were about to have a summer party.    

14. In the spring, Plant container grown bulbs like daffodils (squirrels don’t usually eat them) and they add great colour. Fill your front porch containers with hardy plants like pansies.    

15. Wash your house outside with a strong spray. Sills have a tendency to collect dirt and debris.    

16. Please take down your Xmas lights and Xmas tree. Check that all outdoor bulbs are working and provide enough light for agents to open lock boxes. When you list your home, these lights must be on every evening.    

17. If you have a forced air furnace, treat your self to having the ducts in your house cleaned, your furnace and air conditioner serviced and a new filter exchanged. It will bring down the dust and show you as a vendor that performs general maintenance on a regular basis.    

18. Flowers inside and out. Pungent spring flowers like hyacinth are great. Don’t over do it though, as some purchasers are also allergic.    

19. Keep an eye on your windows and skylights. Lots of homes have very interesting rooflines. Keep debris off skylights and make sure that they and all your windows are being caulked on a regular basis and certainly checked ever year.    

20. Go through the whole house, especially the basement and search for cobwebs. Sweep down the walls and the high ceilings and corners for spider webs. They look bad, send the wrong message especially if a purchaser walks through them.    

21. Make sure that all hallways are well lit and very easy to navigate. You may walk those halls in the dark, don’t expect buyers and their agents to.    

22. Cut back the rose bushes in the garden. Make it easy for people to walk in your back yard and not kill the Purchaser or their agent.    

23. Make sure that the property’s parking spots are clearly visible and useful. Parking is an issue for most Purchasers and if you have been using the parking as a garden, it is time to pull the grass and put the gravel back.    

24. Don’t wait until you think of selling before applying for front pad parking. If it is a potential, make it a reality.    

25. Don’t cover your home with post-it notes. All issues should be dealt with and self-evident. If you have to cover your home with post-it notes to point out its advantages, you are not ready to bring your home to the market.

If all these issues can be addressed, you have a home that will bring you top dollar in today’s market. It will be easier to sell because you will have removed some of the potential concerns of the Purchaser. However, when it’s all done…don’t be surprised if you have a home that you no longer want to sell.

Richard Silver

This should be a great event, and a great opportunity to see what lies behind some of those Victorian Facades. I will be volunteering at a house on Amelia Street so please drop by!

Legal Fees

            The tariff rate for residential properties is between .25% and .5% of the purchase price, normally not to exceed $1,450.00.  Lawyers may negotiate their fees and will provide individual quotes when requested.

2.      Land Transfer Tax - Provincial & Municipal

            Provincial Land Transfer Tax

Purchase Price                                                 Land Transfer Tax

$  55,000 - $250,000                                          (Purchase Price x 1%) minus $275.00

$250,000 - $400,000                                           (Purchase Price x 1.5%) minus $1,525,00

$400,000 - up                                                    (Purchase Price x 2%) minus $3,525.00

Municipal Land Transfer Tax (City of Toronto only)

Purchase Price                                                 Land Transfer Tax

$ 000 - $55,000                                                  (Purchase Price x 0.5%)

$56,000 - $400,000                                            (Purchase Price x 1%)

$401,000 - up                                                    (Purchase Price x 2%)

3.      Survey

            A new survey may be necessary if the Seller does not have an “acceptable” survey and one is      required by the first Mortgagee.   Cost: $750.000 - $1100.00

4.      Disbursements - A typical list of disbursements is as follows:

Law Society Transaction Levy                                      $ 50.00

Tax Certificates                                                            $ 65.00

Building Clearance                                                     $105.00

Sheriff’s Certificates                                                     $50.00 to $100.00 (avg.)

Deed Registration                                                        $ 70.50

Mortgage Registration                                                 $ 70.50

Registry Office Searches                                              $ 80.00

Water Status Reports & Consumers Gas                       $ 41.05

Copies, Postage, Fax etc.                                            $ 25.00

5.      Title Insurance (Purchase and Mortgage)

$250 - $300 (if new home under $500,000)

$400 (if resale under $500,000)

6.      Adjustments

            On a pro rata basis the lawyer will apportion the following expenses, as of the date of completion: Taxes; Oil (usually topped-up by Seller and Buyer receives a full tank); Water (only flat rate accounts in Toronto); Common expense fees

NOTES:

Building clearances     City of Toronto will not comment on surveys.  They give only zoning and work order information, front yard parking, committee of adjustment files, etc.

Toronto Hydro              They give neither written nor verbal information.  It is entirely up to the Seller and Buyer to call them.

All disbursements with the exception of registration costs are subject to applicable G.S.T.

Here is what I don’t get….I sell Real Estate and make a good living because I pride myself on returning phone calls AND emails as fast as I can. I have often found myself the REALTOR chosen because I do the small thing of returning calls and emails. If I am in meetings/away or cannot respond right away, I let the client know and give them good options.

The stats from service industry research say that service providers do not respond quickly to their emails. Someone sending an email is already on the Internet and moving at high-speed expecting full information. They expect responses and communication at the speed that they are moving. They are not willing to wait and come from a generation that thinks “Microwave” is slow cooking.

Here is what I really don’t get though…often when I send emails from my database, they bounce back telling me that the mailbox is full, over quota or that the email address is not active anymore. Email addresses are easily forwarded from one to another and boxes can be cleaned out. There is a lot of software that recognizes SPAM and deals with it so that you only receive valid emails. Changing your email address will only cut back on SPAM for a short while if you are using the web to market yourself and your services. SPAM is snail mail flyers on Steroids, bothersome but not the end of the world as we know it.

Most of us have numerous email addresses; choose one and make it your base email with all your other addresses forwarding to that email address. I suggest making it part of your branding which means it includes your name, so that if you move from one Company to another, your email address never changes and is easily recognizable as part of your brand. Make it your email address for life!

I am amazed that people in “Business” would change their contact information without notifying past clients or connections…..however my database proves me wrong, especially with email addresses. What is even more amazing is that I have been the recipient of business cards that have old and unused email addresses on them at the time they are given to me or I meet someone who tells me that “sorry…this is my old card or old email address” or says “OOpps, I don’t have my card with me!”

Our Industry Organizations are constantly trying to educate and update the members but are reporting big problems with out-of-date databases or members who do not want to use email.

So here is my solution! Do not get an email address, a computer, a Blackberry or PDA and whatever you do: DO NOT RESPOND TO EMAIL!!! Your market will be easy prey for those of us who do!

Technology will not take your business but competitors with it will! It’s time to get in the game and put care and energy in your email etiquette. You will reap great rewards!!

The best news is that Spring is here, although yesterday was hell. There was a parade of landscapers, watering system, fish pond stuff and Passover preparations…more to come today but…great Spring weather!!

Real Estate: Don’t know what the media is talking about…both my offers this week were multiple and the office is rocking at the moment!!  Apartments and especially Lofts are hot as ever, check out www.richardsilver.com for more information.

Enjoy the weather and the market!! Don’t over indulge!! But why not???