Preparing your Home for the Move…

Hi All!

A GREAT partner with The Jamie Dann Team is stager / organizer Margaret Harlos of Living Organized. Given that at this time of year, many people are getting ready for their next move, here is a great article that Margaret prepared for us. To learn more about her services, please Click Here . In the meantime, please enjoy her post.

Preparing your Home for the Move…

Each room should be featured and decorated for the original purpose that it was designed.

What not to do.

I have a 3 bedroom house. One bedroom is a TV room, one my home office and of course the master. Not a great way to show a 3 bedroom home when selling, BUT, a great way to maximize the space for you in a redesign once we move you into your new home.

Make sure items are placed in appropriate spaces. One homeowner had a crock pot, electric fry pan and other small kitchen appliances stored on the shelves in the laundry room. This screams that the kitchen cabinetry and storage space is insufficient. Too many things... pack what you don’t need now. Doing this now, simplifies the move later.

If your home has a garage it will be listed with a garage. Purge it. Using it for storage also states the home is not large enough, doesn’t have enough closets or storage space.
Don’t give potential buyers any reasons to walk away from your home. Maximize your space.

De-personalize your home. Remove all the kid’s photos, awards and wedding pictures. I know you are thinking I’m really mean - Here’s the scoop – looking at your family legacy doesn’t make potential buyers feel that they can live in your home when it’s all about you. Remember, we can re-create all those memories when we move you into your new home. Let’s just make them fall in love with your home and pay top dollar.

You likely have more than enough neutral pictures around the house that you could move a few. If you do not need to paint replace personal pictures and decor with items that can appeal to almost anyone. This allows them to visualize how they can incorporate their personal items into the home. This also works with furniture. Less is more. Keep only the furnishings necessary to show how each space works and can function for a potential buyer.

Moving or planning a move – Living Organized provides a no obligation comprehensive price quote. 705-431-7774

Until next time!

The Jamie Dann Team

http://www.thejamiedannteam.com/

http://www.thejamiedannteam.ca/

Wondering if now is a good time to Buy??

Hi All,

Recently I came across a very interesting article in "Moneyville" put out by the Toronto Star, talking about all the reasons why now is a great time to buy.

To summarize, it is a great time to purchase a home in Canada because:

1) Mortgage rates are at historic lows. As we know, when interest rates are low, they have no where to go but up. So, make sure you lock in your rate and get pre-approved so that you are guaranteed to get a lower rate when rates rise.

2) Canada has great appeal due to its stability both economically and politically.

3) There is a great draw of Immigrants to Canada, many of whom have sold homes in their country of origin and have money to spend.

4) It appears that Canadian's are really good at paying their mortgages as compared to those home owners in the States.

5) Similarly, when there are financial challenges in paying one's mortgage, it seems that Canadian banks are more apt to work with home owners vs. immediately foreclosing on the home

6) Canada has a healthy income to price ratio of 3.5 when you look at the Median Canadian income as compared to the Median cost of homes

7) Because the interest rates are so low, it is a great time to consolidate your debt. This will make the amount to service the debt much more manageable.

8) Given the US is having an election this year, it is likely that the economy will remain steady if not improve. None of the Presidential hopefuls want the economy to fail.

If you would like to speak with a GREAT mortgage specialist who can help you get pre-approved, consolidate your debt, or just give you a road map, please contact us, as we work with some awesome professionals.

To read the full article click here.

Until next time!

The Jamie Dann Team

http://www.thejamiedannteam.com/
http://www.thejamiedannteam.ca/

Mistakes Home Sellers Can Make

Have you ever tried to sell your house and it seemed to take forever for it to sell? Is your house currently listed for sale and has been sitting on the market for quite some time without any interest? Are the offers you are receiving for you home far below your set price? If your answer is “yes” to any of these questions, then you may be interested in reading an interesting article I recently came across outlining five mistakes sellers can make when trying to sell their homes.

A couple of common mistakes sellers can make are:

1. Setting The Price Too High – There is no hard and fast rule in determining the price of a home, however some sellers overestimate the value of improvements made to their home. A REALTOR® will help you assist in assessing the market value of your home in comparison to other similar house listings.

2. Not Presenting The Home in It’s Best Condition – Before deciding to put your home on the market, consider hiring a professional cleaner to make your home show it’s best. De-cluttering the home should also be part of preparing your home for sale as a cluttered home may be perceived by buyers that it does not have enough storage space.

The article discusses other mistakes sellers can make as well.  I hope you find this article interesting and helpful! To view the article, click here.

Until next time,
Jamie

Real Estate Sales for December

Happy New Year! 2010 saw a stabilization of the real estate market in Canada. It may be not have been the best year and did fall short of the previous year, however, overall the market was stable.

Based on the residential sales report from The MLS® System of the Barrie & District Association of REALTORS® Inc., last months sales were above a five-year average for the month. There were 193 units sold in December alone, a distinct increase as compared to the last 7 months. However, compared to December 2009, this data fell seven percent short.

The report also shows a pattern of annual sales. There were 4,105 units sold last year, one percent above 2008 but seven percent below 2009.

According to the President of Barrie and District Association of REALTORS®, Catherine Garbe, 2010 was a solid and stable year for home sales and December was the strongest month. To see more figures and data on December sales click here.

In conclusion, real estate sales in 2010 were satisfactory. Sales may have fallen short in comparison to previous years but there was no drastic decrease in percentage sales. In addition, sales performance for 2010 became stable, maintaining average sales and even increasing sales based on a month to month comparison. With good residential sales activity in 2010, we’re hoping 2011 will be great!

Until next time,
Jamie

Real Estate Sales for November

We’re nearing the end of 2010 and, so far, the real estate market has remained stable since the second half of the year.

 

Let’s take a look on how the market looked for the month of November:

• Similar to previous months, residential property sales in November remained below those of previous years. Although, comparing November 2009 to this year, the decline was not as steep as it has been in previous months. The number of sold residential properties was 17 percent below that of last year.
• The MLS® System of the Barrie & District Association of REALTORS® Inc. recorded that over the past 11 months the average sale price for homes is 7 percent more than during the same period in 2009.
• According to the President of Barrie and District Association of REALTORS®, Catherine Garbe, the market currently continues to stabilize and real estate sales continue to show signs of stabilizing at more normal and sustainable levels.
• New listings in November 2010 were up 5 percent as compared to last year. On a year-over-year basis the number of active residential listings on the MLS® System at the end of November was up 9 percent.
• To read more about the detailed statistics for November 2010 click here.

We are currently seeing the market continue to stabilize. Let’s wait for the statistics in December to conclude the residential property sales activity for the year 2010.

Until next time,
Jamie

 

Transferring a Loved One to a New Home

Let me begin by saying this is not about ones typical transfer to a newly bought home or apartment, today I am addressing the topic of transferring a family member to a new home where they can be taken care of by professionals. This usually involves placing a family member in a Nursing Home due to physical illness such as a stroke or mental illness such as dementia.


Some people do not want to even consider sending a loved one to a new “home”; rather they prefer the idea of using a family caregiver to take care of their loved one in their own home. This is most understandable, however the stress put upon that caregiver can be overwhelming. A Nursing Home can be a safer, more comfortable and more interactive place for your loved one.

I found a good read about Nursing Homes which may change your thoughts about them. It is a conversational article allowing the reader to read a discussion between Linda Jackson, a social worker at Baycrest (one of the world's premier academic health sciences centers focused on aging) who organizes caregiver support groups, Donna Macdiarmid who had her husband put in a new “home” and members of the general public with questions regarding Nursing Homes. To read this interesting article please click here. I found it very informative and learned a lot from the conversations.

Until next time,
Jamie

2010 Canadian Housing Observer: An Update

“Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) is Canada’s national housing agency. Established as a government-owned corporation in 1946 to address Canada’s post-war housing shortage, the agency has grown into a major national institution. CMHC is Canada’s premier provider of mortgage loan insurance, mortgage-backed securities, housing policy and programs, and housing research”.

The Canadian Housing Observer, an annual publication put out by the CMHC, now in its eight year, provides a comprehensive report of Canadian real estate activity which plays an important part in the Canadian economy. The report addresses the impact of housing activity on employment and on Canada’s financial situation. In the most recent report released, it shows that new home construction, rental, buying, selling and renovation for 2009 accounted for more than one-fifth of Canada’s total gross domestic product - which translates to $307 billion!

The report also details factors which affect real estate activity in Canada such as governmental regulations, consumer behaviour and industry practice. It also gives a comprehensive analysis of housing statistics for 2009. To read more about CMHC and The Canadian Housing Observer click here.

Until next time,
Jamie

Century 21 on Your Mobile: The Next Generation

Great news!  Your well trusted real estate franchise company, Century 21, has created a new innovation that can reach more users worldwide! Introducing Century 21 on your mobile phone!  The software application will soon be available to download onto your iPhone 3G (or higher) mobile phone!  Once the app is downloaded you will be able to check for property listings, find a property in your area and even help you find a REALTOR®!  Click here to watch a short video clip about the new Century 21 iPhone app.

Until next time,
Jamie

Century 21 Canada: What’s in store?

Century 21 Canada is the most trusted company that offers homes for sale throughout Canada. Century 21 is also recognized globally with franchises in 72 countries and territories worldwide. With its experienced brokers and professional REALTORS®, Century 21 has become the Real Estate Company of choice for hundreds of thousands of clients over any other brand.


“Connected to More™” is the slogan of Century 21 - with this, clients can expect more from Century 21 over the years to come - with more technology and more innovation, there are exciting features on the horizon! To watch a video clip to see what Century 21 has to offer, click here.

Until next time,
Jamie

Knowing About Your Real Estate Privacy

Once a home is sold in your neighborhood, people tend to talk about it - they want to know how much the sellers were asking, what the buyers paid for it, what the seller paid in the way of commission, and many other details about the home. Not all sellers want to divulge this information, especially if they did not give their consent for this information to be released.


There is a privacy law in Canada that can protect you from having information regarding the sale of your home given to others. The purchase price is considered to be private information and permission must be given to allow it to be advertised. To learn more about the privacy legislation by the federal government, click here.

This is a good read. As a seller, it gives information about some of the legal issues of real estate, including what information is determined to be “Personal Information”. It gives information regarding how to protect your privacy, even how the buyer can keep the sale price off the title registry.

Until next time,
Jamie

REALTOR® Fees

Have you heard the news about the consent agreement between CREA (The Canadian Real Estate Association) and the Competition Bureau of Canada? The agreement followed a prolonged negotiation between CREA and the Competition Bureau of Canada as the Bureau claimed that CREA’s Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) was a monopoly.


Well, what does this agreement mean? It simply means that now any home owner wanting to sell their own home can pay a fee to a REALTOR® to have their listing put onto the MLS site and then sell their house themself. This agreement may be advantageous to some, most especially if the home owner has solid real estate knowledge and marketing skills. However, for those selling their own homes without these skills, the agreement may be dangerous.

REALTORS® are well trained and educated professionals. They have a great deal of knowledge of contract law, mortgage financing, land laws and negotiation skills. It is not an easy profession. All REALTORS® must carry professional insurance and must continue their learning in order to annually renew their Real Estate license. It is also important to note that the REALTOR® does not keep the entire commission – the commission must be split between the seller’s agent and the buyer’s agent, then must be split again between the REALTOR® and their sponsoring company. REALTORS® pay a substantial cost for marketing of their client’s homes including advertising, websites, flyers, newsletters, etc. They spend time and gasoline taking clients to see properties, sometimes to no avail as the potential buyers, at any time, can decide they don’t want to buy a home. REALTORS® can also spend countless hours in back and forth negotiation between buyers and sellers.

To read more about the agreement and how REALTORS® earn their fees, click here
 
Until next time,
Jamie

CREA Adjusts Its Estimation of Annual Housing Resales for 2010 and 2011

CREA (The Canadian Real Estate Association) has recently revised its annual resale housing forecast. This reduction of annual forecast was due to weak sales activity in third quarter of 2010. However, it is important to note that sales have improved so far in the fourth quarter, suggesting a stabilizing resale housing market. CREA also noted that based on a year to year comparison, resale levels may remain reduced into 2011 due to strong activity in late 2009 and early 2010.


CREA reports that housing supply and demand is stabilizing. This is an advantage to home buyers and sellers as it will result in price stability as the housing market is balanced. If interest rates continue to be low and stable the resale housing market is likely to remain balanced.

To read more about the figures and forecast of CREA, click here.
 
Until next time,
Jamie

Real Estate Sales for October

We’ve entered the last quarter of the year, it's hard to believe we are almost at the end of 2010 already! In the Real Estate world, home sales have been stable since the third quarter of this year. The average price for homes sold in Barrie and District over the past ten months is up seven percent from the first ten months of 2009. What’s next? Will the market continue to be stabilized? Well here’s an update on sales activity for October in Barrie and District.


Since August 2010, residential property sales have consistently increased, edging up one percent in October over steady increases in August and September, on a seasonally adjusted month-to-month basis. However, the data also shows residential sales remained below last year’s record levels for the month of October. These records are from the MLS® System of the Barrie & District Association of REALTORS® Inc.

According to the President of the Barrie and District Association of REALTORS®, Catherine Gabe, the Real Estate sales market is now calmer as compared to early this year and buyers seem to be taking their time in making their buying decisions. To read more about the figures of real estate sales, click here.

At the present time it seems like we’re looking at a continuous balance of supply and demand in the real estate market, although in comparison to last year at this time sales remain lower than those record levels.

Until next time,

Jamie

The Power of Social Media Sites

Facebook, Twitter, Linkedln and MySpace - Who doesn’t know any of these? Most probably know at least one. Did you know that there are 550 million users of Facebook, 98 million users of Twitter, 67 million users of MySpace and 41 million users of Linkedln? Interesting isn’t it? But did you also know that in the 3rd quarter of this year, the number of users have declined on each of these social media sites, except for Twitter. In the case of Facebook, the number of users has dropped from 550 million to 540 million. The number of Twitter users did not drop, however, their numbers didn’t make a drastic increase either, from 96 million users in the 2nd quarter it only gained 2 million users in the 3rd quarter of this year.

It is also interesting to know that each of these social media sites have different functions. Facebook is said to be more of a social sharing site, while Twitter is more of a learning network. MySpace is more of a social relationship network while Linkedln is more of a business-related site. For more interesting facts about social media sites, click here.

Until next time,
Jamie

CANADA - The Most Respected Country Brand in the World!

Here is an interesting little article I found about branding.  I know that companies are often concerned with their "Brand", but did you know that countries are as well?  In this article, you will see that Canada has made it to the top spot in the Branding world.  Pretty cool!  That is why I'm proud to call Canada my home!  To read the full article, click here.

Until next time,
Jamie

Tips to Help You Avoid Buying the Wrong Home

Buying a home is a big investment, probably one of the biggest investments you will make in your life, therefore it is imperative that you be careful in choosing and buying one. A home purchase should not be based on what your heart desires, rather you should carefully inspect, plan and evaluate things before you decided to make the purchase. Here are some tips you may find useful to prepare for a home purchase:


Preparation: It is recommended to do some research first before starting the process of buying a new home. First and foremost, you must have the financial capability to buy a home. Speaking with a mortgage broker or with your banker is a good way of determining what you can and cannot afford.

Considering Using a REALTOR®: Another part of your initial research should include whether or not you want to work with a REALTOR®. REALTORS® have extensive connections and much experience when it comes to buying and selling homes.

Visual Inspection: Once you find a home, it is best to do an inspection of your chosen house. Not only do you need to inspect the house physically, you should also consider the surroundings. You may want to talk with the neighbours to get a feel for the neighbourhood. You may also want to return to the neighbourhood at some specific times of day in order to determine how busy the neighbourhood is at different times of the day.

To get more tips on home buying, click here, to view a great article which may be very helpful to ensure you get the best value for the money you spend on your new home.

Until next time,
Jamie

Real Estate Sales for September

We’re already in the last quarter of the year. How are real estate sales so far? Here’s an update.


Residential property sales have remained almost the same as last month, rising 9 percent on a seasonally adjusted month-over-month basis. However, sales are still down by 8 percent from last year’s sales records.

The MLS® System of the Barrie & District Association of REALTORS® Inc. has recorded that the average price of homes sold was up 8 percent from last year for the period of January to September. New listings were recorded to be up by 5 percent as per year to year listings. For more figures and trending data, click here

According to the President of the Barrie and District Association of REALTORS®, demand for high end properties remained strong while demand has slowly weaken in low and mid-priced properties.

Similar to the past months, there is still a market balance between supply and demand. So far trends have been the same yet we should still look forward to what lies ahead in real estate sales until end of this year.

Until next time,
Jamie

Real Estate and Photography

Photography is not just about fashion and the arts; it has evolved into something useful and practical. You can see various photography works in events such as weddings, parties, launches and many others. It can also be used online with blogs, news and real estate. Many home sellers don’t know that a picture of their house can say a lot about its value - it may even affect the selling price of their house.

According to a research done by Redfin Corp., a Seattle-based brokerage, real estate listing photographs that were taken using higher-end SLR cameras have more selling power than those with photos taken using “point and shoot” cameras. Aside from getting more attention online, homes with photos taken using a high-end SLR camera can ask a higher price - that is what the statistics show in the research. To read more about the research study and statistics, click here

So if you think you have a great home and you don’t want to lower down the price, try using professional photographs, it may improve your selling power!
Until next time,
Jamie

Be Rewarded!

Isn’t it great to be rewarded for something you did with not much effort at all?  How about buying or selling something and, at the same time, getting a reward?  Sounds too good to be true? Well, it is true!  Get reward Air Miles® when you buy or sell your home with Century 21 in Canada and, for a limited time, receive 100 bonus Air Miles® when you buy or sell. For more details click here.

Until next time,
Jamie

Tips on How to Regularly Maintain Your Home Without Hurting Your Pocket

Home sweet home is a slogan you are most likely familiar with, but how do you have a really home sweet home? Aside from a harmonious family living, it is important to keep your home clean and well maintained both inside and out. Over time your house deteriorates, regular cleaning and maintenance is a great way to help prevent major repairs.


I came across an article from the CMHC (Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation) giving tips on how to maintain your home seasonally in inexpensive ways. Basically, you need to do regular preventive maintenance to keep your home in good repair. Checking for leaks, caulking, cleaning your carpets, and replacing filters are a few regular maintenance tasks which can save you from major home repairs. You may encounter minor repairs that are needed in your home while doing regular maintenance work but a few minor repairs can save you a lot in the long run. To learn more about recommended home maintenance (by season) you can do to keep your house home sweet home click here.

Until next time,
Jamie