Mississauga Real Estate Blog

Wow, I have to tell you, listening to the news lately can be saddening as well as frustrating. Let me pick on some of the top executives for a minute. Are any of you for real! The market is crashing the world economy is down the drain, but you think you should still get your million dollar bonuses. Ok, so if you feel that is fair, then perhaps if any of you that have your mansion for sale or perhaps the penthouse in the city, you should pay your Real Estate agent up front. After all, you believe you should get paid even if a company takes a huge loss and you consider that you still did your job.

Now I understand that some of you had contracts and perhaps this is your last chance of really cashing in on what was once your perceived value, but your companies are borrowing tax payers money to pay huge bonuses. Why not set it up for a long term payout so at least the money can be used to guarantee the future of the company. Your sacrifice now may be the smartest thing you can do for yourselves and the future.

As far as any buyers in the market for these homes, if you run across some of these people, offer them half the price of the home. They have plenty!!

Talk to you soon.

Todd

No I am not crazy, the real estate market still has a heart beat in Mississauga. I know we hear all sorts of doom and gloom out there, but Real Estate in Mississauga is still selling. Now let’s not get ahead of ourselves either. Prices are not going up, but they are not coming down much either. Yes there has been an adjustment, but what did we all expect. Now I have to tell you, last week I sold a home in the Erin Mills area for the highest sale price ever for a model like this and it was in the $600,000 price range. So there still are buyers out there looking for the right home.

Also one piece of advice, in a market like this homes are taking longer to sell, so if you are on the market for a few months, don’t be surprised. Some buyers are looking at a home 3 to 4 times before putting an offer in. You just have to be patient!

Talk to you soon

Todd

ps. by the way, there may be some really good real estate deals coming out soon. All the AIG executives might have pay back their bonuses, so the big homes will have to go. LOL

It is the sign of the times. Even here in Canada, homes are over leveraged and when you go to buy them the sale price may not be enough to pay off the outstanding debt on the home.  So folks, when you are buying a home and your agent does their home work, make sure they check back on what the home seller originally paid as well if they have to, ask the listing agent if there is enough funds to pay outstanding liens.

The last thing you want to do is have your heart set on a purchase of a home that cannot close because there is not enough money and to book the move and pick out the new drapes only to find out on the day of closing that it is not going to happen. If you need to, have your agent put in a clause in the offer that the home owner warrants that there is sufficient funds from the sale price to satisfy all debts.

It is always better to know up front instead of on the driveway with a moving truck loaded with all of your belongings on the day of closing.

Talk to you soon.

Todd

So, the papers and economists are finally listening……to what I have always said. This is not a ego driven comment, but one that makes common sense. In Real Estate, we have always known that if you have a strong first time buyer market, all the other price ranges start to fall into place. If 60 to 70 percent of all Real estate transactions happen below $400000 and then another 25 to 35 percent happen in the $400000 to $700000 price range and finally 5 to 10 percent are done in the higher range. Now this is typical in a normal market. So what happens when the market goes down……….simple, the lower price range is what people can afford and this becomes the most attractive to buy.

So I get that the governments are trying to get the economy back on track, but if they truly want Real Estate to recover, they need to focus more on the first time buyers and sellers and give them the tax breaks and incentives. They could be the ones to save the Real Estate markets and help get the economy going.

By the way, my team and I love working with first time buyers and watch for our new seminars to help educate everyone on buying their first home.

Talk to you soon.

Todd

So what do you think ? Interest rates drop again, prices are down, so what are you waiting for. Here is the thing, some of you may be saying, “sure Todd, you just want to make a sale, why should we buy now, prices can still go down.”  The truth is you could be right, but then again if interest rates start going up in the next 6 months to 1 year, then you might have missed one of the greatest opportunities.

My advice is simple, if you are a first time buyer and you have the down payment saved and you are renting, then it is time to get into the market. The current interest rates are so good that you will be paying down the mortgage in less time. Keep one thing in mind though. When you get your approval for a mortgage amount, consider what it would cost to carry if the rates were 5 to 6 percent. These record low rates will not be like this forever and you are better to buy something that you can afford if rates to go up. Always think long term and your real estate investments will always pay off.

For all of you would be investors, remember in a down turn market, rentals become more attractive and the chances of getting better tenants increase. So take your time and find a good property, maybe with more then one income and get started.

A quick story……..and I will try not to bore you.

On the news the other day they said if you had invested in the DOW 10 years ago, so 1999, $10 000 and re invested all the dividends, it would be worth $9000 today. Ok that is brutal. My clients that I sold into homes 10 years ago with 10k down, so they put 5 percent down and bought a $200 000 home are now worth over $ 300 000 and they have also paid off some of the mortgage while living there or while renting it out and having others pay down the mortgage.

So yes, I am a Realtor, but the best investment still is REAL ESTATE.

Talk to you soon.

Todd