York Region Real Estate, Ontario

More Mortgage Changes To Come

2011-01-17T12:45:00.000-05:00

It seems to be official that the Canadian government is stepping in again to tighten up regulations on the lending industries. This year we are looking at the removal of the 35 year amortization period, a reduction in the maximum loan to value ratio for refinancing of your home from 90% to 85% and more restrictions on Home Equity Lines of Credit. Of course these changes are only with regards to what the government is willing to insure through the CMHC and mostly effects people looking at refinancing and restructuring their personal debts.

So, how is this going to effect the real estate markets? My gut feel is not that much. Why? Relative to the changes last year, these changes do not effect a large portion of home buyers and how much they can qualify to borrow with in a mortgage. If there had been an increase in the minimum down payment required to purchase a home that would have had a significant negative effect on the markets. Last year we saw a lot of changes that directly affected the affordability of homes. There was the removal of the ability to get insurance for 100% financing, the increase from a 5% minimum down payment to 20% for undisclosed income financing for self-employed purchasers, and the changes that forced bank to qualify buyers based on the posted 5 year fixed rates instead of the discounted rates, unless the buyer was going to be getting the 5 year fixed mortgage and then the discounted rate could be used for qualifying for that product only. All of these changes directly affect the price range that buyers could qualify to purchase, especially for first time home buyers. This combined with the, incorrect, anticipation that the H.S.T. implementation was going to drastically increase the cost of buying a home; resulting in a huge increase in spring home sales and a flat summer and fall market, averaging out to a decent year for sales volume.

It is important to note that the new changes only affect mortgages that require CMHC insurance (Genworth and any other "high ratio" mortgage insurance company are likely to follow CMHC's example if they haven't already) and does not change requirements for mortgages on homes that have 20% equity or more. So, will we have a rush on sales in the next month or two, before the new rules take effect? Only if people believe, or are led to believe, that these changes are going to make it harder to get the mortgage that they need. But, as I said above these new changes don't affect most people's qualifications and definitely does not have the same scale of effect that the changes in 2010 had.

First Time Home Buyer Seminar

2010-11-19T14:39:00.000-05:00

Looking for your first home?

On Saturday November 27th 2010, come join myself (Andrew Hodge- sales representative with Right At Home Realty Inc. - Brokerage), John Hum (RBC residential mortgage specialist) and Gerry Quackenbush (GTA Home Inspections and the Ontario Association of Home Inspectors) to find out what you need to know and what to expect from your home buying experience. Come and find out how to make your search easier and more productive as well as a number of pitfalls that should be avoided.

What kind of mortgage is right for you? What does a home inspector really do? What are the differences in buying a freehold home, condominium or a co-op? New or previously enjoyed? How much money do you need and when? How does a Buyer Representation Agreement effect you or protect you and what can you do about them? These and many other questions will be discussed giving you the information to move forwards with your home buying plans with confidence; knowing that the choices that you make are the right ones for you.

Location:

Royal Bank of Canada branch at 2786 Victoria Park Ave (just south of Finch at Van Horne)
starting at 11:00 am and running until 2:00 pm (to answer all of your questions)
Space is limited so please call to register in advance at 416-481-3923.

Attending could save you thousands of dollars on your purchase through my special event offer.

Richmond Hill and Toronto Real Estate for July 2010

2010-08-11T13:52:00.000-04:00

Real estate in the Greater Toronto Area started exceptionally strong in the early months of 2010 and we are now seeing the "give back" as a result. There was a 34% decrease in sales volume for the month of July, relative to July 2009, but at the same time the total sales for the year are about the same as the sales in 2009 up to and including July 2009. The Summer months often see a slight dip in sales volumes, especially in the higher end homes, and I expect to see a fairly slow August with the markets picking up again in September and the fall. It is my opinion that a lot of this years market changes are the result of the H.S.T. implementation and the perceptions of significant increases in the cost of buying and selling homes. Similar to when the G.S.T. was implemented, it will likely not be too long before people understand what those costs really are and then become accepting of those costs and the fact that they are not about to disappear any time soon, if ever.

In the Richmond Hill real estate markets (TorontoMLS® districts N03, N04 and N05) there was a decrease in volume of close to 50% but the average sale price increased significantly in both N03 and N04 with only a slight decrease in the average sale price in the North end of Richmond Hill (N05).

Overall the supply of available homes has started to rise to levels that would be good for a balanced market if the volume of sales was closer to the "norm" for this time of year. So if you are looking to buy now is a great time to be looking. As a buyer you have a large selection to choose from, but don't expect to see huge reductions on prices. Of the 662 freehold listings that are currently available (as of my search a few minutes ago while writing this) only 131 have had any price changes, which is quite reasonable under even the best market times, and the average sale price is still around 97% of the asking price in the Richmond Hill, Ontario, districts. It is very important to know what is a reasonable price for a given home in a given area as some sellers will always over price there homes, with big hopes for an uneducated buyer. For that you do need a good REALTOR® who will show you the comparable home sales as well a show you enough homes so that you can feel comfortable that the home you are buying is really worth what you are paying for it. Granted that when you are buying a home for the long term a particular home may be worth more to you than to others but you need to know what is a reasonable asking price so that you can decide if any extra costs are acceptable when balanced with you personal needs. For that you need good information and a REALTOR® who doesn't try to push you in a direction that you do not feel is right. A good REALTOR® helps you to remember what you have stated are your goals and helps you to focus on the pro's and con's of any decision that you are trying to make without imparting their own biased views, or their desire to have a sale, on to you.

Please feel free to contact me if you are looking for information on real estate in the Greater Toronto Area or if you are looking to buy or sell your home in Richmond Hill, Aurora, York Region or anywhere in the GTA.

Toronto and York Region Real Estate in June

2010-07-10T15:08:00.000-04:00

The real estate markets so far this year have been exceptionally active, with near all time record monthly sales volumes and fairly significant increases in average home sale prices. In June we saw a drop in sales to, a still reasonable, 8,442 home sales, with an average home sale price of $435,034.

The big news is that this year the "normal" pattern has changed. With May and June showing progressive decreases in volume when in most years they would be the most active sales months. As far as the Toronto real estate markets are concerned; it is like we are 2 months ahead of normal, peaking in April instead of June. So, why? Well a big part of this is probably related to the perceived expenses related to the now active HST. The idea of avoiding the HST, by closing before July 1st 2010, and paying 8% less for all related services has made home buyers extra eager to move this spring.

The people who have benefited the most from this strong spring has been the Sellers, since they are the ones that usually pay for the real estate agents commissions, which account for the biggest part of the increased expenses. Yes, a REALTOR®'s services are not cheap, although I would argue that they are very often worth what you pay.... but I am a little biased on that one.

So what does this mean for the real estate markets over the nest few months. Well, if you are a buyer it is a great time to get very active in your search. The main reason for that is that there is a fairly good sized supply of homes and a fair number of the general public are still thinking that the HST makes buying a house a lot more expensive, so they may postpone their searches for a while. That combined with the usual summer market conditions that often cause a slight dip in sales volumes in the summer may add up to some great deals with less buying competition. A great opportunity to find a motivated Seller for the cost of around $160 in taxes on your closing costs. That's it, only $160, since the Buyer's agent is most often paid for by the Sellers through the Seller's agent.

In the long term, being later this year and on, we will probably see that people become apathetic with the HST, taking it for granted, just like we all did with the GST shortly after it was introduced. At that time it will be business as usual. As for the potential for reductions in the costs of services; I think that is unlikely, based also on the experiences of the GST.

The GST was supposed to take the "hidden taxes" that were paid throughout the production and distribution process and give them transparency, for the consumer, buy summing them up at the end point of sale so that everyone knew how much tax they were really paying. By allowing the businesses to claim the tax credits, as they purchased materials and other business expenses, the end price of products and services were supposed to go down at least relative to the savings the companies would get. However, I doubt that many people can say that they saw any significant decrease in retail prices that could be contributed to the GST system instead of improvements in efficiencies, cheaper imported materials or foreign labour markets and the aspects of competition related them. This is also likely to be the case in the real estate markets.

Competition in the real estate markets already means that commissions have become much more flexible in the past seven, plus, years that I have been a full time real estate sales representative. It have changed the face of many of the real estate brokerages throughout the Greater Toronto Area giving rise to brokerages like Right At Home Realty Inc., who focus on providing their representatives with the services that are required without having to charge for extra "brick and mortar" office space that the REALTORS® are, very often, not using. This allows the individual REALTOR® to be more competitive and quicker to respond to clients needs that in many traditional brokerages, which is the main reason that I, and many more, moved ( for me it was from a Century 21 franchise to Right At Home almost 4 years ago).

But I digress... The real estate markets are likely to see a slight dip in sales over the next couple of months to be followed by a small surge, as buyer's realize that they still need to have a home to live in and that the costs are still just as affordable as they were in the spring. This would be similar, although smaller in effect, to the market reaction at the end of 2008 and the beginning of 2009 when the perception of the world coming to an end, through world recession and the U.S.A.'s election uncertainties. In the end life had to go on and people still needed to buy and sell homes and, statistically speaking, they were still affordable even as they do today.

So, If you are thinking of buying a home now is a great time to get actively searching with the help of someone like myself. If you are looking to sell you can still expect a fairly good price, but the higher your urgency to sell is the more likely you will have to be prepared to negotiate with offers that have lower initial offerings. At the end of the day both the Buyers and the Sellers have to agree to the value of the property in order to get a sale and everyone involved needs to be realistic in order for that to happen (with the exception that all parties have equally unrealistic expectations that lean in the same direction and nobody, like a REALTOR®, educates the parties [particularly their Client if a REALTOR® is involved] to the true value of the current real estate values). The Greater Toronto Area'a real estate markets are not about to stall completely and we are still likely to see healthy sales throughout the rest of the year so there is no need to panic in either direction, but it is always wise to get representation and know what are realistic expectations for your needs.

More in depth statistical reviews for Richmond Hill, Aurora and York Region's real estate markets will be posted soon.

Please feel free to call or email me if you are considering buying or selling a home, in York Region or the Toronto area, to get insightful representation and the results that we all want.

Fairwell to investigative journalism

2010-01-16T12:04:00.000-05:00

Everyday we are bombarded with information from a wide variety of sources. Some we have become accustom to ignoring, like advertising, and others we are told should be seen as authorities on facts about our world and how it effects us. News media is generally believed to be trustworthy and yet I keep hearing and reading fearmongering and out of context facts or at least without perspective.

I thoroughly agitated today while listening to the a news radio station today. They had a story on the Toronto area real estate markets, or it could have been all of Ontario, and were questioning whether we were heading into "another bubble". They were talking about the increase sales of something around 70% "year over year for the month of December" and the huge increase in average sale price. The only thing I could think of is "Why are they not asking WHY" because if they did the numbers would not be nearly so surprising or indicative of a potential problem.

So what really happened? First of all "Year over Year", for December, just means the change for the month of December from 2008 to 2009 ( in this instance) and does not take into consideration any previous Decembers or whatever else has happened in any other month. Fortunately the Toronto area real estate markets are bigger than just one month per year and they affect and are affected by many different events and factors.

In this case the "news" station was not noting the simple fact that last December the real estate markets were very slow, due to a general perception of uncertainty and economic risk. There was an election in the States and the world economy was heading down rather quickly. This meant that fewer people were willing to commit to a large mortgage and fewer were willing to buy the very expensive homes. For freehold homes on the resale market only 125 out of 1692 homes sold, in December 2008, were sold for $700,000. That is only 7.39% were as in 2007 it was over 11%. This caused the Average price to drop dramatically, for which the news people were reporting a crash in prices, even though an individual home really only decreased in value by about 3%. This year the volume of sales is back up and at a historically hight level, with an increase of 19% over 2007 (for December on the Toronto Real Estate Board's MLS® system). However, that means that the increase in home sold, compared to December 2008, was 215% which would be alarming if it had not been for the drop in volume last year. Overall 2009 saw 87,308 homes sold in the Greater Toronto Area on the TREB MLS® system which was less then the number of sales in 2007.

As far as the average price, it increased by 14% over December 2008, but only 4.3% over December 2007. Horror of horrors that's just over a 2% per year increases when annualized. The reason for most of this increase in average sale price is the same reason why we had an inflated decrease in 2008, the composition of what is selling has changed again. Those $700,000 plus homes that were harder to sell in 2008 are selling again and account for 11.8% of the freehold resale real estate transactions.

There was also a statement that the markets are expected to cool down later this year and have smaller year over year increases. Well that's a no brainer. Seeing as the sales volumes were in a slump last year for the first 3 months it makes sense that as this market carries on stably the difference will decrease as we approach the months were last years sales were more normal and not affected by the uncertainty that people were feeling at the end of 2008 and early 2009.

They were commenting on how the HST is likely to cool down the real estate markets. This is very true about the new home markets as most new homes will cost an extra 8% due to the added tax. Especially for freehold homes that are less likely to be under the $400,000 price range where there are rebates available. On the resale side the HST only affects the the fees related to buying or selling and not the price of the home itself. For resale homes there may be an increase in value and demand as an 8% gap in prices between new and resale is instantly created on July 1st.

The facts are that the economy is doing fairly well, all things considering, our lending markets are fairly secure and interest rates are still very low and are likely to stay "historically low" for a while even if they do rise as the year goes on. Most importantly, there are a lot of people that want to buy homes, either upgrading, downsizing or buying their first home. We have not been in a "bubble" in this millennium, as the economics behind the real estate market (in the GTA) are still very sound with high demand and reasonable affordability. I really hope that there will be a resurgence in the "investigative" side of journalism very soon, people who ask "Why" before parroting statistics that they don't understand, solely to meet a deadline or cause panic.

The important thing to note is "Don't Panic" last years dip was entirely related to people putting their plans on hold because they were nervous. Now the prices are higher and likely to continue in that direction, preferably in a sustainable manner, and the best way to keep homes in your realm of affordability, if it is currently borderline, is to be in the market by owning. Not irresponsibly so, but that is were having the right agent comes into play, one that listens to your needs and helps you find the balance of what you need and want to keep your investment as safe as possible.

Richmond Hill homes are selling fast

2009-11-02T22:51:00.000-05:00

It has been a very busy week. It started off with a great client finding the perfect house which meant that they had to sell their current home. So we listed their home Monday night and by Thursday we had multiple offers. Things were going so fast I didn't even get a chance to blog about their home. To top it off several other clients have been looking and every time I make a list of 5 or 6 places to see, by the time I get the showings booked 2 will be sold conditionally and another is likely to have a registered offer.

There are still some very nice homes available and prices are still good, but buyers must be prepared to make quick decisions about whether a given house is the right home for them in order not to miss out.

As for sellers, this fall the real estate markets seem to be heating up as the weather cools off. So, don't worry about waiting until spring if you really want to move now. I think this year is going to beat most of the expectations from the real estate industries forcasters.

Richmond Hill Real Estate in September 2009

2009-11-02T16:06:00.001-05:00

The Greater Toronto Area real estate markets are finishing off the year with a boom. September 2009 had 8,196 homes ( both freehold and condominium) through the Toronto Real Estate Board's (TREB's) MLS® system with an average sale price of $406,877.

In the Richmond Hill MLS® districts there were 225 detached homes sold out of 403 available homes with an average sale price, for the three districts, of $627,700. This is a huge jump up from last years 126 homes sold in the Richmond Hill districts and a mere 6,424 homes sold in the GTA in 2008.

Now is a great time to buy or sell a home in Richmond Hill, Aurora or anywhere in the Greater Toronto Area.

Toronto Real Estate Market Recap for 2009

2009-09-18T11:32:00.005-04:00

First A quick update on this years Toronto and GTA real estate markets. Most of us recognized that 2009 started off as a very slow year. Buyer's were nervous and their savings had been decimated or worse. But the real estate market started to bounce back in March. The Total number of home sales on the Toronto Real Estate Board's MLS® system in March, April and May 2009 were only slightly lower than the 2008 numbers, before the markets started to slow down.

Real estate was far hotter, this summer, than the weather. June 2009 set an all time record for most homes sold, in the month of June, with 10,955 home sold. July was only just short of 10,000 home and August put in a very respectable 8,035 home sales. This compared with 2007 is only 24 less than the number of homes sold, in the Greater Toronto Area, for August and the average sale price was up over $26,000 from August 2007 to August 2009 at $387,921.

This year there have been more sales in the first 8 months that in the same month for 2008 despite the sluggish start. September is shaping up to be another good month for home sales with over 3,300 sales in the first half with an average sale price of $393,818.

This is proof that the Toronto area real estate markets have weathered the global downturn and that there never was a bubble in our prices. What we experienced last fall and winter was due to people being nervous about the economy, mainly the American economy, and the possible outcomes of the US election. Now that confidence is rising we are well placed to home values rise again at a reasonable level.

The Sky is Falling

2008-10-29T22:58:00.004-04:00

The Doom and Gloom predictors are at large these days, telling everyone that real estate prices in the Greater Toronto Area are going to drop. And they may, however any price decrease should be minimal and short lived. The one thing that is going against the real estate markets in the Toronto area, including Richmond Hill, Aurora and all of York Region, is low consumer confidence. Unfortunately this low consumer confidence issue is mostly unsubstantiated. Yes the stock market has had a major correction and the DOW Jones looks like an EKG chart but most of the economic factors that support a strong real estate market are still here.

One of the biggest misconceptions currently going around is that the real estate markets have slowed down to the point of being a strong buyer's market. It is true that the number of sales in 2008 are lower that 2007 and even a little off of 2006 numbers. However, historically speaking the sales volume is still very high. A great analogy for our market sales was given at the Toronto Real Estate Board's annual general meeting on Monday Oct 27th. It was that the 2007 real estate sales were like driving on the 401 at 150 clicks (obviously not during rush hour) and now we have slowed down to 120 Kph. We are still moving very fast but it seems slow compared to what we were going. As it is the Toronto area real estate markets are still aiming for about 80,000 sales in 2008 which is a volume that was only reached starting in 2004, so historically still very high.

They also talk about rising inventory levels. However the inventory levels in the Toronto real estate markets is still under 4 months supply. This means that if no new homes are put on the market and sales remained the same it would only take 4 months to run out of available homes. This is well within the range that indicates a balanced market not a buyer's market. So unlike some areas in the U.S.A where there are as many as 12 months supply, we are far from over stocked in homes. We may not see huge increases in price this year but if people don't panic then we also should not see major price reductions, except on homes that are over priced to start with.

Other factors to consider are mortgage rates which are still very low, and unlike some areas of the U.S.A. mortgages are still readily available here in Canada. Speaking of mortgages, our banking systems are much different here in Canada when compared to the U.S.A. and as a result are in a much stronger position than their counterparts south of the boarder.

Also consider that unemployment is still very low, and the rate of foreclosure is only about 0.25% according to CMHC as compared to 1992 when it was close to 6% and currently in the States where foreclosure rates are close to 20%. It is believed that the number of speculative buyers is significantly lower than back in 1989 so that should not be a huge flood of homes on the market especially since our rental markets are still very strong. We also still have a large volume of new immigrants into the Toronto areas, creating demand for homes both in the rental and purchasing sectors.

All in all our economy is healthy but it is being rattled around by uncertainty. Now is actually a great time to buy a home as it is a much better investment that the current stock market, unless you can correctly guess which way it will move today, and because some sellers and their agents are buying into the hysteria and looking at and even accepting offers that are lower than would have been the norm a few years ago. It is also expected that our economy will start growing again as early as 2010 so buy now and for the long run (5+years ) and you should see a good return on your investment especially over renting.

For real estate help in Richmond Hill, Aurora, York Region and Toronto please visit my website or call me at 416-278-2335 and start finding the right home for you.

Provincial Land Transfer Tax Refund Extended

2007-12-17T10:06:00.000-05:00

The Province of Ontario has just announced that it is extending the land transfer tax refund for first time buyers of newly constructed homes to now include resale homes. This means that first time home buyers can now save up to $2,000 on a resale home purchase. The legislation for this rebate has not yet been passed, but any first time home buyer that enters into an "agreement to purchase and sale" on or after December 13th, 2007 is entitled to a rebate of up to $2,000 once the legislation is passed.

The City of Toronto has also up dated their new land transfer tax so that first time home buyers should not have to pay the land transfer tax on the first $400,000 of their home purchase at all. Previously any first time home buyer who is buying a home that is priced over $400,000 had to pay the full tax up front and then get a rebate for the tax paid on the first $400,000. Under their new system, which they hope to have in place before Feb 1st 2008 when the tax starts, first time home buyers will be able to pay only the tax owing on the balance of the purchase price minus $400,000.

Toronto Area Mortgages

2007-11-10T13:37:00.000-05:00

Well I did it! I took the plunge and took my business and added to it to make a more seamless service to help my clients get better results, quicker and more efficiently. I have now added mortgages to my real estate service by becoming a Mortgage Agent with Mortgage One Solutions Ltd. a member of The Mortgage Centre.

Now you can get a great wholesale mortgage rate with terms that best meet your needs. Get your pre-approved mortgage quickly and easily. Best of all, I work for you not the banks, top that off with the fact that my main purpose is to help you buy a home, or sell your home by providing mortgage approvals to qualified buyers; so I am not concerned about finder's fees and I will concentrate on just getting you the best mortgage for your needs.

Looking to renew, refinance or consolidate debts? I can help you with that with the same emphasys on exceptional service and great mortgage products.

I protact your record by only pulling your credit once when I shop your mortgage application to over 40 lenders for the best rates. Including most of the big banks, although some of them only deal with mortgage brokers through subsiduary businesses, I can often get you the same or better rate that you can get at the banks. Another benefit is that I don't just let you fill in the blanks and press submit. I work with you and your situation to get you mortgage approved and if there are issues that are blocking your application, like outstanding debts, I will go through your report with you and help you to get your credit record back on track.

Happy house hunting!

Toronto and York Region Real Estate Markets Update

2007-11-10T13:06:00.000-05:00

2007's real estate markets seem to be unstoppable. Once again October sets a new Toronto MLS® record for the number of homes sold smashing the previous October record (Oct 2003) by 10% and sending the total home sales, for 2007, over 81,500 homes sold. That is just 1,500 short of the final number of homes sold in 2006 with two months to go, in which we would usually expect to see about 10,000 sales more. On top of that the sales volume in Toronto are expected to be extra high in November and December as home buyers are trying to avoid the new municipal land transfer tax which comes into effect on homes purchased after January 1st, 2008 and closing after February 1st, 2008.

The average purchase price for a home on the Toronto MLS® system in October, 2007, was $394,646 up from last October's $356,423.

In Richmond Hill's 3 MLS® districts (N03,N04 and N05) there were 396 homes sold with the majority (211 homes) in the South end (N03) with a high number of Condominiums and an average sale price of $408,291 where as in the North end (N05, Oak Ridges down to Gamble Rd.) the there were only 68 homes sold, mostly detached home, with an average sale price of $491,850.

Toronto home's averaged $522,800 for the 1,602 homes that sold in October. That said there are still areas where you can get a detached home for under $400,000.

Real estate markets in the Toronto area and York Region are still very strong and it is still expected to continue being strong with stead price increases for the next few years. Making now a great time to buy or move if you haven't already.

If you would like more information feel free to contact me or fill out a "home search request" or " Home Evaluation request" on my website www.AndrewHodgeREALTOR.com

Talk to you soon.

Richmond Hill Parks - Richmond Green

2007-08-19T23:50:00.002-04:00

This is the start of a series of reviews, pictures and comments on the parks of Richmond Hill.

Richmond Green is located at Leslie and Elgin Mills right next to Richmond Green High School and the Richmond Green library. It has a skate park, water park,, skating arena, soccer fields, walking paths, sand and play area and an eco-educational garden area. Richmond Green is often used by the residents of Bayview North and Bayview Hills, in Richmond Hill, and by the the City of Richmond Hill for events like the Canada Day fireworks show (always fun but traffic is heavy so come early and prepare to have to deal with traffic when you are leaving).

For information on Richmond Hill real estate or to find your perfect Richmond Hill home please visit my website and request a Richmond Hill Home search or a free Richmond Hill home evaluation.

Toronto Real Estate Market - Mid August sales

2007-08-19T15:16:00.000-04:00

Toronto Home Sales in August are well above expected numbers in terms of volume. As of August 17th there were 3,838 homes sold, up 17% from Aug 2006, and the average sale price across the Toronto MLS® system was $355,829.

So it looks like the summer market is doing very well with the lower priced home and condo sales. I, for one, am looking forward to see how the upper priced home sale come back in September.

York Region Real Estate market statistics - July 2007

2007-08-06T23:45:00.000-04:00

York Region's real estate markets were hot in July 2007 as were all of the Northern districts on the Toronto MLS® system. Sales this year were up 27.7% with 1,797 homes sold compared to 1,407 homes sold in July 2007. The year to date home sales numbers are also up 16.3% to 12,232 homes sold in York Region, the Uxbridge area of Durham and parts of Simcoe County.

Over all average sold prices increased by 5% from $373,573 to $392,360 in July 2007. There were some very active markets in York Region including the 3 Richmond Hill Ontario real estate districts (N03, N04 and N05), Aurora (N06) and Vaughan (N08).

In Richmond Hill there was an increase of 47.1% in the total number of homes sold, going from 291 (July 2006) to 428 (July 2007) homes. Most of this increase was in the South end in the N03 and N04 districts. Richmond Hill seems to have been hit by the summer market effect resulting from higher price range buyers going on vacation. The result was a decrease in the average sold price but an increase in the median home sold price where they were very close to one another. The largest effect was in the detached home market where, in the N03 district, the average home price dropped from $601,645 to $556,140 while the median home sold price increased from $537,000 to $557,750, not that that is chump change or anything but there were definitely fewer million plus dollar homes sold in July 2007.

Aurora Ontario's real estate market saw an increase in home sales of 26.3% from 57 to 72 and an increase in average sale price from $392,658 (July 2006) to $454,512 (July 2007).

In the N08 district (Vaughan) and the N11 district (Markham) both saw increases in sales volume between 27% and 30%.

Happy house hunting.

Toronto Real Estate Market Statistics - July 2007

2007-08-06T23:01:00.000-04:00

Toronto's real estate markets keep motoring along. In July 2007 there were 1,590 homes sold in the central districts on the Toronto MLS® system. This would account for the down town core and everything between Dufferin and Victoria Park, South of Steeles, with the DVP as the eastern boundary south of Eglinton Ave. That is an increase of 24.3% over last year's 1,279 Toronto homes sold.

The average sold price in the Toronto Central districts was $470,464 up 9.9% from July 2006's $428,031 and the median home sale prices in central Toronto raised from last years $313,200 to $334,500. The one thing that Toronto still has is variety. The average home sold prices vary widely from district to district. The lowest average sold price was $329,339 in the C8 district which is predominantly condominiums. Where as the highest average home sold price was in the C12 district with and average home sale price of $1,442,216.

So far, in 2007, there have been 10,591 homes sold in the central Toronto real estate markets which is up 12% from last years 9,450. Even with the potential new land transfer tax, that may get the go ahead if the City or Toronto does not figure another way to fix their budget issues, the real estate markets are booming with a sales to active listings ratio of 64.7% in July 2007 for the central Toronto districts.

It is still a great time to buy or sell Toronto real estate. Please let me know if you are looking for Toronto, Ontario, homes for sale or if you want to sell you Toronto home or condo fast.

Toronto Real Estate Home Inspectors - How to Choose One

2007-07-31T14:22:00.000-04:00

The home inspection industry is currently not a regulated industry, which means that anyone can call themselves a home inspector and charge a fee to look at homes and give you a report or opinion on the condition of the home. So until the home inspection industry gets its own version of REBBA making it illegal to charge a fee for a home inspection related service, without first being registered and insured, how do you choose the right home inspector?

I think we would all recognize that this picture would be of someone you would not like to have inspecting your home, yet home inspectors are rarely this obviously unqualified. So, always make sure that they are a member of the Canadian Association of Home and Property Inspectors (CAHPI) and in Ontario, Canada, they should also belong to the Ontario Association of Home Inspectors (OAHI). These two organizations have their own rules, regulations, ethics codes and training qualifications that must be met in order to remain a member.

Make sure that they have errors and omission insurance that is up to date and paid for, just in case they do miss something that should have been detected. I believe that Insurance coverage is a requirement for both of the above organizations, however it is best to ask and even to see an insurance policy "slip" stating that the insurance coverage is valid and active.

In Ontario, Canada, all REALTORS® must advise their clients that a home inspection is recommended service. Most will even give you a few names to choose from. You should call at least 2-3 home inspectors and interview them to find out what they do and how much they charge. Some may provide extra services for a premium or use specialized equipment that goes beyond a basic home inspection. You can expect to pay close to $400 for a home inspection on a home up to 2,500sq ft if it is not too old. Older homes may cost more as they often need to be home thoroughly inspected and my have crawl spaces and awkward spaces that the home inspector needs to get into to inspect the home. Larger homes will often cost more as there is more home to inspect and it will take longer and may even involve multiple heating and ventilation systems or other home systems that are included in the inspection.

As Part of my York Region real estate service I have several home inspectors that I recommend to my clients based on how thorough they are. They do not work for me, so they are responsible to my clients to provide the information that they need even if it means the client does not want to close on that home because of it. I would rather we all know that a home is in poor condition and move on to finding a home that is good than to have an unhappy client in the future when the problems become more obvious.

Genworth Housing Outlook - Summer 2007

2007-07-30T10:16:00.000-04:00

Genworth Financial has published there summer 2007 "Housing Outlook" that provides insightful analysis of the Canadian real estate markets (nationally, provincially, and for major cities) as well as provides their predictions for the next few years.

The "Housing Outlook", according to Genworth Financial, look strong for the next few years with stead growth in home values as well as sales volumes (with a slight exception of new home sales in 2007). They sight economic factors like the strength of the Canadian Dollar and the growing GDP, personal incomes, and a variety of other national and regional factors in support of these views.

The price increases that they are predicting are higher than I was expecting, so if you are currently renting it would be a good idea to find out if you can afford a home and buy now before you are priced out of the market. a 0% down mortgage may have an insurance premium but it is, most often, worth it if you plan to live in the home for a few years, especially if the prices increase as Genworth predicts.

I am posting a copy of the Toronto Housing Outlook on my Toronto real estate "Market Watch" page for anyone to request. You do need to provide a valid email address as that is how it will be sent to you. Your privacy is assured and I will not send you endless spam or sell, give or otherwise disseminate your information to anyone except where required by the laws covering Ontario.

Currently renting? Do you want to know if you can afford a home? Call me at 416-278-2335 and we will find out with the help of one of my great mortgage professional. No obligations and credit issues may not be as big an issue as you thought, if you have credit issues.

Toronto Real Estate Market Update - preliminary

2007-07-30T09:51:00.000-04:00

Real estate markets in the Toronto area has far surpassed expectations in the first half of the year with just over 50,000 sales posted in the months of January to June. Going into July the activity seems to have decreased some what. This is to be expected slightly as many people flee the city for vacations to cottages or other more exotic locals, in order to escape the everyday life of a 9 to 5er's (or what ever hours one calls a work day).

This tends to have the biggest effect on the higher priced homes as the people most able to afford them are also the people who are most able to afford a cottage where they would rather be, rather than shuffling from house to house looking for the one that is significantly better than their current home, at a reasonable price.

The unadjusted sales numbers for July, (1st to 9:30am July 30th) is 8643 homes that were sold firm. This number is likely to be higher than the official numbers, posted by the Toronto Real Estate Board in the end of the first week of August, as they may contain some duplicate listings or land listings that were improperly categorized on the MLS® system. (sorry I do not have the access to perform those types of filters). This represents an increase of 22% over July 2006's 7082 homes sold through the Toronto MLS® system.

The Toronto real estate sales volume for homes in June was 10,451 which means that July's sales are 17.3% less than in June. This may seem like a lot, but in 2006 the decrease was 18.9% and at the time we were calling it a very strong sales month.

It looks like we could be expecting close to, if not over 90,000 sales by the end of the year with steady price increases of as much as 5% over the previous year.

I will update you when the official numbers are posted.

New Toronto Real Estate Tax delayed

2007-07-17T16:54:00.000-04:00

Thanks to the efforts of the Toronto Real Estate Board and the general public, that lobbied the municipal government, the City of Toronto land transfer tax has been postponed until after the provincial election in October. There was a narrow win of 23 votes to 22 in favour of postponing a decission on this proposed tax.

Now we will all have to lobby the Ontario government to try and convince them that Toronto needs some financial help to keep it afloat, in order to avoid the real estate tax being passed shortly after the election is held.

Real estate in Toronto has remained a very hot market, however an increase in land transfer taxes would have a heavy effect on home values in the City of Toronto. That said anyone living just outside of the Toronto city boundaries might see a marked increase in their home's values.

Rules Changed for Mortgage Insurance

2007-05-27T07:56:00.000-04:00

A quick update for anyone who missed the announcement. The Government of Canada has passed Bill C37 which changes the minimum loan to value amounts for conventional mortgages.

What does this mean to you? In the past if you were borrowing more than 75% of the purchase price, or value of the property, you had to get CMHC or Genworth mortgage insurance. Now that Loan to Value amount has changed so that there is no need for high ratio mortgage insurance if you are borrowing less than 80% of the homes value. This move will save you a large chunk of change (over a thousand dollars) if you can come up with a 20% downpayment. For those that had been saving up to have a 25% downpayment and avoid the insurance premium, you can now put 20% down on a larger or better home, or spend the extra 5% on furniture, upgrades or savings.

Real Estate Market Update April 2007

2007-05-27T07:17:00.000-04:00

Busy! That pretty much sums up the current greater Toronto Real Estate markets and why I have not posted in too long. February and March had very strong sale, just lower that Feb. and Mar. 2006, but April 2007 blew past April 2006's 8361 sales. With 9452 sales in April 2007 this sets a new record for April sales in the GTA real estate markets.

Even Oak Ridges, which I have mentioned was at risk of having an over supply of homes, sold about 30% of the listed homes in April 2007. The MLS® districts for Richmond Hill and Aurora sold between 30% and 40% of the available homes in April 2007. Newmarket sold 45% of its housing supply and Markham's N11 district sold almost 50% of the available homes with 298 out of 611 homes being sold in April 2007.

Average sales prices were also up in April 2007. Continuing low mortgage rates and the strong economy are still setting the stage for exceptional volumes of sales in the resale housing markets. Even with a slight increase in recent 5 year rates, we are seeing that homes that are priced correctly, and have had a reasonable amount of "staging", are selling fast.

The mid May sales volume is also on route for a new record high for May. With just over 5000 sales in the first 15 days of May 2007, home buyers are telling us that there is still a very strong resale demand.

If you are looking to move in the near future and do not want to waste time and energy, and want to find your perfect home as quickly as possible, call me at 416-278-2335 (direct line) and set up an appointment with myself or one of my associates. I look forward to providing you with fast, professional service focused on your needs.

Backing out of a real estate deal - Q & A

2007-04-18T06:57:00.000-04:00

The question

If you could clarify something for me it would be much appreciated. We sold
our property late last year and are due to close next week, the buyer is
starting to ask for extensions etc... the buyer put down a large deposit now my
question is this: if the transaction is NOT completed by the Purchaser who gets
the deposit? I was told the Realtor takes what would have been their "potential"
commission out of the sale and the remainder would be dispersed to us it this
correct?

was posed by Anonymous on my original post "Backing out of a real estate deal ?". This is a commonly asked questions and the answer is not as cut and dry as I would like.

In Ontario, Canada, the basic answer is that the deposit stays in the trust account until the buyer and the seller can come to an agreement on how it is to be dispersed, or until there is a court order stating how it will be dispersed. In most cases the funds are given to the party that still wants to close the sale, in this question that would be the seller, however it is not guaranteed.

So if the buyer backs our of the real estate deal they have two options. They can sign a mutual release noting that all or part of deposit is to be dispersed to the seller. Or they can let it go to court and have the courts decide how it will be released. In the first case the seller has to agree but the seller may be giving up any rights to further actions against the buyer should they not be able to sell the home without incurring a loss (relative to the original agreement). Going through the courts though will take more time and lawyer fees but may end up with the seller (in this case) getting more money or compensation.

Always consult your lawyer before signing anything regarding a non-mutually agreeable disposition of the trust funds. ie if you are less that comfortable with what you are being asked to sign or the outcome will be anything that is less than your preferred outcome, talk to a lawyer.

As for the agents, the they only get paid if the sale closes or if their client is the party that is backing out and the other party still wants to close. So in the case above the seller's agent would not be paid but the Buyer's agent could bill the buyer for the commission that they would have earned had the buyer not breached the purchase agreement (pending any adjustments in the listing or purchase agreement, which does not happen often). REALTORS® get paid for results, unless you are using a flat fee service that is paid up front, and the only result that counts is the final sale and closing.

As a seller, if the buyer backs out, it would be nice to compensate your agent for the hard work, frustration and disappointment involved with a sale going sour. However, there is nothing in the standard forms that give the agent any claim to compensation so long as the sale does not close as a result of the other party. If both parties decide not to close and agree to a mutual release then non of the agents get paid.

Kept in the Link

2007-03-27T21:12:00.000-04:00

In any real estate purchase or sale one might think that it would be obvious that every person involved needs to be informed about what the steps are and who is involved. This means that the REALTORS®, the lawyers, the lender(s) and the buyer and seller all need to know about each other. Well the lenders really only need to be known by the party they servicing and the lawyers but the agents would be interested in knowing so that they can provide any needed information.

However, everyone needs to clearly know who the lawyers are. In Ontario, Canada, we do not have escrow services per say but everyone, or at least those that know enough to want to avoid problems, uses a lawyer to handle the closing procedures on both purchases and sales of any property. So I find it odd to have another case where a seller or purchaser has changed their lawyer without telling anyone.

I received a call from my client's lawyer the other day to inform me that the lawyer, that we had all been told was working for the other party, was not working for the other party. Luckily the closing on this home is a month away still, but this is the type of situation where problems occur.

In this situation everything is working out fine. I must stress again though, whether you are my client or not, if there are any changes that you make to the team of players that you have on your side of the transaction make sure that the other side is kept up to date on who is involved. A quick call to your agent to tell them to inform the other agent, or parties, is all that is required and it will save you a lot of grief. Do not rely on your new lawyer to introduce themselves to the other lawyer because it seems that they do not call them until they need something. Which is often too late if there are issues that need to be cleared up.

Toronto's new land tax grab

2007-03-24T21:46:00.000-04:00

Toronto is proposing it's own land transfer tax on all properties sold in Toronto. This is on top of the existing Land Transfer Tax that is levied by the Ontario government. Under the powers that were recently given to the City of Toronto, under the new City of Toronto Act, you could be required to pay an additional 0.5% of the purchase price in the form of a land transfer tax if you purchase a home in the boundaries of the City of Toronto.

This means that the average home (approx. $380,000 in Toronto for 2006) will cost an extra $1,900 that can not be put into the mortgage, according to the Toronto Real Estate Board. However, the average sale price for a home in February, in the central districts on the Toronto MLS® system, was $504,381 which would mean an extra tax of $2,521.91.

So how is this likely to effect your home's value? It could undermine the Toronto real estate markets. If you are in the upper end of homes the effects may not be initially visible, although it will make homes outside of the Toronto boundaries a lot more attractive. However, if your home is best suited for a first time home buyer then this will hit your bottom line.

A large number of first time home buyers are purchasing their home with only 5% down and a 95% mortgage. Even with this amount of leveraging they are often pressed to make the 5% and all of their closing costs. Some buyers are even getting 100% mortgages. If the buyer for your home (asking $300,000) has to take $1,500 out of their down payment to cover extra closing costs this will decrease their buying power by $30,000 (if $1,500 = 5% then 100% =$30,000). Since this will effect all homes and all buyers this is likely to decrease the value of your home by 10%.

You will also see fewer home sales as people who are using the 100% mortgage programs will have to wait longer to save up their closing costs. This could see a trend to have the seller paying for the buyer's closing costs, like you see in the USA sometimes, however that may be seen as a form of mortgage fraud depending on how you interpret the payment.

This effect on lower cost housing may dramatically effect the second home and luxury home markets. As people may need to stay in their "first step" home longer in order to save up the equity to pay for the extra closing costs. Which could take a long time if their property value drops 10% due to the introduction of this transfer tax. This could lead to a higher percentage of 95% mortgages on second home which could cause the prices in those markets to also fall by as much as 10%.

The bottom line is that a simple 0.5% land transfer tax will undermine the affordability of homes in Toronto, which is already one of the highest priced cities in Canada. Property values will get undermined, along with affordability, causing your property to lose value, which will decrease the number of sales in the Toronto area.

Studies have shown that every resale home causes around $27,000 in spin off spending. This would be for anything from new appliances to renovations. All of which generates taxes as well as boosting the economy. If the number of home sales decreases because of a newly created tax then the Toronto economy will be effected as well as the taxes that are generated through those purchases.

So what can you do? Send an email to Mayor Miller, here, to let him know that you do not approve of this tax. Also, contact your local councilors and let them know. You can find your councilor's contact information at the City’s Councillors web page.