Welcome and thank you for visiting my new blogging website!  Here you will find lots of useful real estate information.

I specialize in Residential Real Estate in the areas of Oakville, Burlington, Milton and Mississauga.  From now on, I will begin bringing you the latest updates happening around Oakville, Mississauga and the surrounding areas.

If you have any questions about real estate, I invite you to contact me via phone, text or email. I’m happy to help and I look forward to hearing from you! So please follow me on Twitter, add me to Facebook and LinkedIn! Let’s get social!

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1.  Interest rates are still low.  Serious buyers are actively looking and taking advantage of this opportunity.

2. There is a shortage of inventory during the winter months.  This means less competition – your home will be one of only a limited number of properties on the market.  A shortage of inventory also means a greater likelihood of competing offers which usually translates a higher sale price.

3. The supply of listings will increase in the spring and there will be less demand for your particular home.  The more properties buyers have to choose from, the less likely they are to submit full price offers.

4. Serious buyers start looking for properties in the winter months.

5. This year because we’ve been blessed with unusually warm weather, buyers are starting the house hunting earlier.

This is a question asked by many sellers that have their house on the market during the Christmas season.

Decorating for the holidays is an excellent way to showcase your property.  However, keep decorations to a minimum.  They should be simple and non-denominational to provide the widest appeal.

Give special attention to the entry of the house.  Place a live wreath on the front door.  This will give out a pleasant fragrance as people enter the property.  Use spotlights on the door or on any outdoor feature of the house that you want to stand out.  Use mini white lights to light shrubbery or trees, and use green cords that don’t stand out in the daytime.

Choose a Christmas tree that is small in scale.  Decorate it with mini white lights and a few carefully chosen ornaments, preferably in one color, or subtle, blended colors. Focus needs to be on the house, not the tree.  Decorate the fireplace – this is an excellent time to highlight a fireplace.

Don’t miss the last weekend to enjoy ‘Harbour Days’ in Bronte.   Harbour Days celebrates Bronte Harbour’s marine heritage and origins as a commercial fishery.

Harbour Days is presented by the merchants of the Bronte Business Improvement Area.  One of the many events taking place is the Sand Sculpting Competition.  Six sand sculptors from across Canada have taken part in this competition.    The sand sculptures are on exhibit now through August 14 in the park, south of the gazebo.

Other Harbour Days Activities include:

-  Tall Ship ‘Empire Sandy’ Cruises, Friday, Aug. 12 and Saturday, Aug. 13. Tickets are available at the Kinsmen table at the park. For information and online ticket sales visit www.kinsmenoakville.ca.

- Live Music with Retro Rock Lounge at the gazebo, August 12, 13, and 14.

- A children’s Lake Bounce with paddle boats, a giant whale and inflatable slides will be available August 13 and 14.

- and Harbour Days Putt for Dough competition – visitors are challenged to take part in this competition and get a chance to win $25,000 worth of prizes, merchandise or cash on August 13 and 14.

For more information and details, visit www.brontevillage.net.

This year the annual Art in the Park will take place at Coronation Park on August 1, 2011.  Coronation Park is located on Lakeshore Road just east of Third Line in Oakville.

The Oakville Art Society wil host one of the country’s best fine arts festivals, with activities including the Trafalgar Brewery’s Beer Garden and entertainment by the group Tropical Daze.

The Oakville Art Society features more than 150 artisans from across the country.  Every medium will be represented, such as traditional oil, acrylic and watercolour paintings, ceramics, textiles, photography, mixed media, scuptures and fine jewelry.   The artists will demonstrate their talents in their booths.

Admission for the show, which runs from 10 am-5 pm, is $3 at the gate.

When getting your home ready to sell, you need to look at your house in a new way. Think of your house as a product about to go on the market where it is probably competing with brand new housing. It needs to show well – which means clutter-free and well kept.

Today’s homebuyers lead busy lives and may not be interested in taking on major repairs or improvements upon moving in. You need to make your house a “10”. This document will help you spot what is right and what is not so good about your “product”. It will give you the opportunity to take corrective action to ensure your house looks fresh, clean and well maintained when the “For Sale” sign goes up.

Fix It First

If you need to make improvements to your home, do the work before it goes on the market. Potential buyers are not interested in hearing about your good intentions to look after defects before a transfer of ownership takes place. Even if fix-up work is underway, buyers may not be able to visualize what your home will look like when the work is finished. They will just remember it being in a state of disrepair.

Professional Inspection: Yes or No? Continue reading “Getting Your House Ready To Sell” »

If you’ve heard that a certain neighbourhood is poised for growth, that’s just the first step, he says. Before you invest a dime, you need to verify the information. Read the minutes of council meetings, ask local politicians whether the leadership is focused on bringing new jobs and growth to the area, and check for a written renewal plan at the municipal planning department.

“You can actually see what’s coming if you get one of those reports on the neighbourhood,” Mr. Campbell says. “You just have to have patience, like most investors should.”

Before you buy, drive around the neighbourhood, he advises. Look for renewed signs of pride of ownership that weren’t there before – a sure sign that renewal is under way.

Other tips for getting the best return for your real estate investment:

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1. Look for transit improvements

If you want to buy in an area that will increase more than average in value, choose a neighbourhood with a major transportation improvement occurring nearby. The demand for such properties is always strong, even when market conditions turn sour. Also, think about who the target buyer will be when you sell the property and whether there are amenities nearby to attract such a buyer. Continue reading “How To Find The Next Real Estate Hotspot” »

REALTOR’S TRUE VALUE lies in the SERVICES we provide:

Our true mandate now is to guide and protect our Clients. To make sure they don’t get sued; To make sure their possessions are protected; To keep their family members safe; To make sure they don’t pay too much or sell for too little; To make sure the Purchase Agreement protects whichever side we are representing; To make sure they are aware of their best financing options; To educate them about the neighbourhoods, the amenities, the not so obvious problems with homes or areas, etc. We know where to find exactly what they need and want and we take all the financial and personal risk for them. We have real value. We earn our Fees.

We are our Client’s Insurance Policy!! And our initial task when meeting them is to make them aware of the VALUE of our services.

Protection from Litigation – The Realtor assumes all the risk associated with this binding legal transaction and the potential for litigation. We carry an Insurance policy protecting against Errors or Omissions for this very reason. In effect, we are the Client’s Insurance policy against an unwanted and unnecessary legal action involving the purchase or sale of a home. Historically, according to NAR, 82% of all law suites involving residential real estate are between private Buyers and Sellers. Our primary function is to ensure that this never happens. Continue reading “A Realtor’s True Value” »