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Real Estate Market Updates & Helpful Tips
Was the Property You are Buying ever used as a Grow Op?
OREA renews call for grow-op registry Ninety-six per cent of Ottawa residents agree they want to know if the home they’re planning on purchasing was formerly used as a marijuana grow-op (MGO) or clandestine drug lab, according to a study by Ipsos Reid for the Ontario...
Life of a Realtor in the Social Media Age
At the close of another year my mind inevitably reflects upon the happenings of the past year. I’ll remember 2012 as the year that social media stopped being a “new tool” in our marketing plan and simply became an extension of the way we already do our business. Real...
Avoid condo buyers’ remorse: Read the fine print – Moneyville.ca
When you buy a condominium from plans that won’t be built for a few years, the developer has to give you a list of important documents when you sign the sale agreement. These include the rules that will govern the condominium and a budget for the first year, so you...
When can you walk away from a house deal? – Moneyville.ca
Putting your home up for sale can be a tough decision, but once made and the ball is rolling, you may not be able to change your mind. Last week’s column about a $3.3 million home sale that went wrong for the seller prompted several related questions from readers....
How to avoid home closing day anxiety
Lots of things can go wrong on closing day. If you’re careful and think ahead, you can avoid a lot of anxiety later. Sometimes, though, you have to go with the flow. They only left us one key. The front door has two locks! This happens more often than you think....
Does a minute matter in a real estate deal? – Moneyville.ca
The standard Ontario real estate contract says deals must be concluded no later than 6 p.m. on the day of closing. But if you’re a minute late, will that kill the deal? On Friday, Nov. 30, 2007, lawyer Michael Gatien went to the Cornwall, Ont., registry office to...
5 tips to help hire the right mover – moneyville.ca Blogs
When I moved from a two-bedroom condo into a house in April, it cost $750 and took about six-and-a-half hours. We got estimates from five or six movers and ended up using one that came highly-recommended from a friend. I had no idea that Ministry of Consumer Services...
Home inspector sued for failing to discover mould in older home
This recent article by Real Estate Lawyer, Author & Speaker Mark Weisleder is an eye opener! A recent Ontario Court of Appeal decision confirmed a lower court ruling that a home inspector could be liable for failing to find a cause of mould, especially when...
Who pays if a tree falls in your yard?
Among the most popular questions that come up time and again are about trees on the boundary between houses or properties. Who owns them? What are the rules about cutting branches or roots that extend onto your property? If you think a tree is dying, can you cut it...
The Evolution of Real Estate Marketing
Business marketing has been transformed by the internet. The real estate industry in many ways has been a trailblazer for what is now impacting our local small business community. According to recent studies, over 91% of all home searches now begin on the internet....
Some Lessons from the Kitchen Table
Wikipedia defines consensus as the “community resolution when opposing parties set aside their differences and agree on a statement that is agreeable to all, even if only barely.” While this definition is easy to understand cognitively, it is oh so challenging to...
Home Inspections Not Just for Buyers
So you’re getting ready to take your car to the dealer for an estimate of its trade-in value. What do you do first? Most likely you get it detailed – and this means more than simply vacuuming it out. Picture yourself steam cleaning, stain removing, de-odorizing and...
Green Housing Tips
Making the decision for an eco-renovation For a complete homeowner's guide to green renovation please CLICK HERE. Some of you may be considering your home renovation ideas with your extended families and friends. While you're imagining your new and improved lifestyle...
Our Dreams for Niagara
Niagara is a beautiful yet complicated beast. Our economic development landscape is dissected by a complex series of over lapping boundaries. We have five municipal cities with their own economic development office and seven other municipalities that are serviced by...
Why Do You Live in Pelham?
We all have our favourite things that we love about living in our community. Collectively documenting the community assets that are meaningful to residents forms the basis for establishing a common identity. According to the most recent (2007) update of the Town’s...
New Year Begins with Balanced Conditions
The Pelham real estate market finished the year off with a bang! With 18 single family unit sales in December compared to 10 in December 2009, sales for the month jumped 80%. This surge was enough to offset the 4 per cent year to date dip reflected in our November...
Tell Us Why You Love Living in Pelham Niagara
Pelham why do I love thee? Let me count the ways. I love the fact that even though I once forgot my keys in my car in the driveway overnight, it was still there in the morning. Whenever I have told this story to my real estate clients who are accustomed to the culture...
Niagara is a Changin’
Is it just me or are we starting to see more development initiatives taking place with a Niagara-wide prospective? The formation of a new organization called Niagara Heritage Alliance (NHA) is one of the most recent examples. It is a regional alliance of volunteer...
Downsizing in Niagara
Aging boomers are a primary real estate demographic throughout North America. This important market segment has an even greater impact in Niagara because our Niagara census metropolitan area currently has the fourth largest percentage of seniors in all of Canada.
Local Market Mirrors National Trends
Across Canada July month end results reflected the third month in a row that monthly unit sales were below 2009 levels. The weaker than anticipated sales activity recently prompted the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) to lower its national home sales forecast....
My Pelham Stay-cation
Don’t you love it when guests arrive from out-of-town and you get to play tourist in Niagara? Just recently my cousin Stacey stopped by for a one day visit. We spent so much time touring Pelham that we didn’t even make it all the way to Niagara Falls. We started...
My Vision of Pelham, Niagara
Imagine if our Pelham community could become a fully connected on-line neighbourhood. Parents could register their children for sports or art camps or girl guides with a click of a mouse. Local events like bandshell concerts, turkey raffles, trivia nights, dances,...
New Growth Era in Pelham
The Town of Pelham is entering into a profound era of revitalization and community growth. According to our Town's "Toward 2015" corporate strategic plan the population of the Town of Pelham is expected to increase by 30 per cent by the year 2015. This statistic is...
Cultural Revolution in Niagara
The real estate assets of a community are a visual history book that reflects local economic development cycles. Our buildings, landscapes and monuments all contribute to the formation of our cultural identity and sense of place. In many ways our architectural...