Friday, September 28, 2007

Lots of Lots for Sale

Lots of Lots for Sale in the USA

U.S. new home sales dropped a larger-than-expected 8.3% in August, to 795,000 units annualized, the lowest level in more than seven years. Although there were rumours of a double-digit decline ahead of the release, the fact that the three prior months were also revised down tempered any "better-than-worst-feared" talk.

New homes available for sale slipped 1.5% to 529,000 units. Although this is down for the fifth consecutive month, relative inventory levels remain elevated because demand has been falling more sharply than supply. Month's supply stood at 8.2, up 0.6 ppts from July and just a notch below March's 8.3 reading, which was the highest in more than 16 years.

The median sale price of a new home is down a steep 7.5% y/y, and even though this is not a great measure of house price deflation, it does support the dismal story that was already painted by Tuesday's S&P/ Case-Shiller home price index.

The Bottom Line: Weak new and existing home sales along with housing starts and building permits point to yet another hefty drag on GDP growth coming from the housing sector during the third quarter, and it shows no signs of letting up anytime soon.

Read about our marketplace

Search the MLS or read more about Interest Rates, Power of Sale Properties, Price Trends and more at my website. Homes for Sale

Thank you for reading my blog and if there is anything else I can help you with please don't hesitate to contact me,

Mark

A. Mark Argentino
P. Eng. Broker
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate


Thinking of Selling? Best Mortgage Rates Current Home Prices Search MLS
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Providing Full-Time Professional Real Estate Services since 1987

( BUS 905-828-3434
2
FAX 905-828-2829 ÈCELL 416-520-1577
E-MAIL : mark@mississauga4sale.com
8 Website : Mississauga4Sale.com

Thursday, September 27, 2007

How to Become Mortgage Free quicker



You can be mortgage free sooner than you think

Are you feeling weighed down by the years remaining on your mortgage? Worried about when you should lock in your variable rate, or unsure of refinancing with rates on the rise? Getting a good interest rate is crucial, but there's a lot more you can do to ensure that you are mortgage free sooner. Flexibility and options are key - and the advice of an unbiased mortgage professional can help you make the most of these alternatives.


The experts suggest the following:


1. Match your mortgage payments with your pay periods. Not only does it make budgeting easier, but if you have bi-weekly payments you'll be making an extra payment each year (and you won't even feel it!)


2. Shorten your amortization. If you can budget for the higher monthly payments, this will help you build equity faster and take years off your mortgage.


3. Use your pre-payment option. Many people get a mortgage with this feature, but only 3% actually take advantage of it. A few hundred here and there can add up to thousands saved later on.


4. Income increasing? Consider permanently increasing your payments to match. Again, you won't feel the strain, but your equity is increasing and interest decreasing with every extra dollar you put in.


5. Most mortgages allow a lump sum payment in any one calendar year - and if you don't use it, you lose it. Just because you don't have a huge sum to put away doesn't mean it isn't worth it. Even small extra payments could pay big dividends later.


6. Shop around for better terms at renewal. Although it seems easier to just sign the form your bank sends, most people renew at rates higher than what they could have achieved if they had negotiated. Your mortgage professional is not just there for the purchase, but throughout the life of your mortgage.


Read more about becoming mortgage free quicker


Search the MLS or read more about Interest Rates, Power of Sale Properties, Price Trends and more at my website. Homes for Sale


Thank you for reading my blog and if there is anything else I can help you with please don't hesitate to contact me,


Mark



A. Mark Argentino
P. Eng. Broker
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate


Thinking of Selling? Best Mortgage Rates Current Home Prices Search MLS
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Providing Full-Time Professional Real Estate Services since 1987

( BUS 905-828-3434
2
FAX 905-828-2829 ÈCELL 416-520-1577
E-MAIL : mark@mississauga4sale.com
8 Website : Mississauga4Sale.com



Tuesday, September 25, 2007

RBC ECONOMICS - Repricing of credit risk "an ongoing process" according to Bank of Canada Governor Dodge

Repricing of credit risk "an ongoing process" according to Bank of Canada Governor Dodge

In a speech to the Canada-U.K. Chamber of Commerce this morning, Bank of Canada Governor Dodge said that the repricing of credit risk is an ongoing process that began the spring of 2007 and accelerated in August as investors became more uncertain about the creditworthiness of their holdings. As a result, "the 'wall of liquidity' evaporated under the summer sun" Governor Dodge stated, and investors moved their holdings into short-term assets, noting that the repricing of risk "may take somewhat longer than in previous periods".

The Governor highlighted the actions of the Bank of Canada has taken to ensure that Canada's money market continued to function. While the overnight market appears to moving "back to normal operations," the Governor acknowledged that "term funding remains somewhat expensive".

He stated that the Bank's actions to provide liquidity "did not in any way signal a change in our monetary policy. In fact, it was a step in maintaining our monetary policy stance by keeping our target for the overnight rate at 4 1/2 per cent, which we judged appropriate for keeping inflation on target over the medium term."

On the current economic outlook, the Governor maintained the view articulated in last week's release that "there are significant upside and downside risks to the inflation outlook" and reaffirmed the view that "the current level of our target for the overnight interest rate – 4-1/2 per cent - is appropriate." On balance, the speech confirms the Bank's steady-as-she-goes stance on monetary policy.

Highlights of the speech

    · The re-pricing of credit risk is an ongoing process. Unfortunately, it may take somewhat longer than in previous periods, because of the opacity and legal complexity of so many of these structured products. All of this implies that it's too early to draw any definitive conclusions from the current experience.

    · But while the overnight market in Canada is well on its way back to normal operations, this does not mean that all of the problems in money markets have been resolved. Term funding remains somewhat expensive, and the yield spread between bankers' acceptances and treasury bills remains abnormally wide.

    · With respect to the market for asset-backed commercial paper, Canada – like other countries – has seen some problems. One specific segment of the Canadian ABCP market – the market for third-party, or non-bank-sponsored, structured finance, asset-backed commercial paper – has had particular problems. This represents roughly one-third of Canada's about $120 billion ABCP market….. Efforts to resolve problems in the market for third-party ABCP are under way. Discussions between investors and liquidity providers – most of whom are international banks – are continuing in Montréal. And I remain hopeful that, over time, we will see useful results.

    · the major banks appear to be well placed to deal with the current dislocations. In a joint statement last month, these institutions said that their commitment to support the ABCP market is underpinned by the strength of their financial positions, their confidence in the underlying assets, and their ongoing commitment to provide liquidity for their conduits upon maturity. Further, data published by Canada's Superintendent of Financial Institutions show that our domestic banking sector is well capitalized. At the Bank of Canada, we welcomed this effort to help re-establish well-functioning money markets in Canada.

    · Recent developments suggest that the near-term economic prospects for the United States are weaker than earlier expected. It now seems likely that the adjustment in the U.S. housing sector will be more pronounced and more protracted, exacerbated by the dislocations in financial markets. This implies weaker demand for Canadian exports than had been earlier expected. However, economic growth in Canada in the first half of this year turned out to be stronger than we had projected.

    · However, there are significant upside and downside risks to the outlook for inflation. On the upside, there is a possibility that household demand in Canada could be stronger than anticipated, while on the downside, the ongoing adjustment in the U.S. housing sector could be more severe and spill over to the U.S. economy more broadly. In addition, there is uncertainty about the extent and duration of the tightening of credit conditions in Canada and, hence, about the tempering effect this will have on the growth of domestic demand.

    Courtesy of RBC Economics Research Dawn Desjardins. Senior Economist

Search the MLS or read more about Interest Rates, Power of Sale Properties, Price Trends and more at my website. Homes for Sale

Thank you for reading my blog and if there is anything else I can help you with please don't hesitate to contact me,

Mark

A. Mark Argentino
P. Eng. Broker
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate


Thinking of Selling? Best Mortgage Rates Current Home Prices Search MLS
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Providing Full-Time Professional Real Estate Services since 1987

( BUS 905-828-3434
2
FAX 905-828-2829 ÈCELL 416-520-1577
E-MAIL : mark@mississauga4sale.com
8 Website : Mississauga4Sale.com

Sunday, September 23, 2007

Drop in five year fixed mortgage interest rate! Rate sheet updates


Current Mortage interest rates


5 Year Variable 5. 75 % (. 5 0% below prime for the entire term)
5 Year Fully Open Variable .50 % below prime
3 Year Closed 5. 85 %
5 year Closed 5. 60 %
7 Year Closed 5. 78 %
10 Year Closed 5.85%







Sample mortgage payments

Purchase $450000.00








Purchase price
$450000
$450000
$450000
$450000
Down payment
$22500
$45000
$67500
$112500
Payments per week
$465.27
$440.78
$416.29
$367.32
Household income required
$83400
$79500
$75500
$67500



Search the MLS or read more about Interest Rates, Power of Sale Properties, Price Trends and more at my website. Homes for Sale


Thank you for reading my blog and if there is anything else I can help you with please don't hesitate to contact me,


Mark


A. Mark Argentino
P. Eng. Broker
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate



Thinking of Selling? Best Mortgage Rates Current Home Prices Search MLS
RE/MAX

Realty Specialists Inc.

Providing Full-Time Professional Real Estate Services since 1987
( BUS 905-828-3434
2
FAX 905-828-2829 ÈCELL 416-520-1577
E-MAIL : mark@mississauga4sale.com
8 Website : Mississauga4Sale.com




Saturday, September 22, 2007

CONTROLLING ALLERGENS IN THE HOME

CONTROLLING ALLERGENS IN THE HOME

For many people, household allergens can cause a variety of symptoms, including sneezing, watery eyes, coughing, and shortness of breath, and may be a contributing cause of asthma, especially in children. However, it is possible to minimize the effects of such allergens by taking steps to control their presence and dispersal in the home.

The most common household allergens include dust mites, mold, mildew, pollen, and pet dander (dried flakes of skin shed by pets, particularly cats and dogs). Effective control relies on a combination of measures that, when used properly, will reduce the levels of allergens





  • Increase ventilation to the home. Opening windows whenever possible promotes good air exchange and will reduce the concentration of airborne allergens, especially pet dander.

  • Wash bedding and stuffed toys once a week in hot water to control dust mites and cat allergens in particular.

  • Keep pets clean and well groomed to control dander.

  • Use mite-resistant mattress covers and pillow covers and wash these frequently.

  • Dust and vacuum regularly and use micro-filtration or HEPA filter vacuum bags. Wearing a dust mask while dusting and vacuuming is also a good idea.

  • Consider removing wall-to-wall carpeting and use easily-cleaned area rugs instead, particularly in bedrooms.

  • Make sure bathrooms, especially those with showers, are well ventilated. Open the window and use exhaust fans that vent to the outdoors to prevent a buildup of moisture, which can encourage growth of mold and mildew.

  • If possible, reduce indoor humidity to 50% or less by using room dehumidifiers or the dehumidifier feature available with many central air conditioning systems.

  • Clean or replace furnace and central air conditioner filters on a regular basis. Make sure that air conditioner drain pans are clean and allow the water to drain properly.



For more information on allergens in the home, please contact your local Pillar To Post office.



more about home maintenance





Search the MLS or read more about Interest Rates, Power of Sale Properties, Price Trends and more at my website. Homes for Sale



Thank you for reading my blog and if there is anything else I can help you with please don't hesitate to contact me,



Mark



A. Mark Argentino
P. Eng. Broker
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate


Thinking of Selling? Best Mortgage Rates Current Home Prices Search MLS
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Providing Full-Time Professional Real Estate Services since 1987

( BUS 905-828-3434
2
FAX 905-828-2829 ÈCELL 416-520-1577
E-MAIL : mark@mississauga4sale.com
8 Website : Mississauga4Sale.com



Friday, September 21, 2007

Multiple Offers - do the other offers really exist? Prove it!


There has been much ink lately on the procedure and truth in multiple offers on properties in the GTA. I for one agree with a registry system that would help to guarantee that there really is one or more other offers on a particular property. There is too much opportunity to 'fabricate' the existence of another offer on a property. Just my 2 cents. The article below is from the Toronto Star and brings up some very good points about the 'phantom bids' in the GTA real estate marketplace.


Let's hope that TREB and RECO helps resolves this problem for us,

Mark



The secret's out on phantom bids

Speak Out: Tell us your storiesBidding and bitternessCheaper ways to sell gaining groundThe secret's out on phantom bids'(The phantom bid) is one of the oldest tricks in the book'
MIKE DONIA, veteran Toronto realtor Registry, open bidding needed to stamp out phony offer scams, some realtors say

Sep 15, 2007 04:30 AM Tony Wong Gail Swainson Staff Reporters

The incoming head of the Toronto Real Estate Board has come out swinging against phantom bidding tactics after denying they even existed when she ran for the job three months ago.

"It's dirty realty, it really is," Maureen O'Neill said of agents who fabricate offers during bidding wars. She is now calling on the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO) to yank the licences of agents convicted of using phony bids.

"Boot them out, we don't need them in the business," O'Neill said. "I don't think these people should be allowed to sell real estate."

Phantom bids can be used by selling agents to spark extra rounds of bidding or to spook potential buyers into rushing or raising offers. The practice is considered a breach of ethics under the Real Estate and Business Brokers' Act of Ontario – administered by the Ontario council – and realtors who are caught can face hefty fines.

There are more than 52,000 real estate agents in Ontario (26,000 in Toronto) and last year they sold 194,793 existing homes in Ontario (84,872 in the Toronto market).

An informal poll of 30 Toronto-area agents taken yesterday by the Star suggests that virtually all believe that some form of phantom bidding exists in the market. More than two-thirds said some kind of structural reform in the way bids were handled was needed to address the problem.

However, more than half the agents said the problem is being caused by "a few bad apples."

One prominent broker, who handles one of the city's largest brokerages, calls the problem "rampant."

"This is a major problem and it's causing a black eye for the real estate community," said the broker, who did not wish to be named. "You end up with one man at an auction bidding against himself – it's plain fraudulent." The broker says he gets an average of one complaint per day from his agents about potential phantom bidding.

He said he has complained for three years to directors at the Toronto Real Estate Board who "really don't have the stomach for this. They don't want to deal with the issue."

O'Neill made her comments after learning the Star had received documents proving the Real Estate Council of Ontario has been called upon to deal with complaints about bidding war tactics.

Until this week, she steadfastly refused to acknowledge made-up bids occur, saying the Ontario council's CEO Tom Wright and registrar Allan Johnson assured the Toronto body's 18-member board on July 19 that no complaints had ever been received.

But the Ontario council's spokesperson Sandra Gibney said yesterday that Wright and Johnson made no such statements and "RECO does not know why Maureen O'Neill is claiming otherwise.

"If Ms O'Neill had contacted RECO prior to responding to questions about RECO's complaints statistics, RECO would have provided the same information that you received," Gibney added in an emailed statement.

In response, an angry O'Neill said she "will certainly be calling (RECO) and asking what the hell is the problem. Certainly they have strained this relationship."

O'Neill doesn't think the answer lies in a formal registry and open bid process, something Michael Manley, the owner of Prudential Properties in the Beach, advocates.

"If a buyer doesn't like the process, they can always walk," O'Neill said. "I think that in a free marketplace, everyone wins."

Manley, who ruffled feathers by raising the phantom bid issue during the real estate board's elections, is glad to hear O'Neill has come around. "I don't know where she's been. It's incredible that anyone as experienced as her could not have heard about this," he said.

Manley said the solution to phantom bidding is a registry system where every bid on every house is officially registered on the Multiple Listing Service. He is marketing an Internet program that would allow sellers to put a check mark on their listing to signal they are open to registered bids in an open process.

While no statistics are kept specifically involving phantom bids, the Real Estate Council of Ontario documents – obtained after a request by the Star – show the council received 60 complaints about bidding processes in the year ending March 31, 2007.

The Real Estate Council of Ontario, which regulates the activities of agents and brokers in Ontario, said in a statement that complaints about bidding "generally arise in a hot real estate market and are more common in highly desirable areas."

In July, Kingston Re/Max broker Bill Batson had his November 2006 conviction for "misrepresenting the existence of an offer to another member" upheld on appeal by the council's disciplinary panel. He was fined $10,000. The panel heard Batson suggested to a buyer's agent that another, non-existent offer might be coming in on his listing, priced at $449,000.

This sparked a $450,000 offer from the buyers, which was accepted. The buyers were originally preparing to offer about $400,000.

When reached at his Kingston office Thursday, Batson said he preferred not to comment.

"It's over and done with," Batson said. "I've paid the fine. RECO didn't believe the truth."

Under Section 26 of the provincial code of ethics, an agent or broker is required to disclose the number of competing offers to every buyer. But the agent is prohibited from disclosing the substance – or price – of competing offers, unless the seller agrees.

In more than two decades of selling homes, veteran Toronto realtor Mike Donia has seen more than a few deals that looked so questionable that he encouraged clients to walk away. The phantom bid, says the ReMax agent, is "one of the oldest tricks in the book – it's been out there forever and a day."

The problem is proving it.

"You've got people out there creating an illusion to pump up their profit," says Donia. "My advice to clients is not to get caught up in the bidding wars and make a decision on the spot, especially if you're not sure there really is another bid."

Heather Sherman, an associate manager at Sutton Group Admiral Realty who has served on various committees at the Toronto Real Estate Board, says phantom offers could be avoided if agents presented their offers the old-fashioned way: Show up in person.

Some vendors will only take faxed offers, which is a less transparent process and leaves potential buyers wandering if there really was a person on the other end of the phone line, said Sherman.

David Blair of Oakville put an offer on a house that was "conveniently" exceeded by $1,000 from the listing agent's own client. "I'm positive the agent told his own client what our offer was. I was a victim of an agent in a double-ended deal."

Even though the practice is not allowed under the provincial act, Blair's agent didn't file a complaint.

"She's developing a network right now and doesn't want to make any enemies in the industry," Blair said.


Search the MLS or read more about Interest Rates, Power of Sale Properties, Price Trends and more at my website. Homes for Sale


Thank you for reading my blog and if there is anything else I can help you with please don't hesitate to contact me,


Mark


A. Mark Argentino
P. Eng. Broker
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate


Thinking of Selling? Best Mortgage Rates Current Home Prices Search MLS
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Providing Full-Time Professional Real Estate Services since 1987

( BUS 905-828-3434
2
FAX 905-828-2829 ÈCELL 416-520-1577
E-MAIL : mark@mississauga4sale.com
8 Website : Mississauga4Sale.com



Thursday, September 20, 2007

RBC reports that our Economy forges ahead in the second quarter

Strong Signals - Economy forges ahead in the second quarter

Second-quarter GDP grew by a stronger-than-expected annualized 3.4%, following an upwardly revised 3.9% gain in the first. The monthly 0.2% gain in June was also an upside surprise, with markets expecting no gains. Strength late in the second quarter suggests strong momentum going into the third.

Employment increased by 23,300 in August, beating the 11,300 increase in July.

The unemployment rate held at 6%, the lowest level since 1974 and wage growth continued to be firm. The average hourly wage rate for permanent workers rose 0.9% and was 3.8% higher than in August 2006, the fifth month of solid monthly gains and the fastest pace of increase since August 2006.

Retail sales declined 0.9% and 0.3% excluding autos. However, real retail sales advanced at an annualized 10.8% in the second quarter, the fastest quarterly pace since the fourth quarter of 2001.

Housing starts were stronger than expected in August, coming in at a 226,500 annualized rate, firmer than market forecasts for 220,000 units and faster than July's 215,600 unit rate, indicating that Canada's housing market continues to perform well, backed by strong employment gains and income growth.

Canada's merchandise trade surplus shrank to $3.7 billion in July and June's surplus was revised down by $1 billion to C$4.3 billion. Exports increased by 1.4%, while imports rose by a sturdy 3.5%, pointing to the sector acting as a weight on the pace of economic activity in the third quarter.

The year-over-year all-items inflation rate held steady at 2.2% in July, while the Bank of Canada's core inflation rate slipped back to 2.3% from 2.5% in June. However, despite the dip in the core inflation rate, it has held above the Bank's 2% target for 11 months.

Courtesy of Dawn Aspinall RBC Economics Research

Read more about the current state of real estate in the GTA

Search the MLS or read more about Interest Rates, Power of Sale Properties, Price Trends and more at my website. Homes for Sale

Thank you for reading my blog and if there is anything else I can help you with please don't hesitate to contact me,

Mark

A. Mark Argentino
P. Eng. Broker
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate


Thinking of Selling? Best Mortgage Rates Current Home Prices Search MLS
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Providing Full-Time Professional Real Estate Services since 1987

( BUS 905-828-3434
2
FAX 905-828-2829 ÈCELL 416-520-1577
E-MAIL : mark@mississauga4sale.com
8 Website : Mississauga4Sale.com

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

How Canadian city economic indicators are performing so far this year

How Canadian city economic indicators are performing so far this year

Job growth so far this year across the census metropolitan areas (CMAs) remains robust. Apart from lacklustre average annual growth reported in Saguenay, Quebec City, Ottawa, Kitchener, Hamilton and Windsor, the remaining CMAs that we track are reporting healthy annual year-to-date gains.

Saint John led the pace in July with 8% annual job growth. However, on a year-to-date basis, the cities in western Canada are putting in the strongest performances. Edmonton, Calgary and Saskatoon are all tracking gains in 2007 in the 6%-7% range three times the national rate.

Unemployment rates have ticked up a few notches after reaching record lows in many cities in the latter part of 2006. The uptick in unemployment rates is most prominent in Ontario. Toronto saw its unemployment rate reach 7.5% in July, which marks its highest rate in more than two years.

Quebec has seen its labour markets tighten significantly in the last six months. The renewed strength in job markets saw Montreal's unemployment rate drop from 7.8% in March to 6.5% in July. Quebec City's unemployment rate dropped from 6.5% in February to 4.1% in July.

Non-residential construction strength supports city economic growth

Non-residential building permits grew in June in two-thirds of the CMAs we track. The strongest growth rates were reported in Regina (up 343%), Trois-Rivières (up 224%) and Quebec (136%). The sharpest declines were reported in Thunder Bay (down 82%), Abbotsford (down 70%) and Ottawa (down 57%).

Investment in non-residential construction continued to rise in the second quarter of 2007 with heavy spending on office buildings in Alberta and Ontario supporting the gains. While Calgary led the investment gains in the commercial and institutional sectors, it was Toronto and Montreal that reported the largest dollar-value investment gain in the industrial sector.

Another strong month for city housing markets

Residential markets had another strong showing in June with strong resale activity and continued annual price gains holding in the 10% range. Thunder Bay and St. Catharines were the only two CMAs to put in a year-over-year drop in average house price gains in July. The remaining CMAs all reported healthy annual gains.

Residential permits increased at a 63% pace in the second quarter and the numbers point to continued firm activity in the third quarter.

Read more about the current state of The GTA Home Prices

Search the MLS or read more about Interest Rates, Power of Sale Properties, Price Trends and more at my website. Homes for Sale

Thank you for reading my blog and if there is anything else I can help you with please don't hesitate to contact me,

Mark

A. Mark Argentino
P. Eng. Broker
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate


Thinking of Selling? Best Mortgage Rates Current Home Prices Search MLS
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Providing Full-Time Professional Real Estate Services since 1987

( BUS 905-828-3434
2
FAX 905-828-2829 ÈCELL 416-520-1577
E-MAIL : mark@mississauga4sale.com
8 Website : Mississauga4Sale.com

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

RBC Reports that Housing affordability hit on all sides



Housing affordability hit on all sides


Increases in house prices, mortgage rates, utilities and property taxes all combined in the second quarter to deliver a severe hit to housing affordability. By a slim margin, the portion of before-tax household income going towards home ownership costs suffered its largest and most broadly based quarterly deterioration in the current housing cycle stretching back to the mid-1990s.


Affordability deteriorated in every housing class we track, in every province and in every major city. In two short quarters, Saskatchewan has set a new affordability low concentrated in Saskatoon.


Albertans now pay a higher share of their country-leading incomes on average than Ontarians across every type of housing, although Torontonians still pay more than Calgarians and Edmontonians for a two-storey home. Albertans now pay a higher share of their country-leading incomes on average than Ontarians across every type of housing, although Torontonians still pay more than Calgarians and Edmontonians for a two-storey home. Alberta is still, however, avoiding British Columbia's stressed affordability conditions.


Housing market conditions from Manitoba eastward are not yet a cause for concern, but conditions in Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia warrant caution given the speed of the massive turnaround in affordability in several key cities. The economic fundamentals are supportive, but have been priced in fairly aggressively. In our view, a continued cooling in the pace of price gains and an ongoing pull back in sales-to-listings ratios lie in the cards in these cities.


Toronto's housing affordability slid across all four housing segments, but outside the core Toronto area, housing market conditions are healthy and roughly balanced. The bigger risk to affordability conditions is the potential for higher property taxes towards the end of the decade after the current freeze on property value assessments is lifted in 2008.


Montreal's housing affordability also softened across every housing segment. However, Montreal's housing market remains one of the softest among the big cities.


Affordability deteriorated across the board in the Atlantic region, but the two-storey and condo segments saw the sharpest erosion. Despite Ontario's second-quarter affordability hit, a look at historical affordability numbers in Ontario should help calm nerves that the province may be at risk of a significant correction. Unlike many of the western provinces, affordability remains comfortably below levels reached in the late 1980s just before the major housing market crash.


Manitoba had its worst quarterly deterioration in more than a year, but is the most affordable region in the country and has managed to avoid the severe affordability stresses prevailing in neighbouring Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia.


Courtesy of Dawn Aspinall RBC Economics Research


Search the MLS or read more about Interest Rates, Power of Sale Properties, Price Trends and more at my website. Homes for Sale


Thank you for reading my blog and if there is anything else I can help you with please don't hesitate to contact me,


Mark



A. Mark Argentino
P. Eng. Broker
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate


Thinking of Selling? Best Mortgage Rates Current Home Prices Search MLS
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Providing Full-Time Professional Real Estate Services since 1987

( BUS 905-828-3434
2
FAX 905-828-2829 ÈCELL 416-520-1577
E-MAIL : mark@mississauga4sale.com
8 Website : Mississauga4Sale.com



Monday, September 17, 2007

What is The Secret to Pricing Your Home to Sell?




The Secret to Pricing Your Home to Sell - What's the Secret?

Reprinted in part from the article by Jim Remley

Contrary to popular belief, when selling your home its value is determined by one thing and one thing only - what a qualified buyer is willing to pay for it. No more and no less. Sure, many sellers will argue that their home has an insurance replacement value, or an appraised value, or a tax assessed value, but unless your insurance agent, your banker, or your tax assessor is willing to write you a check for the home - guess what? None of that matters. A home without a buyer has no value in the market place. Sure it might have a value to you the seller, and it might have a value to your banker, and to your insurance agent, and to your appraiser. But none of these people are buyers.



So here is the secret to pricing your home to sell - It's not what you think the home is worth that matters, it's what a reasonable buyer will think your home is worth that will ultimately determine if your home will sell.



Now you maybe thinking - Hey wait, if I left it up to a buyer, they would pay me as little as possible for my home. True, they would. But in the real world every buyer knows that you, the seller, have no obligation to sell your home at any price. To purchase your home the buyer will have to make you an offer you can't or won't refuse. One that will motivate you to pack up your Ken and Barbie collection, hire a local mover, and wave good bye to a home full of memories.



But here-in lies the trap that many sellers fall into (myself included), which is the mistaken idea that we can hold out for an inflated price and eventually the market will come to us. Wrong! Buyers are under no obligation to buy any particular home, and no amount of marketing, open houses, websites, or signage will motivate a buyer to purchase an overpriced home. Why? Because they can buy one of your neighbours homes for less! This reveals one of the most important considerations in pricing your home - Price VS Time.

Understanding Price VS Time

The age old dilemma that has faced buyers and sellers since the dawn of private property rights is a simple question: What is more important price or time? Believe it or not this conundrum underlies and controls every sellers decision to sell, and every buyers need to complete a purchase. For sellers this boils down to the need to sell within a set time frame or instead to hold out for the best possible price, and as you might guess, for buyers it's the need to buy within a set time frame or to purchase a home for the lowest possible price.


A seller who would like to sell for top dollar should be prepared to potentially wait longer for a buyer willing to pay a premium price. Like trying to sell ice during December, a seller might have to give the stuff away just to get rid of it, but if they wait long enough, say until mid-August when temperatures crest over 100 degrees suddenly that same ice can have real value. On the flip side, a seller who needs to sell quickly, and doesn't have time to wait, should expect to discount their price somewhat because of the limited time they have to expose their home to the market.

What's the difference? Timing!

Buyers are in the same boat. A buyer who has the luxury of shopping for a home over a long period of time can probably wait to find a bargain, while another buyer who must buy a home in the next few weeks will probably be willing to pay a premium. Again it boils down to price vs. time. So you might ask yourself what is your highest priority - Selling quickly or selling for a higher price?

Many homeowners will attempt to put the responsibility of getting both top dollar and fast sale on the back of their hired gun, the real estate agent. The result can be summed up in one word - frustration. Why? Because no matter how much a seller yells, screams, and kicks a real estate agent, they don't do miracles. This is why successful sellers understand that while a real estate agents job is to provide marketing, expert advice, and negotiating services, in the end they don't own the property. They don't make the final decisions on pricing. The seller does, and ultimately the seller's asking price will in large part determine how slowly or quickly the home will sell.

To frame this discussion in a different way, consider what you will do should you arrive luggage in hand at the end of your listing period and the home has not yet sold. At that point are you more likely to give it a little more time or adjust your price? I know - Neither, I'll just fire the agent! To be honest, this is exactly what many sellers' do, they fire their agent and reboot the marketing. Does it work? Sometimes it does, but often these sellers end up three months later in the same slow boat to nowhere. Successful sellers on the other hand take ownership of their pricing decisions by making a clear decision about which is more important to them, selling quickly or selling for top dollar.

Successful sellers have learned that to price their home accurately means they need to think like a buyer, they need to get inside a buyers skin and look at the world through a buyers eyes. For instance, imagine for a minute that you are moving to another area of the country, to a city that you are completely unfamiliar with. If you were faced with buying a home in strange city what would be your first step?

As a typical internet empowered real estate buyer you will look at an average of nine homes over eight weeks with the assistance of a real estate professional. By the end of your journey, like many buyers, you become so knowledgeable about the market that by the last showing you are able to guess, with reasonable accuracy, each homes listing price before your agent can even tell you.

So what happened here? As a buyer you went from a blank slate, with no impression of the market to having the ability to predict listing prices.

Summary: if your home is not priced correctly, it is usually rejected by most buyers before they even see it. And, if they do see it they will reject it because it does not favourably compare to other homes in the same price range.

Read more about pricing your home to sell


Search the MLS or read more about Interest Rates, Power of Sale Properties, Price Trends and more at my website. Homes for Sale



Thank you for reading my blog and if there is anything else I can help you with please don't hesitate to contact me,



Mark





A. Mark Argentino
P. Eng. Broker
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate


Thinking of Selling? Best Mortgage Rates Current Home Prices Search MLS
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Providing Full-Time Professional Real Estate Services since 1987

( BUS 905-828-3434
2
FAX 905-828-2829 ÈCELL 416-520-1577
E-MAIL : mark@mississauga4sale.com
8 Website : Mississauga4Sale.com







Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Mortgages are great once you have considered all your options - carefully!

Mortgages are great once you have considered all your options - carefully!

From Thursday's Globe and Mail ROB CARRICK September 6, 2007 at 6:36 AM EDT

Home ownership is a wonderful thing and all, but sometimes it makes sense just to rent.

This is the logical conclusion to be drawn from some tips offered yesterday by the mortgage brokerage firm Invis to help people understand the current interest rate environment and upheaval in the U.S. housing market.

"The key to a successful mortgage experience is carefully considering all your options and buying within your means so that you can sustain your payments," Invis president and CEO Neil Glasberg said in a press release.

It's good advice. If you follow it, you may not end up buying a house right now.

Invis starts off by recommending that people find out what they can afford by getting preapproved for a mortgage by a lender. One benefit of doing this is that you can lock in a mortgage rate for as long as 120 days. Another is that you'll quickly get an idea of whether you'll comfortably be able to afford a home or whether you'll be asking for trouble.

We're not talking about falling into the same difficulties as those poor U.S. home buyers who are defaulting on mortgages that enabled them to get in over their heads. The U.S. subprime mortgage market, catering to people with weak credit ratings and a strong desire to buy a home, is a striking example of how a predatory financial industry eats up gullible people and spits out the bones.

The risk of taking on a mortgage here in Canada is not so much that you'll default, but rather that you'll be so house-poor it hurts.

Invis suggests revisiting your current debts to make a house more affordable, which makes sense in theory because it looks like interest rate declines are going to help on this front. The Bank of Canada left its trendsetting overnight rate unchanged yesterday and said the domestic economy remains strong, even if there are risks posed by the trickle-down effects of the U.S. mortgage situation.

One way to restructure your current debts would be to increase the amortization on a car loan, thereby lowering the monthly payments. This would have the effect of lowering your total debt services ratio, which lenders follow closely because it shows how much of your pretax income is consumed by all your debts, including your mortgage.

Barring financial distress, there are only two good reasons to restructure a loan of any kind: To get the debt paid off sooner, or to take advantage of falling interest rates. Don't renegotiate your debts just so you can borrow more. If this is the only way for you to afford a home, one interpretation would be that you can't actually afford that home.

Lenders generally don't want to see your total debt service ratio go above 40 per cent, which means $40 of every $100 you earned would go to loans, credit cards and your mortgage. If you think this is a financial plan you can live with, stop a moment to consider whether money would be so tight that you end up piling on more debt over the years to maintain your lifestyle.

Invis acknowledges the potential stresses of carrying a big mortgage by suggesting you look into a longer amortization period than the traditional 25-year period. You can go as long as 30, 35 or 40 years, and in doing so you will buy yourself some financial stock on a day-to-day basis. The downside is that you'll pay thousands more in interest, and require an extra five to 20 years to get your mortgage paid off.

If you're 30 years old, you could conceivably be committing yourself to a mortgage you won't be rid of until you retire. Round about the time most people are ramping up their retirement savings, you'll still be paying big chunks of money to your mortgage lender.

Invis suggests increasing the size of your down payment as a way of reducing the amount you need to borrow. The obvious threshold to shoot for is 20 per cent, which would allow you to save on mortgage insurance. But with the average house price in Canada now above $310,000, you'll need at least $62,000 to qualify.

Invis points out that the federal Home Buyers' Plan may help because it allows you to withdraw up to $20,000 from a registered retirement savings plan to buy a home. If you're young and have time to backfill your RRSP, that's not a bad option.

A lot of what's gone on in the mortgage market in recent years has been about helping people buy homes in a market where prices have soared. The underlying assumption is that there's always a way to make homes attainable, when in fact this just isn't true.

If you find that discouraging, just look to the U.S. housing market. Sales there are falling, and you know what that does to prices and affordability.

Read more about Mortgage Interest Rates

Search the MLS or read more about Interest Rates, Power of Sale Properties, Price Trends and more at my website. Homes for Sale

Thank you for reading my blog and if there is anything else I can help you with please don't hesitate to contact me,

Mark

A. Mark Argentino
P. Eng. Broker
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate


Thinking of Selling? Best Mortgage Rates Current Home Prices Search MLS
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Providing Full-Time Professional Real Estate Services since 1987

( BUS 905-828-3434
2
FAX 905-828-2829 ÈCELL 416-520-1577
E-MAIL : mark@mississauga4sale.com
8 Website : Mississauga4Sale.com