York Region Real Estate, Home Renovation Tax Credit

John Carser (Re/Max Omega Realty (1988) Ltd.) — Tue, 03 Nov 2009 11:34:08 -0600

Home Renovation Tax Credit (HRTC)

The deadline for this tax credit is coming close. The tax credit is based on eligible expenditures incurred for work performed, or goods acquired, after January 27th, 2009, and before February 1st, 2010, and based on an agreement entered into after January 27th, 2009. This credit can be claimed when filing your 2009 tax return, SO make sure to keep ALL receipts.

The 15% non-refundable tax credit can be obtained on eligible expenses of more than $1,000 and no more than $10,000. The maximum credit that will be allowed,based on the Canadian Revenue Agency's formula, will be $1,350. Well, it is better than nothing!!

Some examples of eligible expenses are: the sealing or repaving of a driveway; painting the interior, or exterior of a home; the reshingling of a roof; replacement of fixtures (i.e. lights, fans, etc.), and even the relaying of new sod.

Some examples of ineligible expenses are: the purchasing of tools; house cleaning; maintenance contracts (i.e. lawn care, furnace cleaning, etc.); financing costs.

In conclusion, get sifting through, organizing those applicable receipts, enter the details onto an Excel spreadsheet, and then put them into an envelope to be all ready for your accountant.

For more information, please go to http://www.cra.gc.ca/hrtc or call 1-800-959-8281

Oh, by the way, I am never too busy for your York Region Real Estate Referrals. I can be reached at 1-888-362-3677, or you can email me at info@johncarser.com. My website is www.JohnCarser.com. John Carser, Sales Representative, RE/MAX Omega Realty (1988) Ltd., Brokerage

York Region Real Estate...Buyer's Market.John Carser's Insights:"There is a sale on-it's is a great time to buy!!"

John Carser (Re/Max Omega Realty (1988) Ltd.) — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 11:34:14 -0600

I want to give another lesson learned from my time last week at Brian Buffini's Turning Point.

Brian was giving the example of walking into a store, and say they had a sale on; Would the sales people be walking around with their heads down saying, "Oh no, there is a sale on!...I just don't like it when there is a sale!"? No, they would be pumped up and be saying, "How can I help you?" or "Good to see you. Thanks for stopping by...It is a great day, and there is an awesome sale on. Let me show you around to see all the deals!"

Now, I must admit this negative tone can spread among realtors in York Region, Ontario, Canada (good, eh?) and abroad, as well as the whole population. This negatism tries to catch me off guard, and then I have to slap my self back to reality and say, wait a minute, here, there are always people doing well when the stock market is up, or down...the same can be said in regards to real estate. I emphasize to know your stats well (ie. average days on market, amount of inventory presently on the market, list to sold ratios, average price). Establish yourself as the expert.

This is a buyer's market...there is a sale on, and buyers can take advantage at this time. Also, mortgage rates are very competitive, presently a five(5) year at 5.4%. I do love it when people try to say..."Well, I am going to wait until the market drops further". I say to them, when they look at having to sell a home, and unless they are moving 1,000's of miles away to a little house on the prairie!, it does not make sense!-it is ALL relative. The home that they will need to sell, will also be less in value, and even if they are just buying, if the market drops any further, probably interest rates will be increased...and they wouldn't like that.

Meanwhile, landlord's benefit as first-time buyers or buyers getting back into the market, WAIT. We will not be able to convince everyone, but this is my suggestion for today's APPLICATION. Sort through your list of prospective buyers and sellers (even if they have told you that they are six(6) month's to a year away in buying,and or selling, and prepare a post card (i use Top Producer) or even a letter with the banner at the top saying that, "It is a GREAT TIME to Buy! Call me NOW! " Also include helpful stats (**see below) if you are sending a letter or in the card say, "Recent Market Watch Report (*give your source and date) suggests good time to buy. Even take the liberty of using a highliter and going over the vital statistics. At the bottom of your card or letter, say Call Me Now for your FREE Buyer's Guide or FREE Sellers Guide.

**Source: Market Watch Report, TORONTO - Wednesday, November 5, 2008 TREB Members reported 5,155 sales in October, down 35 per cent from the 7,915 sales reported in October of 2007, and also down 25 per cent from the 6,876 sales reported during October2006. Within the City of Toronto, 2,136 sales were recorded. This was down 38 percent from the 3,455 sales recorded in October of last year. In the 905 suburbs, however, the 3,019 sales recorded were down 32 per cent from October 2007's figure of 4,460.

GTA-wide, prices declined 10 per cent to $352,974 from last October's average of $394,646. As with sales, price declines differed according to region.The City of Toronto average was $376,896, down 13 per cent from the $434,022 recorded during the same month in 2007, and down about three per cent from the$386,807 recorded in October 2006. Meanwhile, the average for the City's 905 suburbs was $336,049.This is down eight per cent from the $364,142 recorded last October, and up one per cent from the $333,166 recorded in October 2006.

As Brian encourages us, let's go out now and let everyone know that "There is a sale on, and it is a great time to buy!!"

Make it a great day,and, Oh,by the way, if you know of anyone thinking of buying or selling in York Region, Ontario, Canada (located just north of Toronto), I am never too busy for your referral. You can call me at 1-888-362-3677 (Direct) or email me at john@fullhouseteam.ca. My website is www.yorkregion4sale.com.

Romance without Finance=the Ambul-lance!!

John Carser (Re/Max Omega Realty (1988) Ltd.) — Wed, 12 Nov 2008 00:16:09 -0600

I just have been at Brian Buffini's Turning Point Retreat in Toronto. Everytime I hear him, there is always something that I take away. To those of you who do not know of Brian he is an awesome speaker and motivator, who presents his points for having a balanced life as realtors, with a good dose of humour, like the heading above. Buffini and Company's motto is "Work By Referral. Live the Good Life". I will focus on "Working By Referral" in later blogs, but will focus in this blog on what it means to me to be "Living The Good Life".

Since I have started being coached by Buffini and Company, I now have a keen awareness of having to run my real estate business as a "business" and having balance in the other circles of my life-I will expand on this shortly. Now, it might sound funny to those reading this, of how I have realised about how to be running a business and about having "balance". I have been in the business for ten(10) years, and unfortunately one can easily be running and running taking "care" of sellers and buyers and the "business" AND be putting off giving thought to the positives and negatives in the business, the ROI and the bottom-line of what I am putting in my pocket at the end of the day? Not to mention, asking oneself, "How are the other areas of my life doing? Have they been sacrificed?" Unfortunately, the cost for alot of realtors has been divorce, but that can change...it's about making the right choices.

Brian emphasizes that the following are linked and DO impact each other (Buffini and Company's logo represents these five(5) circles): your FAMILY, BUSINESS, SPIRITUAL, PERSONAL (your emotional and physical) and FINANCIAL circles. I used to think that if I worked the 70 to 85 hours, and was earning what I needed to earn, that everything else would fall into place. Boy was I wrong, BUT it is something how long one can continue working away, thinking that things will eventually get better. Well...I can tell you that they WILL NOT!! I fortunately have an amazing wife, who has been so understanding with my "lessons of life".

If are you reading this...and you are a realtor or individual that has your goals in each area written out, and that you are applying them each day, great job!! I can say that it is not easy getting goals even written out (only 3% of the population have goals), but if you make the effort, you will notice a major weight being lifted (and you will be accomplishing things that you maybe would not have, if you had not put them down). I think it was Zig Ziglar who said,"If you do not have a target to aim for, you will hit it every time!!" In essense, try writing down some goals-it won't hurt if you miss doing some of them. Even start with writing down your six(6) most important things to do in your day with keeping some of your goals in mind.

Remember to take just bite-size pieces. As Brian reminds us,"How do you eat an elephant "of a task"?...answer: One bite at a time." Why fear doing the next step of writing goals down? Remember to think of how you will feel accomplishing your goals and look at what needs to change to start accomplishing them. "I WOULD RATHER BE FEARFUL AND ATTEMPT THAN FEAR THAT I DIDN'T ATTEMPT DOING SOMETHING IN/WITH MY LIFE!" Wow, I like this quote that I just came up with!! Speaking of having goals...and not being fearful-as I have attempted to work at the various circles of my life, I definitely have noticed change.

It has only been a few months, BUT there has been change-my family has even noticed. I DO still have a long way to go, but when I first looked at preparing my family budget and business budget, this was a significant step in communicating with my wife what I had kept to myself. I even thought that everything was looking great in a month, when my income to expense ratio was actually way out!!...oh yes, and I still had to look at the providing for the personal budget!! Oh, yes...and then there are taxes to allow for, and investments to plan for!!

We can get so wrapped up, as Brian says, trying to make a good impression on people that we don't even know...or that care about us...and at what expense?! So, I end on this note...start thinking about what you want your life goals to be...and firstly look at a your budgets (personal and business) and stick to them. There will then be "Romance (and peace of mind) with the finances in order...AND NO AMBULANCE!!" I will continue on with some additional thoughts in upcoming blogs.

Oh, by the way, if you or anyone you know are thinking of buying, and or selling, in York Region, I am never too busy to take care of their real estate needs. I can be reached at 1-888-362-3677 (Direct) or you can email me at john@fullhouseteam.ca. My website is www.yorkregion4sale.com .

York Region Real Estate, A look "south" at the real market, John Carser

John Carser (Re/Max Omega Realty (1988) Ltd.) — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 00:15:00 -0500

I was looking at some you tube just tonight and I thought that this video was quite entertaining showing the history of real estate from the 1870's to present. Although it is about the US real estate market, ours does tend to mirror the US real estate market. Fortunately we have not experienced the drop in the ridee as severe to the subprime lending fallout in the US. Although we have seen a little ripple effect. Please do not be concerned about the end of the video that leaves the rider "hanging"...it is not that the market is about to FALL!!...the creator is just waiting for additional data (lol).

Here is an article emailed to me by my mortgage broker,Evan Sirota.
Breaking news from The Globe and Mail.
Banks lower prime rate
VIRGINIA GALT
Friday, October 10, 2008
Canada's big banks lowered their prime lending rates Friday, the second time in a week, after Ottawa moved to address the banks' increased cost of borrowing.
Bank of Nova Scotia and the Bank of Montreal announced they will reduce their rates by one-quarter of a percentage point, or 25 basis points, to 4.25 per cent, effective Tuesday.
Toronto-Dominion Bank and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce said they would cut their prime rates by a slimmer 15 basis points, to 4.35 per cent.
"We are pleased to offer this reduction in interest rates to our customers, which we believe will reinforce confidence in the Canadian economy," Chris Hodgson, executive vice-president and head of domestic personal banking at Scotiabank, said in a news release.
"At a challenging time in world financial markets, this reduction in interest rates reflects actions initiated by the Bank of Canada and the federal government."
It was the second rate cut by the chartered banks in less than a week. The prime rate is the base rate that the banks use in pricing commercial loans to their best and most credit-worthy customers.
On Wednesday, the banks announced they were lowering their prime rates by just 25 basis points - refusing to pass on all of the Bank of Canada's 50-point interest rate cut announced in concert with other central banks in a bid to address the global credit crisis.
"This morning the government announced that it will buy $25-billion in insured mortgage pools to address Canadian banks' increased cost of borrowing," TD said in a news release.
"We believe that this initiative will be put into effect in a way that will reduce our overall cost of funds and, as a result we are dropping our rate today," TD Canada Trust president and chief executive officer Tim Hockey said in announcing his bank's rate cut.
"As we've been saying, a number of factors go into decisions about rate changes. Financial markets are very turbulent, and funding costs are still high.
"However, we anticipate that our cost of funds will decrease with the implementation of this program, and therefore wanted to take action that will benefit our customers directly," Mr. Hockey said.
Sonia Baxendale, CIBC's senior executive vice-president of retail markets, echoed the other banks in praising the federal government's move.
"This action is positive and we are pleased to be able to lower our prime lending rate for a second time this week for the benefit of our clients," Ms. Baxendale said.
Credit market turmoil has lead to widespread tightening of business lending conditions across Canada.
Desjardins Securities analyst Michael Goldberg said in a research note Friday that the government's plan to buy up to $25-billion in insured mortgages sent "a positive message of potential to add liquidity" to the Canadian banking system.
"Since the mortgages to be purchased are insured ...no additional risk would be taken on by [Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.]. The impact would be to inject cash into the lenders that sell mortgages into this program," he said.

If you have any real estate questions, please do not hesitate to call me at 1-888-362-3677 or visit my website at www.yorkregion4sale.com . You can also email me at info@fullhouseteam.ca

York Region Real Estate Guide, John Carser,What Is Importance Of A Home Inspector?

John Carser (Re/Max Omega Realty (1988) Ltd.) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 13:04:02 -0500

When you want to buy or sell a home you will want to have a home inspection done. There are benefits to having this inspection done for the buyer and the seller. This article will tell you what those advantages are and what the importance of a home inspection is. You don't want to buy or sell a home without knowing this information.

The importance of a home inspection for the buyer is just as important as for the seller. The benefits to having a home inspection done are that you will be able to find out everything about the home before you buy it. This will allow you to see the home up close so you know exactly what you are buying.

The advantages of a home inspection for the seller are that you will be able to find out about any previously unknown problems or potential upgrades so you can address them before you sell. It is always important to be aware of any issues in advance so you can disclose the problems to the buyer if you are not able to fix them. This will allow the transaction to go smoothly for everyone concerned.

Now that you know what the importance of a home inspection is you need to know how to get it done and what your role should be during the inspection. The buyer is usually the one to get the home inspection done, but the seller can also have their own inspection done if they choose to. I am starting to hear in the industry of some sellers having inspections done before their home is put on the market. If you go ahead, as a seller, don't expect the buyer to depend on your report, but at least you will be all prepared at the negotation table for any issues that you already know of and can allow for why you are accepting the offer at a certain price...and the buyer will not be able to come back and widdle away on the price after his/her home inspection. So if you want to get someone to inspect the home you will need to do a couple of different things.

One: You want to make sure that you hire a professional. Make sure that the inspector you use is a member of ASHI or American Society of Home Inspectors. This way you know you are getting someone that knows what they are doing. In Canada there are currently no mandatory certifications or legislative requirements for home inspectors, however there are industry associations such as The Canadian Association of Home and Property Inspectors (CAHPI).

Two: After the home inspection is done you want to make sure that you get a copy of the printed report. You can usually get the written report with no problems but you want to make sure that you ask about any photos that may have been taken during the inspection. It is a good idea to have a copy of both the report and photos.

Three: Be at the home inspection. You don't have to be but if you are than you will be able to ask any questions you have. This is especially helpful for the buyer of the home because it gives you a chance to become more familiar with the home and it will add confidence that you are getting a good home.

Now you know the importance of a home inspection for the seller and the buyer. Always get this done before you buy or sell a home because if you don't then you may run into problems later that you could have known about if you had just had the home inspection done.

I am a professional Richmond Hill Real Estate sales representative. Feel free to me for all of your real estate needs including Richmond Hill Home Values and general market information. Website: www.yorkregion4sale.com

York Region Real Estate Update

John Carser (Re/Max Omega Realty (1988) Ltd.) — Thu, 11 Sep 2008 01:06:44 -0500

What is it with the real estate market now? I think we are definitely seeing the effects of the US mortgage hoop-la that occurred earlier this year. I am seeing if a seller is not going to the trouble of having their homes staged and ready for showings, plus if they are not listening to the advice of their real estate agent, then they are going to be extremely frustrated. Sellers have to realise that this is not a seller's market and that they have to be listening to the advice of their realtor when objective information is provided. The statistics that we as realtors are reviewing on a daily, weekly, monthly basis give us the indication of the "temperature" of the real estate market. I was listening to a web-conference from another top-producer today and I really liked the idea of also looking closing at the showing data for our listings (ie. the stats for how the showings are). This would be another great way to get the real-time pulse on the York Region real estate market. I am going to try and see if I can obtain this information and have it in a format that provides a report on a weekly and monthly basis...I will keep you posted. Until I write again. By for now. John Carser, Sales Representative, Re/Max Omega Realty (1988) Ltd., Brokerage, www.yorkregion4sale.com