4 POINTS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE NEW MORTGAGE RULES

The intent of these changes is to support the strength of the housing market and to help ensure that households do not become overextended.

1. Lowering the maximum amount consumers can borrow when refinancing their mortgages.
This change will lower the maximum mortgage amount to 80% of the appraised value of the property from the current 85%. This change will help to promote savings in homeownership and encourage homeowners to prudently manage borrowings against their homes.

2. Reducing the maximum amortization period for new government insured (default insured) mortgages.
The maximum amortization for all new default insured mortgages will be reduced to 25 years from the current 30 years. This change will help reduce total borrowing costs for consumers, helping them to build up equity more quickly and pay their mortgage off sooner.

3. Introduce a maximum purchase price for default insured mortgages.
This change will introduce a maximum purchase price of less than $1 million. This change ensures that government-backed mortgage insurance operates the way it was originally intended: to help working families and first-time homebuyers.

4. Introduce exception limits for GDS and TDS ratios for default insured mortgages.
This change will introduce a maximum GDS ratio of 39% and TDS ratio of 44% on an exception basis. This will assist in protecting clients who may be vulnerable to economic shocks or increases in interest rates. Note that RBC policy remains at 32% and 40% respectively (with variable TDS and GDS strategies applying to low risk clients).
The effective date of these changes is Monday, July 9.                      

Pre-July rules apply. New rules apply      


Mortgage Insurance applications date after June 22, 2012 and before July 9, 2012 with a binding purchase and sale agreement and a closing date before December 31, 2012                   


Mortgage Insurance applications date after June 22, 2012 and before July 9, 2012 with a binding purchase and sale agreement and a closing date after December 31, 2012                      


Mortgage Insurance applications taken after July 9, 2012.Pre-approved applications with no binding purchase and sale agreement in place outstanding as at July 9, 2012.


Pre-approved applications with no binding purchase and sale agreement in place outstanding as at July 9, 2012. 


**Robert McLister, a mortgage broker and editor of the Canadian Mortgage Trends blog, said the new rules apply only to new government-insured mortgages after July 9. Existing mortgages with longer amortizations can be renewed as usual. However, those who increase their loan amount on renewal will have to amortize over 25 years.


www.teambluesky.ca

THE CHALLENGE OF CHOOSING TILE

Pick something you’ll love for at least a decade instead of a fleeting trend

Tile Carrying tile from the backsplash onto the walls and up to the ceiling creates the illusion of space.

Photo courtesy Brian Patrick Flynn

Choosing tile for your home once meant picking from among a handful of pastel ceramic squares. Would it be dusty pink or dusty blue? If you were feeling bold, maybe mint green or pale yellow?

Today, we’re surrounded — some might say overwhelmed — by choices.

Porcelain tile is now made to realistically look like everything from aged wood and rough fieldstones to sleek Italian marble. Tiles of glass, cork, mirror and even leather are taking the place of traditional ceramics.

In all shapes and sizes, they are being used not just in kitchens and baths, but also in entryways, mud rooms and more.

Amid all these possibilities, the biggest challenge is to choose something you’ll continue loving for a decade or more.

“There’s so much decorative tile now,” says Matthew Quinn, principal of Design Galleria Kitchen and Bath Studio in Atlanta. “Some of it, you can just tell in three or four years this is not something you’re going to want to see every day.”

Here, Quinn and interior designers Brian Patrick Flynn and Mallory Mathison share ideas on embracing tile’s new possibilities while creating a timeless effect.

 •  Floor to ceiling

All three designers are fans of using tile all the way up to the ceiling, rather than the more old-fashioned approach of doing partial tile walls with a snub-nosed edge.

“It makes the entire room more cohesive, and it can also give the illusion that a space is larger than it actually is,” says Flynn. “One of the easiest ways to shrink a room visually is by chopping it up; many times, for me, tile used in just one area quickly chops up a space.”

Quinn says clients sometimes assume full walls of tile will make a project expensive. But the cost depends entirely on your choice of tile.

“You can find a fabulous white crackled subway tile for less than $3 a square foot. For about $1,000, you can cover every wall of a bathroom, floor to ceiling, and it’s extremely durable.”

 •  Beyond ceramics

Flynn loves using tiles made of “unexpected materials, such as leather, cork and wood. Leather tiles can be used on walls and ceilings, but in lower-traffic areas. Cork is a dream because it helps soundproof a space, plus it offers a really warm, organic texture instead of the sleek ceramic surfaces we’re used to seeing.”

“Wooden tiles are rather pricey,” Flynn says, but Quinn points out that manufacturers such as Porcelanosa now offer porcelain tiles that look strikingly like real wood. They are durable, resistant to moisture and need no maintenance.

Traditionally, a homeowner chose a particular tile and used it throughout a space. Quinn says clients love the effect when he alternates large and small tiles in various patterns.

Simple changes can make a bathroom more stylish and interesting, without becoming outdated quickly.

You can also get creative with grout: Simple white or beige tiles can be installed with thin, barely visible lines of grout, or thick lines of grout in bold or dark colours that contrast with the tile.

 •  Glass

Glass tile has become popular. Because it’s translucent, Mathison sometimes uses it in smaller bathrooms: “Your eye kind of looks through it, so it doesn’t create a boundary,” she says. “It’s an almost limitless look” that can make a small shower area feel larger.

Flynn says glass tile can be expensive and it’s trendy. One fresh option is “using extra-large, extra-wide, back-painted glass panels on walls,” rather than small glass tiles, “to bring contemporary architectural interest into a space.”

 •  Forget DIY

It’s possible to remove old tile and install new on your own. But all three designers recommend hiring professionals.

Even the highest quality tile will look unattractive if it’s been installed incorrectly. And demolition and tile cutting can be dangerous.

Is a Mortgage-Free Retirement on Your Horizon?

With debt levels up and savings rates down, more people are lugging a mortgage into retirement. But not everyone.

According to a recent CIBC/Harris-Decima survey, mortgage freedom comes earlier than expected for some. Of those polled who successfully paid off their mortgage, they were able to do so (on average) by age 48.

But there's a bit more to this story, as a separate BMO poll reveals.

According to BMO:

• Over half (51%) of Canadians expect to carry a mortgage into their retirement years 
• Of the more than three-quarters of Canadians aged 50 to 59 who own their homes, nearly half currently have mortgage debt.
• The picture improves moderately in the following decade. For those aged 60 to 69, a full 75% own their homes, but a quarter of them are still carrying a mortgage.

TD also weighs in on the senior citizen debt trend. Last fall, it polled workers nearing retirement and found that four out of 10 people expected to make mortgage payments after they stopped working.  

So today, the average borrower predicts mortgage payoff by age 55, says CIBC. That's seven years more than it took current free-and-clear homeowners to eradicate their mortgage.

The why...

Why are amortizations being stretched out? Well, there are more than two reasons, but for one thing home prices (and mortgage size) have risen faster than the income used to pay them.

Moreover, when people got a mortgage 20 years ago, personal savings rates were a mindboggling 4.3 times greater than today. Accordingly, people back then were more inclined to make accelerated payments or prepayments.

(Source: Statistics Canada)

Strategies

For those homeowners who were able to pay off their mortgages years before retirement, these are some of the strategies they used (again from the CIBC survey):

• 52% made lump sum payments annually when they were able
• 42% increased the amount of their regular mortgage payments
• 40% increased the frequency of their regular mortgage payments

Of course, being able to use these strategies requires sacrifices along the way. 78 per cent of homeowners who have paid off their mortgages said they did one or more of the following:

• 53% said they skipped large, "unnecessary" purchases
• 53% said they relied on a budget to track their spending
• 49% reduced extra spending, such as on eating out and entertainment
• 38% skipped vacations

"A key finding in this poll is that Canadians who have successfully paid off their mortgage made some difficult choices about how best to spend their money over the course of their mortgage," said Colette Delaney, Executive Vice President, Mortgage, Lending, Insurance and Deposit Products, CIBC.

Some of the sting from those sacrifices can be minimized with simple tactics like increasing mortgage payments when you get a raise (See: Inflating your mortgage payments), or using tax refunds for a lump-sum prepayment in the spring.

The takeaway...

Retirement arrives much quicker than most of us envision when we're young. By making sacrifices now and capitalizing on today's low rates, homeowners can shave several long years off their mortgage. A little pain now is worth the gain later, because if income drops in your golden years, it makes mortgage payments a much harder pill to swallow.

teambluesky.ca

10 Things NOT To Do When Your Home Is For Sale And You're Going On Vacation!

You're home is on the market, ready for sale.  Spiffed up and ready for the sellers at all times.  Unfortunately our market isn't the world's fastest, so putting a sign in the yard and launching a full marketing blitz didn't sell it by Day 3.  You're coming up on your family's annual vacation and you're not postponing until after the sale.  We don't blame you, everyone needs some R&R time and we don't know if the buyer will show up tomorrow or next month, so go, have fun, relax.

But DON'T:

1) Say "No showings until we return".  Like we said, your buyer might be showing up tomorrow, and if they can't get in they'll buy another home.  And who knows how long until Right Buyer #2 may appear.

2)  Drop off the grid.  Don't go to the Himalayas or somewhere that Kinko's or equivalent doesn't exist.  We need to be able to reach you if we get an offer.  We don't expect you to answer your phone at all times, but don't go somewhere that your cell phone is in constant "Searching for Service" mode.

3)  Set your thermostat to the extremes.  Yes, you might save a little money, but you don't want buyers to be uncomfortable when looking at your home.

4)  Forget to get your mail held while you're gone.  And if you still get the newspaper, either stop delivery or ask a neighbor to collect for you.

5)  Order anything from Amazon or the like to be delivered while you're gone unless you've made arrangements with the neighbors.  Packages setting on the front steps for days are a signal you're not home.

6)  Post about it on Facebook, or Tweet, or Blog, or LinkedIn or ANYTHING that announces to the world that you're going to be gone.  Bad guys have access to social media too.

7)  Forget that your flowers need watered and your lawn mowed.  Hire someone if you need to, but don't let the hard work you've done on curb appeal go downhill while you've got your toes in the sand and a Corona on the table next to the chair.

8)  Forget to tell your agent you're leaving town!!  We'll probably need to alter the showing instructions so you don't have to approve the showings while you're gone.

9)  Forget to take out ALL the trash before you leave.  Get the kitchen, the bathrooms, ALL of them.  You do not want the first impression of the buyers to be "EWWWWW" because you forgot about the leftover salmon you tossed before leaving.  That also means take care of the dirty dishes and dirty laundry before you go.  AND don't forget kitty's super atomic deposits in the litter box and Rover's landmines in the back yard.

10)  Forget to ask a friend to check the locks after showings.  Hate to say this, but sometimes agents aren't as careful as they should be about making sure a home is secure before they leave.  Going by and checking post showing is something we've regularly done for clients out of town.  Wish it wasn't necessary, but it's good to be cautious.

We could add some more to this list, but you get the drift.  Be careful, be available, and leave your home ready for the buyers to fall in love with it!

teambluesky.ca

Banks go on appraisal alert in a volatile housing market

Lenders use a variety of techniques, including full appraisals, so-called “drive-by” appraisals based on the exterior of the home, and databases of market prices, to evaluate homes. The values they arrive at help determine how much money they should lend to mortgage borrowers. They are also key for measures such as the loan-to-value ratio that are used to track the health of loan portfolios and borrowers’ debt loads.

Banks are emphasizing on-site visits to value properties, especially those above a certain price or in rural areas. They are also paying closer attention to who does the appraisal. The higher level of diligence aims to get more accurate values amid fears of an overheated housing market. If standards tighten or appraisals become more conservative, it could result in a decrease of the amount of mortgages that banks lend.

Appraisal values become most important to banks when a borrower defaults, and the bank has to sell the property to recoup money. Their accuracy is especially important in the current environment, in which home prices are believed to be inflated and borrowers are taking on record debt levels, increasing the risk of defaults.

There has been no suggestion of widespread or serious problems in Canada’s appraisal system, and bankers say they are comfortable with the values on their books. But lenders and regulators have recently been scrutinizing appraisal systems in an effort to ensure that these values are as accurate as possible.

“We have tightened our process, and make sure that we are getting an accurate read,” David McKay, the head of Canadian banking at Royal Bank of Canada, the country’s largest mortgage lender, told analysts on a recent conference call. “When you think you have an 80 per cent loan-to-value ratio, you want to make sure you have an 80 per cent loan-to-value ratio.”

Mark Chauvin, Toronto-Dominion Bank’s chief risk officer, told analysts that in some of the hotter markets such as Vancouver and Toronto, appraisal values are coming in slightly above purchase prices.

“We’re really not seeing a lot of it,” he said. “But we feel our existing policies will protect us against that.”

TD lends 80 per cent loan-to-value up to $900,000, but after that only lends 50 per cent, to protect itself against inflated values on expensive homes. “So if you take a $2-million house, you get a loan-to-value of 56 per cent under the sliding scale,” he said.

Some banks began to focus more on this last year, after an American insurance company reported a significant charge in connection with insurance it was selling to them. That insurance was covering risks associated with the possibility that appraisal values were off.

California-based First American Financial Corp. had been selling Canadian banks a “guaranteed valuation” product that guaranteed the valuation of a property was accurate on the day a mortgage was issued. If it turned out later that it wasn’t, the bank could make a claim.

But First American posted a first-quarter loss in 2011 as it took a $45-million reserve strengthening charge relating to this obscure Canadian product.

Policies that were experiencing claims had been written mostly in 2007 and 2008. Sources say the issue stemmed mainly from Alberta, where the housing market underwent a correction starting in 2007, and problems became apparent as default rates increased, leading banks to seize more homes as collateral.

“This is just a case where we mispriced the risk,” First American CEO Dennis Gilmore told analysts. (The firm declined to comment).

The company is no longer offering that insurance in the same form, bankers said. “It’s a big change in the industry; we’ve all kind of morphed our property valuation strategies as a result of this occurring,” said a senior banker.

Spokespeople at Bank of Montreal and Bank of Nova Scotia said Monday that their institutions were already focused on in-person appraisals.

The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions is ushering in new mortgage underwriting rules that require banks to have clear policies outlining how they value properties. It is urging them to use a combination of tools, and to include a comprehensive on-site appraisal unless there’s an appropriate reason to use an alternative method.

Banks “should not use title insurance or valuation insurance as a substitute for a sound appraisal or valuation process,” OSFI stated.

Canada’s housing market stronger than forecast

Canada’s housing market stronger than forecast

How much do you think you'll get back on your Reno

Remember these are just guidelines!


Ah, the sweet sounds of summer: hammering, sawing, digging, demolition. Well, they’re not sweet exactly, but certainly familiar to anyone who lives in one of Canada’s larger cities. With real estate prices in a state of flux, it seems everyone is eager to spruce up what they’ve got and hopefully be rewarded with an increase in property value. However, as we know, not all renovations are created equal. Just because you’re sinking the money into your home doesn’t mean you’ll see a return on your investment. And just about everyone has an opinion on what you should and shouldn’t be tearing out.

I came across a handy-dandy online tool offered by the Appraisal Institute of Canada, which can help you determine how much of a return you can expect to get out of your home renovation. (The AIC is a self-regulating professional association and the largest property valuation organization in Canada, with 4,800 members in Canada and around the world.) 


Choose a reno, plug in your expected cost, and it will tell you how much of your investment you can expect to get back. For example, if you spend $25,000 on a kitchen reno you are likely to get 75 to 100 per cent of that investment back when you sell, or $18,800 to $25,000.

Clearly, these are general guidelines, not hard and fast rules, and how much you spend will affect how much you get back. If you blow $70,000 on a fabulous bathroom job in a house that’s only worth double that, you’re unlikely to ever see a dime of that money again. In addition, choosing a renovation should be about more than just return on investment – it is your home, after all, and any work you do should also be for your enjoyment. But if you’re mulling over one job versus another and you’re looking to sell soon, it might be prudent to go for the basement reno over the swimming pool (see below).

Some of the big winners are obvious (bathroom and kitchen renovations appear to give the biggest bang for your buck), but there were others that were more surprising to me (only 25 to 50 per cent return on landscaping? Say it ain’t so).

Here’s a look at the return on investment you can expect from 25 of the most popular home renovations, according to the Appraisal Institute of Canada:

Bathroom and kitchen renovations are the real winners, providing a return on investment of about 75 to100 per cent, followed closely by exterior or interior painting at 50 to 100 per cent.

Other safe bets include basement renovation, garage construction, window/door replacement, rec room additions and fireplace installation, which return about 50 to 75 per cent, as do exterior siding and upgrades to flooring or furnace/heating systems.

You can expect a slightly lower return on investment (25 to 75 per cent) with concrete paving and roof shingle replacement, as well as installing central air conditioning or building a deck.

The lowest return on investment comes from landscaping, asphalt paving, building a fence or interlocking brick walkways, or even installing a home theatre room, which all return about 25 to 50 per cent. The home renovations that are least likely to increase property value are skylights, whirlpool tubs and swimming pools, which return between 0 and 25 per cent.

REPLACING LIGHT SWITCHES

Replace light switches with caution

Q: When I flip the light switches in my house, sometimes I hear a crackling, popping noise. Is this dangerous? Is new wiring required or is it something else?

A: The switches could be defective or worn out or the wires at the switch connections could be loose, causing arcing that is making the noises. There is probably nothing wrong with your basic wiring. Switches that make arcing noises can overheat, a definite fire hazard.

The safest course is to replace any switch that is making unusual noises such as hissing, crackling and popping. Switches are not expensive (avoid very cheap ones, since good ones cost only a few dollars each). Many switch replacements are made by do-it-yourselfers, although the wiring of some, such as three-way switches that operate a light from a couple of locations, can be a bit complicated.

The first step is to turn off the current at the entrance panel. Test the electrical wires with a circuit tester just in case the wires are carrying current. Remove the cover plate and the screws that hold the switch to the junction box in the wall.

Grasp the sides of the switch and gently pull it out of the box. Study the existing wiring before doing anything else — the location of these wires is a good guide to wiring a new switch. Simple, single-pole switches might have only three wires — two insulated wires that carry current and a ground wire, which is sometimes not insulated. Note the positions of the wires and mark them with masking- tape labels if necessary.

Loosen the screws that hold the wires in place. If the ends of the wires are damaged or nicked, cut off the damaged piece and expose about three-quarters of an inch of new wire. Some new switches have brass screws to attach the wiring — large screws for hot wires and a small screw for the ground wire. Wires are attached under screws by bending the ends into hook shapes and tightening the screws clockwise. Many new switches have small holes into which straight wire tips can be inserted to make the connections — a time-saving feature.

The Hamilton Spec

7 key questions for your new Realtor

Written by  Tahani Aburaneh

There are at least seven key questions every investor needs to ask their

prospective real estate agent before making the decision to hire.

Today’s markets are filled with potential landmines and dead-end deals," she tells CREW. "For you, the investor, this means hiring the right agent is more important than ever.  Unfortunately, not all real estate professionals are created equal."

Following this list of seven questions will help small and large property investors seperate the real estate wheat from the chaff.

1. How do you determine if a property is a good investment?  

This is your million dollar question… so when you ask it, sit back and listen carefully to the agent’s answer.  Your agent should have a proven process to evaluate potential investments.

Do they discuss cash flow, cap rate and return on investment?  Do they know how to properly calculate these figures? Your agent should also have a rubric to filter out bad investments.

My clients all get access to an investment calculator that crunches numbers for them.  If the investment makes money, we dig deeper.  If not, we move on.  Make sure your agent understands the investment language and the process.

2. Are you an investor yourself?
As an investor, you need an agent that speaks your language.  You need an agent that not only talks the talk, but walks the walk.  You need an agent that “gets it.” 

What better way to ensure your agent “gets it” than if they invest themselves?  As a fellow investor, your agent knows first-hand which strategies will work for your particular type of investment, and which won’t.

They view deals through a different lens as they’ve been in your shoes themselves.  You wouldn’t want advice on the stock market from a broker who had no money invested themselves … real estate is no different.

3. How much of your business is based on working with real estate investors?  
As the old saying goes, Jack of all trades, master of none; and never does this axiom prove truer than in real estate.  Most agents in this business focus almost exclusively on residential real estate, working on investment requirements only when one happens to fall into their lap.  You should avoid this kind of representation like the plague. 

You need an agent that specializes specifically in investment properties.  When you’re looking at investments, it’s not about the size of the kitchen or the paint in the bedroom; it’s about the bottom line, plain and simple.  There’s no room for emotion in investing.  You want an agent who understands this.  After all, you wouldn’t ask a divorce attorney to handle a patent case, you’d want a specialist.  It’s the same in real estate.

4. What kind of  real estate investment  do you specialize in? 
Many agents now-a-days will sell absolutely anything and everything to make a buck.  This is a huge disservice to you, the investor.  Selling ABC retail centres is a different world altogether than selling multi-family investments, or residential housing.  In fact, it’s a different universe.  Not only do the hot-button negotiation topics vary considerably between property types, but so do the players and the trends. 

A great agent will understand the power of specializing.  For example, while vacancy rates for residential investments may be low in one market, the same market may exhibit high vacancy rates for retail centres.  In order to stay up-to-date on these trends, an agent has to specialize.  Make sure your broker is a specialist in your particular property type.

5. How well do you know my market?
Real estate is a highly localized industry.  National or even regional market fundamentals may not reflect the realities of your particular market.  You want a broker who knows your local market inside and out. 

6. Are you familiar with strategies such as seller financing or LTO?  
Your real estate agent should be more than an intermediary between you and a multiple listing service.  A good real estate agent will find you opportunities you never even thought to look for.  They’ll help you look at opportunities in a different light, they are creative and bring power to you and your business.  They’ll be an expert and adviser.  If your agent can’t discuss strategies like vendor take-backs (VTB), lease-to-own options (LTO) or seller financing, you’re missing out on valuable opportunities that might have otherwise made you a lot of cash.  If your agent can’t discuss these strategies, you should find an agent that can.

7. Do you have a power team of professionals that you can refer to me?
A real estate deal requires more than just an investor and their agent; it requires the experience and expertise of a diverse group of professionals including lawyers, accountants, mortgage brokers and appraisers.  I call this my “power team.” 

Your agent should be able to refer you to their power team, who, just like the Realtor, specialize in these investment transactions – this way you know you’re covered from the start of your deal to the finish.

REPAIRING SQUEAKY FLOORS

Special tools needed to fix carpeted floor

Q: How can I repair squeaking carpeted floors that have no access from below — the ceilings underneath are covered with drywall. The noise is coming from the plywood subfloor under the carpet, which needs to be fastened more securely. It is also difficult to find the joists under the carpet. Any ideas on fixing without removing the carpet?

A: A special screw can be used in this situation. These screws are driven through the carpet, using a power drill and a small tool that stops the screw after it has reached the proper depth.

Another small tool is then used to break off the head of the screw so that it is hidden. The screws must be driven into floor joists, so locating the joists is essential.

There are a couple of ways to find the hidden joists. If you plan to do a lot of floors, you might want to invest in an electronic stud-joist finder. A low-tech method that often works is to thump on the floor with a hammer until you get a solid sound. This indicates the presence of a joist.

Note the spot and drill down with a small drill bit — a one-sixteenth-inch bit works and will not damage the carpet.

If the drill goes into solid wood after passing through the carpet and subfloor, you have verified the presence of a joist. After that, you need only measure 16 inches from the first joist location to find another joist, and so on. If you don’t know the direction of the joists, you will need to drill a few more tiny holes to verify that. It can take a lot of screws to fix a very squeaky floor.

Some contractors stretch strings across the floor at each joist location to make the screw installation faster. Spacing the screws depends on how badly the floor squeaks; a screw every nine to 12 inches along the joist might be needed.

McClatchy-Tribune News Service

Private for Sale

According to a U.S. National Association of Realtors survey, in hindsight 70 per cent of people who sell their home themselves say they would never do it again and most sellers net far less than they would have had a Realtor been selling their home.

The complexities of not using a Realtor can be a huge selling point. Todorovic says, “Ask them if they have the time. This is a large factor and should not be underestimated. Can they take time off from work and obligations to show the property? Can they market their property effectively and efficiently when it relates to cost and maximum exposure? Do they understand the complex terms in contracts? Can they handle legal pitfalls that can arise when a messy contract is written, which could result in a legal nightmare and involve huge expenses to rectify? Do they know how to pick the market price? Are they aware of the process that is required in a real estate transaction? Are they comfortable with negotiating contracts on a face-to-face basis with potential buyers? If the answer to all of these questions is yes, then best of luck to them. Otherwise, call the best Realtor in town and get them to do what they do best.”

Gary Bazuik Gary Bazuik, a sales rep with Royal LePage Coast Capital Realty in Victoria, says he avoids discussing being burned by a past experience and focuses on the fact that not all Realtors are the same. “I explain that nine out of 10 FSBOs eventually list their homes for frustration or safety reasons. A For Sale sign is an invitation for anyone passing to enter your home. If you list your home, only qualified buyers will view your property. Our MLS system had 1.9 billion page views last year alone, with each visit lasting an average of over 10 minutes. Your strong web presence will create the exposure you need to maximize value for your home.”

Costs associated with buying a house

UPPER END Market Trends Burlington 2012

Hamilton – Burlington
Luxury home sales in Hamilton-Burlington experienced the strongest first quarter on record, with 67 homes priced over $750,000 changing hands compared with 54 the year previous—a 24 per cent increase. Consumer confidence has bolstered enthusiasm, in tandem with continued diversification —the latter of which has resulted in a greater num- ber of well-paying jobs. The technology and health care sectors have attracted an expanding pool of affluent buyers who are fuelling demand in several hot pockets. Ancaster, in particular, has benefitted, as close proximity to the hospital and university are a top priority. Location is also of primary importance to affluent young families who are seeking homes within a short distance to CAIS-designated private school Hillfield Strathallan College—and they are willing to pay a premium. The market remains bal- anced, with a good selection of properties (284) priced over $750,000. Choice becomes more limited between $1 million and $1.2 million, with just over 30 homes available at this price point, which is generating the greatest number of multiple offers. Today’s luxury consumers are highly value-driven, stretching their dollar as far as possible, with resale properties having a slight edge at the lower end of the upscale market. Walkability has become a serious selling point in the upper-end, fuelling sales in ame- nity-rich Dundas. Turn-key product is preferred, but many buyers are willing to renovate to make it their own. Well-landscaped homes with outdoor living areas that act as an extension of the home for entertaining are sought-after, along with open floor plans. The ultimate perk is a main-floor wine cellar, a property wired with technology’s best bells and whistles and green construction. The latter is play- ing a greater role in recent years, especially at the $3 million to $4 million range and above. To some, the trend is more important than the promise of cost recovery down the road. Equity gains have been a significant factor bolstering upper-end sales, with Burlington a prominent example. In fact, some estatesubdivision homes in Burlington have now reached the prestigious $1 million mark. Some buyers— and more so at the higher price points—have been gravitating to custom construction. Teardown activity continues unabated in Old Ancaster and South Burlington and has even reached West Bur- lington, as a result of spillover from nearby Oakville. Purchasers are snapping-up small, older homes on good-sized lots. These properties are drawing fre- quent multiple offers, if priced correctly, especially those on 100 ft. lots. The $500,000 to $800,000 price point is the current sweet spot. Custom-built homes replacing older structures often sport values of $1.5 million and up. The cost of new construction is on the rise, however, with trades exceptionally busy. Out-of-town purchasers now account for approxi- mately one-third of properties sold in Burlington. International buyers are rare, but some are pur- chasing high-end homes for their children to live in while attending McMaster. The high-end condo- minium market is underserviced in Hamilton- Burlington, with builders yet to adequately address the demand. The supply of luxury units is very tight, and quality product that does come on-stream is sold quickly. The highest priced condo to change hands in the first quarter of the year was a pent- house unit located in Hamilton’s west end, sold for $690,000. In the single-detached category, the pric- iest home sold moved for $3.8 million in Aldershot on the Bay. It boasted over 7,000 sq. ft. of living

space and was situated on a 1.5 acre lot. Increasingly, value-conscious purchasers are looking to areas bordering Burlington and Oakville such as Water- down, where the same money will buy more home or better finishings. Hamilton, Ancaster, Dundas, Grimsby and Stoney Creek will be the area’s up- and-coming communities moving forward, as their appeal increases in step with the addition of new amenities. Waterfront properties, in particular, hold much potential. Demand is expected to be strong in Hamilton-Burlington through year-end, while price growth will move in line with the rest of the market.