BUYING?

If you’re thinking about buying, there are a number of considerations to be made that we discuss in our first meeting. Here’s a list of what we’ll cover…

Qualifying You Financially

As a first step we typically advise our clients to determine their price range before we set out to look at properties. The mortgage broker or banker will take a look at your total income and your total expenses in order to determine what you can afford to spend. If you have not already been to your bank or would like an alternative, we can often assist you with my mortgage sources who usually offer a better interest rate on most mortgages.

Determining what kind of property you are looking for

We will ask you what features you absolutely need and cannot live without, and what features are preferences that you would like to have in your home? The needs are must haves but some of your preferences may or may not be attainable depending on your price range and desired area. During the process of searching for a home, we will continue to ask you questions in order to qualify that we are looking at the right properties. This will help us to find exactly the right home for you.

Time Frame

Another important question is “When would you like to move into the your new home.” What is the ideal date? In addition, if you already own a home, and will be selling it, do you require the closing of one home to coincide with your new purchase?

Location

Other questions that are of concern very often involve schools and transportation. Are you moving to be closer to a particular school for your children? Do you need to be close to the subway or other public transit? Do you want to be in proximity to your place of work?

Buyer Agency

If you have not bought a property for a while or are a first time buyer, you will find that there are different ways you can now be represented by your Agent. You can be a Client, in which case you will sign a Buyer’s Agency Agreement, or you can be a Customer, in which case , there is a different document you will sign which specifies you have a Customer relationship with the Agent. Lastly there is Dual Agency; a situation where the Brokerage carries the listing and is also representing you as a Buyer. We'll explain these different scenarios to you in detail and the advantages of being represented as a Client under a Buyer Agency Agreement.

FINTRAC

New federal government legislation was just introduced in order to track and eliminate money laundering in Canada. This legislation requires that a form be filled out for every real estate transaction executed in Canada. You will need to provide personal information and identification for each transaction. Our office is required to keep this information on file for the Federal Government. For example, if you are selling, we will fill in one form and when you are buying we are required to fill in an additional form. If you were to sell and to buy again next week or in 6 months or 2 years, we would need to fill out the form again for each transaction.

Familiarity with offers

The first time you look at an Agreement of Purchase and Sale, it may be a little daunting. We like to take you through the standard clauses of a simple Agreement in advance to allow you to become somewhat familiar with it. There are standard clauses and clauses printed on the Agreement of Purchase and Sale form. However,  we often need to create custom clauses for your particular situation. Finally there can be any number of conditions included in an offer such as financing, a home inspection, sale of the Buyers’ house, status certificate, etc. We like to explainall of this to you in order to give you all the information you need to feel comfortable in going forward with your purchase.

Negotiating the offer

Negotiating the offer is of paramount importance. We explain the process of presenting and negotiating offers. Typically, there is only one offer (yours) however, recently it has become more common for multiple offers (more than one offer at a time for the same property) to be presented. We will explain the differences between these kinds of offers, how each of these are handled and the implications of each situation.

Home Inspections

Why you need to have a home inspection, when to get one and what do they involve? We will give you a list of a few Home Inspectors to choose from and outline the advantages to having the process take place prior to submitting an offer. 

Closing Costs

It is important to realise that there are additional costs to your purchase and that you will need to have these funds available the day you close with your lawyer. There are the lawyer’s legal fees, fees for the instruments which the lawyer must register on title, Ontario Land Transfer Tax and Toronto Land Transfer Tax, as well as the cost of movers. There may be other incidental costs as well.

After-sale Considerations

What important details will you need to consider between the day you bought and the date of your closing? We provide you with a checklist of tasks you will likely need to complete during that time. For example, you will need to make sure that you have obtained Home Insurance before a Financial Institution will advance the funds for your mortgage.

Follow-up

Our relationship does not end after you have bought. I am available to answer any questions or concerns you may have. Sometimes we have Buyer visits scheduled to go revisit the home you have purchased in order to have contractors go through or to take measurements. Sometimes there are other concerns you may need to have answered. You may have a logistical problem that we can solve, or a closing date needs to be amended. Regardless, my goal is to always help make it a smooth and happy event for you.

Choosing an Agent

The most important decision you will make regarding selling your home will be the agent you choose to represent you. 

• How long has your agent been in the business?

• Is your agent familiar enough with your neighbourhood to price your home correctly?

• What kind of support staff does he/she have?

• If Buyers want to book appointments, how easy is it to contact someone to do so?

• Is your agent full-time or part-time?

• How thoroughly did you discuss your total plan and objectives for selling?

• What educational background and/or work experience does your agent have?

• Is the agent continuing to upgrade his/her knowledge of the industry?

• Lastly and of great importance, is your agent’s strength in negotiating the offer(s). This takes both knowledge and sensitivity. Do they have what it takes?

What Brokerage is the Agent with?

It's very important that the Listing office have a good support staff to assure that it is easy for other agents to book appointments to show your home as well allowing potential Buyers access to whatever information they may need to see your home. We have an effective, efficient and well trained support staff at Chestnut Park.

Follow-up

Once your home is on the market, you want to know that your agent is working with you in order to get your home sold in the expected period of time for current market conditions. You have already reviewed the statistics together and agreed on a selling price. It is important to monitor the response from Buyers and their Agents.

• Does your agent have good systems in place to respond to showings and Buyer inquiries?

• Is your agent up to date with current technology to market your home?

• Are you getting informative feedback from your agent?

• Does your agent respond to your phone calls or inquiries in a timely fashion?

• Do you have scheduled meetings to review the progress with selling your home?

• These are some of the important details that help facilitate the sale of your home.

Deciding Where to Move

Sometimes sellers know exactly where they’d like to move after they’ve sold but often they are still unsure. As Realtors, we can quickly source information from the TREB statistics: sold prices in your neighbourhood, square footage, lot size, proximity to local schools and facilities, transportation, interior photos, etc. All of this information allows you to make a more informed decision on your new home and neighbourhood. Please go to the Buying section of the website for more information on how we can help you in the buying process.

The Listing Process

Once you have decided to list your home for sale, we will discuss what price to list at and the optimum time to bring your home to market. We will have a discussion of whether to set a specific date for offers or allow the market to generate an offer. There are a number of marketing options that we will discuss.

Getting Your House Ready to Sell

There are endless T.V. shows now explaining the benefits of preparing and staging your home for the sale. However, a lots of us do not have the time or the talent that the experts have for this large task. After 25+ years in the real estate industry,  we have solid connections to several reputable organizations and staging companies that we can suggest for you to use as part of our RED CARPET SERVICE

During the Selling Process

Together, we will decide on a schedule for showing your home. This information is provided to our support staff to ensure no appointments are lost. The more flexible you are and the more accessible you make your home to Buyers, the greater chance there is to get an offer more quickly. We will discuss how the process of showings works and exactly what responsibilities each person has in this process.

Marketing Your House

Deciding the best and most appropriate channels to advertise and market your home is important. A mix of personal relationships, existing clientele, newspaper/magazine advertising, internet ads, social media and direct marketing are used to give your property maximum exposure.

Open Houses

Agent Open Houses
We always recommend that we have an office tour for the Chestnut Park Office in order to give our agents a chance to view your home before the public. Often agents in the office will already have a client interested in purchasing just such a property. Alternatively, agents can offer more insight into how the house is presented, any changes or repairs that may be needed and give an indication of whether the sale price accurately represents the house in their eyes. Having this insight prior to public showings can save time and ensure that the public sees only the best in your house.  In addition, there will be a designated day to have your home open for agents from other offices in the city of Toronto.

Public Open Houses
We will discuss the pros and cons of allowing the public to come into your home and how I conduct a public open house.

Offers

We will review and discuss in advance the clauses that are normally seen in an Agreement of Purchase and Sale in order to familiarize you with the terms used and to discuss the ramifications of various scenarios that may come up during the offer process. We will also discuss the process of how offers are reviewed and what happens if you get multiple offers for you home.

Should You Sell First or Buy First?

Some people prefer to buy before they sell and others prefer to sell first and buy later. We will talk about how each scenario can impact your situation and how market conditions dictate which might work best for you.

After Sales Service

Our relationship doesn't end after we've helped you sell your property. We ensure we stay in contact with you to advise you of any pertinent information you will need to complete your transaction including finding a Real Estate lawyer, contacting moving services, cleaning services, personal concierge, help with utilities and anything else that may arise to aid in your transition from your property.

APPRAISERS

Michael Lau
RECG Appraisers
Work: 416-322-9488
Email: michael.lau@recg.ca

Mike Jackson
Simon & Associates (commercial & residential appraisers) 
Work: 416-398-1234 ext 225

Jim Parthenis CRA
Appraiser (residential)
Work: 416-421-1160

CONTRACTORS

Saul Berlin (Water Proofing)
The Construction Group
Work: 416-335-7911
Email: hello@theconstructiongroup.ca
Web: http://www.theconstructiongroup.ca

Jeffery Roberts
J. Roberts & Associates Interiors
Work: 416-568-8313
Email: jrobertsassociates@gmail.com

Andrew Beyers
Andrew Beyers Carpentry Inc.
Work: 416-571-8586
Email: abeyers@sympatico.ca

Davenport & Campbell Heating & Air Conditioning
Sales: 905-475-0389
Service: 905-475-2122
Email: Sales: bill@davenport-campbell.ca
Website: www.davenport-campbell.com

CLEANING SERVICES

Lustre Luxury Cleaning & Services
Work: 416-481-9990
Website: www.lustreservices.com

Prep 'N Sell
Work: 416-201-1010
Email: info@prepnsell.com

Toronto Rug Cleaning
Work: 416-444-6784
Email: ben@torontorugcleaning.ca

DISPOSAL SERVICES

BT Mini Disposal-Residential, Commercial, Industrial
Work: Mark: 416-603-4030
Mobile: 1-866-2BT-MINI(228-6464)
Email: btmini95@yahoo.com

Rick McKinley - Junk Boys
Work: 416-655-8260
Email: info@thejunkboys.com
Website: www.thejunkboys.com

ELECTRICIANS

Rob Sloan - Langstaff and Sloan
(Incl. Knob & Tube)
Work: 416-503-2033
Email: rob@langstaffandsloan.com

Mark
Signature Electric Ltd
Work: 416-490-8093
Email: mark@signatureelectric.ca

Crawford Electric
Work: 416-910-1169
Website: www.crawfordelectrical.ca

Bill Tang - KNT Electric
Work: 647-880-0881
Email: kntelectric@gmail.com

HOME INSPECTORS

Jeff Clark
Baker Street Home Inspection
Work: 416-483-3535
Email: info@bakerstreet-hi.ca

Richard Schmidt - The Castle Group
Work: 416-485-3626 or 416-706-0185
Email: rick@thecastlegroup.ca

Pillar to Post
Work: 1-800-294-5591
Website: www.pillartopost.com

INTERIOR DESIGNERS

Diane Wood - Diane Wood Designs
Work: 416-697-6958
Email: diane@dianewooddesigns.com

Alexandra Assaf - Design by AA
Work: 647-237-7966
Email: designbyaa@yahoo.ca
Website: www.designbyaa.com

Julie Connie - Method Organization + Design
Work: Julie: 647-500-9687
Mobile: Connie: 416-938-4888
Email: julie@methodorganization.com 
connie@methodorganization.com
Website: www.methodorganization.com

Margaux Rolston
Interior Design & Renovation, Fine Art & Antiques, Appraisal & Sourcing
Work: 416-859-2520
Fax: 416-484-1028
Email: margaux_rolston@rogers.com