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In This Market, Hope Is Not a Marketing Strategy
One of the first things I learned when I started my Real Estate career is that the one law that governs most of how the housing market works is the “Law of Supply and Demand.” It is a line that is so commonly used so let’s look into what it really means; Law of Supply…
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Who Gets the House? Marriage, Common Law and Ontario Real Estate
I’ve had two separate but related experiences lately that caused me to shake my head. Then again, this is Ontario, and after 40 years in real estate I should probably have learned that very little should surprise me. Before I go any further, let me make something perfectly clear: I am not a lawyer. I…
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Ontario’s Housing Crisis Is Changing: More Rentals, Fewer Homes to Own?
Ontario still has a housing crisis, but the nature of that crisis is changing. For years, the conversation focused on a shortage of homes, rising prices and the difficulty first-time buyers faced getting into the market. Today, another issue is emerging: Ontario may be building more housing, but an increasing share of that housing is…
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What Do Tariffs and Development Charges Have in Common?
First, let’s define the two. Tariffs are taxes imposed by governments on goods imported from another country. The importer pays the tariff, but the cost can ultimately be absorbed by the business, passed along to consumers through higher prices, or shared somewhere along the supply chain. Development charges are, in simple terms, a form of…
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Two Headlines. Both True. Both Misleading.
We are at the end of another month, which means it’s time for me to do what I do every month: dig into the numbers and figure out what is really happening in the real estate market. I am a self-confessed “stats hound,” and I wear the title proudly. But today, I’m going to poke…
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What Tariffs and the Pandemic Have in Common
A memory from 2020 came back to me this weekend after the latest tariff news involving Canada. Not because tariffs and a global pandemic are the same thing. They obviously aren’t. But they do have one important thing in common. They scare the hell out of people. And scared people have a remarkable ability to…
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Human Nature vs. Opportunity
I remember a conversation I had while driving around with a buyer very early in my real estate career. I was green and still learning the business, but even then I had a sense that real estate moved in natural cycles. Markets heated up, cooled down and eventually changed direction, usually influenced by the broader…
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When Is It Time to Move On?
Over the weekend, I listened to a radio discussion about people who repeatedly run for political office but never win. They were described as “perennial” or “serial” candidates. We have a local example of someone who has run for mayor, regional chair several times, and as a Progressive Conservative candidate in a provincial election, without…
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The Most Expensive Decision Buyers Make Is Deciding They Can’t Buy
A recent New York Times opinion piece explored how Generation Z views ambition, careers and the future. Many younger adults no longer believe in the traditional formula: study hard, build a career, sacrifice today and eventually enjoy financial security. Boomers were told to climb the ladder. Younger generations are asking whether the ladder is leaning…
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The Tax Arizona Homebuyers Don’t Pay
I recently had an interesting conversation with a Realtor friend in Arizona. The subject of land transfer tax came up. She looked at me blankly. “What is land transfer tax?” Fair question. Arizona does not have one. In Canada, every province and territory charges buyers something when ownership of a property is transferred. Five jurisdictions…
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