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The important differences between Tulips and Real Estate
Let’s take a few minutes and think of when Spring arrives. For gardeners it is June. For mountain bikers it’s April. For Wendy Starr, who was raised in Arizona, it is March. And for Real Estate it’s January. Before you stare at your monitor and whisper “has Lindsay Smith gone bonkers,” hear me out. The…
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Durham Region Real Estate and Trust
I remember a few years ago I bought something from a local merchant at a busy market when travelling. Returning to my hotel, I checked my supply of cash and noticed that I was short-changed. I remember handing the clerk a $100 bill, and the item was $19. I had $41 in my pocket meaning…
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The Large Print Giveth, and the Small Print Taketh Away.
I met with a couple this past week, and our conversation reminded me of an important lesson I learned a few years ago. They shared that they were dealing with a professional who needed them to sign a rather sensitive document. The person emailed the copy to both clients, and the couple looked at the…
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Why Experience Matters
Something fascinating happened over the past few weeks. I was contacted by a Seller who had listed his home with a friend, and after a few weeks he terminated the listing and approached me to see if I could sell his home. His friend, an agent from Toronto gave him a “good deal” and brought…
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Deposits: Go big to get the home
If you were looking for advice about a medical issue, you would ask a doctor. With questions about taxes, you would go to an accountant and for issues with your car, you would no doubt ask a car mechanic. (Only after asking Ms. Google for her input.) Stick with me, I am going somewhere with…
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Standing at the End of a Diving Board
Ok, it’s time to make a few predictions. Let’s review where we are currently to where we were at the market peak in winter 2022. The top of the market for all of Durham Region was February 2022. The average home price at the peak was $1,229,000. As of the end of February 2023, values…
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Would you Bet on a Sure Thing?
There are two parallels with the economy that are unfolding. One is the stock market, and the other is our local Real Estate market. The Dow Jones had an amazing rally that started in July and peaked in mid-August. Below is a graph and for those who like numbers, at the beginning of August the…
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What does July, 2022 and 2008 have in common?
It’s not the average price of a home in Oshawa, Whitby or Clarington. In 2008 the average detached home averaged $283,000. Currently, the average is $993,000. It’s not the price of a litre of gas. In 2008 a litre of gas was about .78 cents and currently, it is floating around $1.80. No, it’s mortgage…
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The Importance of Reputation
“Reputation is like fine china. Once broken, it is very hard to repair.” — Abraham Lincoln On my way to work this morning, I caught an interview with a woman who had a “nightmarish” experience with a moving company. She commented that she found the company doing a google search and did a bit of…
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Bubbles are things kids get excited about
I read a headline this week that I saw covered repeatedly online and on radio. (I do not own a TV however I am certain it was front and centre there as well.) It was penned by Manulife Financial; “Nearly 1 in 4 homeowners would have to sell their home if interest rates rise more.”…
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