My Blog

CMHC To Raise Mortgage Loan Premiums!

Monday, March 03, 2014


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Should You Invest in Home Improvements?

Friday, February 21, 2014

When thinking about the value of your home and the additions you can make to raise that value, it's important to understand things in the short and long term. There are plenty of people out there who have tried to sell their homes for over asking but received no offers, simply because they had not made the right changes that would guarantee a quick sale, and because they were not marketing their homes appropriately. Yes, even in this market. So: how do you avoid this?
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Household Tips

How Do You Choose a Neighbourhood?

Thursday, February 13, 2014


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Current Market Trends

Real Estate Market Report - May 24, 2013

Friday, May 24, 2013

It's been a wild ride in the Toronto real estate market over the past few months. After steep monthly declines in sales from August to December 2012 despite continued rising prices, and the accompanying drumbeat of doom from the financial and real estate press - like this article in Canadian Business that asks "how low will house prices go?"
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Current Market Trends

Real Estate Market in Flux

Thursday, May 09, 2013

If you've been following the real estate news at all over the past few months, you'll have seen that the market is in flux at the moment. This shift towards smaller price gains and somewhat fewer sales overall is happening at both the national level and the local level here in Toronto and the rest of southern Ontario.
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Household Tips

Three ways that you can add the most value to your home.

Monday, December 03, 2012

If you decide to list your home, you’ll want to ensure that it fetches as much as possible, so I’ve put together a list of three ways that you can add the most value to your home.
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Household Tips

Is A Pool Worth It? 4 Things to Consider

Wednesday, August 08, 2012

It’s a classic image: heading outside to your backyard, drinks in hand, to sit by the sparkling blue waters of your very own swimming pool. Maybe you’ll invite your friends to a pool party, or listen to the kids splash around with their colourful float toys. What could be better on a hot summer day than having a swimming pool of your very own?
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Current Market Trends

How do the new CMHC Mortgage Rules Affect You:

Sunday, June 24, 2012

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty announced Thursday that the federal government is reducing the maximum amortization period for a government-insured mortgage to 25 years from 30 years.
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Current Market Trends

5 tips for selling your home in the Summer

Monday, June 11, 2012

The distinct Canadian seasons are both a poignant reminder of time’s passage and a joy to experience: although the colourful fall and icy winter have their own charm, we have a special love for the summer months. The kids are enjoying summer vacation and running through the sprinklers, Fridays at work tend to end early, golf and gardening are the sports of the season, and everyone seems to be happier.
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Household Tips

2 Important Things to Ask your Home Inspector – And 2 Things Not To Ask

Tuesday, March 27, 2012

Although there are many different kinds of home inspections for different purposes, pre-purchase inspections commissioned by buyers and sellers are the most common in residential real estate.
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Money Matters

How Does Property Tax/Assessment Work?

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

The Government of Ontario has made a number of changes to the property assessment system that went into effect in the 2009 property tax year. These changes include the introduction of a four-year assessment update cycle and a phase-in of assessment increases.
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Household Tips

Double Tapping a Circuit Breaker

Sunday, December 18, 2011

A double tapped circuit breaker (Two wires entering the same breaker from two separate circuits) is one of the most common electrical defects that home inspectors find when checking the main electric. The problem with putting two wires in a circuit breaker designed to hold one is that the wires could become loose, even if they feel very tight. Loose wires can lead to overheating, arcing, and possible fire.
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Current Market Trends

New Mortgage Rules, Again???

Monday, January 17, 2011

Canada is again adjusting the Mortgage Rules in a continued effort to solidify Canada’s Real Estate Market and avoid the overleveraged and under secured real estate failure that we have witnessed south of the border. Annoying? Sure!
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Current Market Trends

How did the Real Estate Market Really do in 2010?  A Year in Review:

Friday, January 14, 2011

The year in Toronto got off to a good start with reports that 87,308 transactions were processed during 2009 – a 17% increase over 2008. That included 5,541 properties bought and sold during the month of December 2009 alone. The average home price climbed 4% in 2009 to $395,460, according to the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB).
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Current Market Trends

Are we in a Real Estate Bubble and is the Bubble About to Pop?

Monday, September 27, 2010

The Media sure seems to think so. Every time I turn on the television that’s all I hear, quite reminiscent of the ‘D’ word being dropped every 5 seconds as we fell into our last recession. The media sells hype and unfortunately, sometimes the hype self-perpetuates into hysteria and panic.
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Current Market Trends

Is the Current Real Estate Market Sustainable Or will it burst?

Friday, September 17, 2010

This year seems to be one of constant anticipation over sales activity reports. The anxiously awaited August numbers from the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), certainly are a great representation of that, and Wednesday they were finally reported. The good news is that for the first month since March 2010, national resale housing activity improved, showing a seasonally adjusted 4.1 percent increase from the previous month.
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Current Market Trends

Happy HST Day?  Save the fireworks…

Saturday, June 26, 2010

For many Canadians, Canada Day is always the unofficial start of the summer season. Unfortunately, this year, Canada Day is also the start of something a little less inspiring: the provincial government’s new Harmonized Sales Tax (HST). Not exactly a nice way to celebrate our nation’s birthday.
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Current Market Trends

GTA REALTORS® Report Mid-Month Resale Housing Figures

Friday, May 21, 2010

Greater Toronto REALTORS® reported 4,887 sales through the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) during the first two weeks of May. This represented a seven per cent increase compared to the 4,561 sales recorded during the same period in 2009. New listings increased by 48 per cent annually to 10,059.
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Current Market Trends

Bank of Canada backs off housing bubble talk

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

The Bank of Canada backed away Monday from its recent warnings about a real estate bubble in Canada.
In a speech in Edmonton, bank official David Wolf ruled out increasing interest rates to discourage mortgage lending.
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Current Market Trends

Bank of Canada maintains interest rates

Thursday, November 12, 2009

The Bank of Canada held its benchmark overnight lending rate steady at 0.25 per cent at its setting on October 20th, 2009. The trend-setting Bank rate, which is set 0.25 percentage points above the overnight lending rate, remains at 0.5 per cent.
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"Paul's professionalism and demeanor allow for both successful business and personal relationships with his clients. He's dedicated to understanding the needs of his clients, and works with them to provide solutions they need. I recommend Paul with the highest regard."
~ Ryan Shoemaker, IGM Financial