Sell or Buy First?

Sell first and then buy. 

When people think of moving, they'll often call me and ask to see a bunch of homes. They just want to have an idea of what's out there. We're just shopping around. Most often, it's a waste of time for them. (Not for me. It's always a good experience to see homes. I can recommend things to other buyers.) 

When you go house shopping, you need to have your finances in order. If you already own a house, then your money will probably be tied up in that. Once you sell your house, the market will be different. 

Let's say you're shopping around while you're just thinking about moving and you fall in love with a house you see. How will you be able to make an offer on it? You can make a conditional offer. If there's another offer without the "sale of buyer's home" condition, then they won't choose yours. Let's say yours is the only offer and they accept it. Do you really want to sell your house under that kind of pressure? Can you get the most out of your present home if you are pressed for time? 

Take your time to prepare your house for sale. Get top dollar for your investment. Then, go shopping with the power to offer the strongest bid. 

Don't Do the Spring Cleaning on Family Day

There are lots of opportunities for staying indoors and organizing and cleaning in the winter, especially this winter! Clean out the closets, the storage spaces, the garage. Spruce up the kitchen and bathrooms. Have the draperies and carpeting cleaned. It's a great time to prepare your house for sale. Spring is around the corner (really!) and the housing market is going to pick up and take off soon. A long weekend is perfect.

But, I hope you didn't spend the long weekend doing any spring cleaning. Family Day is for having fun with the family. I hope you went out ice fishing or skiing, skating or shopping.

Today is the day after Family Day and we have another foot of snow.

Today, you'll be able to stay in and clean out the hall closet, or take a look at the kitchen cupboards (maybe you could update the hardware, count the handles). This weekend, you can paint the laundry room and fix the leaky faucet.

When you're ready, give me a call and we'll get your house on the market and find something better for you to move into once the snow is all gone.

Call me now and I'll give you some tips on what you can do to get your house ready to sell without too much time and effort. 

Buy Low - Sell High

It's the simplest, most logical statement in business: Buy Low - Sell High... Yet, most people only believe it in theory and act differently when making actual decisions!

When the price of something is increasing many rush to purchase it, and when it's decreasing they get anxious to sell it off quickly! They Buy High and Sell Low!!!

In Canada we have historically low interest rates right now and there are areas where you can still get very reasonable deals in real estate. However, I still meet "investors" who are too cautious to buy anything and tell me that they will wait for the conditions to correct themselves first. So they are hoping that prices will go down.

My mind goes back to 2002 and 2009 where I heard the same sentiments before - and what happened? Prices went UP and not down. If you are not selling your property cheaper, and I am not selling mine cheaper and none of your friends and neighbours are prepared to take a loss in their real estate values, then HOW are the prices coming down, eh?!

Smart investors, BUY LOW. If you factor in the thousands of Dollars saved in interest alone, then THIS is the time to BUY and reap the benefits in the next decade. History can only repeat itself.

Take advantage of great Interest Rates

So last month, again, they did the sensible thing and kept the interest rates low. It's a delightful thing to see the Government awake and smelling the coffee!

The Bank of Canada says it will need to keep interest rates at current, stimulative low levels for some time to come, although things weren't that bad in the first quarter of 2013.

As expected, the central bank kept their rate at one per cent, where it’s been since September 2010, helping bring about some of the most favourable borrowing conditions ever for Canadian consumers and businesses.

As well, the bank statement indicated that the current policy position will likely be needed for some additional time, after which Canadians should look for a modest increase in interest rates.

In essence, the bank is saying that the Canadian economy continues to require considerable monetary stimulus in order to keep its head above water. This is good for the BUYERS who want to buy a home soon, because they get a great mortgage rate, plus they can potentially purchase their ideal home for a slightly lower price!

If you are buying a home in 2013, don't miss this truly Golden Opportunity. Send me an email and tell me what you need, so I can keep an eye on the market for you!