What buyers/Sellers should Know

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When selecting a REALTOR you want a professional and successful REALTOR who has experience.

By understanding your needs/wants I will take this information and interpret into search criteria, tailored specific to you. By creating a search unique to you, this provides you with only information and homes relevant to your personal buying experience and doesn’t overwhelm you with irrelevant information.

What Does it Cost to Own a Home?

• Down Payment
• Legal Fees
• Inspection Fees
• Taxes

Monthly Costs of Owning A Home?

• Mortgage
• Utilities
• Maintenance
• Insurance
• Property Taxes
• Condo Fees

How Much Can You Afford?

Knowing your true budget is very important when buying a home. Focus on the monthly number. If you have a figure you can spend each month on Mortgage, Taxes and Condo fees, work with that to ensure that you are comfortable every month.
Make as big of a down payment as you can. Don’t leave yourself short; set aside some money for moving expenses, repairs, renovations and perhaps some new furniture.
 

I will be in contact with you to help select the homes to view. I will discuss the best matches and choose up to 6 homes to view at a time. 

You found a home, Congratulations! Now, to make it yours you have to make an offer that the Seller will accept.

During The Offer Process I Will:

• Do background research to make sure that nothing is left out and you have all the information necessary to make an informed decision.
• Prepare the offer. This protects you, and I  will follow all your instructions to ensure your needs are met. We recommend reviewing the contracts in our package before writing an offer so you are familiar with them and can ask questions prior to the time of writing.
• Explain all the details. I will give you all the options and ensure you know what you are agreeing to.
• Present and negotiate the offer. Once You have signed all the papers, now Roy will do his best to get you the home you want at the price you are comfortable with.

THE SELLER CAN ACCEPT YOUR OFFER

Perfect, congratulations!

THE SELLER CAN REJECT YOUR OFFER

It is not common for an offer to be completely rejected. If this happens I will follow up and see I there is anything more I can do.

THE SELLER CAN “SIGN BACK” OR COUNTER YOUR OFFER

This is common. The seller may want to change some part of your offer, most likely the price.

At the final stretch, there are closing payments that need to be made. These costs can include mortgage application fees, legal fees, inspections. Once you jump through those final hoops you can finally take comfort in knowing you have purchased a new home.

This is where we work through any conditions written into the offer. Typically, these will be Financing and Home Inspection. With a condo there will also be Condo Documents to inspect.

Your lender will need to see a copy of the Contract and you will work closely with your Mortgage Broker or Lender to ensure that they can approve the financing.

Home Inspection: This is your biggest purchase and a few hundred dollars spent on an inspection can save you from unpleasant surprises. I can recommend several home inspection companies to choose from.

JOIN THE INSPECTION

Get up close and personal with your new home. The process can be up to three hours. If any problems are detected, you will see them right away and learn some maintenance tips from a pro.

YOU’LL GET IT IN WRITING

Their report will summarize the condition of your home. If there’s anything that needs work the home inspector will provide guidance and suggestions for any items of concern.

NO SUCH THING AS “PERFECT”

Even with a brand new home there will be some minor defects (and even some not so minor). Every home will have some minor deferred maintenance and issues that will come up. I will work through these to decide which are serious and need to be fixed and which can we live with.

After you gave done all the diligence on your new home you will finally decide if you would like to complete the purchase. Once you sign the waiver of Conditions and we send it to the Seller, the sale is considered “firm and final”. There is not backing out and the property will be marked sold.

You may have already chosen your lawyer, if not, now is the time. Once you have a lawyer chosen, and I  can recommend several, they will need all the required paperwork. This is usually handled by us to ensure they get absolutely everything they need.

You will meet with the lawyer a few days before you take possession and will need to provide your insurance information, the balance of your down-payment, fees and any adjustments for taxes as necessary. The lawyer will send you a statement of everything with a balance owing. You will make an appointment to go in and sign all the paperwork and finalize everything before you own the home.

MOVERS - If you are using professional movers, book early.

MAILING ADDRESS - Gather all your bills, statements, tax information, healthcare information and anything you make automatic payments on. Sit down and make a list of these things early, because you don’t want to forget any. It’s time to start giving out your new mailing address. You might want to have your mail forwarded through the Post Office.

UTILITIES - When you take possession of your new home, it is very important to change your utilities over to your address in advance. This includes your phone, cable, internet, power and gas services. Also, don’t forget to cancel the utilities at your previous residence.

PROPERTY TAXES - A phone call to the City or a quick look on their website will give you the information you need to make sure that your property taxes are set up in your name.

Finally, the day we have all been waiting for.

I  will receive a call once the money has been transferred and keys are releasable. This is usually around noon, but may be later. 

If there are any problems keys will still change hands, however the seller will be responsible to take reasonable action to remedy the problem or be in breach of the contract and the buyer can pursue legal remedies accordingly. The lawyer will give you advice if anything is a miss.
You will be extremely excited and emotions are running high. Having a REALTOR who has done this multiple times will ensure that things are done correctly and make sure nothing is missed during this exciting time.

Only once you have a firm answer to this question, are you ready to put the for sale sign on your front lawn. However, just knowing you want to sell your home is not enough. In real estate, timing is everything. Sometimes, in order to get the most value for your home, you have to take advantage of when it is a “Sellers market”. Homes tend to sell better in a Sellers market, rather than in a Buyers market. In fact, it has been said that the same listing in an advantageous market can earn up to 20% more than a house listed in disadvantageous market. You must make sure that your agent understands trends and market conditions to be able to properly advise you as how to best proceed.

Additionally, there are many ways one can go about increasing the value of their home. Updating older appliances, adding a new coat of paint, and remodeling an area can pay huge dividends but many times spending money can be lost if not invested correctly.There are many ways one can increase the value of their home with a home renovation, but many Sellers often spend more than they get back. Knowing what to do is key to generate maximum return on your investment. Your realtor must be very knowledgeable in these areas. An easy way to know which areas of your house can benefit from an upgrade before a sale is by contacting an experienced Toronto & GTA realtor for a consultation. With the added value of a realtor’s insight, a world of trouble can be avoided, as their advise will help you make more money.

A real estate agent’s value comes from being able to market your property to the ideal Buyer no matter where they be. In fact Buyers are coming from farther distances because of the mobile society that we live in. If your property is not getting that extensive marketing you must ask yourself “how much money am I potentially losing”? The objective is to net you as much money as possible for your home. The best way to find the best real estate agent in Toronto & GTA is to do your research. Look for agents that have an impressive marketing strategy, campaign and reach. This is extremely important and it’s where the true expense will be for the realtor, (follow the money and you will know how much is invested in the marketing of your property). Of course an excellent track record of success, selling a lot of homes, and have clients who are ready to provide glowing testimonials is also very important. Remember, the best agent/client relationship is built on trust. So find the realtor you can trust to get the most value for your home.

Once you settle on your ideal real estate agent, their job is to get as many eyes on your home as possible. You will work together to come up with a marketing strategy and decide on an asking price that will help position you for the best likelihood of attaining the highest and best price for your home.

Once the price is set, your realtor should begin to extensively market your home through as many target and mass media marketing avenues as possible (once again adverting is expensive so follow the dollars spent and you will see the value) . Once your home is seen by the masses, you can anticipate a higher level of interest and will not need to have ineffective open houses.

It’s important to make your home look it’s best for potential buyers your agent should be able to show you the secrets of making your home look it’s best.

You may be presented with offers, each is unique with different prices, terms and conditions. Not every offer will be a home run, so it is important that your agent be there for you to counter offer and further help you negotiate. This is where you realtors experience is hard at work to help you get the best possible results. There is no substitute for experience.

Once you and your home realtor have found the offer that best suits your needs, you can prepare for the closing of the sale. The paperwork will be sent to your lawyer, who will facilitate the closing of the property. Then you will be able to collect your cheque from your lawyer once of course you hand over the over the keys to the Buyers.

Selling your Toronto & GTA home can be stressful, but it doesn’t have to be. Re/Max’s #1 Individual Agent in The World Frank Leo offers his guaranteed home selling system that has been making his clients in the GTA happy for well over 30 years. If your home doesn’t sell then, he will buy it. Contact Frank today for a free home evaluation.