“Wrong way on a one-way track.” - The legendary Soul Asylum. One of the most surprising developments of the Pandemic has been the unstoppable price growth of GTA real estate. Imagine fire on a gasoline trail with some kerosene thrown in for good measure, and that’s how fast prices have gone up. With the benefit of hindsight we now know why and how we got here, but I can tell you that on the ground level this unprecedented price growth [...]
In this entry I want to explore one of the more treacly, and in some instances controversial, practices in real estate. I’m referring, of course, to the good old letter to the seller from the hopeful buyer. These letters almost always are essentially the same (and I’ve read dozens of them). A nice couple gives a bit of background information about themselves and their jobs, rave about how much they love the house, and then conclude by saying how excited [...]
“The best fighter is never angry.” - Lao Tzu “Do or do not. There is no try.” - Yoda 2021 wasn’t kind on many levels, and that was particularly evident if you were attempting to buy real estate in the GTA. It often resembled a piece of meat being dropped into a loaded piranha tank, a frothing stew of blood and guts. That’s what happens when you put 10 people in a bar with only a single beer available. It [...]
Dearest Mr. Debt, You have been with me as long as I can remember. Even though my parents gave you the cold shoulder, let’s just consider it a generational diss. You will always have a special place in my heart. At first things were rocky between us. We were first introduced in my early twenties when I obtained my first credit card, to embark on a career playing online blackjack. Things turned out as badly as could have have been [...]
I always advise my buyer clients that purchasing a property isn’t easy. The reality is that it’s hard, damn hard. Imagine trying to hammer in a nail with a limp fettuccine noodle and multiply that by 100, and that’s how hard it can be. So when my wife and I personally entered the buyer pool earlier this year to find a cottage for our family, we did so with a mix of excitement and anxiety as we knew full well [...]
It’s Election time and the ridiculous political statements about “fixing” the housing market are flying. Politicians, and articles like this, always miss the point. 1) They always focus on the DEMAND side and not SUPPLY. Real estate is a free market, and when demand far outstrips supply prices rise dramatically. That’s Simple economics, like a kid with a lemonade stand. If a problem is perceived, the only solution is to increase supply. 2) There is nothing to fix. Toronto (and [...]
I am posting this blog on July 15th, in the year 2021, coming right at ya from my dining room table / office / virtual classroom. The date is relevant because tomorrow, July 16th, we will be entering Stage 3 in Ontario at long last. In the real estate world, social media has been ablaze with emotional and gushing posts from several agents about how they have been yearning to hold open houses again, and what a burden it has [...]
Can anybody really believe we are more than a year into this pandemic, and things seem worse than ever before? With another lockdown in effect, schools and restaurants closed yet again, and vaccines rolling out at a glacial pace things seem grim, real grim. Like Armie Hammer’s current career grim. There have been many daily rituals that have kept me going over the past year, one of which is making sure I laugh out loud a few times a day. [...]
If nothing else 2020 has been consistent. Much like warm beer, cold french fries and wet hockey equipment 2020 has been a consistent drag, providing humankind with repeated blows to the nether regions. 2020 has also been a huge bummer for celebrity deaths, taking beloved icons like Alex Trebek, Sean Connery, Eddie Van Halen and the dude who played Deebo in Friday. But what 2020 has ultimately proved unequivocally is that the Toronto real estate market remains an unstoppable force. [...]
Overheard recently at Starbucks. Exasperated Buyer (loser of 8 bidding wars): I’ve had it. My wife is 7 months pregnant and I am sick of spending every Saturday with you. I want to bid $1.8 on the semi on Prust Ave. Well Meaning (but increasingly desperate) Agent: You mean the one listed at $1.2, with the leaky basement and knob and tube?? Exasperated Buyer (loser of 8 bidding wars): Yep, that’s the one. Well Meaning (but increasingly desperate) Agent: Ok. [...]