Toronto Market Show Signs of Life for Spring Market
After a particularly slow start to the year, the Toronto market is starting to show signs of warming. Week over week listings have been increasing, bringing more inventory to market. More importantly the quality of homes for sale have been improving, providing buyers more value for their money.
We are seeing the most competition around the $1M price point as buyers tentatively make the move toward semi and detached homes. Buyers are looking for strong indicators that we’ve hit the bottom of the price drop and that the Bank of Canada is beginning to level off their rate hikes.
Pricing strategies are ever evolving, with many sellers moving away from the list low-expect high strategy that was so popular over the past 24 months. Homes grabbing the most attention and the best offers are professionally staged, photographed and backed by a solid marketing campaign.
Affordability, inflation and the rising cost of living should help keep the market in check in the near term. Many analysts point to the increase in interest rates being more material to people's ability to get into the market than the decrease in home value.
Fraudsters - What It Is, How It Works and How to Protect Yourself
Criminal creativity knows no bounds, with Toronto Real Estate recently becoming the target of a string of ever evolving scams. Over the past 18 months an estimated 30 homes have been sold without the owner’s knowledge.
This is commonly known as total title fraud, where scammers use fake ID to impersonate the homeowner and sell the property without the owner’s knowledge. The fraudster will often hire a legitimate real estate agent to represent them in the transaction, so from a buyers perspective everything appears to be on the up and up.
Once the home is sold and the deal closes, the deposit funds are directed to an account controlled by the fraudster, which is quickly emptied.
Real Estate fraud is nothing new, but with the recent move to a more virtual process it has become increasingly important to know who you are working with. As a homeowner, the most important thing to do is get title insurance. Many people who have lived in their current homes for a long time don’t have it and it can be obtained relatively cheaply for a one-time fee of $800 - $1200.
For buyers, beware of any deal that seems too good to be true. Homes being sold that are not listed on MLS should be the first red flag. Most importantly, know who you are working with, we regularly refer our clients to mortgage brokers and lawyers that we have worked with in the past and have an exceptional track record.
Fight To End Cancer
We’re thrilled to share that Scott has resumed his journey towards the ring and will be participating as a fighter in this year's Fight To End Cancer in support of Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation. Will be posting updates on our Facebook and Instagram, if you would like to lend your support more details can be found HERE.
We are seeing the most competition around the $1M price point as buyers tentatively make the move toward semi and detached homes. Buyers are looking for strong indicators that we’ve hit the bottom of the price drop and that the Bank of Canada is beginning to level off their rate hikes.
Pricing strategies are ever evolving, with many sellers moving away from the list low-expect high strategy that was so popular over the past 24 months. Homes grabbing the most attention and the best offers are professionally staged, photographed and backed by a solid marketing campaign.
Affordability, inflation and the rising cost of living should help keep the market in check in the near term. Many analysts point to the increase in interest rates being more material to people's ability to get into the market than the decrease in home value.
Fraudsters - What It Is, How It Works and How to Protect Yourself
Criminal creativity knows no bounds, with Toronto Real Estate recently becoming the target of a string of ever evolving scams. Over the past 18 months an estimated 30 homes have been sold without the owner’s knowledge.
This is commonly known as total title fraud, where scammers use fake ID to impersonate the homeowner and sell the property without the owner’s knowledge. The fraudster will often hire a legitimate real estate agent to represent them in the transaction, so from a buyers perspective everything appears to be on the up and up.
Once the home is sold and the deal closes, the deposit funds are directed to an account controlled by the fraudster, which is quickly emptied.
Real Estate fraud is nothing new, but with the recent move to a more virtual process it has become increasingly important to know who you are working with. As a homeowner, the most important thing to do is get title insurance. Many people who have lived in their current homes for a long time don’t have it and it can be obtained relatively cheaply for a one-time fee of $800 - $1200.
For buyers, beware of any deal that seems too good to be true. Homes being sold that are not listed on MLS should be the first red flag. Most importantly, know who you are working with, we regularly refer our clients to mortgage brokers and lawyers that we have worked with in the past and have an exceptional track record.
Fight To End Cancer
We’re thrilled to share that Scott has resumed his journey towards the ring and will be participating as a fighter in this year's Fight To End Cancer in support of Princess Margaret Cancer Foundation. Will be posting updates on our Facebook and Instagram, if you would like to lend your support more details can be found HERE.