Royal LePage - Your Community Realty, Independently Owned and Operated, (905) 731-2000
Jim Reid, Broker, (905) 731-2000
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INSIDE THIS ISSUE: |
MARKET FACTS: |
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1. Home Staging Ins & Outs 2. HOME INSPECTIONS - Part 2 3. MARKET REPORT 4. ECONOMIC REPORT |
1. GTA UNITS SALES DROP 47% IN JANUARY. 2. GTA AVG. PRICE SLIDES 9.4% IN JANUARY VS. AVERAGE FOR 2008. |
1. HOME STAGING INS & OUTS
"Can't we stage our home ourselves?" Of course you can! But you may not obtain the same results or effect that a professional will achieve.
You can often do much of the work yourselves to save some money, but it is unlikely you will do the total job they do. It is the small details that make the final impression, and the professional stager makes sure your house has all the props it needs to "WOW" the buyers.
When it comes to the thousands of dollars you can make with a professional home stager, don't be a penny pincher. It may cost you!
In my personal experience, my Vendors who staged their homes always got their staging costs back at least 2 or 3 times over. We also sold their home in less than half the time of the other homes for sale.
A key to a staged home is that right from the roadway to the basement, the purchasers can't find much to criticize. You have a "model home"!
Staging can involve many activities. The first step is for me to advise you on what must be done, what should be done and what could be done. I then give you an approximate estimate for each one and the affect they will have on your asking and selling prices.
Then the stager comes in and provides their recommendations and associated costs a few days later. You choose what you will do yourselves, and what trades you want, if any, and what the stager's team will do. They may pre-pack stuff, store stuff, bring in some rental furnishings, install some decorative items, relocate stuff, etc. etc.
Rental furnishings are based upon a one-month usage with about a 50% discount for a second month. After the house is sold, they remove the rentals. In my experience, more than half the cost of staging is for things that will stay with the property.
Of course, the main benefit of staging is that the house looks it's best. But, many Vendors don't realize it also provides more attractive photos for the Internet. A staged home attracts more purchasers.
Of course, costs can vary considerably. Most people invest around $2000, but I've had some under $1000 and some over $10,000. Also, it is not uncommon for my clients to have the stager set up their new home before they move in!
It usually takes one to three days to physically do the work. When it's all finished I sometimes even suggest a higher Listing price!
2. HOME INSPECTIONS - PART 2
Last month, we looked at Purchaser's Home Inspections. This month, we'll look at Buyer's Home Inspections.
Home Inspectors aren't licensed or controlled by government regulations. Some belong to associations or companies that provide fairly comprehensive binders filled with information about your particular property and other general maintenance information. There are some excellent ones, many good ones and a couple of shoddy ones.
I always recommend a Home Inspection, even on small condos. In the few instances an inspection wasn't carried out, or was done by a "mechanical" friend, leaky basements, electrical issues or furnace issues came back to haunt the buyer, the seller and me.
The role of the home inspector is often misunderstood. Most mechanical equipment and fixtures such as: dishwashers, fridges, stoves, washers, dryers, pool heaters/pumps/filters/ etc. that will be used by the Vendor up until the closing date are excluded. The Vendor must ensure they are "in good working condition" on the closing date or risk a miserable period of claims and counter claims and a possible lawsuit.
The primary role of a home inspector is to discover whether or not the home is safe and sound. He should also be able to determine how much wear and tear there is, and roughly when and how much it could cost to do imminent repairs.
"Hidden" structural issues and "hidden" maintenance issues uncovered by the inspector may lead to a negotiated price adjustment.
"Obvious" problems should have been dealt with during the initial price negotiations. An experienced realtor can often spot these "obvious" items for you. The Vendor should accept responsibility for correcting any "safety" issues uncovered during an inspection.
Jim has the names of several professional Home Inspection firms.
3. MARKET REPORT
GTA unit sales registered a 47% drop in January 2009 vs. January 2008.
The January average price was $343.6k, a drop of 13.8% since the prices peaked in April 2008. This is also a 9.4% decline from the 2008 average.
Central Richmond Hill listings increased 95% over last January, but unit sales plummeted 72% and the average price dropped 16% vs. a year ago.
The bottom line is that prices are already down to 2006 levels and inventories are surging upwards. In anticipation of even more price declines, half the normal number of buyers are staying out of the market
The January federal budget offered a pithy stimulus to the resale home market. A little increase in first-time-buyer RRSP conversions will have zero impact on the market. The home renovation tax credit is really not much, and most homeowners know that if they do make a tax claim they will likely get a visit from the government building permit officers and the property re-assessment guys.
For the individual homeowner who wants to move, there are definitely buyers willing to pay current market values, just fewer than in the past. As long as your property looks great, you can get it sold through a top realtor. Since there are fewer buyers in your price range, the sooner you list, the better the chances are for you to sell your property.
Since consumers are more fearful than ever of further economic decline, it may be a bumpy ride for the rest of this year.
4. ECONOMIC REPORT
The Federal Government's "economic stimulus" budget didn't even nudge the stock market towards the 9500 level anticipated in my December report. This budget also appears to be a massive sham!
The middle class has been told that the Feds and Provinces are spending about $100 billion more than they will collect over the next three years.
But not only is the money going to pay for more government, more risky loan guarantees, some long overdue repairs to government sewers, highways, bridges and buildings, but less than 5% is going to needy individuals and the middle classes. But guess who will be paying this $100 billion in three years?
Also, they will be spending $258.6 billion this year. About 90% of this will be passing through the very sticky hands of government mandarins, bureaucrats and civil servants. Perhaps we should all be lining up for government jobs and juicy consulting contracts?
What is really shameful is the pittance being provided for the poor, seniors, single moms, the unemployed and indigenous peoples. The actual dollars reaching them personally will be insignificant.
The Minister of Revenue raised your tax-free income by $750. What do you think about this savings of $112.50 on your 2009 taxes?
People making $75,769 this year will pay $15,070 tax, ie. $199, (1.4%), less tax than the 2008 tax rates. Will this really stimulate your spending?
Of course, the media pundits are throwing huge numbers around with such a spin on them that we are all nauseas and ready to vomit! Can't anyone else see that this plan was written by government agencies who think the public owes them a safe, secure and prosperous lifestyle?
Our politicians have become their whipping boys! Clearly, "Common Sense" is not a politically correct term in Ottawa!
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