Frank Steinhausen, Broker
FSteinhausen@REMAX.net
RE/MAX Rouge River Realty Ltd., Brokerage
Phone 905-428-6533
Fax 905-668-1850
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Archive for February, 2012
Global Economy and how it effects GTA resale Housing Market
February 27th, 2012 Categories: Real Estate News
The outlook for the global economy has changed since the beginning of 2011. Watch the latest Market According to Mercer video in the Learning Centre to find out what it all means for the GTA resale housing market. Jason Mercer presents his most recent outlook considering home sales, prices, interest rates, income and more.
http://communications3.torontomls.net/video/index.htm
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GTA REALTORS® Report Mid-Month Resale Housing Market
February 18th, 2012 Categories: Real Estate News
Greater Toronto REALTORS® reported 3,206 sales through the
TorontoMLS® system through the first 14 days of February 2012 up by more than nine per cent
compared to the 2,933 sales reported during the same period in 2011. New listings were up by 13 per
cent over the same period.
The GTA resale home market became better supplied during the first 14 days of February. If growth in
new listings continues to outstrip growth in sales this year, competition between home buyers will ease.
More balanced market conditions on a sustained basis would result in a lower annual rates of price
growth later in 2012,’ said Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) President Richard Silver.
The average selling price during the first 14 days of February was $491,493 up by nine per cent
compared to the first 14 days of February 2011. On average, sellers received 99 per cent of their asking
price and their homes were on the market for an average of 25 days.
Both buyers and sellers are aware of the substantial competition that exists for most listings in the GTA.
There is not a mismatch in expectations, so homes sell quickly at close to the asking price,’ said Jason
Mercer, TREB’s Senior Manager of Market Analysis.
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First-Time buyers Tips
February 17th, 2012 Categories: Real Estate News
If you are a first-time homebuyer, you may be entitled to certain benefits under the RRSP Home Buyers’ Plan and the First-time Homebuyers’Tax Credit Program.
These benefits are also available if you have previously owned a home but have sold it, and have not owned a home for the previous four (4) years and do not own a home at the present time.
a. First-time Home Buyers’ Tax Credit
If you are a qualifying first-time home buyer, there is a federal credit of $750.00 you can claim against your personal income tax in the year you acquire a home.In order to qualify, neither you nor your spouse or common-law partner (who is defined as an individual cohabiting with you in a conjugal relationship for a continuous period of at least one year, or if they are the parent of a child born as a result of the relationship with you) must not have owned a home in the year of purchase or in the immediate prior four (4) years prior to the year of purchase. You must be purchasing the home for your own and your spouse/common-law partner’s personal occupancy, with that occupancy taking place within one (1) year from the Closing Date.
The tax credit can be claimed by one party, or else be shared between parties to a total maximum of $750.
b. RRSP Home Buyers’ Plan
As a buyer, under this plan you can withdraw a maximum of $25,000 from your RRSP in order to buy a qualifying home in which you will live. Additionally your spouse or or common-law partner can also withdraw a maximum of $25,000 from his or her RRSP to apply towards the purchase of the same property.
A withdrawal for this purpose does not result in tax being withheld from the monies withdrawn from an RRSP. To be entitled to exercise this option you and/or your spouse/common-law partner cannot have owned a home in the four (4) years prior to the year that you purchase the home. You must occupy the home within one (1) year of withdrawing the monies from your RRSP.
These RRSP monies must be repaid over a maximum period of fifteen (15) years from the date you withdraw them, commencing in the second year following that withdrawal date. The prepayment amount must be a minimum of 1/15th of the amount you withdraw; however, no interest is payable on the RRSP funds withdrawn.. The amount repaid can be made in each calendar year or within 60 days after the end of the year,i.e. February 28, which is the same timeframe as that for making an RRSP contribution. Of course, the amount you are liable to repay is not deductible from your income for that year. However, if you do not make the minimum required repayment in any year, that amount will be included in your income for that year.
As an alternative strategy to the RRSP/Home Buyer’s Plan option, you can instead use a tax-free savings account (TFSA). The TFSA program allows a maximum $5,000 yearly contribution to be made into a tax-free account; although the money contributed is not tax-deductible, it can be used to earn tax-free investment income and the funds can be withdrawn from the account without tax liability. Since the program’s inception, if you have maximized your contribution each year, you would now have $20,000 in the TFSA which could be used towards a down payment.
There are various stipulations in connection with the use of a TFSA (such as a minimum age of 18), but there is a broad array of investment options such as mutual funds, individual stocks, Guaranteed Investment Certificates and bonds.
A third alternative is to combine the funds from your RRSP and your TFSA; this is yet another very favourable option if you want to have a larger down payment when purchasing a home and you wish to minimize both the tax consequences and the amount you will have to borrow in the form of a mortgage.
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CMHC: Same old same old … market for investors
February 17th, 2012 Categories: Real Estate News
This year and next may be deja vu all over again for property investors looking to buy or sell, with CMHC predicting the national market will see the same kind of restrained growth it experienced in 2011, and not the correction many had feared.
With the Canadian economy set to expand at a moderate pace and mortgage rates expected to remain low,” said Mathieu Laberge, an economist with the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation, activity levels in 2012 in both new home construction and sales of existing homes will stay close to levels seen in 2011.’
The first quarter 2012 Housing Market Outlook, released Monday, predicts much the same kind of performance for 2013.
This year’s housing starts should range from 164,000 to 212,700 units, according to the report, also offering a point forecast of 190,000 units.
That should climb only marginally in 2013, as the global economy deepens its recovery and builder housing starts edge up to a forecast 193,800 units.
That activity won’t necessarily help investors who this year have had their acquisition ambitions stymied by a dearth of inventory in several key markets. Small multifamily properties have been hardest to come by.
Still, CMHC is predicting that existing home sales will be in the range of 406,000 to 504,500 units for 2012, with next year’s coming in at 417,600 to 517,400 units.
Price growth is likely to show less restraint.
The average MLS price is forecast to be between $330,000 and $410,000 in 2012 and between $335,000 and $430,000 in 2013.
The moderate increases in the average MLS price are consistent with the balanced market conditions that occurred in 2011, and that are expected to continue in 2012 and 2013,’ reads the report.
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Canada’ home sales drop most since 2010
February 15th, 2012 Categories: Real Estate News
OTTAWA Homes sales declined at the start of 2012, while prices rose at the slowest pace in a year, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association.
Sales were down 4.5% in January from the previous months, the industry group said Wednesday, adding that the number of newly listed homes edged down 1.4% for the month
This marks the first monthly decline in national activity since August 2011 and the biggest monthly decline since July 2010,’ CREA said. The monthly decline reversed a string of monthly increases over the closing months of last year, and returned national activity to where it stood at the end of the third quarter of 2011.
The national average home price was up less than 2% year-over-year in January, ranking it among the smallest increases of the past year.’
January’s sales declines were led by Greater Toronto and Montreal, as well as a softening in other major centres like the Fraser Valley in B.C., Calgary, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Ottawa, and Greater Vancouver.
Still, unadjusted sales last month were up 4% from January 2011 and were even with the five-and-10-year averages for January sales, it said.
The national housing market is stabilizing and remains well balanced,’ said CREA president Gary Morse. That said, forecasts for economic and job growth going forward vary widely for different parts of the country, suggesting a possible continuation of a softening trend in some markets, as well as the potential that demand will pick up based on strong fundamentals in others.’
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Did you know?
February 13th, 2012 Categories: Real Estate News
That of all one-person households in Canada that own their home and do not have a mortgage, 63% are women and 37% are men?
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Kitchens Sell a Home
February 10th, 2012 Categories: Real Estate News
It’s a tool used by house flippers all across the nation. Stagers know its power. Real estate agents push its importance. What is this not-so-well-kept secret of real estate? A kitchen can sell a house.
A kitchen is the heart of a home. This is true all across the globe. The old saying that the “stomach is the way to the heart” carries a lot of truth. Kitchens are where we spend much of our time and most of that is with our families. It’s the room where we nourish our bodies and our spirits.
Kitchens are integral to entertaining and in today’s age of open floor plans, they’re a focal piece of many family rooms. It’s because of this that kitchens play such an important role in the buying and selling process.
This one room is the showpiece of the house. You’ll see it every day and your guests will see it during most visits. This means buyers want homes with up-to-date kitchens.
Kitchens, however, can be one of the most expensive rooms to renovate. These projects can also be the most labor and time intensive of all home renovations. It’s not just a new layer of paint.
Instead you find a complicated array of flooring, tiling, cabinets, and counters. This means buyers may want a home with an up-to-date kitchen but they aren’t willing to tackle this problem themselves. Most buyers want a kitchen that is ready to use the day they move in.
What do buyers look for in up-to-date kitchens? A lot of this depends on what price range your home is in.
The main thing to remember as a seller is to not price yourself out of your market. If homes in your neighborhood are selling for $400,000 with tidy, but not luxury kitchens, then this is no time to upgrade to granite, travertine, and marble at the price tag of $40,000+. You simply won’t find a buyer.
Scope out the competition. Use open houses in your area or MLS listings to find out what your competitions’ kitchens look like.
Do area homes have new solid wood cabinets and granite counters in today’s designer colors? You’ll be wise to consider making the same move. Are they including new stainless steel appliances and add-ons like dishwashers, wine-coolers, and trash compactors?
Are you in a higher-end neighborhood? It’s time to think high-end. Your older home may have a highly functional kitchen, but a buyer will take one look at your formica counters and white appliances and become lost in the stress of how much money and time it would take to remodel. If you don’t want to put in the time yourself to make upgrades then you’ll have to make concessions in the price.
Don’t become overwhelmed, though. Sometimes a kitchen update can mean doing just a few minor changes. Change the paint color to a warm, neutral tone. Get rid of any clutter. Update your appliances, paint your cabinets, change the pulls, or get a high-end looking counter for a fraction of the cost (faux-granite or lower end granite). You might even save a bundle by doing much of the work yourself.
The bottom line is a kitchen can sell a home. Do a little research and find out what your kitchen needs to make it competitive with area listings.
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