Good morning everyone;
Just wanted to take a moment to announce the soft launch of our new website! www.agfineliving.com
Over the next few weeks we will be adding more content.
It has a fresh new look and feel and much more functionality (with even more to come!)
- Featured properties with Walk scores and virtual tours
- Tools (mortgage calculators) / Land Transfer Tax
- News Blog
- Neighbourhood Overview
- Find Your School Links
- Market News
- and more
Check it out and let us know what you think?
Upcoming Family Event! Please Join us at The Annual Junction Area Pumpkin Festival!
Want to be a realtor? – I’m always open to meeting with people to discuss my personal experience in helping people as a Real Estate Agent.
If you are thinking of possibly enrolling for your realtor’s license, I highly encourage it! It’s not all glitz and glamour and of course it takes much commitment and work as it would for any successful individual in any industry. Anyone that you consider to be successful in any industry most likely loves what they do!
Your resilience and perseverance will be tested but ultimately helping people will be truly rewarding and gratifying. Having the privilege of guiding people in their quest for their first/next home or investment (in good times and bad) is truly an honourable endeavour.
Some Insights to being a Real Estate Agent (Archived Article From 2008 but still valid in its message)
Why New Agents Sometimes Struggle
Think back to the last real estate agent you hired. Is your agent still in the business? Good agents stay in contact with past clients. Were you satisfied with your representation and the service provided? Odds are if your agent is still active in the real estate business — and you were happy with that agent — you probably had hired a real estate agent with experience.
The majority of comments I receive from prospects are complaints about their real estate agents — griping about lousy service and bad advice or agonizing over how to fire an agent, often a relative, without causing a family riff.
How Much Experience Should Agents Have?
Instead of asking how much experience an agent has, ask how many times the agent has renewed his or her real estate license.
In Ontario, for example, real estate licenses are issued for two years; During the first two year cycle the agent must complete; Mortgage Financing, Real Estate Law and Appraisal. The two year cycle continues with a requirement to take 24 credits per cycle with any real estate accredited course.
You have probably heard the adage that 10% of the agents do 90% of the business. That’s because top producing agents are consistent, and this consistency comes from experience. The minimum number of transactions many brokers expect an agent to complete per year averages out to about ten, which is almost one per month. Not a lot by a top-producer’s standards, but adequate in most real estate circles.
Why Do Real Estate Agents Quit?
The number one reason real estate agents leave the business is because they aren’t making enough money. The median salary for an agent in the Canada is less than $35,000 a year. Subtract from that figure normal business expenses and taxes, and let’s hope nobody is trying to feed a family of four on what’s leftover. In the Toronto real estate market there are currently 27,000 agents registered with 94,000 sales reported for the whole of 2008. That is an average of 3.4 transactions per agent.
Although experts advise new agents to keep six to 12 months of salary in reserves, few heed that advice. The business appears to be very easy to outsiders looking in, but real estate is complicated, time consuming and the average Joe or Jill are typically ill equipped to become a real estate agent. Unfortunately, many don’t find that out until they’ve weathered many months without a paycheck.
Here are some of the skills successful agents possess that help them to prosper in the real estate industry:
- Organizational
- Time management
- Communication
- Technology
- Patience to handle conflict resolutions
- Marketing expertise
- Self promotion
- Projection of an outgoing personality
- Website design, management and SEO optimization
- Internet Advertising
- The Benefits to Experience
An experienced agent is one whose mistakes are new. Successful agents learn something new every year; while lesser agents tend to repeat past mistakes. Top agents treat each client as though their business depends on the client’s success. Because it does!
Agents who are experienced:
- Offer solutions based on previous results
- Anticipate problems before they occur
- Enjoy solid reputations with other agents
- Have practiced strong negotiation techniques
- Refer time-tested vendors such as mortgage lenders, home inspectors, appraisers, general contractors, pest inspectors
- Understand the complexities of changing real estate markets
- Provide statistics and crucial market data to clients
- Professionally guide clients to smooth closings
Should You Hire a DNA Agent?
DNA (Do not ask) agents are relatives. As such, relatives are often careful not to offend each other. Agents who are related to you might not want to counter your opinions or ideas, even if it’s in your best interest to do so. You might not feel comfortable demanding what you deserve, as you would with an agent who was not family.
The bottom line is you might want to compare competitors, use tips to finding a real estate agent and interviewing a real estate agent, before making your final selection.
HST Can Possibly Apply to a Resale Home!
If you renovate and flip houses read on.
The rules relating to HST are complicated and there are a number of exceptions to the general rules. DID YOU KNOW? For example, a residential resale home may be subject to HST if it has been substantially renovated. The Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) addresses how much of the building has to be renovated to meet the definition. The definition of substantial renovation describes this as all or substantially all of the building that existed immediately before the renovation or alteration was begun.
Generally, all or substantially all is interpreted by the CRA as meaning 90% or more. To meet this requirement, at least 90% of the building that existed before the renovations began must be renovated to some minimum degree. This determination applies to the interior area of the building.
In a typical residential resale, HST would not apply (other than on commission and legal and other services). Caution should be exercised though as certain circumstances will extinguish the HST exemption. For instance, a residential resale could be subject to HST if the seller had claimed an input tax credit for renovations for an office space within the dwelling. That portion of the dwelling where the office is located may be subject to HST on a subsequent sale of the property. Other instances would include some sales of vacant land and farm sales.
Always consult a professional tax accountant to know how HST may affect your purchase or sale.
Have a wonderful weekend,
Anthony