The Duke Pod: Real Estate Stories

How to Add 15-$100,000 in value before listing your home with minimal spending!

Hello,

 

In this real estate episode about a house we sold in Brampton, Ontario, we convinced the clients to improve their home before listing.  They are a typical family with 2 young children, and although the house was actually not chaotic, it needed a few touches so they could get top market value.  

 

The walls were red and orange, lots of hand marks and so on.  A fresh coat of paint, changing the walls to neutral off White was in order.  The painting quote was $2600.

 

Also the home had 9 Foot ceilings and all old builder grade lights.  Those do not go hand and hand.  We told them if they bought and installed new modern, yet not expensive lighting, this would make the home look more luxurious, rich and a cut above other similar homes.  Purchasing and installation were about $1000.

 

Staging:  The whole main floor was staged, as the vendor has minimal furniture.  The furniture that they did have was old and badly scratched.  We moved some of the furniture they wanted to keep into the garage, throughout the rest and staged the whole main floor.  This fee cost about $2500 but it was included in the commission package.

 

We also cleaned the home with cleaners, just before professional photos/video.  Go ahead and check out how all these changes made a huge difference in getting a lot of buyers into the home and generate so much interest.

 

Youtube: 8 Maddybeth cres Brampton to see the finished results.

 

It was listed for $1,099,000 with other similar homes selling for about 1.5 Million ($1,150,000) and we received 5 offers.  Since this is a seller's market, property presenting the home was a difference of almost $90,000 dollars!   It sold for $1,220,000!  

All that hard work to get the home ready was definitely worth it with some very happy sellers

 

 

The Stress test increasing June 1st. How this change works and could affect the market for both buyers and sellers!

Hello,  welcome to the new proposed, 95% chance it's happening, Mortgage stress test which could and probably will affect the rest of the 2021 Real Estate market in some way, shape or form!

No, this is not an April fools joke, however, early in April, it was announced that the mortgage stress test will increase from 4.79% to 5.25% effective June 1st 2021.  Essentially this means every buyer will have 5% less borrowing power from June 1st and on.  There may some exceptions if you already have a firm approval that is dated pasted June 1st, then maybe you will have a little extra time to lock in the higher purchase power.

This announcement is an attempt to slow down the very hot real estate market in Ontario, however, it may most likely affect first time home buyers the most, even though the stress test is normal for all mortgages today.  When the stress test was introduced in 2017, it did actually change the market, eventually.  2018 and 2019 were known as more neutral markets.   Although it did slow down the market, at first there was a  flurry of activity for buyers and sellers to get their deals done as soon as possible, and get their purchases done before the changes.   Then when it was in effect, the market slowed down and It took until the end of 2019, basically 2 years later for the market to finally get back to a seller's market, where we currently still stand.

 

What does this mean: For buyers.

 

You still have until June 1st to purchase a home with the current lower stress test.  Essentially you have until June 1st to use your additional 5% of mortgage allowance from lenders.  After that you will have 5% less, you may have to settle on a lesser home or lesser market if you got priced out. Think of being approved for $25,000-$50,000 less.

 

Alternatively, if you wait until after June 1st, let's say the middle of the summer, there is historical evidence that the market may slow down because of this, and the market will be less competitive, which includes more homes to choose from.  We shall see if that happens again.

 

For Sellers:  You will have more buyers with deeper pockets until June 1st, meaning sell now.  If you do not care then you can also benefit from that potentially softened market when buying in the summer and coming months.  

One very important point for SELLERS.  There is a hypothetical chance that you have until June 1st to sell for maximum market value when buyers have deeper pockets, and then post June 1st, buy something in a softened, less competitive market.   

 

So how many of you want to sell high and buy low?  It may be possible if you act quickly!

Enjoy.

info@dukerealtyhomes.com

dukerealtyhomes.com

Why did the Canadian Real Estate market appreciate 16.5% during the Covid Pandemic?

Remember the year 2013?  

Nelson Mandela passed away, Boston Marathon bombings, and Rob Ford admiting to smoking crack to refresh your memories.  Also, home prices dropped 3-4.5% in the Greater Toronto and Vancouver areas.  People started to panic and many heads used the terms market crash and housing bubble.  Since then home prices have doubled and tripled! 

 

During the Covid Pandemic, home prices climbed another 16.5% nationally in Canada and ranged in towns and cities from 5%- 40% appreciation!  In this episode, we example the factors why the prices climbed so heavily and demand was never higher.

 

We also give our 2 cents for what may happen post-pandemic as well as our advice for first time home buyers and want to be investors. 

Enjoy!

Why the condo market could increase by 20% in the GTA

Hi Eveyone,

 

So many people I know have moved out of the city and into one of the smaller towns due to covid and working at home.  Smaller cities have really picked up in popularity as well as price.  That also means that condos in the downtown core have not been in demand for a while, this may finally be changing.

 

With the real estate market exploding and many freehold homes up 30% from the beginning of 2020, homes have become unaffordable for many people.  In addition to that concept, many buyers are now priced out of their preferred types of homes and area.  

 

That just leaves the condo market.  By default, buyers are now looking at condos as the next alternative to affordable living.  Freehold homes are 2.5X more expensive than condos at this time.  Historically that number has only been 2x.  This means that 2021 could be the year of the condo and if supply and demand collide, there is a 20-24% appreciation growth opportunity for condos.  If that ends up being true then everyone should go out and buy a condo as soon as they can, whether they are a first time home buyer, investor or in the game for a while.   Any $500,000 condo could be $600,000+ be sometime in 2022.  Do not get left behind.

The Rat Race. A Book Review of Rich dad Poor dad. Legendary literature on personal finances and how you can become wealthy!

Hello Everyone.

 

Robert Kiyosaki wrote a very famous book on personal finance called, Rich dad Poor dad.  He had two fathers that gave him complete different advice.  One of them used that advice to become very wealthy and the other became poor.

 

This is a unique episode which we dive deep into this book I just read, we used examples to discuss the Rat race and how to acquire assets in real estate that will make you money, in the long term and in cash flow.   The rat race is a concept that your assets provide you with enough cash to cover your overall expenses.   If your monthly expenses are $3000, then you need enough assets to gain you $3000 a month in cash flow.  If you accomplish this you are weathly. It takes a lot of time so it's a race to accomplish this before you need to retire!

 

There are many, many people that have accomplished this and it takes A LOT of time, A LOT of hard work, A LOT of Education and A LOT of dedication.  I am going to give you guys some examples of how I gained a few assets and go over tips and suggestions on how to acquire real estate, what to do with it and how to acquire more over time.  

 

We also review Robert's 10 tips on how to get started

1. Find your Spirit (I call this finding your why)

2. Make Sound daily choices, educate yourself!

3. Master skills and then master others

4. Pay yourself first

5. Choice your friends carefully

6. Pay your Trades well

7. Get something for nothing 

8. Use Assets to buy luxuries 

9. Choose a hero

10.  Teacher others

 

Always remember: Fortune favours the bold!

We be talking about lighting!

Hi Everyone.

 

All of a sudden I feel like 10 Million dollars.  I would have said a million but with inflation, a million just does not seem like a lot anymore.  I just finished the David Goggins 4x4x48 Challenge which was March 5-7th, so it ended yesterday!  I ran 4 miles (6.5km) every 4 hours, including 4 am for 48 hours.  Overcoming this gruelling, difficult endurance test was incredible.   However, this is a real estate podcast, and while I was posting on social each run I finished, I also sold 2 homes by the time I ran my last mile Sunday evening!

In this episode, we take you through a townhouse in Mississauga yesterday.  The fact that we received a few offers and the home was sold for way more then the client's expectations tells nothing about what happened behind the scenes.  We had to do a lot of get it ready, such as tell the clients how to declutter, staging, cleaning and so on.  A lot of prep work went behind the scenes.

The lovely clients have 2 kids under 3, I have 2 under 4, so I know how it is to live like that.  Its a blessing but the house was a mess, clothes everywhere, so many extra items and so on.  One major, yet subtle change we suggested revolved around the lighting.  The house had a lot of old, builder-grade lights.  They made it look dated, while the home overall was nice.  By swapping a few out for Costco priced chandeliers, maybe $100 each, giving the house a better, brighter and illuminating feel.  It gave the home a flavour of elegance and in my opinion, helped make them a few thousand more at a fraction of their investment cost of those lights.  The home definitely looked amazing in the photos and video.  Find out more and how you should organize your home's lighting to make the home also look like 10 million dollars.

 

Here is a link to my website for the home we are discussing, including the video and some pictures.

 

https://dukerealtyhomes.com/property/37-35-ceremonial-dr-mississauga-for-sale-a-lovely-3-bed-4-baths-in-prime-location-by-huro-eglinton/

 

Enjoy!

75Hard and 3 instances a client purchased a home without looking at it!

Greetings friends,

This is my 8th day on the 75Hard program and my body, mind and soul are all feeling it.  Beat down like a coal miner working 16 hours shifts, I carry on, aiming for 75 straight days of gruelling, disciplined, good choices to make me the best version of myself.  It may also the best Covid Medicine out there, sort of.  What is 75 Hard? Let us talk about it briefly here!  It may blow your mind.

 

After that, we discuss how a client of mine purchased a home without looking at it, last week.  What is the ramification of doing something like that, how does that even happen, is it crazy or just nuts!?  I will tell you my thoughts from this experience and 2 other similar instances that have happened so far in my career.  The results may surprise you.  Tune in for some fun conversation and real estate stories!

With Milton's #1 Agent for 11 years in a row: Amy Flowers! Discussing building a successful team, how to maneuver in the current market and real estate innovations!

Greetings friends,

This week we had the honour to host special guest Amy Flowers​ from Milton's own Amy Flowers team who took some time in her business schedule to discuss some real estate!  

We had the pleasure of asking her about her Team along with tips on managing a real estate team as big as hers, and perhaps as small as yours!  One of her philosophies that has to lead to great success is having more admit staff than actually real estate agents!

Shifting into today's events, we discuss the current Real estate Seller's market.  We ask her is it the RIGHT time to sell?  What are some tips for buyers if they want to enter the market this year and where will this crazy market go?

Amy shares some innovation of how her team is battling Covid concerns. They are helping sellers with a place to go when there are seemingly hundreds of visitors at their house daily, the LOFT.

Finally, we discuss her insight into the best way to treat your real estate career, which is to treat it like a business!  She also provides some great advice on how a new agent can make it in this dog eat dog business!

Thank you, Amy, for coming on the show.

Enjoy the episode!

Joleen Constantis from Volumes of space joins us to discuss modern trends and what to know in the world of interior design,

Greetings 

This week we are joined by Joleen Constantis the owner of a very successful interior design company called Volumes of space. Check out their company and team on Instagram and on her website, volumesofspace.com!

In this episode we discuss

1.  What is volumes of space and what services they provide for interior and exterior Design

2. Her team design team

3. Her construction team along with recommending contractors that will make sure your renovation is done right as well as by code!

4. How to work well with other trades professionals.

5. What you didn't know: Designers know how to draw designs and to work with permits

6. Which renovations need permits and more!

7.  Which Colors to use to sell.  What colours they like in 2021!

8. Renovation trends for 2021.  These include

- Urgent need for home office space instead of rooms,

- Home gyms 

- Basement dwellings for homes with multifamilies. 

9. Designs that are common and which ones are not that designers would love to work on!

10. How to handle any budget for a project.

11.  When should you actually hire an interior designer for your renovation

12. Some fun stories and tips!

As always, stay tuned for the bloopers, this time for some behind the scene stuff!

Amazing Tenant Acquisition and Property management tips with Mike Penny from GMP Properties!

Greetings,

 

Mike Penny, a great colleague, friend and professional with GMP Properties made some time to come on the show and provide us wonderful property management tips as well as step by step instructions on how to best acquire a wonderful tenant.   We also go deep in the world of property management providing valuable advice for people who own rentals or want to own an investment property in the future.  

 

In this episode we discuss 

- GMP Properties: Their history and their company 

- How to Aquire the best tenant you can

- The 4 steps to successful Tenant Screening 

- How to advertise a unit for rent and where

- What do to when a tenant does not pay rent

- How to properly evict a tenant and how long can it take

- What to keep in mind with your properties in the long run

- Some insight into managing properties during the pandemic. 

- Advice for landlords

- Some great stories for everyone!

- And more!

Stay tuned to the end for a couple Bloopers!