The Risks and Rewards of Homeownership. Homeownership is a big decision - one that comes with both risks and rewards. Risks include the possibility of your home depreciating in value, having difficulty selling it when you need or want to, or being forced to move if you can't afford the mortgage payments or property taxes. Rewards can include building equity, getting tax breaks, and having a place to call your own. The bottom line is that you need to carefully consider both the risks and rewards of homeownership before making the decision to buy a home. Weighing your options and understanding all of the potential outcomes is the best way to ensure that you make the right choice for yourself and your family. The financial commitment. One of the potential risks of buying a house is the strain it can put on your finances. Putting together a down payment for a home is no small task. Buying a house also usually means borrowing money in the form of a mortgage. Between the high upfront costs and the monthly mortgage payments, owning a home takes a significant amount of money. The purchase price is not the only thing to factor in when it comes to figuring out if you should buy a house. There are monthly payments, in addition to your usual mortgage payment, such as maintenance costs, homeowners insurance, title insurance, and property taxes. And don't forget one-time costs like closing costs once you secure a home. Whether you're dealing with an expensive house or not, the money you have tied up in your home is money that you cannot use for other investments. While other investment opportunities are not as safe in the long term, it will take years to be able to take out a good amount of money from a home equity loan, for example. Using your house's equity. After taking a property off the housing market, your home's equity can be used to spend more money than you would have on hand through home equity loans and home equity lines of credit. While you want to be careful about how much you house your home equity line of credit, since it uses your house to secure the loan, you can use the credit to make updates to the home or finance other projects. Home prices being what they are lately, it makes financial sense to use property values to your advantage. Once you build equity in your home by paying your mortgage regularly, you have more financial flexibility and can leverage the home purchase you made years prior to deal with things like renovations. Buying a money pit. Buying a home without a home inspection can be a massive mistake. Because of the recent housing crisis, some buyers have had to compromise a lot on their home buying journey. It got to the point where having a good investment in that market could have been something that makes little sense otherwise. Foregoing a home inspection means you're buying the property "as is." You're not getting a warranty for anything that might be wrong with the home - and there could be plenty of things wrong with it. If you find out after closing that the home has serious structural damage, you will have to spend even more money to repair it. This is just one example of the many ways in which buying a home without a home inspection can come back to bite you. These hidden costs of home-ownership can put a big damper on your enjoyment of the home if it's your primary residence or your ability to generate cash flow by renting the place out. If you intended to get some passive income to help pay off the mortgage interest then it could be an uphill battle before it all pays off. Passive income. If you buy a home, it might make more sense to turn it into a rental so that you can benefit from the rental income while paying off your monthly payments and building equity in the property. After taking care of mortgage basics, factoring in the interest rates, tax benefits and capital gains taxes, you may find that in the buying versus renting debate, you find yourself in a special position. Though difficult to pull off, you could buy a home and split it off into separate rental properties to establish a cash flow that fast tracks you toward your next house. If your mortgage terms allow it, you can also pay your mortgage faster, gaining more equity in the home faster than if you were living in it. There are low upfront costs when it comes to turning the investment property you bought into an Airbnb relative to the profit but these can easily be recouped if your home sits in a desirable area for tourists or young professionals. You might have to take out the trash on your way back home or hire someone to take care of that though. Being tied to one location. If your home is in an area that declines over time - increasing crime rates, neighbours that bring down home values through strange renovations, the construction of a factory upwind from your home, etc - or find that the housing market itself is starting to collapse, then you might be in a disadvantageous position. The issue with buying a house is that you're going to be stuck to that location for a while. Between the money invested and the cost of moving somewhere new, your budget is going to find itself squeezed like an orange on a Saturday morning - if you can still afford fresh orange juice. There's a reason why many investors buy up homes when the stock market takes a downturn since a house's value is something that is generally safe and less 'liquid', meaning it can't be turned into free-flowing cash easily. Still, if you were planning on selling or moving into a better neighbourhood, selling might mean taking on a loss instead of a profit. This is why it's a good idea to research the neighbourhood and its future before buying a home.   View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

Home Decoration Theme Ideas To Let Your Quirks Shine. Just because more people keep their homes as conventional pieces of architecture doesn't mean that you have to. If it's your forever home, you should be able to make it look like what you want. Home decor ideas often focus on colour schemes and the right pillow covers that fall in line with current trends. However, if you're trying to break free of neutral colours and traditional living space layouts, here's what you can experiment with and take into account. Can you really do anything you want? Here come the three dreaded letters: HOA. Homeowners Associations are sometimes required when you move into a new neighbourhood and have some strict requirements when it comes to what is and isn't allowed with the exterior facet of your home. They can't tell you what to do with your interior design, however. Fighting with an HOA is often a painful and possibly costly affair. It's a very popular idea to 'take on the HOA' and it usually means fighting back against people abusing their power but, some HOAs are actually beneficial for your neighbourhood as a whole. Living in a historic building also comes with restrictions that seek to preserve the historic value of the home. You would also need to get a permit before renovations, even when it comes to the interior design of your home. If you're free of these constraints though, it's all up to you to express your personal style. Some key things to remember. While you're free to do what you want with your interior design, you still need to abide by some security practices to make sure that you live long enough to enjoy your home. There is a lot of value and style in nuance. There's also a big difference between garish and quirky. Common interior design tips and tricks are still applicable. If you intend to sell the home in the future, then remember that mint green kitchen cabinets are easy to 'fix' but adding a rope installation on the side of your home to make it look like a shape is not. The people who will buy that home will either buy it at a very low price or you will have found some new best friends who have the same expressive style as you. A floor lamp is easier to pack up but wood panelling painted to reflect scenes from your favourite movie can be a hard sell. Logistical concerns. It's easier to get completely lost for ten minutes and then find your way back to something more realistic when it comes to outlandish interior design ideas. Let's take a jungle or natural theme for example; adding a great number of plants or turning parts of a room into a little indoor garden sounds like a nice idea at first but you need to consider all the things that will need to be done in the long run to keep that idea looking as beautiful as the first day. If you have exposed wooden beams in a very humid room, like what you would have if you were to invest in an indoor garden, then you need to have a well-managed routine aimed at making sure that those beams are healthy and will last a long while. Humidity makes it easier for an intricate light fixture to grow mould in its crevices as well. When it comes to the layout of your house, can you let that indoor garden close to the kitchen? It makes it easy for the dirt from the garden as well as possible insects to get into the kitchen and contaminate your cooking or food storage areas. Style on a sliding scale. Maybe you don't want an actual tree growing through your dining room table or an entire room where, aside from a narrow pathway, the room is covered in dirt. There's nothing wrong with a large living room sofa and a TV after all. Essentially, you need to decide just how saturated your style is going to be. Instead of adding thick ropes and encasing the bottom of a massive aquarium in driftwood, you could pick up blue roman shades or other kinds of window treatments, and fill up the drab space on empty walls with paintings or a few key pieces that are reminiscent of the ocean. The sliding scale exists in a few forms but the easiest way to visualize it is when you go from obvious to understated. A console table made entirely out of wood reclaimed from old ships, sculptures of mermaids made from driftwood, turquoise accents in curtains or other fabrics can go a long way. If you want to add visual interest to a small room, there's no need to cram it with imagery. Work with colour. If you want to create a cohesive whole for your home's interior design, you don't actually need to be an interior designer. From the entrance hall to the powder room, you want to create a mood using colours throughout the home. Look at examples online of colour families and complementary colours - remember, it's not cheating to look things up online and take inspiration. If we're sticking with our nautical theme then your hardwood floors are already perfect the way they are. If a fresh coat of paint on your walls doesn't do enough to mask your empty wall space then you can add small accents of colour here. When it comes to big surfaces it's unwise to stay in the middle ground; either go all out with a mural full of bright colours or go with a simple pattern. Since we're thinking about ways to break from tradition and the norm here, paint is an inexpensive way to experiment, not to mention that it is relatively easy to revert back to something more subdued. It's also important not to let elements of the room get lost in each other. This is why you want dining chairs and a dining table as a set that doesn't blend in with the floor or the walls. Throw pillows are a good example of how to add splashes of colour with low risk as well. A patterned brown and green area rug can do wonders to accentuate an earthy theme, it helps bring the whole room together and area rugs in general help provide a lot of focus for defining points of interest. Define focal points. One of the key things that make a space feel put together is the presence of a clear focal point. If you're feeling the pulling toward a certain theme then you probably have an item that embodies that theme already in your home. A focal point is meant to draw the eyes of anyone within a room toward it - it doesn't matter if you're working with a small space or a big open-plan living room. It could be a coffee table on which a model plane rests or an accent wall adorned with picture frames in the empty spaces drawn by the branches and leaves of a painted tree like a gallery wall. Maybe it's an end table where a drawer pulls out to reveal a stack of old photo albums that tell your family's history. The idea is to create an ambiance in every room from the moment someone walks through the front door. They don't all have to be paintings or mirrors or incredibly fancy or old, these items serve double duty as both decoration and guides throughout your home. Try to weave stories using them, create a narrative supported by the rest of the room but that exists because of the item serving as a focal point. If that's suitable, use them to draw attention to high ceilings which can make any room appear much bigger. Experiment! It's your home, if you have a big effusive love for something, make it as evident as you want it to be. There are ways to be tasteful and have a beautiful home all while following what makes your heart sing. A home library that takes over the whole house, why not? Family photos from different eras with rooms that add interest to specific little factoids? Very classy, tough to pull off, but very classy. As long as you and your family feel at home and not like you're all walking through a museum or an exhibit room in a theme park, you're sure to win over the hearts of the people exploring your home. View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

What's The Smartest Move When The Housing Bubble Bursts? The housing bubble burst will have the effect of a tidal wave on the Canadian housing market. Are you prepared for what that means? There's a Canadian real estate bubble? Depending on when this goes live, it's either just burst or it's still going on. But first, let's look at what a bubble is in this case. Basically, a bubble happens when price appreciation goes off the rails and starts to fly. Much like a real soap bubble, the prices go up and up and like every bubble, eventually burst and reduce prices significantly. For the last couple of years, there has been a housing crisis that saw buying power collapse and runaway price acceleration. The housing crisis saw housing prices rise and rise, the upward pressure raising prices out of many people's financial reach. Neither rising interest rates nor low-interest rates seem to be able to keep up with home prices that somehow kept getting sold. It affected most facets of the real estate market, including the luxury market. The one market that seemed to escape the trend was the rental market in specific locations. What caused the bubble to form? Population growth outpaced new developments, but that's just one part of the problem. Housing demand in the Canadian economy inflated prices because home buyers were faced with a seller's market. A seller's market is one where the sellers have the upper hand at the negotiating table. Think of them like tiny, short-lived housing bubbles. In these markets, rising prices for the same house are not uncommon as the areas where those seller's markets are located are in high demand. However, there is something else that drives price increases and in the case of the residential real estate bubble in Canada, the issue was limited supply. The real estate industry keeps turning when homes are sold between people but when land development is all but halted and building materials are stuck abroad, it creates a barrier that limits how many houses there are. It's no secret that, like the rest of the world, Canada dealt with the COVID-19 pandemic. International trade slowed down and despite strong demand for new construction materials to build houses, everything but demand was delayed. As harbours reopen and the world returns to its interconnected state in the near future, we are likely to see an uptick in supply. But the damage might have already been done. The pandemic has not hit everyone equally and in the months following the reopening of the country, we may see a period of economic recovery and economic growth accompanied by a drop in house prices. Are there similarities with the 2008 financial crisis? Don't panic, the situations are not the same though there are some similarities. The good news is that, while it was hit with a recession as well, Canada weathered the storm relatively well. Still, it's a good thing to learn about the crisis' effect on housing. This is a huge oversimplification but the previous crisis was caused by what is infamously now known as subprime loans. Those were loans given to people with low credit scores, and they had very high interest rates. To cut a long, and very complicated story short, it was a story of runaway greed. Part of it had to do with expanding access to mortgages even to people who were probably not going to be able to pay them back. Part of it had to do with uncertainty with the stock market that led to investors buying up houses and driving housing prices upward. Once investors sold, property prices plummeted and mortgage-backed securities lost almost all value. Subprime borrowers found themselves unable to make their mortgage payments because of the high-interest rates of these loans which meant that they were going to lose their homes with nothing to show for it. It was a spiralling feedback loop of extreme greed. Is the same thing going to happen to Canada? No, as we've said before our financial system managed to tackle the financial crisis much better than our neighbours down south. That and the housing crisis on hand has a very different cause. So the next time you're annoyed about credit score requirements, remember what happened when American banks were just loaning untenable loans to people with low credit. Still, if you're stretched out on your monthly payments and using a HELOC to pay for something big, it might be best to reign in your spending and be a little more conservative with your credit lines to be safe. What should you do to prepare for the housing bubble's burst? When the days of endless home price growth have to come to an end and when that happens you want to be in the best position possible to take advantage of that. When houses will be valued for less, as a potential buyer you want to find the money so that you can put together a down payment on a new property. Keep in mind that you still need to show your financial stability to the right financial institutions before they will approve you for a mortgage and that you need to do adequate research about mortgage rates as you head onto the house hunt. Don't expect the housing market to suddenly become affordable. Housing will still be valued at a premium even after the housing bubble burst. Your best bet to figure out what you can do with your budget is to get in touch with real estate agents sooner rather than later. When that bubble bursts they are going to be busier than ever with the number of home sales that will suddenly become more affordable. It would be a good idea to keep up to date on real estate news because the low supply of housing is something that will be solved in tiers. As the excess demand decreases with more and more people being able to buy homes, there's a good chance that you will find yourself in a buyer's market in some areas. This is a market where there are fewer buyers than there are sellers. That situation is advantageous because it means that you have more negotiating power and can drive the price of the home you want down. If you're a seller or planning on selling then it may be a good idea to hold off if you're able to. While there will be an initial dip, prices are sure to climb back up - just not to the same extent as before. The issue, as for any living market, is that no layman knows where the bottom is or the truly optimal time to sell. In essence, buyers should try to get pre-approved ASAP and sellers should see if there's a chance of selling relatively high while getting approved for a bigger property. Real estate prices are likely to fluctuate for a moment before settling and depending on what side of the aisle you find yourself you may find either patience or decisiveness to be the best guide for the following days.     View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

Things You Should Not Do Before Closing. There are things you should not do before closing in real estate. For example: investing all of your savings in the stock market before the home sale goes through - although it would probably be best to just not do that ever. One of the big mistakes buyers and sellers make before the closing date is that they either spend money that they don't have yet or make a purchase contingent on a specific move-in date. It might seem like a slam dunk and your real estate agent might do all they can to hype you up but all the paperwork, all the time you spent finding and getting approved to finance your new home can all be for nothing if the sale falls through. So what are the things you should not do before closing? Read on to find out. As a home seller, selling before knowing where you're going to live. When the market seems hyper-inflated, some sellers get excited far too much and commit too early to selling their homes. Speeding right through the process of open houses and skipping over the key takeaways critical to a good sale. Of course, as a seller real estate agents that you hire can help you both sell your home and find a new one to buy. Still, no matter your interest, your income, your credit history, it's best not to lose your head. If you find yourself in a situation where you're both a buyer and a seller, listen to your agent's advice about your timeline. Most buyers have a hard time finding a properly priced home in a seller's market so while you may sell your home easily, buying one may be much more complicated. Before closing, long before closing, explain to your real estate agent what your housing situation looks like after the sale. It can avoid a very awkward scenario where you are not able to move out while the buyer is getting ready to move in. Legally, if you signed the paperwork, the home is no longer yours - keep that in mind. As a potential buyer, ignore the red flags. As buyers, you're always told to put your best foot forward, to show up with a mortgage pre-approval and a credit report to open houses, and generally seem irreproachable. Still, the home also needs to meet your needs. A home sale is a very emotional process and just because you can afford a house, that doesn't mean it's in your best interests to go for it. Your financial future for the next few years hinges on the viability of your final decision. Not everyone in the business is looking out for the risks incurred by the potential buyers. If you need a second opinion on the home, if you gave up the chance to have a home inspection, go ahead and find that out before signing on the dotted line. Backing off, if only for a reasonable reprieve, that late in the process can mean that your dream home will slip away. This is why most people recommend keeping the option to have a home inspection for as long as possible. Counteroffers that waive that right may be tempting to the sellers but what you're paying the home inspector and what you're planning to pay your mortgage lender can save you thousands upon thousands. Repair costs can be a horrible drain on your personal finance. Don't let a fresh coat of paint fool you. Keep a cool head and determine if the price, not just in terms of money, is worth the debt. As a seller, pay off substantial debts. It might be tempting to finally pay off the last of your student loan debt or get a headstart on your retirement planning before signing that last signature but doing things in advance here could actually be something that bites you in the behind. Wanting to meet your financial goals quickly is a great idea and using the seller's net sheet - something real estate agents give sellers so that they know how much to expect in income from the sale - to approximate what you'll be able to spend once the sale goes through is common sense. However, things don't always go according to plan. Some buyers, despite their agents checking with them, might be simply lying about their ability to pay for the home. And while you may feel sympathetic, your lenders won't be able to cash in that sympathy. Real estate is a wild game and it's best to make sure that money has actually changed hands before making any sort of big payment. As a buyer, don't make a down payment on another big purchase. The state of your finances is supremely important when it comes to buying a property with the help of a lender. When lenders are asked to approve a loan they look at more than just interest rates and your credit score. As potential buyers, your lender will need to know about your cash flow and incoming debts. Taking on extra debt to buy a car, for example, can drastically change what your lender thinks you're able to pay in terms of your mortgage. When you're talking to a mortgage broker when you're looking for a new house, also explain to them what other debts you're thinking of taking on. As a seller, make last-minute changes to the home. Selling a house is a long and emotional process. Sometimes sellers may feel tempted to add a fresh coat of paint to the home so that the potential buyers about to sign on the dotted line, don't do that. The sale of the home can be contingent on a variety of factors and the amount paid by the buyer can vary based on the condition of the property. If those conditions change, then it can invalidate the sale. Once the agreements have been laid down on paper and both parties are reviewing the contract, don't make any sorts of changes to the house that would violate the agreement. For example, if you added the furniture in the offer but find that you cannot part with certain pieces, don't just take them without notifying the buyer. The purchase and the money exchanged should all account for every single thing that was promised. If you're changing your mind about some pieces of furniture, a common regret during the last phases of selling a home, get in touch with your agent immediately to figure out if you can negotiate with the buyers. That might mean paying more money than expected to compensate for the lack of furniture though, so make sure your mind is set before laying out the details of the contract. The rule of thumb is patience. Wait for the ink to dry. Wait to see the numbers change in your bank account. Wait to see if you need the money for something other than what the hype was pulling your head toward. If you can secure a home with a home inspection, do it and save money. If you're thinking of keeping some of the furniture you promised in the purchase agreement, negotiate with the buyers and offer either financial compensation or something else that works for them. Be patient, swift, and communicative. It will help you navigate this monstrous process as unscathed as someone can be.     View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

What You Should and Shouldn't Compromise On When It Comes To Real Estate. First-time homebuyers enter a complicated world when it comes to real estate. Everyone has their dream home but between them and those floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the ocean are property taxes, other prospective buyers, and costly mistakes along the way. Home values themselves are something that can vastly change when it comes to the exact same home. Buyers have to contend with market conditions, mortgage companies, and the allure of future developments. A dream home isn't where people start and this is where you need to think about the compromises you're willing to make and which things are worth it. Before you spend money you don't have for square feet you don't really need, let's take a look at the things you should and shouldn't compromise on. Don't compromise on the number of bedrooms. When a real estate agent wants to make you understand what compromise in real estate looks like, they may show you a house that's within your purchase price, gorgeous, but is missing something key. What that real estate agent didn't count on is you falling in love with that home. If you have kids, not having enough space for all of them to have their own privacy is going to put a strain on everyone in the new house. If your agent showed you a home with three bedrooms to set your expectations right, it's to get you to really take a look at the budget and your possible future home. Buying something that's missing a critical room is just asking to be unhappy for a long time. Compromise on cosmetic fixes. Imagine now that your agent takes you to a home that might not have the crown moulding that you want or the right paint job. This is where you need to picture what you can realistically change in the home with some elbow grease. The seller's agent will have an easy time finding potential buyers for a property that has all the little finishes, including a beautiful garden or a beautiful little swing in the backyard. The truth is that it could be in your best interest to take on a home that doesn't have all the little things. That way, you can add the cosmetic details that you want. You might be thinking about the time it takes and the additional costs but they can be spread out over time. When you buy a home that's in a great location, at a good price, but without the right tiling for the bathroom - you get a chance to customize your home as needed. The money you save on the cosmetic aspects is money you can invest in making the home your own. After all, if it's your mortgage loan, you should be living in your house, not now that the seller left behind. Don't compromise on critical systems. Must-haves change from buyer to buyer but a functional kitchen, bathroom, and HVAC system in addition to the right number of bedrooms should be your minimum. Remember, you don't want to regret your down payment and the monthly payment toward your mortgage. Even if you fancy yourself a handyman and think you will save a lot on your mortgage payment by doing everything yourself, you need to make sure that the home is habitable. Good electrical wiring throughout the house and good waterproofing around the electrical panel can prevent disasters like electrical fires. No one wants to pay closing costs, an appraisal fee, and more just to see it all go in literal flames. Of course, there are less serious versions of this. If a real estate agent tells you the previous owners had a vibrant personality, run. There's a toilet in the middle of a common area separated off only by a half-wall. You're not being picky if you don't want to come across someone doing their business by making a wrong turn in a house. Yes, that house is real, it's in the US and it's selling for 460K USD but make no mistake, we're not immune from that in Canada. Compromise on space. The home buying process is tough, and both the buyer and the real estate professional tagging along can feel it. House hunting escalates into a bidding war more often than either party is reasonably ready for but there are ways to make sure you don't send your budget to an early grave while you dine on dollar-store ramen for a few years to afford your mortgage payments. More space, that's what many buyers are all looking for but when you're really attached to particular area there's a good chance many other buyers are also looking for that space. The popularity of a certain location can make the price of your new home skyrocket. At this point, you really have to think about whether you want to stay firm and look for a gem a little longer or shrink the vision of your dream home just a little so that the purchase price doesn't break the bank. The right property can be a little smaller than what you anticipated and that's okay. As long as there's enough space for the whole family and no one starts to hate each other because of how much they're on top of each other, the location of the property can more than make up for it. The cost of a home purchase has many variables, that's why you pay a mortgage application fee and need to get pre-approved by a mortgage lender for your offers to be taken seriously. The home search will involve trading square footage for amenities like a good school district. More space doesn't mean much if you and your family spend a lot of time out of the home, reducing commuting or transport costs can be more than worth it in the end. Should you compromise on a home inspection? The market being the way it is, some buyers make the decision to send offers that waive their right to have a home inspection done. It can be something you can do if there are no other good homes within the range of good schools and that shortens your long commute. However, you need to make a rational decision about what you can spend in order to deal with the repairs. A chimney inspection might seem superfluous but could be critical before it's fit for use. Homes that have structural problems can suck up valuable time and money and rash decisions about not doing a home inspection can turn your new home into a money pit. A chimney full of soot or structurally unsound will cost more than a measly thousand dollars if you try using it. What if you're on the market for a fixer-upper? Realistically, there are many different levels to what a fixer-upper is. A ramshackle collection of four walls and a roof in an unkempt literal urban jungle is a fixer-upper if your ambitions are big enough, but so is a home with an unfinished basement and outdated appliances. The only part, really, that you need to take care of is whether your family can live in the home while the renovation work is happening. If not, then it's time to budget out extended motel stays as repairs continue. At the end of the day, whether it's a dream home or just a stepping stone, there are things every buyer needs to think through and balance before making one of the biggest financial decisions of their lives. Just don't buy a home for the price, especially if a countertop is held up by a banister and a giant window faces the highway - there has to be better out there.     View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

8 Questions To Ask Before Buying a Property. It's normal to have questions before buying a property but they range from strange, like asking if the house is haunted, to the essential like asking about necessary repairs. Read on to find out some of the questions you need to ask before getting ready to pay the down payment. What is included in the sale? Some home sellers will include appliances, furniture, and window treatments with the sale of the home while others will not. You'll want to make sure that you know what is and isn't included to budget properly. Not having to pay for a couch that fits just right in the living room of your new house is something that saves you time and money. Your total budget needs to account for all the money involved in the transaction; meaning that you need to factor in the offer price, closing costs, and more. Knowing exactly what you're getting from the sale can help you budget out repair costs or look into replacing a light fixture or two. What is the house's repair history? A home with a lot of repair needs is not only going to be costly to bring up to current code, but it may also require extensive work that you weren't expecting. By knowing the repair history of a property, you can get an idea of what kind of hidden costs you might have down the road. If any known major repairs need to be made, you'll want to factor those into your offer price. You don't want to be blindsided by a broken furnace or roofing that will need to be replaced shortly. In a seller's market, the buyer's agents - meaning your agent - will try and get you your dream home but the reality is that buying a house in market conditions that favour sellers is going to take more money than you anticipated. The listing price you see online is likely not the price you will get the home for. Though the market is expected to turn soon where the seller's agent would be the one making the concessions instead, the best advice in either situation is to figure out what the house's history is concerning its major issues over the years. A home inspector will be about to tell you most of the serious issues that are apparent now, such as immediate problems with electrical systems but knowing about any major renovations will help you decide if the home is worth the asking price. A water heater failing a couple of months after your move-in date is definitely not ideal but if you expected it by taking a look at how long ago it was inspected, repaired, or replaced then you can take the proper precautionary measures. It's important to make the distinction between cosmetic repairs and things like removing lead paint from the home. CLUE, Comprehensive Loss Underwriting Exchange, is a great resource for prospective buyers. It lists all the insurable incidents that have happened on the property. This can be a great way to find out whether any major systems failed unexpectedly in the last seven years or if something like a tree fell on the house. Is the neighbourhood in a good location? Location is key when it comes to purchasing a home. You'll want to think about things like the surrounding area, public transportation, schools, and more when choosing a neighbourhood. If you're looking for a family-friendly neighbourhood, you'll want to make sure that there are good local schools in the area. If you're looking for a home close to public transit, you'll want to find out what kind of bus or train routes are available. You'll also want to think about your commute and how long it will take you to get to work or other places that you frequent. Crime statistics are also something you want to factor in. It's something your real estate agent should be able to provide you with but you can also find them rather easily online. What is the zoning for the property? Zoning laws can be a bit confusing, but they're important to know when buying a property. Zoning laws dictate what kind of uses are allowed for a piece of land. For example, a residential property will usually have zoning that doesn't allow for commercial use. That means you wouldn't be able to open up a business out of your home unless you applied for and were granted a change in the zoning. Knowing what the zoning is for a property will help you avoid any surprises down the road. It's also important to know if the zoning for a property will allow you to do what you want with it. For example, if you're interested in building a home or doing major renovations, you'll want to make sure that the zoning for the property will allow for that. What are the property taxes like? Property taxes can vary greatly from one municipality to another. They can also increase over time. It's important to know what the current property tax rate is for a municipality and whether or not it has increased in recent years. You'll also want to find out how the taxes are calculated. Some municipalities use a mill rate while others use a percentage of the assessed value of the property. Knowing what to expect when it comes to property taxes can help you budget for your new home. Why are the owners selling? The answer to this question can help you get a better price for the home. If the owners are moving because of job relocation, they may be more willing to negotiate on the price. If the owners are going through a divorce, they may be eager to sell the property and may be open to a lower offer. Knowing if you are dealing with a motivated seller is a great way to know what you can leverage in the negotiation phase of the home buying process. Has the house ever been flooded? This applies to all kinds of natural disasters that may have had an impact on the home. Health or safety hazards can arise even years after a good or other natural disasters come to pass. A home inspection can snuff out some key details that will let you know what issues you can encounter but sometimes even the current homeowner may not be aware of some damage through no fault of their own. If you're a first-time homebuyer, you need to save money in an emergency fund separate from what your home insurance covers. If you uncover in the home inspection that the home has been damaged in the past, you can use that to get a better price on the home or get the seller to pay for the closing costs. A home inspection report goes a long way but if you find out that the seller paid to bring the house back up to standard can make you feel safer about completing a costly real estate transaction. Insurance claims can be a pain to navigate through so when thinking of your future home, take the time to figure those out. If you're thinking that homeowners insurance is the same thing as a home warranty, think again because they cover different things. Homeowners insurance covers things like floods, storms, burglaries; a home warranty helps you reduce the replacement cost of major appliances replaced because of normal wear and tear. What have other homes sold for? Real estate agents know the ins and outs of a home sale, which should be expected but their real asset is their knowledge of the real estate market around different neighbourhoods. Knowing what other homes sold for and with what kind of contingencies, not just the listing price, is a great way to know if you're going to pay a fair price for the home. Of course, it's always best to defer to your real estate agent because the down payment you're going to put down is not going to differ by just a few hundred dollars if the new house you're looking at has had more repairs and renovations than most sellers offer up. Light fixtures, recently updated flooring, and a new water heater will all hike up the price quite a bit. On top of that, monthly payments in the form of ongoing costs (mortgage, utility costs, etc) can change the way you view a home's asking price. Overall, here's what you need to ask. Think about the near future and what it holds for you and the home. It's more than just the water heater, the fuse box or annoying neighbours, that home inspection and other precautions you will take can have a big impact on your personal finances for the terms of your mortgage. So don't be shy, and ask away.     View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

What Should You Do When You First Move Into a Single-Family Home? Moving into a new single-family home is a big endeavour. From dealing with the moving company to making sure that your new address is updated in all the important places, it can be a lot to deal with. So let's break down some things you may forget as you're busy embarking on that new life. During the moving process. Even before moving day, it's a good idea to start a new house checklist. This will be a living list that will eventually morph into your maintenance checklist. First things first, pack the essentials into a bag that will come with you. If you're wondering what the essentials are, here's a quick list: trash bags, toilet paper, a clean change of clothes, a flashlight and bottled water. A million different things can go wrong on the way to your new house and though it might have those wonderful hardwood floors you paid the big bucks for, a power or water issue can easily just stop working properly when you get there. The toilet paper and trash bags are there just in case you don't have the time or energy to get to a nearby store before turning in for the night. Don't underestimate how exhausting moving in is. The entire process is stressful some but just knowing this is half the battle. If you're using a moving truck that's carrying some heavy furniture pieces, it might be a good idea to plan to leave and arrive as early in the day as possible. Moving services are not cheap and you don't have your new house's floor scratched by some hasty maneuvers. When you first walk into the home, make sure you quickly check and double-check the power and water supply. This means flicking a few switches, turning on a few faucets, and flushing a couple of times. This way you can quickly tell if there is a pressing issue with the main water valve, fuse box, circuit breakers, or something else. Depending on the conditions in which you bought the home, the previous owner might not have been required to do some repairs before the purchase was finalized. If the house was sold 'as is' for example. If on moving day, some things in the house make it impossible to stay in then you should be ready to spend some extra cash on a cheap hotel room until the critical issue is resolved. It's very rare but just keep your fingers crossed that it'll work out. If you can afford it and feel it's necessary, you can arrange for a deep clean of the house before moving in. A deep clean is sometimes included as part of the closing process but it can sometimes be a sloppy job as the sellers focus on just providing the service instead of providing a good one. The first few days. After moving day, it's time to explore the house more. If you have little kids, the first night was probably a little rough so spending time with them to explore their new home will do wonders for them. You can check out all the 'scary' spaces like the garage, the spare bedroom, and the attic - that the previous owners might have forgotten to clear out. Once each family member feels a bit more at ease, then it's time to get a few things settled. In your first week or so, it's a good idea to look at the following, and more. If you have smoke alarms or smoke detectors, make sure that the batteries are not dead - you don't want to take a chance with those. The next thing on your list of to-dos should be the circuit breaker or fuse box, turn on all the lights and see if the circuit breaker holds. If it doesn't, try different combinations to locate the problem area. While it might be only you working on that, having the help of some friends can make things a lot easier - single-family homes tend to be big enough that running to and from the fuse box or circuit breaker takes more energy than you first expected. You should also look at local insurance policies available to you as well as add in a new home security system. As much as you want your front door to e welcoming, don't let it be too welcoming. As you review the critical systems, like smoke detectors, air filters, and the water meter, make sure you stock up on cleaning supplies because things can get messy quickly. During those first few days of getting used to your new address, creating a little map of local services can help you get situated more easily. Note a few key things like your local corner store, where you'll get your groceries, the post office, and most importantly the best pizza places around. The first month Now that you've made the moves to change the address on your driver's license (you've done that, right?) you can return to your new house checklist and find out what other things you need to check out. Hopefully by this point will have met the neighbours next door and gotten familiar with the neighbourhood in general. Moving into a new house also means moving into a new neighbourhood complete with new friends, locales, and quirks. Since you will likely still be moving furniture around the living room, the first month is the time to create a sense of homeliness. The new house can't keep feeling alien to you when the moving truck and the previous owner are far gone. This means adding the little touches to the house that make it squarely a space for your family, adding the kids' artwork to the walls, making space in the middle of the living room for 'indoor camping', or changing the focal point of a room's decoration with a big family portrait or something similar. The first year Now that your new house checklist is wearing out its name, it's time to think about the future. Whether you intend to keep the house forever or have a moving company swing on by in a few years to take you to a new 'new house', it's time to look at home improvements. Home improvements can be things that the previous owner neglected like improving the water pressure on the second floor or adding something new like a pool or a whole new bathroom. It's time to think of the property as a great piece of real estate. It doesn't mean that the goal is to sell it in the long term but if you increase the home's value then it also allows you to take out more money in terms of a home equity line of credit. Since it's based on the current market value of your home, it makes sense to invest in your home so that you can then use its value to invest in other things. Being proactive with your property is what will help you make the most of it in all possible ways. View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

How To Save, Earn, and Spend More With Your Property Owning real estate is incredibly advantageous but most people don't optimize their properties. To reach your financial goals quicker, check out some of these tips to find out what you can do once you've got the keys to your new house or condo. How to earn money with your home. Rent out a room or a basement. If you have a spare room or, better yet, an unused but spacious basement, you can earn some rental income by renting it out. Before you allow just anyone to move in for some extra money, make sure that you do a quick background check on the potential renter. Get in touch with a real estate agent to find good renters and will do the necessary work like figuring out their credit score, employment history, and potentially even a reference from prior landlords. Before you just go ahead and put up a listing though, make sure you look at your local laws and tax rules to see if it's worth the trouble. More money doesn't always mean a profit, in terms of money or time, you need to look at the possible costs. Fair housing laws exist for a good reason and you have to be ready to abide by them for as long as the lease agreement states. Also, remember that a security deposit is meant to go back to the renter after the lease is over unless there are repairs needed that exceed reasonable wear and tear costs. The repayment period is outlined in the lease but the normal period is 30 days after the renter moved out. Airbnb your place when you're not using it. If you're set to leave your home for a while (a vacation, an extended road trip), why not rent out your living space so that you can make some extra cash that goes toward paying your monthly payments. Though you will not be there to monitor everything, you can hire someone (or get a good friend or neighbour willing to help) to check on the house while you're gone. It might seem scary to have someone in your own home while you're not there but you can rent out a safe deposit box at most banks to store valuables to be safe. The rental cost will pay for itself with a quick Airbnb stay. Unlike a normal renter, most of the vetting is done by yourself and Airbnb. Renters have profiles with their history and even reviews by former hosts. You can check those out to see if you feel comfortable with them staying out. Payment is also done through the platform itself. This bit of income can be a great way to cover things like the interest rate on your mortgage, the cost of your trip, or even just a way to cushion your emergency fund in the long run. Get a roommate or housemate. Instead of renting out parts of your home, you could also just get a housemate. If you're certain of their level of responsibility, it could even be a friend - in that situation you have the bonus of having a good friend living with you. Renting out to a friend while you're living in your own house adds a layer of flexibility and safety that can be worth more than the money they are paying for the rent. Since we already looked at renters before, let's look at what home-ownership looks like when you rent out to a friend. The first thing to do is still to have a lease. It protects both of you should things go wrong and if nothing goes wrong then all it will have cost is a little bit of ink. If this is the first time either of you is living with a housemate, then it's important to set some rules up because no one wants their good friend to turn into their junior year college roommate who never does the dishes and doesn't leave the common areas ever. How to save money with your home. Negotiate a lower mortgage rate. If you look at your current mortgage balance and feel like it's unfair, here's the good news: you can refinance. It takes time - don't expect to refinance a couple of months after moving in - and money but in the long run it can help you save a huge amount of money. You can change from a variable interest rate mortgage to a fixed interest rate mortgage or adjust some of the conditions of the mortgage. What you're basically doing is swapping your old mortgage with a new one with new conditions and terms. You can do this for debt consolidation purposes or changes in interest rates. Get a HELOC (Home Equity Line of Credit) A HELOC, or Home Equity Line of Credit, is a secured loan that lets homeowners borrow against the equity they have in their home. This type of loan is typically used to finance large expenses such as home repairs, education, or debt consolidation. The amount you can borrow with a HELOC is based on the amount of equity you have in your home, which is the difference between the current appraised value of your home and the amount you still owe on your mortgage. You can use a HELOC to borrow up to 85% of your home's equity, minus the amount you still owe on your mortgage. For example, if your home is worth $200,000 and you still owe $100,000 on your mortgage, you could borrow up to $85,000 using a HELOC. A HELOC typically has a lower interest rate than other types of loans since it's a line of credit secured by the equity you have in your home - but that does mean that your house is used as collateral. You can repay the HELOC in full at any time. Instead of going into credit card debt to pay for a renovation for your home, you can use a HELOC. A home equity line of credit is a revolving credit line, meaning that you can borrow money, pay it back, borrow again, and so on. Make extra mortgage payments. Although you can make the minimum payments towards your mortgage, it might be a good idea to see if you can make extra payments instead. Look through the terms of your mortgage and see if you can make some extra payments. This is a good idea because, by paying more earlier, you reduce the amount you will pay in the long run in interest. This also allows you to increase the available equity in your home. That way money grows in your HELOC faster, which makes it easier to look at other investments possibilities. If it seems counterintuitive to spend money to save in the future then it's definitely time to get up to date on your financial planning skills. Make the most of your home. Renovations are not just going to benefit you while you live in your first home, they will also allow you to sell the home for more later - letting you recover the closing costs. Turning some private space into shared space, by getting a housemate or a tenant for your basement might mean you get less privacy or square footage all to yourself but the income will speed up how quickly you can get to that next milestone toward a financial goal. The great thing about owning property instead of renting is equity and eventually freeing yourself from hefty monthly payments. The quicker it happens, the better. So call your tax advisor, loan officer, or real estate agent to get started on that journey.   View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

What Does an Agent Mean When There is Low Inventory? If you're on the hunt for a house, you probably heard about how the housing inventory is in dire straits. It's not just the Vancouver real estate market; across Canada, the real estate inventory is in a crisis situation. We're still far from stories of buyers selling kidneys as listing real estate agents field dozens of offers over the asking price. But, it's the real estate market, you never know. There are quite a few reasons for the situation of the housing market right now. Home prices have been on the rise for a while fewer and fewer houses go on sale. With record-high home prices and near-historic lows when it comes to new real estate listings, it's not just home buyers scratching their heads but real estate professionals as well. Low inventory means is more demand for homes than there are houses. In a seller's market, one where the most active buyers beat out other buyers, it's normal to see new listings vanish quickly. However, when it comes to low inventory situations, the market simply does not have more sellers willing to part with their homes, even at Vancouver real estate prices for a small suburban home. Active listings don't stay that way for long with offers pouring in even before an open house. A well-connected agent can still find potential deals early on but even they will have issues when the housing supply runs truly dry. Is this a good thing for sellers? It might seem like it at first glance but unless the sellers have another home to move into, they will probably be reluctant to sell. Even the luxury market has been hit by skyrocketing prices. Regardless of the market they're looking in, even active buyers spend months trying to find the right home. Determined buyers will be willing to put down a lot more than the list price and waive conditions on their offers in order to get better chances but like mentioned above, you need to be ready to do the same thing for when you're on the buying end as well. Low inventory creates an extreme seller's market. Anyone in the market for a house wants to deal in a buyer's market or a neutral market. Either of those types of markets means that the homes sold have been sold at a reasonable price. A low housing inventory, however, creates a situation where you will get "less house" for the most money possible - if you can even find a house. It's not so much that there aren't many houses for sale but that many markets find themselves in a situation where even a good agent will have a hard time finding upcoming listings that won't be swarmed with offers even before it lands on a multiple listing service. How to find the best property deals when inventory is low. Just because it's very hard to find a property when the inventory is low, that doesn't mean that sales don't happen. The good news is that if you're in the market for an apartment then you're more likely to find something if the housing inventory is mostly lacking in properties that demand a mortgage. Rental listings, in Toronto for example, boomed at the beginning of the pandemic. Of course, this was before the market adapted to the new reality of people trying to move away from dense population centres. Although you'll need to cooperate with an agent closely, you might even find a condominium that fits your needs while the attention of other buyers is fixated on homes. If you're set on buying a home, even when the housing market is facing an inventory crisis then your best bet is to get a real estate agent early and get your documents in order. The truth is that, even in times where the housing inventory is low, there is a delay between sellers contacting an agent and the home going on the market. During that lag time, real estate agents working for buyers can secure what's called a pocket listing. A pocket listing is a property that is not actively being marketed and is instead only made available to a select few buyers. There is no way to guarantee that you're the best person for the property, especially in a volatile market but having a good rapport with your agent can't hurt. What can be done to help buyers? Now that the pandemic is receding, the total inventory of houses should increase as construction projects resume and pick up the pace. The truth though is that many Canadians have been priced out of purchasing homes are a reasonable level and that will force the market to correct itself. There are a few theories about why more buyers showed up at the beginning of the pandemic and one of them is that real estate makes for a great investment even in the face of a financial crisis. With the hype building about a type of asset, it generates huge amounts of demand. However, it's unsustainable in the long term when housing starts to dry up. It's something of a bubble and crash scenario where the bubble is about to pop. Your local real estate agent can guide you through what the burst of the bubble means for you but it's going to hit home sales across the country. It will be up to each local real estate board to mitigate the effects of the bubble burst but real estate tends to be a very resilient asset type. Low-interest rates, meaning a lower mortgage on average, contribute to creating a buyer's market but that's far from the only factor that can make things better. What are the signs of the bubble bursting? The first few signs of the low inventory crisis coming to an end will be when you find stories where homes failed to sell far above the asking price. Make no mistake though, homes will still be expensive and will sell above asking - but the typically larger margins seen in a low-inventory environment will be emaciated and brittle. Homes will start selling at a record pace, especially for smaller homes and more affordable homes. Pocket listings will still exist, as brokerage firms will still try to bump up the price on properties that are worth it but these will not be one of the main surefire ways for buyers to secure a house.     View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

How To Make The Most Space Out Of Your Apartment. Trying to make the most out of a small apartment feels like a rite of passage. Everyone goes through the tiptoeing to get through small spaces, dinner parties with laps to rest plates on, and hidden storage all over the place. Still, you don't have to deal with hosting guests in a small space that feels like you're all crammed like sardines. With a few quick tricks, you can reclaim additional space from your apartment and even make it feel spacious. Storage. This is the big one. More storage space is one of the first things to go in a studio apartment. To keep a pantry organized without having to go to the store every other day is a challenge - especially when the pantry is proportionally tiny to your tiny apartment. So how do you solve the issue of storage in a small apartment? Double duty furniture. By definition, a small apartment will be missing out on extra space but you can multiply the value of your furniture without it taking up more of your square footage by choosing pieces of furniture that fulfill multiple purses. A coffee table with extra storage space below the surface can be a great place to store things like board games, video game controllers, and more. You can even store books in there if you're not the type to have company over often but love to create some cozy moments for yourself with a good book by a window. In the bedroom area, for example, you can invest in a storage bed to keep some extra items under the bed. Think warm quilts in summer and light clothes in the winter. Maximizing space doesn't have to come with the bed itself, you can claim the additional storage under your bed with crates pr a custom storage unit made to fit in the cramped space below your bed. Speaking of beds, you should look into a murphy bed if you live in a studio apartment. Instead of giving in to preconceived ideas of what they 'mean' or signify, adding one to your small apartment can make a big difference. It means extra seating for parties, more room for activities, and more floor space if you want to work out inside. Before you opt into using some unorthodox storage solutions, make sure that your kitchen cabinets are well organized. A little bit of real-life Tetris can go a long way. Vertical storage one very underrated trick to save space is using wall space. Your bathroom sink could be completely overwhelming with skincare products and a useful but bulky electric toothbrush set but if you manage to add some sort of vertical storage - like a shower shelf but next to your mirror. It's a great spot for extra toiletries and it also makes it so much easier to clean. Since you're dealing with an apartment, it's important to pick something that works with adhesives and not screws but that's definitely possible. Some extra sturdy floating shelves or ways to use your closet doors to store things like shoes can save more space than you thought was possible. For small apartments, precious space is everywhere and you don't need a professional organizer to maximize space. Taking full advantage of your walls and vertical space through hanging storage can make a massive difference. Still, covering every wall is not the best idea. It's important to know where the limits are. If your vertical solutions are making it harder to move through a room then maybe it's time to think about getting a storage unit instead. Making the space feel bigger. Just because you have a small apartment doesn't mean that you should give up on home decor. In fact, small spaces benefit the most from clever interior design. It probably won't get you a bigger sitting area but it can help your living room or bedroom feel more spacious. Light. Our bodies and minds absolutely love natural light. If you can find ways to add reflective surfaces to scatter natural light throughout your living area can have a hugely positive effect on your mood and health. Floor-to-ceiling windows or mirrors may be out of your budget but doing what you can to create the illusion that your apartment is flooded with light will go a long way. Studio apartments sometimes have to deal with only one room having a window capable of taking in enough sunlight. This is why mirrors on a front door or clearing up as much stuff as possible from the windows as possible is important. When you're dealing with small spaces it's always worth it to make your furniture do more than one thing - that also applies to mirrors. Dark spaces or den-like environments may seem attractive but, in a small apartment, it can make the place feel far more stifled and smaller than it is. It's not just a question of style. Creating something that fits your personal style is super important, but not as much as making sure you're treating yourself to enough light. Elements of Style. Whether you're staying in that small apartment for a little while or a long time as you save up to move somewhere with more space, it's never too early to start defining your own sense of style. This can steer easily into decoration tips but creating a focal point in a room is essential. A focal point in decoration is something that draws attention. They come in multiple sizes and types; a nice TV, a beautiful but small painting, a moss wall, and so on. You then go ahead and design the rest of the space around that focal point. The real tip among all the tips though is that you want to set that focal point a little higher than the average eye-line to get people to look upward. For small apartments, this works wonders to create the illusion that the space is bigger than it seems. Take advantage of your tall ceilings if you have them, but don't stack storage items on top of tall furniture, that will help create a claustrophobic atmosphere instead. Use high-up empty wall space for decorative purposes instead and leave the open shelving for your books lower to the ground. If you find that you need a room divider, to create some office space, for example, think of something collapsible so that you can stow it away when not in use. This can be very useful for remote meetings so that you don't have to carve out a tunnel of space behind you that's presentable at a moment's notice. A final note. Small spaces aren't a curse and they teach you some extremely valuable lessons about how to care about your personal items and your personal space. The skills you develop after living in a small apartment transfer over when you, hopefully, find a better living arrangement. Instead of running out of space constantly, you'll learn how to create extra space instead. Now it's time to roll up your sleeves and figure out what to do with all the clothes that are only taking up space in your closet.   View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

Who Should You Bring (or not) Along To Open Houses and Home Inspections? House hunting can feel lonely and the pressure can add up easily when you're going to invest a significant amount of money into a property. Usually, that means bringing someone along to help out - but are they helping or hurting the process? If you're wondering who to bring to an open house or home inspection, then sadly the answer isn't simple. Let's go down some people most likely to tag along and see if they're a good fit. Parents. If this is your first home then having your parents along for the first visits can be a great idea. They can point out major issues that you're not familiar with or give you some insight about the cost that some repairs would take. Still, suffocating parents exist. Many buyers, younger ones, happily take their parents along but they can make a crucial part of the home buying process harder than it has to be: the home inspection. Between blowing up minor issues, prodding electrical outlets, and getting in the way of the home inspection process; parents can make everyone's job harder. It's baked into parenthood to look out for every safety issue possible but that doesn't mean that they have valuable information when it comes to electrical issues or if a home has sufficient insulation. They can also interfere with budgeting if they believe they can help you save on repair costs. It's almost always wiser to prioritize the home inspector's inspection report to be safe. A faulty water heater, structural issues, underlying problems with the HVAC system - these are all things that take a qualified home inspector to properly diagnose. There's nothing wrong with a quick double-check or a parent asking to take a look at the home inspection checklist and it can give you some peace of mind but you still need to filter their input and not just accept it wholesale. Friends. It's not uncommon for potential buyers to bring their friends along to an open house, and more rarely a home inspection. It's also not uncommon to have people tagging along speaking they work in home construction when they are actually a corporate IT executive or an adjunct professor somewhere. Different skill sets. It might be something you don't notice beforehand but some people really dive into their 'know-it-all' personality in the strangest moments. Sometimes, you can even have a friend that tries to act like they are the buyer's agent. That can get frustrating quickly when your actual agent is trying to do their job. As long as you let your agent know in advance though, it shouldn't be too much of an issue. Bringing friends along can work out great. If they know you well they can look at the property in a way that home inspectors cannot. We often forget things about ourselves or minimize issues - especially if we tend to be people-pleasers. Having a level-headed friend that knows you well can help you take a look at things like easy access for a pet. If your friend recently worked with a real estate agent to buy or sell or property then they can be a huge asset. As a former home seller or buyer, their key takeaways from the whole process can give you an idea of what to expect. While they won't be able to answer all your questions about carpenter ants hiding inside walls, foundation issues, or the electrical systems needing necessary repairs, they can help you understand if you can make the property a home. It's easier with friends compared to parents or children because you interact as peers. Children. Having children along for the home inspection is probably going to be very boring for them and distracting for you. When it comes to a private showing or an open house though, some buyers choose to have their children accompany them. The biggest downside to bringing children along is reigning them in when needed. A few hours of looking around a new house might not seem like much to you but to kids - from kindergarten to high school - it could be torture. Usually, a buyer would bring their children along in the later stages, when the purchase agreement is in sight. Obviously, you want your children to like the house but there are some other things that they are not the best at gauging. So who should you absolutely bring along? The seller's agent has one job, get the house sold. To help you make the right decision and pay the right amount for the house while being aware of all possible issues you need to bring in a home inspector. Though sometimes getting the house might require waiving an inspection contingency this is only something you should do if you're concerned about the seller selecting another buyer and you don't have the budget to bump your offer up. It really depends on the market you're in but in real estate, home inspections are commonly seen as extremely important. You can't substitute a home inspector with a friend or a parent. There are safety issues, problems with the plumbing system, damage to sewer lines, and roof damage that your loved ones are most likely not trained to see. Also, a home inspection allows the home inspector to get a close look at the electrical panel and air conditioning systems safely. No one wants to be liable for someone getting hurt during a home inspection. A home inspection report will go into much more depth about the major and minor issues that you will run into. The cost of buying a house goes beyond securing a home loan and you should factor in the cost of repairs and more. Your real estate agent should 100% be accompanying you on those home inspections as well. Not only can they advise for or against additional inspections but they definitely have some contacts with local contractors should you wish to request repairs. The sum things up. The worst people to bring at open houses are those who will nitpick and criticize everything. They can be really discouraging and make the process drag on. It's best to leave them at home and enjoy the house hunt with people who will be supportive and not overbearing. No one knows your entourage better than yourself but it's perfectly reasonable to keep some distance from the people who are not helping the process. After all, they might visit but you'll be the one living in the house.       View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

Tips To Make The Most of Your Tiny Backyard. Not everyone has a huge backyard. The option of having an outdoor living room or being able to frolic around a large green area might not be one at your disposal. But instead of just leaving your limited space as a point of shame, here are some tiny backyard ideas to help you make the most out of the space. Even a tiny outdoor space can be used to entertain guests, grow plants, and give you extra space to relax on hot summer days. Maximize your space by using vertical gardens. Vertical gardens are a great way to make the most of your small backyard. By growing plants on walls or fences, you can free up more space on the ground for other activities. Not only do they look beautiful, but they also provide shade and can help cool down the area. You can set up fences and hang potted plants from them or use the fence's structure to create some lush greenery with vines. Small backyards can't afford unused space and that's why vertical space is one of the most important parts of backyard space to take advantage of. If your budget permits it, you can also invest in a moss wall to make living, breathing walls. Just be sure to place it properly so that the moss can soak up all the light it needs. If your outdoor space is particularly small, you can go all-in on this idea to make space for an intimate dining area, a small herb garden, or some chairs and a bar cart. Green walls don't necessarily need a fresh coat of paint, but it's a good idea to inspect whatever is holding up your vertical garden to make sure that the materials are not deteriorating too quickly. You can use trellises, those vertical structures make specifically to have vines grow onto them, to make upkeep easier but be mindful of what you use them for. A pergola is a wooden structure with slats at the top that will make it easier to hang plants to or grow vines on. Combined with trellises you can then free up enough room for things like folding chairs or a small water feature. Some pergolas also come with built-in benches so that takes care of your extra seating space needs. Add a repurposed coffee table and your small space became a romantic little dining spot. With some clever arrangements, you can create an outdoor room covered in vines and plants. It will help with privacy and create a beautiful atmospheric space for the house. Start the garden in the home. This one needs a little explaining: basically, you want to use the room that leads into the small backyard as a way to make the outdoor area feel bigger. Hang some air plants in the room leading to the small backyard. These plants require very little upkeep and add greenery to the indoor space to provide a smooth transition into the outdoor space. If you can open the door leading to the outdoor spaces wide then that's great, but even better is having glass floor-to-ceiling windows to reduce the strictness of the barrier between interior and exterior. That way, your seating areas can remain inside the house - a sort of semi patio. Of course, the first thing anyone will think of is what kind of mess this will create but by using an outdoor rug creatively, you can minimize the amount of cleaning needed. What if your small backyard is the result of a new swimming pool? It happens all the time. People add a swimming pool that's a little bigger than they actually thought it would be. Suddenly, the square footage of your small yard suddenly shrunk. Patio furniture is all cramped in one corner of the yard and there's not much left for people to just walk around in. The most important thing to keep in mind in that situation is that the small backyard is not doomed. The seating area might have to get smaller but it's also a chance to bust out the gardening tools to trim the trees to create more walking space around the pool. If you find yourself needing to trim a neighbour's tree that overhangs on your property, then the very first thing you should do is talk about it to your neighbour. Property lines are a complicated Just like with a small backyard in general, you want to favour plants and outdoor furniture on a smaller scale or that have a small footprint. This will not only help you reclaim some space but also prevent your pool's drain system from being overworked. Things you shouldn't do with a small backyard. While you can do a lot with a small backyard, some things are just bad small backyard ideas. The first one is adding in a fire pit. It depends on the size of the pit itself and just how small the backyard is but you need to think of more than just the fire pit itself. It will require a seating area and a good distance away from the plants in your garden unless you're a fan of buying new plants after nearly burning the neighbourhood down. It might be tempting to try one of those more daring small backyard ideas and try to create multiple outdoor 'rooms' but for that to actually work, your small backyard can't actually be small now, can it? An outdoor room or a small patio can be the focal point of your small backyard but trying to create multiple spaces like a dining area and another separate outdoor room for entertaining is the stuff reserved for much bigger yards. Have some fun with it. Magazines may make you think a small backyard can't be a great space for entertaining or that it's just dead space but even a small balcony can add oodles of charm to any property - provided that these small outdoor spaces are well taken care of. Creating your perfect little getaway in your small backyard can be as simple as buying string lights and running them along trellises or simply spreading them through key areas of the backyard. You could even look around for local woodworkers that can create pieces specifically adapted to your garden, be it collapsible patio furniture or a custom trellis that makes the most out of your small space. No matter how much of it you have, making the most out of your green spaces will help your property's value and also your own mental health after long days of work.     View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

What Is a Broken-Plan Design? Traditionally, we know what the inside of a house looks like but the truth is that how the inside of a house is laid out can be vastly different from what we expect. If you're able to define what your interior space looks like there are far more ways to arrange rooms and spaces than copying a house from the first seasons of Mad Men. Still, many houses date from that period and might not be structurally sound if their living space were adapted to a modern, open-plan layout. This is where broken-plan living comes into play. What is a broken-plan design? Before we go into broken-plan design, we need to unpack where it comes from: traditional and open plan design. What is traditional house design? In traditional floor plans, living areas like the kitchen, living room, dining room are separated by opaque walls. These create strictly distinct zones with each of them fulfilling a specific purpose. One room for one purpose. What is an open-plan design? Open space is the motto for open-plan design. Only the most crucial structural elements like walls remain in open plan living. The idea for this type of living space is to make it easy for people to flow from one area to another with no separation in terms of walls or doors. The kitchen, living room, and dining room are all part of the same open-plan space. This doesn't apply to bedrooms and in multi-story houses stays on the ground floor. Of course, this doesn't mean that different zones don't exist in this type of design. Living spaces are still separated by the clever use of subtle divides like area rugs or the arrangement of free-standing furniture. Different activities, like cooking, entertaining, or relaxing all happen in the same big room. The pros of this type of living arrangement are that since there are fewer walls, there is more space and natural light in the house. How does that lead to broken-plan living? A broken-plan layout is a bit of a mix between the two previous ideas for how living spaces should be done. Broken plan living hopes to balance out the benefits of both types of living arrangements by substituting opaque walls with half walls, glass partitions, or columns. Benefits of broken-plan living. One key benefit is that you can keep the spacious feel of open plan living while the subtle divides retain some measure of privacy. A home office, something that's becoming more and more common, with glass walls helps you keep an eye out for your children playing in the adjacent room while you get to keep the silence and important separation between the two spaces and their purpose. Instead of having a large open room, you have specific areas with their own little moods. A kitchen area, for example, can be behind a glass wall to retain the natural light and some of the convivial nature of an open-plan kitchen while making sure that things like cooking scents remain enclosed in that room. Broken plan living also makes different floor finishes less jarring as the more distinct areas create the impression that someone is walking into a whole new room. What kind of homes benefit from this design? Smaller homes with traditional layouts are the clear winners here where the low amount of space for each room is left behind while still retaining some degree of privacy as well. Some people might see this kind of situation, where columns or glass walls are acting as semi-permanent partitions as just a temporary solution to open-plan living but if you like it, there's no reason to go further. A broken plan living space with a low wall or a half wall is perfect for zoning areas. Converting a traditional living plan to an open plan layout can be expensive or even impossible but a broken plan layout can look and feel amazing in its own right. With each room having its own space and personality, it allows you to free yourself from the shackles of creating a flat sense of cohesion that applies to an entire floor. Of course, you still want things to work together overall but the half walls or glass balustrades help you distinguish spaces better. How do you create a broken living space? New open-plan homes can be a pain to find because of their newfound popularity or because of the neighbourhoods that would fit your family more. It's a good thing then that creating this kind of living space is not impossible. The idea behind broken plan living is in the name, you're going to take a sledgehammer and - actually don't, hire a contractor instead. Essentially though, the idea is to break down most of a wall to facilitate moving from one space to another. It's important to plan out what rooms will be connected or not. It makes sense, for example, to create an opening in the wall between a sun-drenched dining room and a spacious kitchen. Dinner parties will feel a lot more relaxed and free-form without the wall in place to create division between the guests. Common broken plan elements. Beyond the half-wall, there are quite a few interesting ideas if you're going to opt for a broken plan style for your home. Built-in shelves. If your kitchen and dining room are adjacent then you could create a half wall and leave a couple of columns to delineate the space. If the kitchen's island is pressed against the columns then you can create a built-in storage space for things like fancy glasses, nice dishcloths, and more. The indoor window. A glass partition within the home. An indoor window lets light travel through the home's space easily and makes each room on either side of the window feel more spacious. Drapery. You can create an amazing den-like space with some great drapery. Hang it high and make sure you have the tools to pull it all to one side when needed and you basically have an extra room. This is a very useful tool for broken-plan homes that have open spaces far too big to use continuously. The drapery adds a lot of texture to a room as well and, if it's patterned, gives the home a bit of an artistic side. A light bohemian touch. View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

How To Decipher Some Real Estate Terms. Let's be real about real estate for a second. Real estate agents are there to buy and sell homes. Whether it's a real dump or a dream home, a house needs a homeowner. Hyping up a house is part of the sale, but all prospective buyers should know how to sift through red flag after red flag. The best place to start is in the listing description. Let's go and take a look at some real estate euphemism that can drive a buyer up a wall. Quaint. It's minuscule. The same goes for cozy, or charming. That means you'll be squeezing between the back of a chair and the wall to get from the living room to the kitchen. Quaint is a cute word, it adds this easy of apple pies, soft couches, and warm sweaters. It's a very useful descriptor for real estate listings and, if you're on a budget, it can be good news too. Just don't be surprised when you show up to the open house and they're only letting six people in at a time. Full of possibilities. You can romanticize paint rollers and stained old t-shirts if you want, the listing agent surely will, but 'full of possibilities' usually means that you're going to need a few cans of elbow grease to get the house in working order. The seller probably couldn't do the repairs on the property in due time or is being forced to sell. This can happen for a few reasons like not being able to afford the mortgage anymore or other problems that make it financially stressful to live in the house. Before you go further with a property like that it's important to be aware of all the possible issues with the house. Just hoping that a fixer-upper can become your dream home is not going to be enough to deal with hidden problems, roof problems, and a terrible location. While house hunting, if you see something advertised as a "handyman special," you're better off looking the other way unless the house's price is as low as the likely cracks in the foundation. It's complicated to judge the fair market value of properties that need a lot of work but it's not impossible. Saving money on the initial purchase can be alluring, especially in the current market conditions, but if you're not careful you'll quickly need to sort through an email inbox full of quotations to fix the flooding basement. FROG (Finished room over garage). A FROG is not a kitchen, a living room, or a bedroom. Most named rooms need to be fit for purpose when they're listed. While most people could use a finished room over a garage as a bedroom or as some sort of family room, a real estate agent cannot call it a bedroom - even with their fingers crossed behind their backs. Given that they're over garages, these rooms can have strange proportions which make them better suited as some sort of storage space or as a makeshift rumpus room. Still, this doesn't always mean bad things. That bonus room can be used as a home office, an extra bedroom, or something different. You can ask for your agent to get you photos of the room, or better yet you could have a walk around it during an open house or private showing. Up and coming. A classic. Usually referring to the neighbourhood, this tends to speak to the community that lives in the area. You could end up with a pretty area with a community yard that the neighbourhood children use to learn about gardening, or you could also end up in an area where crime rates are the only things that are going up. It's really a case of knowing the city and understanding why the neighbourhood is defined the way it is. Is there an economic rising tide that promises that the area at the moment is a good investment or did the agent just use a buzzword supposed to calm your fears to expedite a sale? If you get the chance to, talking to local homeowners will give you some great perspective about where the house is located. If you're interested and want to gain some knowledge about the difference between the truth and the reputation of a neighbourhood then nothing will beat driving around the area at different times. It's important not to let obsolete ideas about an area obscure your vision but at the same time keep in mind that agents are there to sell and buy houses. Don't fall for the hype or tainted preconceptions. Full of character. The house is 'interesting'. Everyone has their quirks but the previous owner of a house full of character might have had too many quirks. There's no shame in loving clowns, for example, but having an open house where people can just walk in to find a room dedicated to the history of clowns complete with walls decorated with props, specialized built-in furniture, and more is going to make the house have to sell. Sure, you can save a lot on the sale price if you're willing to deal with all the, possibly cursed, clown memorabilia but will the savings be worth it? It can get weird fast. Themed houses, windows in strange places, 'interesting' floor plans. Is there an upside for this one? Well, yes and no. You can definitely have some things in common with the previous owner like a love of outdoor kitchens and floor-to-ceiling windows onto a pool - but these features will be advertised as such. The house could also have non-conventional but genuinely useful different architectural properties that, for example, diffuse the light of the setting sun throughout the home. Soon enough in your house hunt, you'll learn how much the best parts of those three little words scale positively with a big budget and scale in horrifying ways with a small budget. Original. One of the biggest traps there are. Having a home untouched by decades of style fads can be alluring but it could also mean that nobody thought it was worth updating the home. Original flooring can be worn out and tired, original appliances can be 'charming' in the same way being stuck in traffic is charming, and the original HVAC system is probably missing the last two letters. This isn't to paint all older homes in a bad light but once you set foot through the door, you should have an arsenal of questions ready to fire. You don't want to be in the middle of winter and get surprised by the fact that the chimney is completely clogged with soot - not to mention that that's very dangerous.     View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

5 Things To Do If You're Struggling To Sell Your Home There are a thousand issues that contribute to you struggling to sell. Home values rising and rising might have made you price your home inappropriately, some renovations can make your home unappealing, or the market conditions have made buyers back off from specific home types. Whatever the issue, there are things you can do to attract the potential buyer that will pay top dollar for your house. But before setting expectations sky-high, the first thing you need to do is understand why your current home is not selling. Price your home correctly. When there are a lot of competing properties on the housing market, more than there are buyers even, that means you're in a buyer's market. This means that the buyers have the upper hand and even if the pricing of your home is accurate in other situations, being in a buyer's market will inevitably drive prices down. Prospective buyers will always be on the lookout for home prices that fit their budget or come under. As a seller, obviously, you want the best price possible when selling your home. No one goes through the entire process only to receive less money than what they think they deserve. How then, do you set a realistic price? Hire a real estate agent. An asking price is the first filter you set in place that buyers use to determine whether or not something like going to open houses is worth it. Setting that filter in place can have unintended consequences if you're not familiar with how real estate transactions work. Hiring a real estate agent will mean that not only will they have contacts with other buyers' agents looking for homes in your area but they will also know the value of comparable homes and help you choose a good price point. Unagented home sellers tend to set a prohibitive sales price because emotions tend to get in the way. It's not easy to decide what your home should cost, not everyone has access to the wealth of information that real estate agents have. As a seller, you might expect to lose out on the deal because of the added closing costs due to hiring a real estate agent but the truth is that an agent can help reel in many buyers that you would not have been able to get in touch with yourself. As those buyers compete with one another, that means extra cash for you - more than enough to offset the cost of hiring an agent. Before you stick your home online with a list price you cobbled together based on the price of another property like yours but two cities away, contact a real estate agent. Real estate agents can also employ the right marketing strategy for your house. Realtors have a huge reach through their social media accounts which helps them find the right people for either a one-bedroom condo in the heart of the city or a three-bedroom home in the suburbs. Make necessary repairs and updates. While some buyers will overlook some key issues, most buyers will be taking a close look at some key features of the house. Before they even walk in the door, potential buyers will take in the home's curb appeal consciously or subconsciously. Listing photos are great but nothing changes someone's opinion as quickly as an unkempt dried-up front lawn does. Repaint the front door, add some plants around the rocking chair you never use, put a couple of coasters on the little table on the porch; make it feel like the house they are about to walk in is one that has been well-loved and given more than it has taken over time. When getting ready for a home sale, it's not just enough to declutter the property and clean a little inside. The future owners want to know that they can move in and live in the home for a while before needing to think about repairs to the property. Most buyers will have the home inspected thoroughly and could use the issues they uncovered to create pressure points to use during a negotiation. If you're more interested in selling fast than selling for more money then that's not an issue. However, if you want to make the most out of the sale then taking some time to do repairs can help you drive the price higher up and attract more buyers - hopefully triggering a bidding war. Make better use of your square footage. No one wants to put a down payment on a cramped house. Even if you have a lot of space, insisting on keeping big items of furniture can make events like private showings and open houses an exercise in human traffic jams. There's a reason home sales tips always emphasize decluttering but if you followed the advice and still find it hard to navigate then it's time to take the next step. Your first option is to rent a storage unit big enough to fit some of your furniture and store the bigger, clunkier items there until you sell. Another option is to just start selling some of the furniture, unless you plan on bringing it with you to your next home, you might as well get this step out of the way. Leaving a decent amount of furniture behind can be very attractive for prospective buyers, but the truth is that while some furniture included in the sale is great, too much furniture can feel like the sellers are just offloading their problems onto the buyer. Offer to pay the buyer's closing costs. Closing costs can add up to a pretty sum but it doesn't compare to the amount you will make when you sell your home. If you're waiting on the sale of the home for another transaction then speeding things along by offering to pay for some of the extra costs usually expected to fall on the buyer can get your home off the market swiftly. As opposed to lowering the asking price upfront, you can use this tactic if you feel like the property is on the verge of slipping back fully into your hands. A condition-less cash offer is the dream but you're here because the home is struggling to sell, not the opposite. In real estate, negotiating can go a very long way. For example, you could even offer to pay for the home inspection yourself. That the seller chose to entice the buyer can make the difference between the buyer passing on a sale and a collective round of champagne popping. The most important thing to keep in mind. If you expect your home to stay on the market for a while, you should talk to your agent about the best course of action. And if the home is taking a while to sell and you don't have an agent, then it's past time to get one. There is always the option to relist the home after making some changes but the ethics of that can be a little complicated and left to individual agents. Selling a home is not just about square footage or market conditions, there's a lot to the process that involves having a salesman's mindset. Putting your house on sale is a difficult, emotional event, it's okay to not have all the answers. Having someone on your side who knows most of these coveted answers though, that's the best you can make if you're struggling to sell your home. View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

Money-Saving and Money-Making Ideas For Your Home. It can feel like the only way to get more out of your house is to knock down all the walls and start again. Thankfully, that's not the case. There are lots of small things you can do that can increase the value of your home quickly. If you were wondering, "what are some easy ways to increase the value of my home?" you're in the right place. Go full LED lights for energy efficiency and lower power bills. Let's start simple. LED lighting is super energy efficient. Making sure you're using LEDs through your house can do wonders not just on your utility bill but on the look and feel of your home. The low cost of LED bulbs compared to how much they bring out the richness of your home's interior almost feels like cheating. The softer lighting throughout the property makes it feel warmer and more welcoming. This will not help your home's equity values but the energy efficiency will help you save more money over the years, money that you can invest in bigger renovations over the years. Add smart devices. To save money, you have to spend money. Adding smart devices like an automated thermostat brings so much added value to your home that it would be crazy not to consider it. On top of helping you stay on top of your utility bills, some of these devices can even help find irregularities in your home like a gap letting in cold air during the winter. Being able to keep heating costs regulated, just like the inside temperature is something many potential buyers will note as a huge positive. Finish the basement, but don't personalize it. An unfinished basement is a liability to buyers, but a basement that has been finished and painted is more square footage, a flex room, or anything else the new owners want it to be. The process to finish the basement has a different price tag depending on its current state but it's a worthwhile investment. First impressions during open houses and home inspections can make the difference between a reasonable and someone willing to shell out top dollar for your home. The reason real estate agents advise against personalizing too much is that if you're planning to move out already then leaving the space as neutral as possible allows the buyers to create their own image about what they might do with the space. Work on the home's curb appeal. Future buyers are going to make a series of complicated judgement calls before making the decision to put an offer in for your house. One of them saying that your porch is where they want to spend their golden years can greatly sway the scales. A square foot in a well-kept front yard matters almost as much as one inside the home. To get the most value out of your landscaping, opt for something clean but still alive. While some people would love to live in front of the equivalent of a golf course, a charming garden that's not too hard to maintain can boost your home's value significantly. A fresh coat of paint on the home's exterior can do wonders to make people feel more confident in their purchase. A lot of people forego the outside of a home when it comes to home improvements, that's why a beautiful garden and some care and attention to the little touches can entice future homeowners so much. It's not just about first impressions but about the care that went into the home. Routine maintenance is better than emergency repairs. Speaking of care, it needs to come in steady increments. This is not something that will boost home values but it is definitely something that will help you keep the costs down over the years. Steady maintenance might feel like something preventing you from reaching your financial goals in time but when you need to sell and sell quickly, being confident that your home is in great condition can help you once you come to the negotiating table. A water heater treated well over the years, a new bathroom that was waterproofed correctly, hardwood floors handled well - these are all things that help your resale value without costing you chunks of cash just before putting your house on the market. Small renovations can go a long way (knockdown only one wall). Fine, if you want to knock down a wall there's nothing wrong with that. As long as you own the wall and have a plan for what to do next. Even knocking out parts of a wall can make a massive difference. Imagine that you have a dining room with beautiful floor-to-ceiling windows and lots of light and an adjacent kitchen with a good amount of light but not nearly as much. Creating an opening in their shared wall will not only let in a lot more light in the kitchen but that new opening also creates a much more convivial atmosphere. Open floor plans are becoming more and more popular because they allow people to converse and see each other even if they are in areas that fulfill different functions - the dining room and the kitchen in our example but that can extend to any non-private area. Bonus tip #1: Use your Home Equity Line of Credit to finance renovations. This works even when you're planning to stay in the home but the trick that makes HELOCs great for increasing your home's value is that you can repay the amount borrowed at any time. This means no prepayment penalties once you decide to pay it all back and put the home on the market. Don't confuse this with a home equity loan where you take out a big lump sum that must be repaid over a set period of time. Bonus tip #2: Be wary of good ideas with bad execution. Solar panels are great, but if they sit on your roof with unsightly cables and rust visible from the street, they will be seen as a detriment to buyers. A pool can be useful for active families or those who like to have pool parties but if it's surrounded by trees that shed leaves, twigs, and bugs directly into the water then the buyers might be thinking more about the cost of pool maintenance than anything else. You can't simply dump money into a property and expect the home value to trend upward. New flooring in the bathrooms is a great idea but not if you turn it all into one giant moisture-retaining carpet. There's nothing wrong with being quirky but if you're planning to sell the home at some point, then you should be ready to spend the money for renovations that more conventional people will appreciate. View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

The Hard Truth About Flipping Houses. Flipping houses for a living seems attractive at a glance. You buy a house, embellish it, and sell it for a profit. You're your own boss, you get to use your hands, and you work on your own timeline. Still, is it for everyone? House flipping can yield a huge profit but it's a risky business. The time investment and the market's situation when you decide to sell contribute to thinning profit margins if you're not used to the business so what are some key things to think about before taking the plunge? Don't go by the average cost to flip a house. When stepping into a money pit, it's better to have more money than you thought you would need. The truth is that in order to make money, especially in house flipping, you need to be ready to lose money. You are essentially turning yourself into a real estate investor when you buy a property with your main intention is to turn a profit from it. There is a significant financial risk that you will be paying for a long time. Flipping properties involves large sums of money and if you calculated an average of what it would cost to shape up a house to sell it, you need to tack on an additional 10% at the very least. The amount you plan for, of course, depends on what kind of market you bought the house in and the condition of the home at the moment of purchase. It's still pretty easy to underestimate what the price of all the needed repairs will be. Problems may crop up over time despite all your best efforts to properly evaluate the cost of the materials and manual labour. What is the 70% rule? The 70% rule states that you should not be paying over 70% of the value of a property minus the repair costs. Take the value of the home after the repairs, multiply it by 0.7 and subtract the estimated repairs from the result; that is what you should pay at most. Is the after-repair value tied to the market value? Not always. Fluctuations in the market can drown out your profits which is why you want to give yourself a good margin with the 70% rule. The eventual resale value will depend on external factors that you cannot control so it's best to focus on what you can have an effect on. For example, you can lower the repair cost by doing more of the work yourself, building up some "sweat equity". What is sweat equity? Sweat equity is the labour or work done in order to increase the value of a property. It reckons that one's own sweat is worth some portion of the property. It's an important factor to consider when you want to get into the business of flipping houses. How much of the work are you willing and able to do on your own can have a significant impact on your profits. Flipped or not, you still have to pay the mortgage. House flipping is more often than not done by people one house at a time. Real estate investing can take many forms and when flipping a house there are a few different ways to go about it. If you have enough money to buy the house outright then that's great and flipping it will almost always guarantee a profit. However, if you need a loan to purchase the home in the first place then you need to be aware of the monthly costs that you need to shoulder. Buy low, sell high is easy for stocks but for houses bought with a mortgage, it's a little more complicated. If you ask your local real estate agent they will tell you that most houses get sold in a few weeks if not less. The right property will fly off the market easily but until it does get sold you are still responsible for the payments to your mortgage lender. If you can, hunt down mortgages with low-interest rates to finance the purchase of the fixer-upper and keep an eye out for mortgages that offer lower pre-payment penalties. When you eventually sell, you want to keep most of the money you invested and with a lot to go on a mortgage that can be complicated. It can take years before you break even. Following up on the previous point, you need to take the time this entire process takes into consideration. Real estate is a great investment but it is not liquid. For real estate investors, a very quick profit operates on a time frame of two years at the very least. You have to take into account the mortgage term, the number of repairs you can do to a house within that time frame, the time it takes to find potential buyers, and more. More time spent flipping a house might not always result in more profit. You can spend the cash needed in the process by remodelling an old kitchen, adding a pool, and redoing the wiring throughout the house but see the returns on your investment drop because the neighbourhood deteriorated while you were making those changes. The amount that you owe on the home and the details of the pre-payment penalty alone could be enough to incur a loss in the end. And both of those things only get better with time (or refinancing your mortgage). You must have the financial resources for this type of investment or it won't work out for you. Agent commissions, closing costs, and more are common in home sales that you have to account for. If you intend to flip houses for a living and have that be your only source of income then you need to either have rock-solid budgeting skills or be prepared to live in the house you are going to flip. Without a plan, to start flipping houses is the equivalent of slowly burning your savings. Getting in touch with real estate agents in your area and asking them about the potential of flipping houses is a good place to start. If you have paid off your mortgage on the house you already live in, you could take out a home equity line of credit to finance the purchase of a fixer-upper and the repairs but you risk putting your own home in jeopardy if the purchase price of the house flip doesn't match expectations. If it's your first time flipping a house then it's a good idea to talk to some professionals and the people for whom you're responsible. House flipping is a stressful process and the investment needed is in sweat, time, and vast amounts of money.     View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

The Potential Pitfalls of Buying a Condo. Condos are a great middle-ground between apartment living and a single-family home. A condo unit in the heart of a city can be a smart move to build equity while still getting to enjoy city life but that doesn't mean that it's free of risk. When considering a condo versus another type of housing, not just single-family homes, it's important to consider everything that goes with condo living. One of the biggest dangers of buying a condo is getting stuck with a bad neighbour. It's no secret that condos share common areas within the same building. Whether you will like the condo experience or not can be greatly influenced by your neighbours. Though condos are a long-term investment, one of the drawbacks of condos is that it's a long-term investment for other people around you too. People in apartments are much more mobile but condo life means getting to know your neighbours for years. A toxic condo community or even just one bad apple right next door seemingly banging on the walls can make you regret the downpayment, legal fees, and closing costs you put down. Most condos have conflict resolution practices as a last resort but there's no telling if these will work in the long run. Getting in touch with the condo's board and the property management company to see how they handle complaints can help you figure out if the condo fits your needs. If you're not careful, you could wind up paying more in condo fees than you expected. In a single-family home, it's the homeowners responsibility to shovel snow, take care of landscaping, and more. All of these costs are taken on by the owner. They can hire people to take care of some of those things but at the end of the day, they need to micromanage those things. Though condos tend to offer less space overall compared to homes, there is a distinct advantage in the fact that the owner is not expected to conduct maintenance themselves. Collectively, the owners hire people to take care of maintenance throughout the building. However, if the other owners come together and decide to employ someone new or go with a different company than the one you would have liked for specific maintenance jobs, this could mean a bump in how much you pay monthly. It's important to know how your money is being spent throughout the building and what hikes in the fees are expected. Inspecting common elements of the condo like the hallways and the yard can give you an idea of how close the building is to a major repair and how that might change your fees. The closest equivalent in real estate is the fees imposed by homeowners associations. There are differences between a condominium association and a homeowners association but the terms are often used interchangeably. In both cases, the group of people who own the property in common (in a condo it's the residents) come together to manage it and make decisions about how it should be run. The average HOA fee covers things like approving new paint colours for the exterior, what kind of plants to put in the front yard, or whether to replace the roof. A condo owner is still responsible for the mortgage and their portion of the condo fees even if they're not living in the unit. This means that, if you go on vacation or take an extended work trip, your home will still need to be maintained. It's important to factor this into your decision-making process when thinking about money in the long run. Differences between a condo association and an HOA for single-family homes. Single-family homes can sometimes be part of a homeowners association that requires HOA fees and can even require that some external renovations go through review by an HOA board. However, for many homes, HOAs (and HOA fees) are completely optional or even unavailable. For condos, monthly maintenance fees are unavoidable. Aside from property taxes, once a single-family home is paid off, it has no recurring costs paid out to third parties if there is no HOA. When buying a condo, you need to account for enough money leaving your pocket every month for as long as you own the condo. Property taxes are a fee charged by the government on property that is used to fund various public services. The amount of the tax is based on the value of the property, and it is usually paid annually. They tend to be more expensive for houses but not necessarily so. HOA dues are also usually calculated based on the value of the home. An HOA community will be less tightly knit together than typical condo associations. Make sure the condo association is well-managed and has a good track record. Condo owners don't have to deal with things like snow removal or general landscaping, as these are paid for by monthly dues and taken care of by the condominium association. However, an individual condo owner needs to be aware of what their monthly fees are going toward. Common property areas, ideally, should be maintained regularly to allow everyone to enjoy the building. Many condos have great governing documents as well as a good system of written communication to relay important information. Still, some do not. It can make things like unexpected repairs a pain to deal with because the other owners may not be willing to use the reserve fund to deal with the issues. In a well-run association, things run smoothly so that the community operates without a hitch. You also need to think about the resale values of the units in the long run. Association dues could be financing projects that drive the price of the condo down instead of, for example, renovating the building's fitness centre. Adding solar panels are a great idea but some owners may not want to change the exterior look of the building. Still, you need to understand that beyond your individual unit, the common areas are always subject to the group's approval. When buying a condo, you have to look at how much you like the building but also take some time to see if the board members are making sensible decisions. Always have an inspector check out the property before you buy it. You might love the other condo owners you met and have a good feeling about the state of the building but having an inspector check out the property independently is a good idea nevertheless. It's important to have it inspected by a professional to make sure there are no underlying problems with the property. Issues that may not be visible to the naked eye could cause costly repairs down the road, so it's important to know about any potential problems before you finalize your purchase. If you can walk around common areas with them as well, it would help you understand what your future monthly fees could be going toward. Getting into the right atmosphere. Some community associations have deep roots in certain condominium buildings with several volunteers or like-minded people doing things in a recurrent convivial setting. It's important to understand how well you would fit into the community. If you're someone that wants to have a very sociable relationship with your neighbours then it would be a shame to move into a condo that houses mostly introverted people. Vice-versa. Finding the right place means that you can find people to tag along with you to the dog park or, on the other end of the spectrum, come to a quick agreement to say nothing but a couple of words when you bump into each other in the laundry room. All in all, it's important to ask all the questions you can before taking the plunge.   View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

Is Raising Children In The City Better or Worse? It's been ingrained in our collective unconscious for decades that to raise kids, you need to be in the suburbs. There have been studies and thought pieces all over the place essentially asking, "is raising kids in the city okay?" The pros of raising children in the city. Urban parenting may seem like an odd choice to some but there are some great benefits. Urban life in most cities means being in a more dynamic environment. There are more things to do, more people to meet and more cultures to experience. This is great for kids who need to be exposed to different ideas and environments at an early age. The daily or weekly routine of the suburbs is replaced by new non-chain restaurants popping up, shopping malls give way to small shops strewn about city streets, and the need to drive kids everywhere is replaced by a robust public transportation system. With more walkable neighbourhoods and no need to use a car for most day-to-day activities, it makes it easier for busy parents to talk to their kids during their commute to one place or another during public transit. Talking face-to-face while holding onto a subway pole is different from needing to keep your eyes on the road. There are some meaningful risks with commuting by car everywhere that are completely absent when you deal with public transportation. The risk of car crashes is basically eliminated. Many cities also have the huge advantage of concentrating cultural amenities in an accessible area. Letting children explore on their own once they get into double-digit ages can help them become independent more easily. Going to a friend's house is something that doesn't need to tie up a car and a parent, city kids learn to navigate and rely on themselves a lot sooner. What city kids develop outside of school are very useful tools later in life once they live on their own. There was also an illusion of good schools being rare compared to the suburbs but, even if just looking at better test scores in recent years, many city schools can hold their own. Many parents can also reap major benefits that get passed down to their kids like better job opportunities and the possibility to reach for the highest rungs on the career ladder. Busy parents needing their own time to decompress also have access to plenty of third spaces like cafes, parks, and bookstores. Urban child-rearing also makes it more likely that city kids interact with kids who are not from the same socio-economic or ethnic background. While in the past some parents would prioritize sending their kids to a school with other kids of the same background without really taking time to assess school quality, modern parents do it the other way around. If no one in the family has a green thumb or an interest in a private yard, having the city's parks department take care of the outdoor green spaces gives parents and kids more time to just enjoy the area instead of worrying about the upkeep. No need to mow the lawn, water the plants, etc and more time to spend together as a family. The cons of raising children in the city. In bigger cities, population growth has made things costlier in many regards. City life tends to be more expensive, which means that average childcare costs are higher. While it's great to live in a bustling neighbourhood, the construction crew blockades that narrow the sidewalk space and the packed subways can be a stress factor for everyone. Major cities tend to feature a lot of inequality and that can translate into the myth of urban schools' performance numbers all being bad. The fact is that not all urban schools are good and while that applies to suburban and rural areas as well, the effect seems compounded in cities because of other issues. Unless the family moving into a bigger city has a couple of millions on hand, kids having their own backyard - one that is big enough to actually run in - is an illusion. Private outdoor space is something that is extremely pricy in cities compared to what you could find in a small town. Though parks can be within walking distance, cycling lessons are going to take place on a sidewalk. Bike lanes can also be dangerous unless there is a system of graduated access in the quieter parts of the city. Due to population density, it's normal to think about a family's safety. With parents working hard to afford city-living and kids walking around on their own while gazing at shop windows or at a park with friends, it's easy to get worried. Not all neighbourhoods are made equal and a city parent needs to be savvy about where their kids tend to go to. For many, living in the city means living in an apartment and that means rules regarding pets. If your little ones desperately want a dog but the landlord does not, the landlord tends to win. There are ways to negotiate with them but a more affordable housing situation in the suburbs or in rural areas would mean that the only ones that need convincing are the parents. Shed misconceptions. We tend to keep a lot of outdated ideas without reevaluating whether or not things have changed. The schools parents prefer for their children don't automatically all belong in the suburbs. Child care may be expensive in the big city but raising kids in the city leads to young adults that are more adapted to life on their own, if only for knowing how to get around by themselves. Things like car trips or a private outdoor space are concessions made so that kids get to experience a more dynamic and culturally effervescent life. Not that kids in the suburbs can't experience the same things but young people in the big cities have a much easier time getting to events, cultural landmarks, and more. It's also important to think of older kids, the parents themselves. Cities are great for active adults that love the hustle and bustle of big cities. With more to experience and more chances to talk during trips that don't involve driving, it's easier to spend time with the family. While there are drawbacks to city living, there are some amazing advantages. Before defaulting to the suburbs, look at your family and decide what would be best for all of you. View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter

How To Win a Bidding War. In real estate, bidding wars are not rare. In a competitive market, buyers looking for their perfect home can drive prices sky-high. But what is a real estate bidding war? Should you get into one in certain market conditions? And, more importantly, how do you win one? What is a bidding war? In real estate, a bidding war is a situation in which two or more people, typically interested parties in the purchase of the same property, make offers to buy the property at the same time. The term can also be used more generally in other types of auctions. The listing agent may set the price a little lower than the home's market value to entice potential buyers and create a high demand that can send the initial asking price soaring. The role of the selling agent is to be on the side of the home sellers and give them the best price possible for their house, and in a seller's market bidding wars are a great way to make that happen. The housing market does not have a static purchase price set in stone for each house, it depends on whether there are more buyers than sellers and other factors. One local market can be different from another and so a home that would trigger bidding wars in one location would not do so if it were somewhere else. As a potential buyer, one thing to keep in mind is that the listing price you see online may be a far cry from what's expected if many competing offers start to roll in. What is blind bidding? Blind bidding is a practice where you and the other buyers are not allowed to know what everyone is bidding. As you can imagine that can drive the selling price through the roof extremely quickly. When a dream home lands on a tight market, it's easy to have people with more money than sense get over-zealous. The blind bidding process adds a layer of uncertainty where people are basically throwing higher and higher numbers without knowing if what they're offering to pay is reasonable considering the other buyers' offers. In BC, there are talks of making changes to the home buying process in order to remove the possibility of blind bidding to try and tone down the bidding wars. Open bidding, where other buyers can tell what the other offers are, is more transparent but it is unclear as to whether or not it leads to fairer prices overall. Seller's markets being what they are, it's a good idea to talk things at length with your real estate agent to see what's right for your situation. When should you get into a bidding war? Avoid falling into the trap of getting into bidding wars just because you see a home's price climbing. Hype does not justify higher prices, finding a realtor acting in good faith can save you the extra money you would have spent on a pointless contest. There are times, however, when multiple buyers will find a house that feels right for them. Maybe the housing market isn't great and that one house is a gem compared to other properties, maybe it's in the perfect spot for your commute and the children's bus route to school. All real estate agents know that bidding wars happen for all sorts of reasons. The best one is when you find a home fit for you. However, finances are still something to think about. Are you ready to tighten your belt for a few years to deal with the mortgage? Can you keep doing the things you love while living in that home? It's all worth considering before you make the call. How do I win a bidding war? Have all your finances in order. This means getting things like your mortgage pre-approval documents, pay stubs, and bank statements ready. When it comes to it, most sellers want to know that they are not wasting their time. Showing them that you're prepared and have the means to pay what you're bidding goes a long way. Set up an escalation clause with your real estate agent. The bidding process is gruelling. Winning a bidding war can come down to the wire but once you step back you find that you offered to pay more than what you reasonably could. An escalation clause basically sets up a ceiling for how much you are willing to put down. In a blind bidding war, it helps show the seller how far you're willing to go earlier on. In an open bidding situation, the ceiling of your escalation clause basically gives the other buyers a number they need to beat to take you out. Use this judiciously when thinking about the bidding process. Think through waiving conditions. The highest bid may not be the one that wins in the end. Sending an offer without conditions, like waiving the home inspection contingency, will make your offer very appealing. It exposes you to the risk of expensive repairs but in multiple offer situations, this can help the seller settle on a buyer far more easily. Most real estate agents would advise against this unless it becomes an absolute necessity to close on the sale. Be prepared to walk away if the price is too high. There are times when prices will just go out of control. Homes come and go on the market and a mortgage that would feel like the weight of the world for one house can be much more manageable for a comparable home that comes on the market just days later. The truth of multiple offers is that they only benefit the seller and the seller's agent. Properties in high demand, properties in a seller's market, sell for a premium - that's how economics work. It's up to you to do your due diligence to protect your financial health by making sure that the down payment you are putting down is worth the money. Having the upper hand sometimes means knowing when to back out. Confidence goes a long way but, ironically, so do limits. Should you bid on the property you're eyeing? Think of what life will be like living in that house and what you're willing to sacrifice for that.   View All Homes For Sale in Greater Vancouver >>> About Search Home Listings SearchHomeListings.ca has simplified the home buying and selling process by giving you superior tools with up-to-the-minute information including active homes for sale, sold homes, market reports, and a home valuation tool! We have a team of success managers on standby to support you with setting up your saved home search and agents ready to take you out on a tour. Tap into our industry experts from inspectors, to contractors to interior designers to provide you with the best prices and service possible. Everyone attached to our website has been rigorously vetted and is made up of caring, knowledgeable professionals that work tirelessly to help you to make your home buying experience as stress-free as possible. Contact us today to see how we can help!  Sites We Follow Google Facebook Twitter