People are learning how to feng shui their homes and benefiting from the positive energy. You should not forget about the outside of your home.

All the energy in your home originally comes from the outside. Good feng shui can provide a calm and gentle garden environment and attract positive chi.

The same feng shui principles apply inside and out.

Your backyard should be a place of creative harmony. We use our backyards to relax, play wit h our children, eat al fresco and entertain friends. A healthy chi will ensure that you enjoy your yard for many years to come.

Our society can be transitory. People purchase a home with a plan that they will be living there for many years to come. In the past, people lived in their homes their entire adult lives and passed the home to their children.

According to the Toronto Real Estate Board, realtors in the Greater Toronto area reported  7,642 sales during October 2011.

Those 7000 plus homeowners all had a reason to move and sell. Here are some of the reasons:

• Relocation. With low employment rates, people need to go where the jobs are.  Companies also relocate employees to different areas. Sometimes a commute becomes too much and people decide to move closer to work.
• Outgrowing a home. Couples may purchase a starter home that is perfect for them. Once they start a family, they feel the squeeze.  More bedrooms, a family room, and a larger yard become desirous.
• Downsizing. As couples become “empty nesters” they may find that they no longer need a large home. Baby boomers are selling their homes and moving to condominiums.
• Marriage and divorce. Combining households, or the more tragic breaking up of a home are common reasons to sell a house.
• Financial problems. Sometimes people buy more house than they can afford. During these recessionary times, people lose jobs or have to take pay cuts.
• Health problems. When someone becomes seriously ill or disabled, they can no longer maintain their home, or afford to pay their mortgage.
• Retirement and lifestyle changes. Some people decide to pack it in, sell the house and travel, or move to a retirement home. As the baby boomers age, this will become more common.
• Flipping homes. Some people prefer to buy houses that need renovations, live in the house while they fix it up, then sell it for a profit and buy a new one.
• Neighborhood problems. Bad neighbours can make someone’s life hell. Sometimes moving is the only solution. A poor neighborhood increases the likelihood a homeowner will sell. If there is a high crime rate or break-ins, that can provoke someone to move to a safer neighborhood.
• High maintenance costs. An older home that is in need of significant upgrades, such as new wiring, a new furnace, or roof, may prompt some people to sell, rather than invest money and time in renovations.
• Upgrading. Someone wins the lottery, gets an inheritance, or a promotion and decides the time to purchase their dream home is now.

Every homebuyer is searching for a home that stands out and captures their attention immediately. That’s why it’s so important for those who are selling their property to prepare their home completely for the sale process. Without taking on this vital preparation work, you could be stuck with a property that stays on the market for a longer period of time than you had anticipated. So with that in mind, here are some top tips to help you sell your house quickly.

The View From Outside

Curb appeal is the first and foremost consideration when selling your house. Imagine your reaction to driving by a home that looks down-trodden and in disrepair. Now think back to those times you’ve driven by a home that has a beautiful lush green lawn that features neat landscaped architecture. Both properties might make you stop and stare. But only the second home is going to be worth a second look.

To ensure that you set the tone for the ideal home review, keep areas such as lawns, driveways and other exterior elements clean and neat-looking. Most real estate professionals will advise you to place flowers around the front of your door in order to present an alluring welcoming spot that combines sweet scents with high class aesthetics.

A Coat of Paint Ensures the Perfect Backdrop to the New-Look Property

Once your real estate agent has arranged for potential homebuyers to review the property, you must immediately begin staging your property for ideal viewing. One of the most valuable important house selling tips involves the décor of your property.

Painting is one of the first tasks to be completed once you’ve decide to put your home on the market, as it can often take a while to paint an entire area of a property and fresh paint offers immense eye-catching value when showcasing your property.  When guests walk in, you want them to see a vibrant living space that they can immediately fall in love with. While fresh paint isn’t the only item required, it’s certainly one of the most essential!

Presentation is EVERYTHING

Before beginning to invite interested buyers to review your property, it’s imperative that your home looks aesthetically pleasing. Therefore you must remove that unnecessary clutter that you’ve been meaning to throw away for months now. Clean out all of your closets and pack away those items that haven’t been used in years. In addition to helping provide you with a clean, clutter-free space which looks fantastic, de-cluttering your home will also begin to help you and your family de-personalize your attachment to the property, so that a new family can envision themselves living there.

Professional Repairs can SEAL THE DEAL

When a homeowner comes to review your home, the aesthetic elements are the first features that they will notice. However, they will often invite a home inspector to review the property before they purchase. This means that you should be prepared to repair any minor property damage such as broken or dysfunctional piping and chipped woodwork. By doing so, you can vastly improving your chances of selling your house quickly, as you will prove to the homebuyer that you are both professional and trustworthy.

Remember when trying to make your home sparkle for prospective buyers to always weigh the cost of the work against the overall return you’ll be getting for your investment. Larger, more expensive rejuvenation projects should be avoided where possible! The idea is to provide added value for both you and the future homeowner. You’ll need to spare the additional capital for the purchase of your own new property.

Greater Toronto REALTORS® reported 7,642 home sales through the TorontoMLS® in October 2011. This represented an increase of 17.5 per cent compared to the 6,504 transactions reported in October 2010.

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A kitchen is the heart of the home. It is the place where you nourish your family and enjoy each other’s company over a meal. Your Toronto area home should be a place of peace and joy.

The kitchen represents the feng shui symbol of prosperity.

Ensure that your kitchen has good feng shui by following the following tips:

• The kitchen should not be located near the front door or too close to the back door, where chi can escape.
• A toilet should not be located adjacent to the kitchen or directly above the kitchen.
•  Keep your counters clutter free. Too many appliances or items on counters can block the flow of chi. Cabinets should also be organized.
•  Your oven is a source of energy. It should not face the front door. Because fire and water elements should not be located side by side or opposite each other, take care when designing the layout of a kitchen and placement of the stove and sink or dishwasher. An exhaust hood over the stove is recommended to remove heat.
•  A kitchen should not be located next to a bedroom or open directly into the living room.
•  Good lighting is essential for a generous and positive energy.
•  Choose colours that enhance the chi and promote a feeling of comfort. Yellow is the best choice, but shades of orange, green and brown also enhance digestion and promote a positive energy. Your kitchen should be bright and welcoming.
•  Bowls of fruit, living plants or flower arrangements placed on a table or windowsill promote positive energy and are visually appealing. Fresh herbs also provide positive energy.
•  Keep knives or the knife blades hidden from view, either in a drawer or a knife block.
•  Put all pots and pans away when not in use, they can block prosperity chi if left on a burner.
•  Keep your kitchen clean and empty the garbage and recycling on a regular basis.
•  Get rid of any chipped or cracked dishes.
•  Keep healthy food in your refrigerator and cupboards. Throw away any expired or ruined food.

If you have any questions in regards to first time home buyer’s tax credit in Toronto area, please fill out the form bellow – I respond to ALL inquiries!

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When selling your property, it’s important that you have a full understanding of the types of people who may be interested in purchasing your real estate. Understanding the unique characteristics of certain buyers will help you to streamline the selling process and ensure that you avoid a long, drawn-out sale that costs you both time and money.

There are four main types of buyer. And within this article, we’ll look closer as these four buyer types and detail the traits that will help you pick them out.

The Bargain Hunting Buyer

These buyers will usually be attracted to homes that are not priced correctly, or have structural problems that prevent them for retaining full market value, so most sellers won’t encounter this kind of buyer. The bargain hunting buyer is usually a property speculator or someone who doesn’t actually need to buy the property.

They will likely put in a low-ball offer very early on in the purchase process and wait for a reaction from the seller. If you immediately rejection an offer from the bargain hunting buyer, they may wait a while before putting in another offer, which is usually nothing more than their original valuation. Try not to get bogged down in this game, as they are simply waiting for you to lower your price.

The No Money down Buyer

Those looking for a fast, trouble-free home-selling process should be very wary of buyers that are 100% reliant upon financing in order to complete the purchase. The current financial problems within North America mean that it is now very difficult for buyers to qualify for loans. And even if the buyer is able to qualify a loan, their lending institution may not agree with the valuation of the property, and therefore they could either force you to lower your price or walk away from the deal.

The Bully

This type of buyer is often encountered by people trying to selling their homes. They will find numerous issues with your property and then try to get you to lower your valuation based on these issues. The best way to avoid getting involved with this type of buyer is to hire a professional home inspector who can create a structured report on the quality of your home. You can then base your valuation on the home inspector’s findings and prevent questions from forceful buyers. Often when presented with a solid valuation that is based on comprehensive expert information, the bully buyer will either give up or meet your valuation.

The No-Viewing Required Buyer

On rare occasions, you may run into potential buyers that put in an offer without having visited the property first. These buyers will likely take their time with the process because they aren’t motivated enough to go and view the property for themselves. If you run into this situation, don’t simply decline the offer. First, ask the buyer to set up a viewing appointment. If they reject your viewing offer and you still wish to sell your property to the buyer, you must proceed with extreme caution and examine all documents closely to ensure that both parties are well aware of their obligations.

Recognize the Signs…

Learn to recognize the signs of a bad buyer beforehand and you will maximize your chances of achieving a high value deal that matches your every expectation. Home selling doesn’t have to be complicated. Avoiding dealing with unsuitable parties can help you reduce the stress of the home selling process.

If you have any questions in regards to first time home buyer’s tax credit in Toronto area, please fill out the form bellow – I respond to ALL inquiries!

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When buying a new property, one of the first questions people often have is whether they should sell their old property first. There are advantages and disadvantages to following either method of home buying. So, within this article, we’ll review these factors and give you a full birds-eye view of the process so that you can figure out which method is right for you and your family.

 Reasons to Sell First Before You Buy

Many industry experts will tell you that it is far better sell your property first before you purchase a new one. There are many reasons that selling before you buy is considered the right approach.

• When you sell first, you will have the luxury of being able to take your time during negotiations and could therefore purchase new property for a cheaper price.

• You will be able to immediately put in serious offers on homes, which will give you an advantage in the marketplace over those that haven’t sold their properties.

• Selling before you buy takes a lot of the mental pressure off you and your family, as you are able to relax and focus more intently on the home purchase process.

Remember though that in order to maximize the benefits of selling a property before buying a new one; you must give yourself a long enough sale closing period in which to negotiate prices on new property without having to worry about locating temporary housing.

Why You May Wish To Buy Your New Home First…

Those who are interested in a specific property that has great market potential and lots of interested buyers may not be able to wait to purchase the home. Therefore this could be one of the reasons that you enter into the homebuyer’s market before selling your property. Here are a few more circumstances in which you may find yourself having to purchase your new property before you sell your current home:

• For those with families, it’s important to have the security of knowing that you have a new property to move into the moment you decide to sell.

• If the local real estate market within your area is experiencing a dip in values, you may wish to take advantage of the low prices and enter into the homebuyers market while there are great deals to be achieved. Being a proactive buyer, can therefore help save you money on your purchase.

While these are a few of the circumstances in which it might be best to enter the market quickly before you sell your property, it’s important to understand the risks of taking on this sort of challenge. If you experience any difficulty selling your property for the price you might have expected, you could end up with two mortgages to pay. And most people simply cannot afford this level of financial risk.

The Middle Ground…

There is alternative to both of these options however. Many homeowners make the completion of their property purchase contingent on them selling current their property first. Usually though, these sorts of conditional offers allow for others to continue bidding on your chosen new property while you wait for your current home to sell. Therefore you do run the risk that another buyer will swoop in and outbid you.

It’s important to go over all your options before making the decision to buy or sell. Some people find themselves running into problems because they haven’t considered all the possibilities. So always ensure that you’re well aware of the potential outcomes of any decision that you make regarding your transition from one property to another. The preceding advice should help to act as a guide as you go through the process.

If you have any questions in regards to first time home buyer’s tax credit in Toronto area, please fill out the form bellow – I respond to ALL inquiries!