The Best Way To Start De-cluttering

What's the best way to start de-cluttering your home to get it ready to list in the real estate market?

Simply put: just start.

Having said that, my practical advice is to start with the worst part of the home. Many of us have a designated catch-all spot to put things that don't belong anywhere else. And these areas can become very cluttered in no time at all.

How to sell “difficult” properties with issues

Whenever possible, the ideal situation is for the seller to fix any problems that may be outstanding on a property. But there are times when it may not be financially feasible for any number of reasons. It is not the end of the world to list a property for sale with issues, but there are two important things a seller must do if they expect to sell at a proper price and in a reasonable length of time.

First is to make sure you are pricing appropriately for the condition of the property. If a buyer can get a similar property at the same price with absolutely no work to do, you’re going to have a hard time competing in the marketplace. Buyers will

November 2013 Housing Starts in Hamilton CMA

Housing starts in Hamilton Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) were trending at 2,475 units in November compared to 2,499 units in October, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend is a six month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR)(1) of housing starts.

"The trend in Hamilton CMA total housing starts was practically unchanged in November 2013 compared to the previous month. This November marked the highest number of apartment starts in the City of Hamilton since January 2013. The pace in residential construction during the past two months has been signalling a

Strong Real Estate Market Continues

The REALTORS^® Association of Hamilton-Burlington (RAHB) reported 1078 properties sold through the RAHB Multiple Listing Service^® (MLS^®) system in November.  This represents an 11.1 per cent increase in sales over November of last year.

There were 1298 properties listed in November, an increase of nine per cent over the same month last year.  End-of-month listing

Hamilton Housing Market to Remain Stable in 2014

HAMILTON, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Nov. 19, 2013) - Hamilton's housing market will remain healthy next year with average prices increasing slightly above inflation, according to Abdul Kargbo, Canada Mortgage and Housing

I am not happy with my agent - how do I cancel my listing?

Occasionally, I have people ask me how they would cancel a contract if they weren't happy with their real estate agent.  Unfortunately, I'm not allowed to discuss agency relationships with someone currently under contract. 

But speaking generally*, you can't easily cancel a listing unless the brokerage is

October 2013 Housing Starts in Hamilton CMA

TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwired - Nov. 8, 2013) - Housing starts in Hamilton Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) were trending up at 2,487 units in October compared to 2,433 units in September, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend is a six month moving average of

Seller’s Market Continues in Greater Hamilton-Burlington and Outlying Areas

(November 6, 2013 – Hamilton, Ontario) The REALTORS® Association of Hamilton-Burlington (RAHB) reported 1207 properties sold through the RAHB Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) system in October.  This represents a 9.4 per cent increase in the number of sales over October of last year.

The average sale price of $397,403 was an increase of 3.9 per cent over the previous October.

Beware of sale guarantees

"Your house sold, GUARANTEED!"

Sounds good, right?  Well, this ad headline may not be promoting an offer as good as you think.  Let me start by saying that I am not saying agents who use a sale guarantee program are unethical, but you should walk in to the conversation with your eyes open. 

September 2013 Housing Starts in Hamilton CMA Down: CMHC

Housing starts in Hamilton Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) were trending at 2,451 units in September compared to 2,827 units in August, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend is a six month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR)(1) of housing starts.

September property sales close to record

(October 7, 2013 – Hamilton, Ontario) The REALTORS® Association of Hamilton-Burlington (RAHB) reported 1207 properties sold through the RAHB Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) system in September.  This represents a 32.9 per cent increase in the number of sales over September of last year and is only one sale shy of the September record of 1208 sales set in 2009.

KIRH Blog Re-launch

I have decided it is time for a complete re-launch of the Keep It Real Hamilton blog.  Why?  Well, here is a quick run-down of my reasons:

1. I don't care as much about search rankings anymore

The main reason I changed to a blog on my own website was to try to increase my Google page ranking by having original content hosted on my website.  Recently, I have been re-thinking and tweaking my business model.  While I am not going strictly referral-only, I am aiming more to work by referral than by generating cold leads from website hits. 

Now my blog is strictly about providing useful, timely, and interesting information for people interested in real estate in general and in Hamilton specifically.

2. Blogger is a convenient system

When doing the blog on my site, I was creating a new page for each entry.  While not a lot more work, it was just cumbersome enough to be a hurdle to easy posting.  Using Blogger removes that hassle of manually creating new page each time.

3. The timing seems right

With several new projects launching soon and the time lapsed since the last time I used Blogger, leaving a big gap between old out-of-date entries and current ones, a re-start felt appropriate.

If you ever have any real estate questions, please feel free to call or email me.  I look forward to providing you valuable information and insights into the world of real estate, and hope you enjoy reading my posts from time to time.

jB
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