Toronto real estate facts and News, from Humber Bay Shore Condos, West Toronto, Etobicoke, Mississauga and Oakville. Neighbourhood Profiles, News Items, Information on Real Estate Trends, Market Statistics, Buying; Selling Tips and Commentary
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BUT: I need to provide you with a copy of the contract you have just signed or it is not valid. I may need to drop the copy of the Listing Agreement or Buyers Agency into the Post Office because you have refused or declined your copy.
This is the real answer;
David Morgan, CCIM •- Sure, Ontario has a policy. The Ontario Electronic Commerce Act, 2000 - where it states very clearly: 31. (1) This Act does not apply to the following documents: 1. Wills and codicils. 2. Trusts created by wills or codicils. 3. Powers of attorney, to the extent that they are in respect of an individual’s financial affairs or personal care. 4. Documents, including agreements of purchase and sale, that create or transfer interests in land and require registration to be effective against third parties.
To get electronic signatures approved for use in real estate transactions, you'd have to amend the Act, and also the Ontario Statute of Frauds. So far, the Ontario Government has shown no appetite to make those changes.
So until then... I need to scan your documents, beit the Agreement of Purchase and Sale, Listing Agreement or Buyers Agency, and send them to you as a PDF, that may need to be witnessed by an independent 3rd party and then re - scanned or faxed back.
Not having the document witnessed does not render it invalid, we just are advised to strike the witness portion and remark as FAX or Email. Remember walking around with the lil red seals in your briefcase? Signed under seal meant something, Now we barely explain it.
I would like to talk to you about our newest Home Finder Service.
We are able to email you the newest listings, hot off the press. We are still in a competitive market. Toronto Ontario Canada. You can view these listings in the comfort of your own home,
have a look at the pictures, Ask me to have a look at the property. Go out and see it for you.
When we find the perfect home. You will ask, I hope, for some insights from me about,
What has sold recently in the neighbourhood... What is the same that justifies the asking price of that property, You and I will sit down discuss a negotiation strategy, Are we going in at full price? or below? Lets seek what their motivation is to sell that property.... What their urgency is to be gone?
If its a condominium townhouse property we may need a condominium status certicate. Link to Video. In our process of finding you a home, we need to engage the services of a mortgage adviser. Whichever lender you take is up to you. Sometimes the best mortgage rate is the ultimate feature; other times the mortgage portability, It may be the ability to take that mortgage to another property. Maybe you are only going to be there a short time; you would like to have Prepayment Options of 10 or 15% anytime, or just anniversary dates. Engage people to get you a pre-approval and then a Final Approval if you require CMHC Hi Ratio Approval (EMILY)
We need to engage home Inspectors who are licensed and qualified
Experienced, that I have worked with before, or you can find your own, to have a look at the property to give you an independent evaluation. This can be your Father or your Uncle John.
Whomever you like, It's the person you trust to have a look at that property. And I am on your Team as your Buyer's Agent for the property.
We need to have a look at your where your finances are coming from. How much will this cost you on an Operational Budget, to own your home. I'll go into this in different detail with the Canada Mortgage and Housing - How do you qualify for a mortgage Video. Stay tuned for that.
We need to talk about Up front Closing Costs...
How much the lawyer will charge?
How much your land transfer Taxes will be..
Are you elidgible for rebates?
How much you need to actually have at the closing table?
So here we go back to Mortgage Management. The best Mortgage is having no mortgage at all.
Having your mortgage paid off as quickly as possible, or if there is a life change situation,
beit a reduction in an income or maternity income change you need to be cognizant of what your obligations are.
I would like to stay in touch with you for a mortgage tune up if not twice a year at least once a year to see how you are progressing getting your mortgage paid off. When we are dealing with your property on a CD I will provide for you all your Purchase and Sale Documents, Financing Commitments, Approvals, Waivers documents Conditions or Waivers, Any conditions or
waivers, what ever was found on the property and reports we need; We need to have your confirmation of Insurance on the property.
Lets recap;
Our Home Finder Service can be used by an area; we have a new TREB Mapping system, We can go by mls grid, By MLS number, By neighbourhood specific, We can shop by price, with a price parameter, Staying to even numbers. We are able to Shop by features surrounding the home or amenities.
A simple issue for me is that I have one phone number to contact me for all details @ 647 218 2414 If you could like to buy a house in Etobicoke, West Toronto or the Condos along Humber Bay Shore I'd be pleased to hear from you.
All this material is available to you as an iPAD presentation or as a pdf and is emailable to you as PDF or powerpoint.
I'd like to talk to you today about Canada Mortgage and Housing and the new guidelines that they are using for buying a home. These are all available for you in the Book that I have from Canada Mortgage and Housing which is called Home Buying Step by Step.
It's the steps in how the bank is taking you through the mortgage process and what their qualifying criteria is. Very simply put, when you make a contract for the interest rate, that is for the specific period of time, being two years or five years, and then you have the duration which is the amortization of the mortgage, how long can we stretch your repayment period, is now capped at 30 years.
The guideline provides that you can borrow a maximum of 80% against the Purchase Price of the house, without Mortgage Insurance, your bank may still want it, there are reasons for that. Amounts over 80% Require a Canada Mortgage and Housing Insurance Premium.
We are able to show you how they calculate your principal, interest and taxes, plus half heat
to generate your Gross Debt Service, and total Debts service numbers. So you will know what you are talking about in terms of your total income against your gross paycheck
You need to have a full time job to qualify for a mortgage, Sometimes there are exceptions, where you can pay a bit more on the rate. Different Lenders, I can help you with that.
The numbers are important and when you are ready we can make a house specific application for you. This is different from a pre-approval. Pre-Approval is general in nature; How much do you make and How much might you qualify for if you purchased a house?
A specific approval on a property they verify that you actually have the deposit down payment on hand, when you are actually turning up at the closing, verify employment, when is it going to close, at what rate and looking after all of your details.
I would like to hear back from you if you are shopping this year, in the August, September, or the fall Real estate Market in West Toronto Etobicoke or Mississauga,
If you would like your copy of Home Buying Step by Step from Canada Mortgage and Housing...
Give me a call at 647 218 2414
I would be pleased to meet with you and provide those details.
I want to share some secrets with you on how you can beat a For Sale by Owner every Time!
Good Negotiators will track down FSBO sellers that are motivated to Sell.
They are Big D sellers. They are desperate to sell for Death, Divorce, Debt or Disaster.
You need to ask as many Why, What and How questions to find out as much about their position as possible. Questions that include...
Why are you selling?
Have they bought another property?
What possession do they need?
How long Have you lived in the Home?
Have you had any other offers?
Are the Vendors just testing the market?
How long have you played around at selling by themselves?
The more you know the higher the likelihood of knowing which cards you will play. Now lets make them dance!
In the private sales negotiations; this will flush out the critical information about the sellers price expectations. Indicate that you are interested in the property... at a certain price...
Do not document, this offer until it's verbally accepted by the Vendor.
The Seller, if they agree to your offer, has effectively told you exactly what their best price is without a formal contract. You can still walk away, if the price or terms are unaccceptable
On June 17, the Globe and Mail’s Marcus Gee wrote a column about the Bloor Street reconstruction, and briefly mentioned Roncesvalles. He writes:
On Roncesvalles Avenue, too, a major renovation is coming to a happy end. As on Bloor, the street had to be torn up for major work – in Roncey’s case, the laying of new streetcar tracks. The merchants took advantage of the opportunity to spruce up the streetscape. Handsome, pale grey paving stone has been laid for the new, wider sidewalk, with planters, benches and raised transit stops that allow easier access to streetcars for strollers and wheelchairs. New street-level tree planters, replacing the old, raised “tree coffins,” hold 85 new trees, from oaks to maples to chestnuts.
There were delays here, too, and lots of complaints from irritated merchants and residents. The belated discovery that a gas main lay too close to the new tracks meant that the project could not be finished last fall as expected. A dispute with a contractor over manpower caused holdups, too. But the job is on budget and just two weeks from completion, city officials say, with crews laying the final paving stones, putting in bike rings and clearing debris. Councillor Gord Perks says the city held no fewer than 37 community meetings on the design of the street, dealing with everything from the colour of the pavers to the design of the tree grates.
The result is quite marvellous. Roncesvalles, always a lively street, with its pastry shops, delis, bike stores, public library and Revue cinema, was looking a little tired before the do-over. The renovation has given it a fresh, new face. For all the pain they cause, projects like these are just what an ambitious city should be doing, seizing the chance to transform mediocre streetscapes into something better.
How it was different on Roncy
It’s nice to see that the hard work of the past several years is showing great results! But as nice as Bloor Street looks, the Roncesvalles reconstruction was different in a few important ways:
the Bloor Street transformation was funded and driven by the merchants of Bloor Street. This allowed the merchants considerable freedom to shape a public right-of-way to suit their own interests. For the most part, these interests align with those of the public, who will now benefit from beautiful granite sidewalks and new trees without having to pay for any of it. On the other hand, public space on Bloor has been given over for valet parking, while bike parking has been reduced. On Roncesvalles, the project was largely driven by the community, and was mostly publicly funded, with the BIA being just one stakeholder among many.
Bloor Street cost $20 million just for the streetscape improvements. The Roncesvalles streetscape improvements (leaving aside the costs of sewer/water main/track replacement, etc.) did not cost nearly as much. Much of the added value came from coordination, community consultations, and by leveraging every opportunity to piggy-back off reconstruction work that was going to happen anyway. Beauty does not necessarily require huge expense. But it does need a little forethought, support from the councillor, a dedicated staff and an engaged community.
instead of seeking a “grand vision” that would set the street apart from others, Roncesvalles Renewed intended for the Roncy reconstruction to set a new standard for all streets. While the Bloor transformation is unlikely to be duplicated elsewhere, we hope that Roncesvalles will serve as a model for other communities. For example, the other week I had a chat with folks from the Bloorcourt BIA, and I stressed the importance of bringing in Urban Forestry early on in the streetscape design process. My hope is that after Roncesvalles, it will be standard practice at the City to think of trees as part of the infrastructure, and not as a decorative afterthought.
Roncesvalles did not begin as a grand vision that got scaled back as reality set in. It began as a “state-of-good repair” project that grew as new opportunities were discovered. And so, instead of the status quo that was originally planned, Roncesvalles now has new trees planted in healthy growing conditions, new public spaces, no more two-level sidewalk tripping hazards, accessible TTC stops, new benches, new pedestrian lights, new landscaping and other features. This could not have happened without continuous engagement between the City and the community, working together to seek out new ways of making the project even better.
Anyway, I think there is something very special about how the Roncesvalles renewal came about, and I am very pleased to see that the beautiful results are being recognized.
Cheers,
John Bowker Parking and Beautification Chair Roncesvalles Village BIA
If you would like a home in this established neighbourhood; please feel free to contact me for a list of homes that are currently listed for sale, or enter your criteria here http://Bit.Ly/GetDave Call today as these homes are snapped up quickly. David@davidpylyp.com
Someone has appointed you to serve as the Estate Trustee - What do you do first? What are your real obligations? How many family members will be in your face immediately. DO you secure the property? Meet the family?
Executor’s insurance
Protecting executors from personal liability By Jordan Atin
[Mark Weber / Illustration Source] Click here to see full sized version.
A group of lay people were asked at a recent seminar if any of them had acted as an executor before. About three-quarters of the group proudly raised their hands. The next question —would any of you do it again? — resulted in many fewer raised hands.
For those who counsel executors, the reaction is not surprising. The workload, the endless calls from beneficiaries about their inheritance, the stress of deadlines and working with professionals, the necessity of keeping meticulous accounting, and even the reams and reams of paper and documents that must be kept, make the thankless job time-consuming and frustrating. More correctly, the job is worse than thankless. How often do we see disgruntled beneficiaries criticising the job the executor has done and seeking to reduce the compensation that the executor has sought?
But it can get much, much worse. When you take on the job of executor, you are putting your own personal assets on the line. As Justice Maurice Cullity stated in Personal Liability of Trustees and Rights of Indemnification: “The risk of personal liability is an incident of the office of trustee.”
Negligence by the executor can render the executor personally liable to the beneficiaries and creditors of the estate. Some common examples where executors could be found negligent are:
improperly interpreting the will;
paying the wrong amounts to the wrong parties;
not prudently investing the estate assets;
not properly protecting estate assets (for example, not changing locks or purchasing fire insurance);
improvident settlements; and
failure to keep accurate records of the administration.
Personal liability even extends to an executor who makes a contract in relation to the estate assets. The executor is personally liable to the contractor, but may be subrogated to an executor’s right of indemnity against the estate if the expense or charge of the estate was properly incurred (see Dockrill v. Kikas, [2007] O.J. No. 134 (Ont. S.C.J.). This includes the hiring of professionals, such as lawyers, accountants, real estate agents and the like.
Under Ontario’s Estates Act and in many other jurisdictions, a judge may order damages against the executor for misconduct, neglect or default which results in loss to the estate.
There are many examples where courts have found that executors have breached their duty as fiduciaries. Often, the executor’s compensation is reduced and no additional damages are ordered against the executor.
However, in Zimmerman v. McMichael Estate, [2010] O.J. No. 3022, Justice George Strathy found that the trustee had been negligent in the administration of the trust. In addition to being deprived of compensation, the court ordered that he reimburse the estate personally. The trustee was also required to pay the beneficiaries over $270,000 in costs from his own pocket.
As lawyers, we have professional E&O insurance which may protect us when we act as a sole executor. Of course, we pay the premiums for that policy and, if a claim is made on it, we pay the increase in the premiums and the deductible. What about our client/executors who have no insurance?
At the Ontario Bar Association Annual Institute this year, a new product — executor’s insurance — was unveiled to the profession.
The benefits seem clear; a client won’t have to put his or her own house on the line when granted the “honour” of acting as executor. The executor would also have some protection for legal costs incurred in defending a negligence claim by the beneficiaries which might not be covered by the estate.
Since the estate itself can look to the policy to be made whole from the executor’s negligence, without having to chase the executor for damages, executors’ insurance should appeal to the beneficiaries as well. In Zimmerman, the trustee ultimately died before repaying the estate. In The Globe and Mail, one of the beneficiaries was quoted as saying “I’m not sure that [we] will recoup anything, but we’ll see.”
Will executor’s insurance become like title insurance — recommended as a matter of course in most estates? Depending on the costs and the coverage, it will likely appeal to many of our clients.
Jordan Atin is a mediator and counsel at Hull & Hull LLP in Toronto. He is the co-author of The Family War — Winning the Inheritance Battle, and appears regularly on Canada AM and the Business News Network as an expert on estate matters.http://www.lawyersweekly.ca/index.php?section=article&articleid=1360
The information posted here is absolute and clear; Obtain the Insurance to protect your assets and the costs of a lawsuit against disgruntled or dissatisfied beneficiaries. Barry had this direct comment " Being an executor can be trying and challenging to one's skills, the chances of being sued by family members is a reality especially when we have second and third marriages, non-traditional families and inter-related people who hardly know each other."
So pleased to have added the Accredited Senior Agent designation to my CV of credentials. Thank you Barry Lebow for bringing this to my attention. If you have a similar situation where I can help do not hesitate to call. David Pylyp ASA 647 218 2414
Remember when your Dad said "Always buy Real Estate! It never goes down"
Well, This is the second generation in North American that is observing the endless slide of their equity from their homes and potentially retirement funds. I know that in Canada, from the statistics that I have read, most people of retirement age have no addition income nest eggs other than their primary residence.
So what changed? What changed the dynamic about buying a house and living debt free in North America? Have our houses become chequing accounts for revolving Home Equity Lines of Credit [HELOC]?
This post from Seth Godin set me to thinking about how our economies are intertwined and how we have moved from a manufacturing to information technology business models. [Seth calls them Attention Business]
Paying attention to the attention economy
Most of us are happily obsessed with the economy of money. We earn it and we spend it and we generally pay attention to what things cost.
Certainly, salespeople and marketers are truly focused on the price of things, on commissions and shelving allowances and net margin and the cost of goods sold.
With all of these easily measured activity, it's easy to overlook the fast-growing and ever more important economy based around attention.
"If I alert my entire customer base, how much will this cost me in permission?"
"How much time do we save our customers with a better written manual?"
"When we fail to ask for (and reward) the privilege of following up, are we wasting permission?"
"Does launching this product to an audience of stangers waste the attention we're going to have to buy?"
Attention is a bit like real estate, in that they're not making any more of it. Unlike real estate, though, it keeps going up in value.
What did [Seth] say at the end? Unlike real estate, attention keeps going up in value.
This is a dynamic shift in economic thinking. I was always taught; own real estate and you will gain equity. Now we have a model [albeit currently in the United States ] where values have been sliding for the last 5 years.
Economists and Statisticians are on both sides of the real estate bubble and housing crisis. Some say the bubble does not exist. Others are screaming about the cliff we are running towards. Yet Toronto has not had the same double digit annual growth in prices seen in many North American cities; we continue as a [Toronto GTA] destination for immigration, education and employment. We are a safe haven from politics and debt mismanagement compared to other world governments.
What better way to Celebrate the 144th Canada Day than with the residents of our own Park Lake Condominium Community along Lake Shore Blvd., W in Toronto.
A well attended event that have a new community joined to greet and enjoy a Canadian summer on the Toronto Waterfront.
The fifth floor has a natural open air terrace that opens out onto the Lake Shore between Windermere and Ellis Avenue.
Each tower has complete access to this terrace and made for an excellent opportunity to watch the Toronto firework display over Ontario Place later in the evening.
Additional Pictures of the events and participants!
Thank you to those who participated and come out to meet and greet their neighbours. If you would like more information about living at Park Lake Residence or another community along the Humber Bay Shore give me a ring or email david@davidpylyp.com
