MLS is something that many buyers misunderstand when they first start to look for their perfect property. Did you know that a condo or home can be bought before it ever appears on the public MLS website? When a property is listed by an agent, it is placed on MLS but that listing can take up to 2 days to appear on the public version of the system. Realtors use a system called Stratus, which is not accessible by the public. The Agents Stratus MLS has every listing on the Toronto Real Estate Board except private or exclusive listings which make up less than 1% of the listings.

Once the property is listed on the agent’s MLS, it is instantly searchable by any agent. This means that your agent will be able to see the property minutes after it has been loaded onto our system, meanwhile other buyers searching on the public side of MLS won’t see it for up to 2 days. In Toronto, this means a lot of listings that you see on MLS have already been sold.I can’t tell you the number of times I get calls from potential clients that want to see a listing that just appeared on the public MLS system only to have to tell them that it has already been sold. This happens even more when people call me about listings they have seen in newspapers or in other printed media. The fact is most of the good listings are sold well before the agent has time to write an ad and have it sent to the printers!

Of course you can find listings this way, but wouldn’t you prefer to look at the listings that sell in a few days as opposed to the ones that have been sitting on the market for a few weeks? Buyers who get the best deals work with an experienced agent utilizing a pro-active approach. At my office, we do it exceptionally well.
How it works

When I first sit down with my clients in the office, I learn their needs and wants. Further, I actually get to know the client. In fact, my first question is often, “what does your typical week look like?” From this, I can create a property profile which helps me narrow down a focused set of properties that best meets their needs. We then do a search through the agent MLS system together and get first shot at any desirable listings. Also, if we don’t find that perfect listing right away we can continue looking based on specific criteria. This is where the pro-active approach comes in.

Free is good

When working with an agent to buy a condo, loft or townhouse, it’s always free to the buyer. That’s right. There is absolutely no cost to our clients and they get all the benefits of the full MLS functionality along with our expert negotiating skills.

The Buyer Consultation

Every agent has their own way of doing things. I have my own distinct style and approach that I find works best.

First, I offer a free consultation before we start looking at properties so we can cover all the groundwork. There are several steps to the buying process and it should never be rushed. If all of the small stuff is taken care of first, then my clients don’t need to worry about anything except looking at homes once we start the showing process.

In the initial consultation I cover the basic topics such as the following:

1. How we search for listings, how the buying process works
2. What are the costs
3. How to hire a real estate lawyer
4. How to get a pre-approval from the bank or mortgage broker and which option is best
5. Using your RRSPs
6. Land transfer taxes
7. Home inspections
8. Closing Costs
9. Market Conditions
10. Title Insurance

And several other related topics that will help you when you start the buying process.

To book a free buyer consultation contact me today!

Investors pay attention. Caveat Emptor (let the buyer beware)

There is a lot of talk these days about investing in condos. There is no doubt that we are in the middle of a condo boom. Buildings are being built in every corner of the city. So there must be an opportunity to make some money, right?

Well if you’re careful, make wise and educated decisions and above all, the market continues to rise, then the answer is yes.

Here’s how it works. I am sure you have heard that most of the people buying in these new buildings are investors. This is true! Most the people that buy pre-construction condos are investors. Most first time buyers cannot wait 4-5 years for their first home to be built. Plus, most first time buyers don’t have the 25% deposit required by most developers. In fact, the developers depend on the investors for the 25% down so they can get financing on the project. In essence, the investors are giving the developers a loan so the building can be built. After the building is completed, the individual units are then sold to buyers who get financing through the bank and buy with as little as 5% down (sometimes even less).

The point is most people don’t understand why the investors buy up all the units. Well, if it were not for the investors, these buildings would not be built. There is a very small percentage of the population that purchase a unit 4-5 years in advance then move into it. I don’t know about you, but I have trouble planning a year in advance, much less 5 years from now. Also, when buying pre-construction there is an “estimated” closing date. The exact date of occupancy is just too far in advance to give the purchasers an exact date. So if you are thinking of buying a home for yourself to live in, I suggest you ask me about the availability of resale condos. But if you would like to try investing then read on.

VIP launches

Anybody that would like to invest in a pre-construction project should be working with an expert that knows this side of the market very well. Any agent can walk you into a sales office and collect their commission; it’s not hard at all. Actually, you don’t even need an agent, but if you are able to walk into a sales office at all then you have already missed the boat as far as investing goes. Buildings are sold in several stages and as each stage passes, the price goes up even though the best suites are already sold off. Oddly enough, the very best suites, on the highest floors are sold for the cheapest prices.

One of the very first stages is the VIP Launch. A VIP launch is an invitation-only, pre-selling event that the top agents in the city are invited to bring their clients to. After the VIP launch, there is a launch for all the other agents. Then, only after that event will the developers release it to the general public. When it is released to public, the prices are at their highest level and this is when you will start to hear ads on the radio or see full page ads in the newspaper.

Most of the projects that I sell, people have never heard of, but they do hear about them 6 months later when it is too late. If you would like to buy at a VIP event then contact me to find out more.

This entry was posted on Sunday, December 16th, 2007 at 8:01 am and is filed under Buying and Selling Advice. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.