We here is Canada and more locally, in Simcoe County, know that we are not in a recession. Our good friends to the south of Barrie ( and I don't mean Innisfil or Bradford!) are certainly headed that way. I'm of the opinion of buying when everyone is selling and selling when everyone is buying. When its a buyers market, prices are pushed down due to a large amount of supply, (homes for sale) on the market. And the opposite is true in a sellers market. Prices are pushed up due to a increease in demand ( people wanting to by homes).
This article in the Arizona Republic http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/business/articles/0227biz-ev-canadians0227.html makes it clear tha some Canadians are getting it right. They are buying now when everyone is selling. Thus they are buying at low prices due to a lot of supply in the market.Plus add to the fact that our Canadian dollar is at par, really makes for some bargains. And I would like to see 3 years from now and see if these bargains were only the beginning of what is to come.
MANA REAL ESTATE GROUP
Specializing in helping people sell using for sale by owner real estate methods in the Orillia,Midland-Penetang, and Barrie areas. Also for sale by owner in Collingwood, Innisfil, Wasaga Beach, Alliston, Owen Sound, Parry Sound, Muskoka, Gravenhurst, Bracebridge, Honey Harbour, and Parry Sound.
http://www.manainvestments.com/
Another one bites the dust
In New Zealand another discount/flat fee brokerage folds under the pressure. Our initial reaction is ..."see I told you that discounting doesn't work !!...don't cut commission fees," But is that that the "right reaction?" What I mean by that is, upon analyzing the trends in real estate, discounters are nothing new. I think the question we need to ask is WHY do discounters fail? I mean if you offer less of a service, well then you can charge less of a service. Right? Which means as a business model, you should survive and grow.
The for sale by owner market offers the "least" amount of service as it appeals to the do-it-yourself crowd. So my question now is, where is the middle ground? that is, how much do you charge? I mean how does the real estate professional fit into this changing landscape? On one hand we have for sale by owners ( do it yourself) which according to this article is growing in leaps and bounds. On the other, professional real estate agents -pay for service and commissions. The answer is ( in my mind) simple; professional real estate agents need to be PROFESSIONAL. They need to be WORTH every penny. They need to KNOW more then the for sale by owner crowd. Many people don't see them as being worth the money. In the consumers eyes they say..."how hard is it to throw a property up on the MLS and wait for the phone to ring? Then, collect a nice 5 to 10 thousand dollar paycheque?" A surgeon is highly paid as a professional because of WHAT he knows. A real estate agent is highly paid as a professional because of WHO he knows ( brings buyers and sellers together). That my friends is now an image problem. People don't see the value in who you know, they will only consider the value in what you know.
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/category/story.cfm?c_id=76&objectid=10494549
MANA REAL ESTATE GROUP
Specializing in real estate investments and for sale by owner ( fsbo) real estate in the Orillia, Midland-Penetang, areas. Also for sale by owner in Barrie and Collingwood, Innisfil, Alliston, Owen Sound, Parry Sound, Muskoka, Gravenhurst, Bracebridge, Honey Harbour, and Parry Sound areas
The beginning of the end for mls
The day the mls went public onto the internet was the day it changed itself forever. There used to be a day when you had to call a real estate agent to find out what's available because they had those special books that had all the listings. For me that book was a gold mine, an exclusive boys club which only licensed members had access to. The mls system back then was like its own private internet. And you could only view it when in the presence of licensed real estate agent.
However those days are gone. 72% of all people looking for a home now START with the internet. They do not need a "special agent" guiding them through the exclusive listing books. If they see something they like on the web, they have the option to call the listing agent directly. The idea of an "exclusive buyer agency agreement" is virtually gone. And this is the interesting part. Along with the mls going online, is the rise of the for sale by owner market or fsbo. There has always been for sale by owner homes on the market. They would advertise their own home in local papers, put up their own sign, have their own open houses and sadly sold only 2% of the time. And this is what your "Older", trained real estate agent has been taught, the fsbo market is not a threat, not many properties are sold there, and for sale by owner prospects really do not know how to sell anyways, But again, the internet changed that too. The internet is now the special book that anyone can view. The mls and for sale by owners exist online together for any prospective home buyer to view. Fsbo web companies now have signs ( just like licensed agents do), they now offer CMA, ( just like the mls...cuz its easy you can search the mls and find what is happening in your local market yourself), they have feature sheets, open houses, virtually all the things a licensed real estate agent has to offer....and the for sale by owner market now sells 18% of their listings ( no longer a paltry 2%) and growing as people become more savvy and trained. It is only a matter of time before the fsbo real estate market will be equal in sales to the mls by sheer volume of its new lisings. Young, internet savvy buyers and sellers, will flock more and more to "try" to sell or buy it themselves FIRST before resorting to the mls. This is the opportunity of a lifetime for real estate agents. They need to see this change coming and adapt or be left to rot with the idea of remembering the "good old days" of those exclusive books
Specializing in investments and for sale by owner ( fsbo) real estate in the Barrie, Midland-Penetang, areas. Also for sale by owner in Orillia and Collingwood, Innisfil, Alliston, Owen Sound, Parry Sound, Muskoka, Gravenhurst, Bracebridge, Honey Harbour, and Parry Sound areas
http://www.manainvestments.com/
The Sub-Prime and Canada
Canada's sub prime mortgage market is between 3-5%. That means that 3-5% of all mortgage loans on homes are subprime. In the US, the subprime is 25-27% of all mortgages. There is no "sub prime mess" in Canada. Our mortgage laws are different. They prevent subprime originating mortgages from ballooning past 5%. Thus limiting the overall mortgage debt carried by our banks to a minimum. For the first time in my life ( yes I'm pushing 50) the old adage where "when the US sneezes, Canada catches a cold" is now reversed. The US has a cold and Canada might sneeze. And when I mean Canada, I am referring more to Central Canada ( Ontario, Quebec).
How does this affect our real estate holdings? Well for those with cash flow properties, the affect will be minimal to good. That is, those that have multi-res cash flow properties will fare well. Those who invest based on the market going up ( appreciation...as I have said before appreciation equals speculation) there may be a negative effect, albeit temporary.
And as I have mentioned many times, I subscribe to the micro-macro economics theory in real estate. The macro is all the stats on a national level. The subprime discussion is macro in nature. Macro has little affect on real estate. The effect the sub prime will have on our micro economy here in Barrie, Orillia and Georgian Bay areas will be minimal.
MANA REAL ESTATE GROUP
Your Full Service Real Estate Team . We do investments, property managing and for sale by owner ( fsbo) real estate in the Barrie, Orillia, Midland-Penetang, areas. Also Collingwood, Innisfil, Wasaga Beach, Alliston, Owen Sound, Parry Sound, Muskoka, Gravenhurst, Bracebridge, Honey Harbour, and Parry Sound areas
http://www.manainvestments.com/
History is repeating itself in Orillia
I always knew that Barrie and Orillia were on the move in an economic sense. Who from Toronto has not driven through there on the way to the Muskoka's and not noticed all the change over the last 20 years? Once Barrie moved across Hwy 400 about 20 years ago and began building new homes, that is when the real change occurred. That is when Barrie began to really grow.
Now lets move up 10 minutes to Orillia. 5 years ago they moved across Hwy 11. Now the new University is coming to town. The new Wal-Mart Super centre is going up in Orillia...Does Wal Mart create local waves in the economy? I can bet my bottom dollar that for the next 20 years Orillia will be great place to invest in real estate.
Mana Real Estate Group
Professional Real Estate Group. We invest and teach others how as well. Our focus is Education...NOT Speculation. We are always looking for other real estate professionals to work with
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