About Essex County, ON

Usually the "man" is taking money out of your pocket, not offering to help you put more into it. In this tough economy everyone is looking to save money, and very few are looking at how spending it can benefit them. However there may be no better time to make that house a mansion.

The government is currently entertaining so many grant programs it's a small wonder more people aren't cashing in on the money train, and buying a ticket to a nicer property or a spruced up house. There are currently grants for everything from replacing that furnace that older then your grandfather, that water tank that leaks all over your basement, or that roof that is now equipped with a sky light, just not the good kind. There are grants for purchasing your property, like first time home ownership programs for down payments, closing fees, land transfer taxes extra. There are even small grants for doing renovations, that are completely "frivolous" like putting in that dream kitchen you've always wanted or a new bay window, these fixes not only look great they can add so much value to your home.

Now not all the money you put out is repayable by the government grant gravy train, some is out of pocket, but the money you save will have you laughing all the way to the bank.

There is one program in particular right now that encourages home owners to do those small fixes, for up to $1,300 dollars. What you do is simple, you save your receipts for any home improvement costs you incur from January 2009, until February 2010, you declare things that are eligible - up to ten thousand dollars on your tax return in 2010 and get some bang back for your buck up to that magic number of $1,300, or basically the equivalent of taxes you have already paid.

What does this all equal to you, incentive to do more improvements, the ability to afford improvements, or the ability to justify those improvements you've been putting off due to the economy. Much like an end of the season sale these deals won't last forever so cash in now, cash in fast!

The Greater Windsor Essex Home Builders Association, along with the Windsor Essx County Real Estate Board & the Windsor Essex County Development Commission have teamed up to promote this area as a retirement community. After securing about $30,000 in seed money from the Province of Ontario, they have launced a website www.retirehere.caand have begun to plan a marketing initative to start promoting the area to Canadian Seniors.

I am a member of two of these organizations- The Windsor Essex County Real Estate Board (WECREB), and Greater Windsor Home Builder Association (GWHBA), and I think the idea is pure genius.

Not just because my father Remo Valente- came up with this very idea over 20 years ago. Over family dinners, with relatives down from Toronto- he would speak tirelessly about how it was silly for them to have these expensive homes in Toronto, and battle the traffic day after day. They should sell their homes in Toronto, buy a similar or better home in Windsor and Essex County- put hundreds of thousands of dollars in their pocket, and start living the good life here off of the profits.

What would they be giving up ? If they responded with "Oh, I could never give up the big city life"- he would be quick to point out that just 10 minutes accross the border is Detroit Michigan. We have the all the top sports teams (our hockey team does't suck either), and they would have access to major transportation hubs, like Detroit Metro Airport. They could still live minutes from the best shopping in the world and all of the things that make living in a big city great- but the best part is you would be living in Windsor. Our city enjoys a lows crime rate, we no traffic problems, we have some of the cheapest Real Estate of all of the top Canadian Citys, access to the Great Lakes, and being the most southern part of Canada- " The best climate in the Country!"

Our company even tried to pump this idea two years ago. This was just before the Windsor Home Builders plan was concieved. We decided to launch a website, www.retiresouth.ca. We spent some money on some flashy marketing and distributed it to a few Toronto Neighbourhoods. After doing this we learned that an initiatve to convince Torontonians or other Canadians to pick up and retire to Windsor was beyond our means as a small business. This branding, or marketing would have to be done on a large scale.

That is why we're so pleased that these Windsor Organizations have took on the job. What is disappointing is the level of finacial commitment the project has been able to secure. The $30,000 seed money, put up by the Province of Ontario is a small start, but we need some major dollars behind this project to make this happen. Windsor has been said to have lost 30,000 jobs over the last few years, and with thet Automotive sector in a tail spin- this is only going to get worse before it gets better.

However its my belief that The City of Windsor and Essex County Municipalities, and even gasp The Province of Ontario should be putting big dollars behind this. They just secured $3 Million in funding for the Red Bull Races- which we are told will generate a spin off of $50 Million for local business over the weekend. That's great news, but after that weekend how does it pump our economy ??

Lets look at the return on spending $3 Million on marketing our region to smart retirees? If successful we could be generating the local home builders another 2000 of annual construction starts per year- which would be an $600,000,000 into our local economy ANNUALLY! This does not take into account all of the dollars that these Retirees would be injecting into our economy once they have set up camp in Windsor Essex County- they would spend money in our stores, restarants, casino, pharmacy, hire landscapers etc, etc, and even pay some taxes.

I have heard the argument that the Province of Ontario is on the fence about providing Ontario taxpayers money to convince people to locate from other parts of Ontario to Windsor. I would argue that this is a nominal sum of money compared to the dollars being spent to bailout automakers, and other infrastructure projects to stimulate our economy. Windsor has been suffering for too long- while the rest of the Country is just getting their first taste of recession, Windsor has been in a full recession since late 2006.

Its time for the City of Windsor and Province of Ontario to step up to the plate and get financially and politically involved in this genius idea. This initiative alone won't save this region- but if it's successful it definitely will offer them best return on their investment to stimulate our economy

There's nothing quite like owning your own home. Creating a place that you can call your own can be a challenge with many ups and downs.

Gathering relevant information is your first step to home ownership.

How much can you afford? What kind of home are you looking for? You'll find all the information you need by consulting the right pit crew.

Any sports fan can tell you that having the right people on the team makes all the difference, it means the difference in winning a game or winning the championship.

Defining search parameters is like developing a great game plan, so know where your looking how to look and how to find what you are looking for are first steps. Almost 80% of all home searches today begin on the Internet. With just a few clicks of the mouse, home buyers can search through hundreds of online listings, view virtual tours, and sort through dozens of photographs.

Now that you're looking you're going to need a pit crew!

To Head up your pit crew you'll need a great Crew Chief, someone to make the whole operation go smoothly for you; in this case we're talking about the realtor. Picking someone you can trust to steer you away from those crashes in the left turns is invaluable. By crashes we're talking about the lemon houses, the bad deals, or even to point out the houses defects. Mostly they are there to get you into the home of your dreams, thus winning your own personal championship.

Your pit crew for buying a home consists of a few less members than a NASCAR TEAM, however, here's an idea of people to consider filling in the some of the positions of your house buying team.

A mortgage broker, or lender, to help you get the right mortgage for you is almost as important as finding the right house. These are the guys that change your tires and keep everyone in your car running smoothly, they help you figure out how much you can afford, what payment structure is right for you.

Next your home inspector or as I like to call him you're spotter. He's the guy that sees the accident up ahead and prepares you for it. Whether he's directing you away from debris in the corner or a leaky roof he's there to let you know about issues before the occur so you can make informed choices when it comes to the purchase of your home. Another member of pit crew is your jackman or your lawyer.

The Jackman in NASCAR is the guy who gets you out the door safely after raising the car so that the tires can be replaced he signals you to leave the pits. Your lawyer in your house buying pit crew does much the same thing, by making sure all claims to your house other than your are lifted before signing that dotted line, making your home your responsibility.

You will always be the driver on the house hunting team so keep it in mind that staffing yourself with the right team will make you the best driver you can be, and get you to where you want to be going FAST!

Here is one of my New Years resolutions that I would like to share:

Enough: stop watching news (particularly CNN) and reading my local news paper (the Windsor star); ITS TOO DEPRESSING AND NEGATIVE; like 95% of the time! It only helps to sell TV advertising & to sell newspapers..things are NEVER that bad I think.

The 'automotive industry is going to make it/the automotive industry is not going to make it'; 'Stocks are up/stocks are down'; 'People dying here/people are killing there'; the economy is in a recession or in a possible depression';...and on, and on...it never stops..

I feel we (myself) rely too much on these newscasters, their negative captions (and their storys), and so called professional people (and their deeds/misdeeds) to run our daily psyche into the clouds/or into the dirt. But never on a stable footing for mind food.. Read a great book instead or hang with your wife/kids.

Time to rely on our (my) will or inner strength, and that positive inner voice to tell me that things are going to be just fine provided I stick to my goals and desire to have a great year as a husband, a father, a great neighbor, and the best realtor there is out there-in that order.

Excellent quote I read: 'Noah's Ark was built by ametures/the Titanic was built by professionals'. Hmmm

Action for me this year is build my own 'Ark' and dont waiver from that construction...despite what others say.

And so far this 2009..defainatly has gotten better!

Now is the time to Invest in Realestate in the Windsor and Surrounding Area.The Windsor Essex County market offers Duplexes ,Tri-plexes and Multi unit buildings as well as Condominiums and Single Family homes at great low prices.With interest rates historically low and prices dropping down to what once was in the 1980's. As well, Power of Sale and Foreclosure opportunities are many, what are you waiting for.

As well the affordability of Real estate here in the Windsor area make it a great place to retire to. Sell your current home take the equity from that home to buy a similar home for considerably less and the rest can be socked away to assist you in your retirement living.

Has the market bottomed out? Who knows! Besides when you can see the bottom ,it's too late you've missed the boat.The only way you can see the bottom is after the market rises.Do yourself a favor and call for a free list of homes.Compare and save.