Oakville, ON

There is a public misconception that buyers can get "a steal of a deal" on a "Power of Sale" property. According to the Mortgages Act Ontario http://www.canlii.net/on/laws/sta/m-40/20080821/whole.html the guidelines for handling Power of Sales is very specific.

Once the lender or financial institution has taken over the property, they must sell the property the same way as any other property. It is usually listed with a REALTOR on mls for the appraised market value. They have to prove that the home is exposed to the open market for the proper amount of time to find a buyer and obtain market value.

The lender has complete control of the negotiations. Neither the Listing Agent, the Buyer Agent or the buyer will have much say and the offer process is done via fax.

The lender usually asks for between 48 hours and 72 hours irrevocable to review the offer. They will only negotiate during business hours and not on weekends. There often seems to be no sense of urgency on the lenders' part, even though usually the property is empty at this point, and the lender is paying for the heat, hydro, taxes, etc. This is simply a business decision for the Mortgagee, unlike when you are negotiating with a seller where there is emotional attachment. Negotiations can drag on with a power of sale and the buyer may potentially miss out on another suitable property that comes on the market.

Buyers must be aware that when buying a power of sale, the Mortgagee offers the property in an "as is" condition. There are also no warranties or guarantees provided. There are usually many schedules attached by the Bank, which I recommend the buyer have their solicitor review.


When the property is first listed, it is very unlikely any low offers will be considered. The Mortgagee must be able to prove they did their part to get the highest and best price. After a certain time on the market, the Lender may reduce the price to obtain a suitable offer. At this point the Lender usually is willing to negotiate a little more. Banks and financial institutions don't want to be in the real estate business. Inventory properties must be heated, cooled, winterized, cleaned, etc.

Once a power of sale is sold, any equity leftover after the mortgage loan is paid back to the lender, is returned to the mortagor (borrower).

So are there really any deals out there with power of sales? Not usually when they first come on the market. Perhaps, if the property languishes on the market for a few months but in a seller's market as we are experiencing in Oakville right now, power of sales are even getting multiple offers. When inventory is low, everything sells.

It is very important that a buyer obtains a building inspection on a vacant power of sale property . Often times the home has not been maintained properly prior to becoming a power of sale and as mentioned there is no recourse after closing.

When people ask me if there are any bargains out there, I tell them to consider all properties that meet their needs. If a power of sale falls in that category, they can definitely look at it. There are risks involved though. In a seller's market there are no steals. Oftentimes there are not even any deals. Just because a home is listed as a power of sale does not mean the bank is going to "give it away."

I feel it is important for REALTORS to educate buyers about power of sale properties instead of giving the impression that power of sale properties are available for a cut rate price.

Thinking of Buying Your First Home in the Oakville, Mississauga or Burlington Area?

You Won't Want to Miss Our FREE First-Time Homebuyer's Seminar !

Being Held on Wednesday, February 24th, 2010 from 7-9pm at
TD/Canada Trust on the corner of  Prince Michael and Dundas in Oakville.


Becoming an informed buyer will save you time, effort and potentially 1000's of dollars as well as providing you with the knowledge you'll need to make a wise investment decision in today's unpredictable marketplace.



Bring a list of questions you've been wondering about and have them answered by one of our panel of experts.

Presentations will be given by the following home buying professionals:

• Jo-Anne Smith, REALTOR® with Brekland Realty Group and
  
  Denise Bayne, REALTOR® with Sutton Group Quantum Realty Inc.
  
  
• Ivana Marasovic and Deborah Agar, Mortgage Experts with TD/Canada Trust
  
  
• Robert Rose, Real Estate Lawyer - Oakville Real Estate Law
  
  
• Russ Fasullo, Home Inspector and President of Avanti Home and Mold Inspections

Every registrant will receive a FREE Home Buying Package filled with valuable information on the home buying process and valuable cost-saving certificates that will save first time homebuyers hundreds of dollars when buying their first home.

In addition, each registrant will be entered into our FREE DRAW for Valuable Door Prizes !*

Come out for a relaxing and fun-filled evening!

SEATING is LIMITED so Please REGISTER EARLY by

Contacting either Jo-Anne Smith or Denise Bayne at 905-469-8888 or Click on this link to

Register For First Time Homebuyer's Seminar By Email

           
             Mark Your Calendar and Call TODAY.

*must be present at the seminar in order to win

Real estate markets are determined by supply and demand. Markets can fluctuate from a buyer's market to a balanced market to a seller's market and back very quickly for a variety of different reasons.

A seller's market is one in which the buyers outnumber the available inventory. This results in putting the seller in a very solid position to sell quickly for top price. In order for a buyer to compete with a multitude of others looking in the same price range for limited product they must be fully prepared and educated.

• Make sure you work with a REALTOR who will keep you abreast of new inventory as soon as it becomes available. Good agents will network with their colleagues to spread the word as to what they are looking for.
• Be available to view the property as soon as possible. If you put in an offer before competing you are likely to get it for less money.
• Do not submit a low ball offer. In a seller's market there will not likely be much movement in the price when it has just been listed. Sellers have the confidence that if they don't get their price from you they will wait for the next offer.
• Make sure you are pre-approved for financing. This is not the time to be looking for a property that you aren't sure if you can afford or not. If you are going to make an offer conditional on financing make sure your bank or mortgage broker has all pertinent information such as income letters, amount of down payment, etc. and that you have discussed interest rate, taxes, maintenance and utility fees.
• If you do get into a multiple offer situation make sure you put your best figure forward. Your chances to negotiate are slim if you are competing so go with your highest and best.
• Make sure you are comfortable with your offer price when competing. You do not want to have remorse afterwards when you find out what the home sold for and you now wish you had put in a higher offer.
• If you know you are competing and you want to prepare a strong offer you may want to do a building inspection on the property before you submit an offer. If satisfied you are able to submit your offer without this pending condition. The cleaner the offer, the better chance it will be accepted.
• Stay positive if your offer or offers are rejected. Sit back and regroup. The right house WILL come along. Try not to feel pressured. Often times that may lead you to buy a home for the wrong reasons. Remember what your priorities were when you started out. Do not compromise just for the sake of "winning" a bid.
• Consider renting short term until there is less pressure. If you are being transferred and not familiar with the area or prices it may be worth taking the extra time to explore and get a better feel for what neighbourhood would work best for you.
• Make sure your REALTOR explains fully the multiple offer situation. It is important to know when offers are open and closed and how the negotiations will be handled. Strategy is very important when there are competing offers.

Remember, no matter what the market, the home buying process should not be overly stressful. No matter what your price range, you are looking for your future dream home. This should be an enjoyable experience. Make sure you choose a local real estate professional who will be your partner in this venture.

For information on the current seller's market in Oakville, Ontario contact Jenny Kotulak, Your Oakville Community Realtor.

Past President Oakville, Milton & District Real Estate Board

Taking a walk through the ravines and trails in Oakville, Ontario this fall, you will notice a collage of colours. Living in Oakville affords you the opportunity to explore the many mature forested areas and creek banks. No matter what neighbourhood you live in in Oakville, there is always a park, greenspace, bike paths or ravines nearby. Sitting on Oakville's Parks & Recreation Advisory Committee, I have the opportunity to hear about the Town's future plans for new and existing parks. Now's the time to get out and enjoy the last of the fall colours.

An article in today's Toronto Star with the headline " Pricey homes ride out the recession" led me to do some of my own investigative research on Oakville's "pricey" properties. Tony Wong the journalist who wrote the piece in the Star had this to say about Oakville.

"In Oakville, a favourite with Bay Street bankers, prices were down by almost 20 percent earlier this year. But prices have bounced back: this year's most expensive sale was a waterside home for $7 million."

The Star reporter is correct, the highest sale to date in 2009 in Oakville was a $7 Million Dollar property, but it wasn't on Lake Ontario if that's what he means by waterside. The home located in Oakville's east end was north of Lakeshore Road and next to a park although it did have over 3/4 of an acre of it's own parklike property. The newly built custom home offered 13,000 square feet of luxurious living space.

There have been 157 homes sold this year so far with a price tag of $1 Million dollars plus. Seven properties have sold between $3 Million and $7 Million. Of the 157 properties, 93 of them sold between $1 and $1.5 Million dollars.

The average sale price was $1,632,339 with the average days on market being 68 days.

How do these statistics compare to 2008?

For the same time period in 2008, Jan 1. - Nov. 4, 153 homes had sold for $1 Million dollars or more. Two homes shared the highest sale price of $5,500,000. Twelve properties sold between $3 Million and $5.5 Million dollars. Again the popular price range was between $1 - $1.5 Million with 87 transactions.

The average sale price was $1,688,563 with the average days on market being 52.

What do these stats show us?

• # of sales up by 4 this year for same time period
• Average price off by only $56,000 from last year same time period
• Average days on market was 2 weeks longer this year same time period

For buyers looking to spend over $1,000,000 there are currently 162 properties available for sale in Oakville. The highest priced listing can be had for $11,900,000. There are 32 homes available over $3,000,000.

If Oakville is indeed a favourite with Bay Street bankers as stated in the Toronto Star, I would be more than happy to give those potential buyers a tour of available homes. Although inventory is depleted in the lower price ranges, the upper end affords a great selection of homes in all Oakville neighbourhoods.

Statistics Source :OMDREB Tarasoft Matrix

Photo Source : Jenny Kotulak - Dundurn Castle, Hamilton, Ontario - Not For Sale

Jenny Kotulak Broker

Your Oakville Community REALTOR

Past President Oakville, Milton & District Real Estate Board