As the darker days descend, preparing your lawn for winter requires a very different strategy to the once-a-week mow and lavish watering in summer. Homeowners and keen gardeners alike can make some basic mistakes or omissions with their lawns that will put it under stress during winter. Right now, it’s important to aerate and dethatch…
Read more
One of the most important skills when selling your home is the art of furnishing to enhance the impression of space, purpose and natural light. Buyers love the idea of having lots of space, but you also need to arrange your furniture so each room has an obvious purpose. It’s underwhelming to walk into a…
Read more
In a move designed to tackle housing affordability, Prime Minister Mark Carney has launched a new, multi-billion-dollar agency, Build Canada Homes, to increase the supply of affordable family properties. Build Canada Homes will directly intervene in the housing market by partnering with the private sector. The new strategy aims to increase the supply of affordable…
Read more
With the strongest September sales numbers for four years, the real estate market has started its fall season with a sense of optimism. While many headlines have pointed to deals dipping 1.7% compared with August, the reality is that our market is susceptible to the occasional surprise. Lower sales numbers were recorded in the key…
Read more
Our real estate market is entering its next phase with cautious optimism, driven by factors such as cooling interest rates, strong supply and deal numbers in the past three months that have been the best for four years. Yet, the recovery is not uniform with regional differences and lingering affordability concerns influencing buyer behaviour. The…
Read more
When you decide to sell your most valuable asset, the first question is always: “What is my home really worth?” Most sellers start by checking online estimators or looking at municipal tax assessments. But if you’re serious about maximising your sale price, you have two distinct ways to value your property – and both are…
Read more
In this winter market, Canadian sellers have got to become so competitive to attract buyers that many in the mid-tier and luxury segments are investing in styling their homes to make a big impression. Even an average four-bedroom family home can comfortably cost $5,000 or more to style. Most of the cost is from renting…
Read more
When preparing your home for sale, there’s probably no more important focal point than the bathrooms and the kitchen. Sometimes, a little regrouting around the taps works wonders from an aesthetic perspective. Transparent and white silicone will often turn black with continued exposure to water. If you attempt to do the job yourself, don’t neglect…
Read more
Maximising the value of their home should be the goal of any owner planning to enter the market. A well-maintained and beautifully presented home will always attract interest, leading to multiple offers and a higher final sale price. Today’s buyers are usually more willing to pay a premium for a turn-key property that requires no…
Read more
As the leaves continue to descend, and fall enters its last month, it’s been interesting to see how the leaf blower has taken over from the humble rake to clear away nature’s debris in many of our neighbourhoods. Is this a good adoption of technology? Is trading a little physical effort for battery-powered convenience the…
Read more
