Realestate — Page 2 — Phoenix Real Estate

Real Estate Market stats and trends

July 26, 2021 by admin

Many people have asked where the Calgary real estate market is heading, which is a common question – now not having a crystal ball in my back pocket using data of the past can help with the outlook moving forward.

It is helpful here to state that the age old “past performance is not an indication of future performance” however history tends to repeat itself and real estate goes in cycles. The cycle has been shifted, compressed, and disrupted from the norms the last year due to COVID-19 for sure and what comes next is volatile to say the least.

This article was helpful to average out the stats for canada, here are some highlights

Prices Paid

31% of buyers were involved in a bidding war during their home purchase
66% believe that the bidding process should be more transparent and that all parties should be privy to the bids submitted
45% said if the bidding process was transparent, they’d be less inclined to use a real estate agent
32% of buyers incurred unexpected housing costs, including:
- moving expenses (32%)
- land transfer tax (25%)
- home inspections (24%)
- mortgage application fees (14%)
- mortgage-default insurance (13%)

Down payments

37% of respondents put down more than 20% of their home value
- Of those, 28% wanted to avoid paying mortgage default insurance
- 26% wanted to pay down their mortgage as fast as possible
Of those who put down less than 20%, the top reasons were:
- lack of funds (47%)
- wanting to keep money for other expenses (33%)
- comfortable with their current debt obligations (15%)
Top sources for down payments included:
- savings outside of an RRSP (38%)
- equity from a previous home (25%)
- RRSP savings (11%) – have rrps started to die?
- gift from a family member (8%)
- a new loan (5%)
- a HELOC (4%)

One shocker I was not expecting as a “industry investor” is that 61% of people went to their existing financial institution to get their financing. WOW! The banks may give you the best rates, but there are many more features of a mortgage which is a 5 year deal (in most cases) and a 25-30 year commitment with the bank and let’s face it the banks interest is in making the most money not giving the best deal to the client.

Use a mortgage broker, at least to get a second opinion – they can also explain why there is more to a mortgage than the interest rate: fees, portability, fixed VS variable, blended mortgages and more.

Original article here: https://www.canadianmortgagetrends.com/2021/07/majority-of-canadian-buyers-borrowing-their-maximum-approved-mortgage/

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: calgary, Investing, money, Realestate, wealth

Post Covid-19 What Comes Next?

July 9, 2021 by admin

Calgary and most other areas of North America are starting to open up an restrictions are lifting. There has been a unprecedented uptick in sales in Calgary real estate as well as many other markets across the country – many have asked us…why is that?

I have seen recently a number of articles starting to catch up on the trends that industry veterans like us have known for months. The primary reasons this happened in Calgary/Alberta at large was the following

Low supply – builders stopped building due to lock downs and shut downs mandated by the public health orders.
Never before seen Savings in Canadian bank accounts. Without spending money on entertainment, eating out, and frankly just about everything for a year in many cases caused an flood of cash into savings accounts and into the equities markets.
Low interest rates – the central banks across the world dropped interest rates to keep businesses afloat and keep credit accessible to keep the economy moving as much as possible when so much was locked down for many months.

Now, that is what caused the market to move in ways not supported by fundamentals. Let’s face it if you ask anyone in Calgary or Alberta at large if the economy is doing well….you will not get very positive answers. Is it in-migration from other parts of Canada or the US? NOPE We have seen the lowest numbers of net in-migration in years to Alberta.

So I think any industry person would agree that the current state of affairs in real estate would be artificial, (at least in Alberta for certain) some supply and demand factor at play but the above three reasons are the cause.

Now that the world is opening up I have to wonder…what comes next? Will we have a repeat of the roaring 20’s like some have predicted? Which would include a large number of people going back to their old habits, OR will we have a cross section of the population choose to form new habits with a percentage of those savings and INVEST them?

I am not suggesting that anyone not live life and go on vacations (we need those!) or even eat out again and stay cooking at home. What I would suggest is that the families that are eagerly awaiting borders to open up and theme parks to come back online, and all the other discretionary spending that was waiting for the pandemic to end – consider taking a percentage of those funds and invest them using diversification to create wealth.

Creating wealth is a system, and one that the longer you work that system the better the results will be. Real Estate is the most reliable way to create wealth (that is why we love it), but you need diversity in that sector as well as into other sectors such as the equities markets, and business investments that pay you dividend income as well. We have done, and still do, all 3 which is what I like to lovingly call the “3 pillars of wealth”.

Which set of habits will you keep after the world goes back closer to “normal” whatever that means, my hope is that we take the lessons learned during this global event into the future and things are never the same again, in a good way.

Contact us today and let’s book a discovery call to answer any questions you have about real estate, business, or wealth creation – we are here to help.

To your success,

Tim Reid

-Respect The Hustle

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: calgary, covid19, Investing, Realestate, weatlh, yyc

3 Tricks to buying a new home from a builder.

June 26, 2021 by admin

When buying your first home, you might look at buying new or “resale homes” both are very difference processes. With a re-sale home bought through the original or future owners most choose to work with a Realtor in Calgary or other markets.

Having an agent to navigate you through the process, help with referrals to service providers, really makes the process a lot smoother for many buyers.

When buying a new home, driving up to that shiny sales center with the smiling representative in that gleaming show suite/show home is very exciting! However there are some things that many buyers do not know about the staff working in there.

Firstly, the best way to not get tricked is by being educated about the dynamic.The staff in the sales center work for the Developer, they are paid to maximize profit for their employer – not get the best deal/value for money for the customers that walk through the door. They do the best they can with the scenario they are given, remember that they work for the “man/woman” not really for the customer.

With all new product sales GST is applicable, for all new home sales in Alberta GST will be added to the purchase price and the price of any upgrades made to the property prior to construction. There will need to be disclosures singed to acknowledge that you understand were an how GST will be calculated for the sale.

The most important thing to consider is that the builder will more often than not use THEIR OWN CONTRACT for the purchase. This is often non-negotiable and the builder’s team of lawyers have written this contract in their favor – not the consumers. Like any good business their lawyers wrote that sucker to protect THEM not YOU. Having this reviewed by your real estate agent or your own lawyer is highly recommended. (both would be a best practice)

Buying a brand new-home with new home warranty in a brand new building or a spanky new house in a new community with great amenities and new schools is exciting, make sure you keep that excitement all throughout the process by asking good questions and having a professional help you through the jungle -that way you are protected and often will be able to negotiate a better deal.

As always if you have any questions about this or other real estate topics, contact us today to book a discovery call.

To your success,

Tim Reid

-respect the hustle

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: calgary, homesale, new, Realestate, realtor, yyc

5 Key Reasons You Need a Power Team in Real Estate Investing

June 24, 2021 by admin

Real Estate is not a solo-sport, you absolutely need a team of professionals to support you in your real estate investing ventures. The first time you have bought a house (or maybe you haven’t yet) you might not have realized how much goes on behind the scene of that transaction.

From the start you likely worked with a realtor, who has a huge list of service providers that could help you out with due diligence, financing, repairs and many other items.

As an investor you will need a much longer list of people to help you out, and here are the Key reasons why:

You will always run out of time to do everything yourself, even if you work in real estate full time – which is also not how most people start, they still work a day job while investing in real estate and many never intend to leave their day job they just want a great return on their investments. Real estate is one of the most reliable ways to build wealth than any other sector.
It does not matter how great you are at finding deals, you can’t possible to do them all with your own resources. Having wholesale connections will save you a lot of time and effort.
Cash/credit are finite and you will need JVP partners to help you grow your portfolio
What about the passive income? Well nothing in business is ever truly passive if you are going to get great returns – therefore you will need property mangers, resident managers, and partners to help you keep the investment running as smoothly as possible. No fluff and fairy tales there will be challenges, just like any other business on earth!
Having fun! Does it really make sense to try and do it all on your own? Even if you had all the money in the world and an unlimited credit capacity, where would be the fun in building an empire if you cannot share that with others? The relationships that you build with your power team members make the challenges less severe, and you can have a great time along the way when you work with others. I believe in the Richard Branson model of business – find a way to have fun while you are at it, work hard and play hard. (he has a thing or 2 figured out in business)

Here are some power team members that you will need to get on board when you are starting out, or even if you have a number of deals under your belt and have gone the solo route – at some point to scale you will need all of these team members.

Realtor
lawyer
mortgage broker
appraiser
home inspector – residential
commercial property mechanical inspector
General contractor
handy men/women
wholesale material suppliers
private lenders
bankers
accountant
book keeper
architect
wholesalers
property managers
resident managers
JVP’s – joint venture partners
RRSP lenders
Trustee companies
Insurance broker
Trades; paint, flooring, roofing, HVAC, carpentry, tile setter, plumbers, drywall, smart home techs.
Moving company
Marketing consultants
Web design
Printing company
Bailiff
Engineers: structural/mechanical
Real Estate/Business Coach

As you can see there are lots of people that make the real estate world keep spinning, if you have any questions or need a connection in Calgary and many other markets in Canada we would be happy to help. Contact us today and book a discovery call.

To your success,

Tim Reid

-Respect The Hustle.

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Coaching, Investing, real estate, Realestate, yyc

Timing and Motivation Client Immutable laws

April 4, 2021 by admin

Today I had what I would expect is a common challenge most business owners in real estate fact often, that challenge was the matter of timing. We have all heard the phrase “timing is everything” and I would agree that timing is the most important business force surmounting any other.

The client that I had a booked meeting with, albeit several days ago by the team – which in today’s faced paced real estate market might as well have been a lifetime ago …. had already bought a house. Now, this could result in frustration, anger, resentment, or many other colorful emotions and expletive language to go along with it! (the mental battle was touch and go for a few minutes there)

A better tactic is to ask yourself “self…what am I meant to LEARN from this experience?” Which was what I did to analyze the chain of events that lead to the outcome I didn’t want because if you constantly focus on what you don’t want you tend to get more of that.

Looking back through the booking process, sending the calendar invite (not accepted but that’s common), sending the zoom invite, text message the invite to be sure they got it, then as is my custom – the phone call 15-30 minutes beforehand to confirm they have it all and will by by the computer and not driving or walking the dog so I can garner their full attention to the meeting. I did not see many improvements that could be made in the system, other than calling the day before on a holiday weekend to ensure the meeting time still works.

Then I thought a bit harder, and I was reminded of the fundamental truths of sales: it could have just been the timing or motivation of the prospect. In this case the motivation was there clearly – just not the timing of our sales presentation. That is something that no salesperson or staff member can change. If someone does not have the problem your product solves or they have said problem and are unmotivated to solve it, you could have the cure for cancer and they will not pay attention let alone pay for that product or service!

Whether your business is in real estate investing, rocket ship repair, forestry, or IT timing and motivation is something you need to explore/ nail down/work within or you will have a real task on your hands wasting cycles attempting to convert those who are not in the end of the buying journey.

Thinking of investing in real estate in Calgary or other markets in Canada? Contact our team to book a discovery call to find out how building wealth for 3 generations could be easier than you think.

To your success,

Tim Reid

-Respect The Hustle

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: business, education, Investing, Realestate, realtor, wealth, yyc

Calgary Real Estate Market Heating up?

February 26, 2021 by admin

The Calgary Real Estate market for buyers, sellers, investors is certainly a strange place over the last couple months. Everyone thought that after all the deferrals were done there would be a flood of foreclosures. Are they still waiting in the wings? Could be, but the low inventory situation that we find Calgary in right now has created an atypical surge in sales.

Low interest rates and much higher than average savings in Canadian bank accounts due to pandemic lock downs have allowed many families to inadvertently save up a down payment! Now, not all sectors of real estate in Calgary are moving fast:

Luxury homes are slow moving over 1.5M in most areas of Calgary – some areas of aspen have seen motivated sellers drop prices 100’s of thousands of dollars to get the homes sold
Condo market for apartment style homes in the inner city has been a slow mover, with inventory here being far higher than demand.
Older un-renovated homes under 1000sft which are normally sold to developers are slow to move because spec-home developers are being very cautious on their purchase prices for lots.

Single family and semi-detached homes are moving quick, also demand for half-duplexes with no condo fees has skyrocketed due in part for the buyer now seeing the possibility of adding a basement suite for having that extra revenue. I had a younger client recently tell me that that type of property would be great for his first home so that he could rent out the 2 suites when he decides to upgrade – what a smart young man! I wish I was thinking in those terms when I was younger, things would be very different now if that were the case.

We are seeing CS properties before I can get clients in to view them, properties going 50K over list price, and even private deals which we specialize in normally not having as much competition…we got outbid by a neighbor for a private seller of a lot I was working on selling to a builder contact of ours! Ouch – losing out on a private deal in a great location is not normal operating mechanics for Calgary real estate.

The stats won’t support this opinion, but I am seeing a balanced market at the moment in Calgary and if we don’t see a volume of inventory hit the market by spring when it gets warm and everyone wants to move….then we could have a seller’s market on our hands.

What do you do in a sellers market VS a buyers market? Good question – contact us and we are thrilled to help advise/answer questions on what could be the best strategy for your goals.

To your success,

Tim Reid

-Respect the hustle

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: calgary, Investing, Realestate, realtor, wealth

Credit Repair Mysteries – how do I fix my credit?

October 29, 2020 by admin

Credit is a mystery for most people that are not in banking or finance. For most people, if they have a good job and never defaulted on a credit card bill (the bane of many a millennial that didn’t know better and said screw telus/rogers/bell when they were 14 and then find out that really screwed up their credit when it was brand new) then you would have been able to get credit cards, car loans without too much trouble.

Then when you first think about buying a house you go into your bank (not my recommendation) and the cheerful banker asks you to sign some forms and fill in an application then plugs a bunch of numbers into a database tool and it spits out a number you can qualify for. That number was shockingly low for most people that are middle class, just like I was a bit shocked with I first tried to buy a property for myself – about 180K was my approval….which at that time in Calgary could have bought me a beautiful single story outhouse in a bad part of town!

So it was at that time I decide to buy a nice car because a house was out of the question, and after all I couldn’t drive the house to work…so that made sense to me at the time. Looking back is always easier than looking forward, was the the best financial choice? Maybe, maybe not – but as luck would have it that was just prior to the top of the market in the 2005-2007 era right before the crash. So, sometimes things work out even when we don’t have all the info to make the informed decision.

Now, some people might get a different answer from the banker’s little software – congrats you can afford 400K! If only your credit score didn’t suck and it is below their allowable guideline (typically 650+ for the “big 5” in Canada). At this point is where most people learn for the first time that your credit score is a big deal – unfortunate timing when you have a lease ending and you want to go house shopping!

The banker will know very little about credit and possibly give you some terrible device – so beware banks are not in the business of credit scores they are in the business of banking! Talk to a specialist or an amazing mortgage broker who knows about credit repair.

What to do? There are also many credit counseling advisors out there, which can give you good habits to follow. What we suggest is that you talk to a credit repair specialist that knows real estate and how to fix credit fast – because who wants to wait another 2-3 years? That will help expedite the process, contact us and we can recommend rock stars in this field.

Credit matters – why they don’t teach this somewhere in schools is unfortunate. We are here to help, also dispel myths about home buying such as: if you go bankrupt you can’t buy a house for 7 years. That is total BS and if that’s you give us a call because we have options. Home ownership could be closer than you think.

To your success,

Tim Reid

-Respect The Hustle

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: calgary, Coaching, education, Realestate, wealth

Book review by one of the greats

October 3, 2020 by admin

I love to read, as some of you may have seen from my posts – I have crushed a number of book since covid, frankly not driving around as much being stuck in traffic in addition to getting more sleep has really helped the book/month ratio. I will be including a comprehensive list from my book shelf here shortly.

Mr Bruce Firestone founder of the Ottawa Senators is one of my mentors and here is one of his latest blogs taking a review of corporate mergers which are not always the best for the employees…see the full article here

Delivering Profitability

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: amazon, buisness, Coaching, Investing, Realestate

Let’s Talk Goals

September 8, 2020 by admin

With school now back in session for 2020 and a lot of uncertainty in the air, the last thing on the mind of a lot of business owners in real estate and others is their goals for the last quarter of the year.

Just because it is hard to see the horizon, does not mean you can skip having a destination! Imagine for a moment the mayflower not having a destination of coming to Canada…” North America or thereabouts” would not have got our ancestors here to our great nation!

We often think of the things we DON’T want as opposed to what we DO want:

I don’t want to go broke
I don’t want to get divorced
I don’t want to lose my job

What you put out into the universe (or god of your understanding) is what you will get back – having your focus on your intentions and GOALS consistently will move you toward them. It has been said that “what you focus on expands” so if you constantly focus on what you DON’T wand then you will get more of that.

Having goals is very important, however often they wind up like resolutions – never accomplished and only done once or twice per year. Thinking about your goals ALL THE TIME and re-visiting them and re-evaluating them to get valuable data on how well you doing (or not doing sometimes) is key to making them happen.

We have all set goals that maybe we didn’t meet in the timeline that we set out….sound familiar? The conclusion our lizard brain can make in this scenario is that “setting goals doesn’t work, I never meet them anyway” which is of course not true just feedback that there are adjustments that need to be made.

When setting goals it is important to make them around things you TRULY want, have them be specific, time-bound (with a realistic timeline), and measurable. If these ingredients are not present then you have a recipe for disaster! When you can’t measure your progress you feel like your never going to get to the destination, when you set unrealistic timelines then running out of time/stress/anxiety will follow, and if what you are working on does not move your closer to something you are passionate about then how often will you make consistent action toward it? (not very often, just like the treadmill collecting dust of the gym membership not getting used).

We suggest having both short term and long term goals, in all areas of your life: personal, spiritual, health, work/business, financial, creative ETC – whatever sectors of your world that you want to improve, for some there are areas that are humming along great and no significant changes needed.

When creating your goals, be conservative with your goal/timeline – be kind to yourself. The motivation to keep working on them is derived from having confidence that through consistent action you CAN achieve them if you surpass them or crush them early then FANTASTIC! This outcome is much better than reaching your goal date and only being half done and discouraged – which is not helpful, remember to adjust and re-set the goal self- beatings are not conducive to motivation for goals!

What are your goals for the last mile of 2020?

To your success,

Tim Reid

-Respect The Hustle

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: calgary, goals, Investing, Realestate, wealth

What is your real competition?

August 11, 2020 by admin

Recently I was reading a marketing book which told the story of Coke when they were preparing to enter the Russian market many years ago. Like a large well funded company they spend a lot of time and resources researching the market and customer behavior.

What the found was that the biggest competitor to their product was the CITY BUS! The fact was that a lot of Russian consumers did not have enough disposable income to enjoy a coke PLUS ride the bus home! I know that is hard to fathom today (this was many years ago) or in many developed countries around the world.

However the lesson is still just applicable today as it was then, you need to ask yourself as a real estate business owner (or any business) when you enter the market for the first time, launch a new product, or expand your reach into new markets: what is my real competition in this space?

The facts could be far from your assumptions, and we all know what an a** assumptions can make out of business owners with the best intentions.

To your success,

Tim Reid

-Respect The Hustle

Filed Under: Uncategorized Tagged With: Investing, passive income, Realestate, wealth