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We hope you'll find this blog useful and interesting, and if there is ever a real estate question that you want to ask, please visit our website at www.barriehome.com, or drop us a line to glenn@barriehome.com.
I was going to save this for my weekend weblink, but it's such a handy site that I couldn't wait. I don't think I've ever seen an easier-to-use conversion tool than this one, courtesy a computer programmer in Germany who goes by "Rasmus".
Just pick the type of conversion you want to do (such as Distance & Length), enter the amount you want to convert (such as 10 km) and click Calculate at the bottom of the section, and voila! ... you see all of the conversions for 10 km you could possibly want, whether it's 6.2137119 miles or 5307.8556263 fathoms.
Don't forget to bookmark this site! - Caleigh
Got a spare $2.3 million? Then you could be the owner of the home featured in the movie Ferris Bueller's Day Off!
Sure, you'd have to move to Illinois, but wouldn't it be worth it? Click here to see the full listing. - Caleigh
Orillia
- Highland Farm - Orillia (raspberries, strawberries)
For instance, not everyone is aware that we are only paid when someone buys or sells a home, and that commission is only ever paid by the seller. So if your Realtor tells you that you'll be paying 5% commission upon the sale of your home, that actually means 2.5% goes to the seller's agent (but not really, read on for more of the breakdown) and 2.5% to the buyer's agent.
Realtors are never compensated by their Brokerage – this is a purely commission business, with no salaries paid. All Realtors are self-employed entrepreneurs, and although we are described as employees of the Brokerage (like, in our case, RE/MAX), they do not pay us - in fact, we pay them! The most common financial relationship between the Brokerage and the Salesperson is what's called "split fee". That means that of the 2.5% commission, the Brokerage keeps a portion and the Salesperson keeps the rest. This, along with monthly fees, compensates the Brokerage for looking after things like booking home showings, offering training, maintaining offices, and advertising the "brand". Meanwhile, the Realtor looks after finding clients and performing the multitude of tasks involved in helping them through the buying and/or selling process, and advertising their own listings and services.
Knowing this might also help to explain why people report different experiences with Realtors working for the same brand. Salespeople working at the same Brokerage may employ the same basic business practices (in terms of how money is handled and so forth); however, at the end of the day it's that Salesperson who you will be dealing with on a regular basis, and it’s their personality, skills, experience and marketing techniques that will come to bear when it comes to the purchase or sale of your home. And that’s a subject for another day. - Glenn
If Spring has you wanting to inject some colour and freshness into your home, don't touch your credit card until you've checked out these 2009 trend reports!
- divine.ca
- Cadillac Fairview
- Imagekind's tips for decorating with art
- The Decorating Diva
- Canadian House & Home
And, if you need to partake of a little "out with the old" before you start bringing in the new, Yahoo Lifestyle has great tips for Spring cleaning. Click the link to read the article.
The low interest rates have many renters considering taking the first step up the property ladder. Wondering if this may be the right move for you? Watch this video -- part of The Burlington Team's series of Kitchen Table Real Estate talks -- discussing renting vs. buying in 2009.
The crazy thing about the blogosphere (an annoying but apt term) is that bloggers tend to form little virtual communities that link back and forth to one another. So when you find a blog you like, it will send you to other like-minded blogs, which send you to more ... and so on until you've forgotten to eat dinner, missed all your favourite TV shows, and your family can't recall what you look like without a computer in front of you. Well, maybe that doesn't happen to everyone. :)
This past weekend I came across a blog about DIY home decorating (don't ask me how I got there, I'd need a forensic team to recreate that path), and for the next I-won't-admit-how-many hours, I blog-hopped through a variety of beautiful and inspirational home ideas. I'll share a few of my favourite finds here:
- Crafty Nest
- Thrifty Decor Chick
- Centsational Girl (source of photo at right)
- The Magic Brush
- The Inspired Room
- Funky Junk Interiors
- Remodeling Guy
- Remodeling This Life
- Your Home Only Better
I could go on (and I did), but I'm sure that's all you need to get linked off in a hundred directions. Enjoy! - Caleigh
Thursday is the day I start scouring my various sources for things my family can do on the weekend, preferably without breaking the bank.
If you're into art, this is the last weekend for the
If you're a garage sale fan, then you may want to check out the "Gigantic Garage Sale" on Saturday at the Allandale Rec Centre from 9:00 a.m. to noon, in support of the Allandale 55+ Centre.
My family lives in Innisfil, so we're hoping to participate in our town clean-up on Saturday. Anyone wishing to take part in Innisfil Pitch-In Day can meet at their fire station by 9:00 a.m. to sign in. Last year it was a cold day, so we went out on our own the following weekend and were sad to see how much litter was still around. We've made it a habit to keep gloves and bags in the car and pick up trash whenever we visit playgrounds and beaches, so if it's a nice day we may go playground-hopping instead and bring our own gear.Whatever you do, I hope you have a great weekend! - Caleigh
Because we know each other, this agent knows how well the client will be served. And we are honoured to be chosen so we'll knock ourselves out to please the client and the person referring to us. After all, the single most important source of our business is referrals.
Every week we get calls or e-mails from someone we've dealt with in the past, looking for advice or market information, getting ready to buy or sell their home, or referring someone to us. Hearing that people who've worked with us want others to do the same is the most satisfying part of our business. Not that we don't want to meet new people - of course we do - and you need new business to help your business grow!
So I guess that's the point of this message: we love to hear from our past clients, and we're really tickled to have you send someone to us. - Glenn
Of course the good thing is that as homes are sold, new ones come on the market. In the last week we've listed four more homes in a variety of areas and price ranges. The one pictured above is my dream home, located on Sunnidale Road. If I was in the market to move, it would be MINE! *sigh* Since I'm not, you can have it, but you have to promise to invite me over for tea.
If you'd like to take a look at the properties that we have listed or recently sold, you can check out our weekly ad in the Barrie Examiner, or visit our website at barriehome.com. On the right-hand side you'll see a little slideshow of our properties, and you can click on any image to see more info, including a photographic virtual tour. Or if you know the property's ID, you can enter it where indicated. The Sunnidale property I mentioned above is #1022. Our other new listings are #1006, 1033 and 1023. Click the link to check them out! - Caleigh
There’s been a lot of cheering about today’s low-interest mortgages and the resulting stimulus to the real estate market. This is great for almost everyone involved – but there are a few exceptions. I just wanted to give a heads up to anyone considering selling and not rebuying, or downsizing to reduce the size of your mortgage.
In essence, your lender will now have to 're-lend' the money you returned to them, but likely at a much lower rate than before. Therefore, they are charging what they call an Interest Rate Differential (IRD). In simplest terms this is the difference between the original rate and the current rate, calculated on the balance of the loan over the remaining term.
This could turn out to mean you have to pay a large chunk of money, so you might want to check it out yourself before you talk to your lender. Our favourite mortgage guy, Nick Lecuyer, sent me this link: http://www.calculatorz.com/united/earlyrenew.cgi. Keep in mind that this is just about informing yourself and doesn’t replace talking to a mortgage professional, so your next call should be to your lender or to Nick (705-252-6425).
If you are just 'porting' (or expanding) your existing mortgage from one house to another – RELAX – there should be no IRD fee charged. - Glenn
I like to use the Weather Network website to get my weather reports, and I recently discovered a very cool feature called the SchoolDay Forecast. You select your province, then choose your school. (I suggest that once you find your child's school, you bookmark the page for future reference.) Each day, it will give you not only the forecast, but a suggestion of what to wear both to and from school! I find this a fantastic feature, because at 7:30 in the morning I can't quite wrap my brain around whether 5ยบ means winter coat or spring jacket. Click the link to check it out. - Caleigh
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2009
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- Weblink Weekends! Need business card inspiration?
- How to stage your own home
- TATW: Festival season is underway!
- Best online conversion tool ever!
- Bueller? Bueller?
- Guide to Barrie and area pick-your-own farms
- Weblink Weekends! Celebrity gossip, Canadian style
- Ever wonder where your commission goes?
- TATW: Knights and Notes
- A Spring Cleaning funny, courtesy the National Post
- More beautiful homes on the market!
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- TATW: Zoo openings and more!
- Feeling the itch to shop?
- Rent or buy in 2009
- Energy Conservation Week: May 17-23, 2009
- Need a last-minute Mother's Day gift?
- Weblink Weekends! Kids-in-Mind movie ratings
- If you're into home improvement, then there are bl...
- TATW: Some ideas for your weekend
- Referrals - what a great way to do business
- A home for everyone
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