You're Fired!

It’s probably odd to think that a Real Estate Agent will headline their blog with ‘You’re Fired’ and expect to be taken seriously, but I am.  Actually, since I work with a partner, I should say, rather, ‘Fire Us’.

Did you know you could?  Fire your real estate agent?  It’s not something we advertise – though I don’t know why not because you can and you should be told.  It’s that simple. 

Realtors talk talk talk so much, so fast and slide contracts in there and by the time a listing presentation is done, there’s a signature on the bottom line and a confused Seller who may or may not be happy with who they've just committed to and the Realtor walks away happy with your commitment and a listing but you, perhaps not so much.  Do you see what’s wrong with this picture?

Isn’t it YOUR home? Your Money? Your Dream?  Shouldn’t it be the other way around – Me Committed To You?

That’s my commitment.  Fire me, sorry, Fire Us.  If you don’t like our service, our commitment, what WE are doing for YOU, then hand us that Trump moment.  We've never had it happen and I won’t say yet, because if the day ever comes when I anticipate being fired because I have not stepped up to my commitment to my client, I’ll find a new career because Real Estate would no longer fit.

So what CAN I do for you?

Let’s start with:

• Exclusive Home Value Audits.  No obligation.  Whether you are curious or serious. 
• Customized Multi-Level Marketing Strategy for Your Home – a plan of action detailing what we are committed to doing and where we’ll be doing it. 
• Platinum Home Buyers Program – the listings will appear in your inbox before they’ve hit the public market.

Call me now to discuss how I can commit to you, your needs and your home (416) 388-7384.  If it’s easier, you can reach me by text or email to nicole@gtalisted.com.

No pressure. No obligation. No tactics. Just a conversation.

Nicole Kreutzberg & Laszlo Koos

Realtors with Sutton West Realty Inc.

Serving the Real Estate needs of: Toronto & the GTA in Ontario, Cda.

Email: nicole@gtalisted.com

Website: www.gtalisted.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/suttonwestrealty

Twitter: https://twitter.com/GTAListed

This blog is not intended to solicit anyone under Agency Agreement (Buyer or Seller) & is not be considered legal advice but is the writers opinion.

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Who Writes This Stuff?

I keep reading these posts about the things that your Real Estate Agent won't tell you.  There seems to be a trend of articles devoted to the cause and I'd like to know, Which Agent? Which agent is not giving you the truth? The right information? Honesty?  Because I'll tell you (the truth that is) - I don't hold back and frankly my reputation and career is based on honesty and transparency with my clients - not lying and misinformation.  Here's some of the popular items on the list that's been going around:

1. Open Houses - the articles suggest that there is no benefit from an Open House to the owner and that it's merely a way for the Agent to secure new clients.  Well first off, new business is great. Not going to lie.  It is in fact a great way to meet new potential clients but we don't do these based on that.  More often than not Open Houses are filled with potential Buyers who already have agents and thus, we spend our time - the whole weekend in fact, schmoozing Buyers who are not using our services but the services of their own Realtor.  Isn't the goal to sell?  We are also introducing your house to the neighborhood and more often than not, it's a neighbor who has a cousin who is looking in the area and this would be perfect.  It's called advertising.  The more exposed your home is, the better chance of it being sold quickly and for your asking price, if priced correctly. Isn't that the goal?  My weekends are not spent inside homes merely to prospect - I am there to sell - and sell YOUR home.  Send in a friend undercover if you don't believe me.  I'm okay with that!
2. Real Estate Fee's.  Yes they are negotiable.  We do talk about this and we will negotiate but honestly, if I don't have to put money on the table, I am not going to.  Do you? Would you arbitrarily offer to reduce or put money on the table in your own business if it wasn't asked, suggested or required? I'll tell you another secret - while I will offer up portions of my fee (absolutely!) the Buyer fee is usually not negotiable.  Agents are offering 1% - but what they are not telling you is that they are charging 1% but you are also still paying 2.5% for the Buyers end.  So 1 = 3.5%.  The dirty truth of it is that most agents won't show a property if the commission is less than 2.5% (sometimes 2%) on the Buyers side.  It seems greedy but in all honesty, Real Estate is the only business where we must pay to work.  A Realtor in Ontario realistically pays over $10 000.00 in fee's, insurance, associations and desk costs - all of which are mandatory in order to keep their license - whether or not they make a sale that year.  In addition - all related costs - marketing, gas, car, tools of the trade, cell phone etc are the sole responsibility of the agent as well.  It costs alot of money for the privilege of having our career.  And I do treat it as a privilege.  But please remember - the entire cost of marketing your home - from website, social media, advertising, feature sheets, all of the calls, emails, texts and follow ups - are solely the financial responsibility of the agent.  We do not get reimbursed.  We pay all expenses out of pocket.
3. There are Offers You Don't Know About. No. There are not.  We, in Ontario, are legally obligated (if not ethically) to report every single offer on the table.  It's not our property - it's yours.  Being sued for not relaying information is not how any agent wishes to spend their time.  I tell every owner about every potential offer.  It's not my decision.  Even if it's the lowest of the low - absurd - I will always tell my Owners.  This statement is just ridiculous.
4. You Don't Need a Real Estate Agent - You Can Do It On Your Own.  Yep - that's true.  You can. It may save you money and you may very well get it done and done well.  Is this how you want to spend your time? If it is, than great.  Anyone who feels they can FSBO (for sale by owner) their own property, I say, Power To Them.  Really.  I do know that as an Agent, I have access to so many things that you, as a lay person do not.  That being MLS, my website, my social media connections, all of the Agents in my office and in every single office of every agency in the province.  I have the knowledge and skill to price your home - using the same models and information as the Appraisers from the Banks and I have the knowledge and skill to go through your home and show you how it will best show.  It's my job to field all calls, appointments, inquiries and information regarding your property and it's on me if something goes wrong - which is why both my Broker and I carry huge insurance policies.  I don't know of many Agents who show FSBO properties to their clients and so based on that alone, you are missing out on a HUGE pool of Buyers.  Buyers who don't want to deal with a private deal and wish to leave the contracts and legalities up to their agents & lawyers.  Buyers who know that their Agent will garner all necessary information regarding zoning, easements, neighborhoods, history and the multitude of other seemingly unimportant pieces of information regarding a purchase that makes a Buyers time less stressful than it already is.  I am not suggesting FSBO homes don't sell - they do, absolutely, but for a huge stream of Buyers - they have no interest in the process and stick to properties with less stress.

I'm not saying that all agents are awesome, honest, driven or have your back - I just know that I am and I do and many of my colleagues do as well.   In all honesty, I went into real estate because of some shady agents we had used in the past and I vowed I would never disrespect any client the way I felt I had been.  That's the truth.

I honestly love people.  I understand people and mostly, I respect other people's money.  Looking for a property in the $500 000 range? I'm not going to show you  $600 000 homes, I am going to respect your budget.  Just divorced? I'm not telling anyone - it's your business and I'm going to help you find a property that will suit your new normal.  Just starting a family and looking for the move out of the core into the Burbs? I'll help you consider the long term plan - schools, neighborhood, transit and all of your other needs that you hadn't really thought about yet. My career, my goal is to ensure all my clients feel comfortable, welcome, valued and heard.  What's important to you becomes important to me - whether it's finding a yard for your dog, being near a mosque, church or house of worship.  No matter what your persuasion, orientation or inclinations - my job is about conversations.  I am your agent, it is not my place to judge anything.  My job is about Information. Honesty. Integrity and Listening.  

I'm always here, so if you're in the GTA & looking to Buy or Sell - give me a call.  I'd love to help.  It's why I do what I do.

As always, questions, comments or if you are just plain curious about the value of your home,

Email:   nicole@gtalisted.com,

Website at:: www.gtalisted.com,

Facebook page at: https://www.facebook.com/suttonwestrealty

Twitter: GTAListed 

Text me at: 416-388-7384

Nicole Kreutzberg

Realtor

This blog is not intended to solicit those under agency agreement and has been written as the agents own opinion not to be used as legal advice or otherwise

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MPAC - The Official Property Valuation

Municipal Property Assessment Corporation (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

As a homeowner you've probably received and looked over the official Municipal Property Assessment Corporation's valuation of your home.  In short, they value all municipal properties to arrive at a figure, or an assessed value, for which the individual municipalities calculate the property taxes for each individual property in their jurisdiction.

It comes down to what they say your home is worth and how much you will be paying in property taxes based on that value.

With many property values skyrocketing over the past few years, intuitively, you would think that the various municipalities would be readjusting their tax rates and increasing the amounts all across the board.  But not so, the increased trend in property values is phased in over time, with all properties being reassessed every 4 years as opposed to every time the real estate market gets hot. And rightfully so otherwise our assessments would be all over the place!

MPAC, as they are known, adheres to what is called the 'Phase In Program' whereby in order to provide levels of property tax stability and predictability, where markets increase in assessed value between January 1, 2008 and January 1, 2012, that increase will be phased in slowly over a four year period, from 2013 to 2016.  Whereas a decrease in value is applied immediately.

If you've received what you think is an unfair MPAC assessment you can challenge that valuation by going to www.mpac.on.ca and logging into "Request for Reconsideration" which will help guide you through the process.

If you'd like to know more about how and why you were assessed the way you were and would like to know more about the local assessments of your direct community, you can go to www.aboutmyproperty.ca

If you'd like to see how your home value stacks up to our valuation, please feel free to contact me at any time and I can get started on a free no obligation market valuation of your property.  Email nicole@gtalisted.com any time and we can see how our figures compare to MPAC's.

As always, if you have any questions regarding this or any other real estate matter, it's better to know than to wonder so please feel free to ask or visit our website at www.gtalisted.com

Nicole Kreutzberg, Realtor
GTA Listed Team
Sutton Group West

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Seniors & Today's Real Estate Market

So much of the market is focused on the younger generation, the first time home buyer, the new family and the newly single.  But what about our Seniors?  In reality, you make up the largest market share of homeowners today and deserve the respect and deference that comes with longevity and the hard work it took to dedicate yourselves to raising your families.  Let’s consider some issues, questions you may be asking yourself and what you should be expecting of your Realtor.

You’ve owned your home for 30, 40 or maybe more years and are now thinking it may be time to move on.  Why?

Stairs have become difficult to navigate, mowing the lawn is now a chore you are just not wanting to deal with both physically and mentally, shoveling snow is too much of a burdeon, taking out the garbage and all that general home maintenance that used to be so easy to handle is just not so easy anymore.  Can you still manage your daily chores like going to the market and making meals, bathing (slip and falls in the bath are so common and scary), or even cleaning?  Perhaps your spouse has mobility issues, you are too far away from your grandchildren or you’d like to spend more time down South Snowbirding and wish to relocate to something smaller and more compatable with that lifestyle.

The Senior lifestyle today is much different than generations before.  We live longer, healthier and have far more active lifestyles than enjoyed in the days of old.  Maybe it’s as simple as wanting to be more active and involved with the community and different groups that living in your current home doesn’t help you explore that.  Perhaps living in your community prevents you from getting out with new friends and exploring new opportunities and making the move to a more manageable Condo closer your friends, transit and activities will enhance and add to your life while you finally get to enjoy time off from the daily grind!

Whatever the case may be a good Realtor will treat you with respect, help you explore your options and will develop a relationship with you based on respect, patience and trust.  We can help council you and your family about your options.  Take a look at your long term needs and finances.  We can put you in touch with Financial planners who can assist in figuring out how to best invest your money long term in order to support the lifestyle that choose and our support doesn’t stop there.

As Realtors, we can help with so many other issues.  The idea of moving, packing, changing or cancelling utilities is intimidating and overwhelming.  We can help you with the details.  Put you in touch with the movers, packers and cleaners.  We can help you stage (or rework your home) so that it shows its best for sale and we will take all the time you need in helping you find your new home, the right one, the one we sat down and discussed.  We won’t push you.  We won’t talk over you and we won’t disrespect your specific wants and needs.

Be wary of the Realtor who doesn’t listen.  Who doesn’t take the time to explain the entire contract to you and asks for your signature before you truly understand the document before you.  Ask your Realtor for the recent sale prices of homes in your immediate area and for the prices of current homes for sale.  Before you sign on any dotted line, ensure you trust and the person before you and ensure they value YOUR business and time.  That you’ve been heard.  That nothing is moving faster than you want it to.  Make sure you have your Realtors phone numbers and contact information (including cell phone numbers) and make sure they are committed to updated you regularily.

It doesn’t make a difference if you are 20 or 75, Buying and Selling homes is stressful.  The Realtor you choose must understand that, be mindful of the process and ensure that all of their clients are dealt with integrity, respect, honesty and trust.

A good Realtor will navigate you through the process and make sure you understand and are okay with each step and stage.

If you’d like further information on Buying or Selling real estate in the GTA, please contact me, Nicole Kreutzberg at 416-388-7384 or email direct to nicole@gtalisted.com and I`ll be happy to help!  Or visit our website, www.gtalisted.com to start taking a look at your available real estate options!

Original Blog Can Be Seen at:

Seniors & Today's Real Estate Market | Blog | Nicole Kreutzberg  & Laszlo Koos

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