2 scenarios: You are a Buyer and bid on a home you fell in love with. You are asked for a deposit to bind the contract once your offer is accepted by a Seller.  Or, you are a Seller and your agent brings you an offer to buy your home and with it, the Buyer submits a deposit. What is the deposit for, and what the heck happens to it once it is deposited? Let’s dig into this to get some ...Read More

A few months ago, I wrote a column on how affordable Oshawa is for buying a home. Over the past week, I have done some research into homes selling above the $1,000,000 dollar mark. Let’s do a look back in time. In 2010, when I looked to see how many homes sold above the million, I was somewhat shocked, and not surprised. There was a total of 1 home that sold. I wanted to take some time and d...Read More

Lindsay was invited to talk to Leslie Smith on her podcast, The Six to the Stix. The conversation was about the Facebook group Lindsay started to help support the restaurants in Whitby, Oshawa and Clarington. The group has grown to more than 11 thousand members. Listen below and let us know what you think. From Leslie's description: My guest today is someone who has felt like a kindred spirit...Read More

Buying a home in 2020 has proven to be challenging. We are seeing many buyers purchasing homes before selling their own properties. This can result in not being able to match up closing dates. This is where bridge financing comes in handy. The term bridge financing is a term that is bandied around like we should all know what it means, however, there is still confusion around the term. I am gues...Read More

As a full-time Realtor, I spend quite a bit of time in my car, showing homes or visiting Sellers getting their homes ready to sell. Over the past few days, I have heard a radio ad from a mortgage brokerage offering a 5-year mortgage below 1.4%. Having a mortgage renewing in less than a year, the ad caught my attention. Let’s do a bit of digging to see if it makes sense to renew early, disch...Read More

  Over the past month, I have had some intriguing conversations with several clients and business owners. Mike Sargeant works for AGM. His company has been focused for years on doing renovations, primarily finished basements and creating legal accessory basement apartments. Another, Lindsay Wright is the owner of Interior Woodcraft Design, specializing in custom cabinetry. I reached out to b...Read More

  Realtor Lindsay Smith comes from a family of chefs, so when restaurants were ordered to shut down indoor seating earlier this year, he knew he had to do something to help the owners. The broker/owner of the Buy, Sell, Love Durham team at Keller Williams Energy Real Estate in Oshawa, Ont. started a Facebook group (Restaurants in Oshawa, Whitby and Clarington Offering Takeout and Delivery) i...Read More

One of the things about selling real estate locally for 3 decades is that year after year, in regular markets, the timing of when homes sell is predictable. Many of the clients I work with are making their last move, so a question I get asked on a pretty regular basis is, What month is the best time to sell that will give me the highest selling price?”   In a regular market, the answ...Read More

When inventory is low, you have to be creative. Holding offers, offer presentation dates, bully offers and pre-emptive offers. This “new language,” has come into our vocabulary to explain how the selling process operates in a market where inventory is at record lows. At first glance, it is easy to determine that a sales rep and a Seller make the decision to “hold offers” t...Read More

Recently I have heard some banter about a Buyer who moved into a home and found there were items missing that they felt they purchased with the home. I can imagine how disappointed and frustrated the Buyers were on moving day. Over the past 3 decades selling real estate locally, I can count on one hand the number of times I have had items removed when they were meant to stay with the property. My ...Read More