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Top 5 Reasons Why Some Homes Don’t Sell
Published June 11, 2007 Making Sense Of It All Leave a CommentAssignment Terms and Conditions from the Woodward’s Disclosure Statement
“The Buyer may only assign the Buyer’s interest in this Agreement on or after that date which is 12 months after the Acceptance Date and on or before that date which is three months prior to the estimated Closing Date, and in any event, only if: (a) all Deposits required to be paid on or before the proposed date of assignment have been paid; and (b) the Buyer has obtained the prior written consent of the Seller (the developer) which consent will not be unreasonably withheld. Any request for the consent of the Seller (the developer) to the assignment of the Buyer’s interest in this Agreement must be made via the Seller’s (the developer’s) Real Estate Agent, as defined in the Disclosure Statement. No assignment by the Buyer shall release the Buyer from the Buyer’s obligations hereunder. The Buyer shall pay to the Seller (the developer) an administration fee equal to 1.0% of the assignment price paid by the assignee to the Buyer (plus GST) for the assignment of the Buyer’s interest in the Unit or in this Agreement (the “Assignment”) as consideration for agreeing to the Assignment and for any associated legal and administrative costs. The Buyer shall not advertise or solicit offers from the public nor list the Unit on the Multiple Listing Service with respect to the resale of the Buyer’s interest in the Unit prior to the Closing Date, except through the Seller’s (the developer’s) Real Estate Agent, as defined in the Disclosure Statement, without the prior written consent of the Seller (the developer), which consent may be refused by the Seller in the Seller’s sole discretion. “
Why buyers may need to rethink their strategy
Some sellers won’t even consider a subject to sale offer. If the buyer’s house doesn’t sell, the deal is off and the seller has to find another buyer. To increase your chance of success if you make an offer contingent on the sale of your home, it helps to look at your offer from the seller’s perspective.
Keep in mind that the seller knows nothing about you or the property you need to sell. Common seller concerns are: How salable is your property? Will you price it right for the market? Will you negotiate reasonably to sell your home as quickly as possible?
Try to convince the seller that your home is saleable and that you’re a realistic seller. If your home is already on the market, provide the seller with the multiple listing service information for your home, including photos.
Ask your listing agent to prepare a comparative market analysis of your home to show the seller that your home is listed at a marketable price. Supply information about how long it is taking to sell properties like yours. A seller will be more receptive to your sunject to sale offer if he thinks your home is more saleable than his.
If your home isn’t yet on the market, sign a listing agreement before you make your offer. This shows that you are serious about moving your home quickly. Authorize your agent to present a copy of the listing agreement to the seller, along with the supporting documentation showing that your home is priced to sell.
It’s a good idea to get your home ready to go on the market before you get into contract to buy a new home. This way, your home can go on the market as soon as your offer is accepted.
A seller may have reservations about accepting your subject to sale offer if your home has been on the market for a month or more and is still unsold. In this case, you can make your offer more attractive if you commit to lowering your price.
HOUSE HUNTING TIP: Include a release clause in the contract to alleviate the seller’s concern about withdrawing his property from the market for a transaction that may never close. A release clause allows the sellers to continue to offer their home for sale. If the sellers receive an acceptable offer, you are notified that you must remove your subject to sale contingency within the timeframe specified in the contract and provide evidence that you can close even if your property isn’t sold. If you are unable or unwilling to do so, the home goes to the other buyers.
Typically, the release clause timeframe for performance is negotiable, although it’s often 48 hours. You can make your offer more attractive by shortening the timeframe to 24 hours.
Don’t wait until you are served with a notice to remove your subject to sale contingency to line up interim financing. If there is serious interest in your home, you may decide to buy the new home even though your home isn’t yet sold.
Offering more money in consideration for a contingency on the sale of your home will work with some sellers. But, if the market in your area is active, you may find that the only sellers that will entertain subject to sale offers are those whose properties have been on the market for some time, and they might be overpriced for the market.
Buyers who are unable to successfully negotiate a subject to sale offer should rethink their strategy. It may be an impossible goal.
THE CLOSING: If you’re trying to buy in an area with low inventory and plenty of noncontingent buyers, you may have to sell before buying.
Why buyers may need to rethink their strategy
Some sellers won’t even consider a subject to sale offer. If the buyer’s house doesn’t sell, the deal is off and the seller has to find another buyer. To increase your chance of success if you make an offer contingent on the sale of your home, it helps to look at your offer from the seller’s perspective.
Keep in mind that the seller knows nothing about you or the property you need to sell. Common seller concerns are: How salable is your property? Will you price it right for the market? Will you negotiate reasonably to sell your home as quickly as possible?
Try to convince the seller that your home is saleable and that you’re a realistic seller. If your home is already on the market, provide the seller with the multiple listing service information for your home, including photos.
Ask your listing agent to prepare a comparative market analysis of your home to show the seller that your home is listed at a marketable price. Supply information about how long it is taking to sell properties like yours. A seller will be more receptive to your sunject to sale offer if he thinks your home is more saleable than his.
If your home isn’t yet on the market, sign a listing agreement before you make your offer. This shows that you are serious about moving your home quickly. Authorize your agent to present a copy of the listing agreement to the seller, along with the supporting documentation showing that your home is priced to sell.
It’s a good idea to get your home ready to go on the market before you get into contract to buy a new home. This way, your home can go on the market as soon as your offer is accepted.
A seller may have reservations about accepting your subject to sale offer if your home has been on the market for a month or more and is still unsold. In this case, you can make your offer more attractive if you commit to lowering your price.
HOUSE HUNTING TIP: Include a release clause in the contract to alleviate the seller’s concern about withdrawing his property from the market for a transaction that may never close. A release clause allows the sellers to continue to offer their home for sale. If the sellers receive an acceptable offer, you are notified that you must remove your subject to sale contingency within the timeframe specified in the contract and provide evidence that you can close even if your property isn’t sold. If you are unable or unwilling to do so, the home goes to the other buyers.
Typically, the release clause timeframe for performance is negotiable, although it’s often 48 hours. You can make your offer more attractive by shortening the timeframe to 24 hours.
Don’t wait until you are served with a notice to remove your subject to sale contingency to line up interim financing. If there is serious interest in your home, you may decide to buy the new home even though your home isn’t yet sold.
Offering more money in consideration for a contingency on the sale of your home will work with some sellers. But, if the market in your area is active, you may find that the only sellers that will entertain subject to sale offers are those whose properties have been on the market for some time, and they might be overpriced for the market.
Buyers who are unable to successfully negotiate a subject to sale offer should rethink their strategy. It may be an impossible goal.
THE CLOSING: If you’re trying to buy in an area with low inventory and plenty of noncontingent buyers, you may have to sell before buying.
The Home Owner Grant application is on the back of the tax notice. If you are eligible for the Home Owner Grant you should claim it. If you don’t claim it and you only pay the net amount of property taxes, you are creating a debt with the municipality for the amount of the Home Owner Grant you didn’t claim. The municipality will levy a penalty on the amount of the grant that you owe them.
The grant is a BC Government program to reduce residential property taxes for eligible home owners. To qualify, home owners must be:
• a Canadian Citizen or landed immigrant;
• a permanent resident in BC;
• the registered property owner when applying for the grant; and
• occupying the dwelling described on your application as your principal residence.
How much is the grant?
• The basic grant reduces taxes for home owners under the age of 65 by up to $570; and
• The additional grant for home owners age 65 and over, and eligible veterans and disabled home owners is $275, for up to a total of $845.
The basic grant is reduced by $5 for each $1,000 of assessed value more than $950,000 and is eliminated on homes assessed at $1,064,000 and above.
The additional grant is reduced by $5 for each $1,000 of assessed value over $950,000 and is eliminated on homes assessed at $1,119,000 and above.
Expanded eligibility for low income seniors and others
Thanks to new measures in the 2007 BC Budget, the Home Owner Grant has been extended to some eligible low-income seniors and others, who would qualify for the additional grant except that the value of their homes exceeds the threshold. These owners – low-income seniors, eligible veterans and eligible persons with disabilities – must have an income of $30,000 or less, reside on their property and can show they will face hardship without the additional grant.
A home owner must claim the grant even if they can’t pay their taxes.
Why does the appraisal value of a home often differ from the price listed by real estate agents?
Real estate appraisal, the practice of determining the market value of property, is an inexact science. This is particularly true in an active market, when prices are rapidly rising, or in a depressed market, when prices are falling. It is also true for properties whose characteristics are unique.
Appraisers depend upon recent sales to determine property values. When market prices are rapidly rising or falling, recent sales prices may not be reliable unless adjustments are made according to the apparent price direction of the market. Appraisers also rely upon comparable properties for price comparisons. If a home is different in size and amenities than those that have recently sold, an appraiser has to make adjustments for those variables, and these can be somewhat subjective.
In truth, the value of a property is whatever a buyer is willing to pay. And that price then becomes the comparable sale to be used in future appraisals of other properties.
Downtown Vancouver’s latest condo developments
Published June 9, 2007 Making Sense Of It All Leave a CommentAtelier on Robson was launched on Saturday, May 12th, 2007 with a developer’s friends and family event the evening before. I had pre registered for the event and was in line for the 11am opening. By the time the doors opened, there was a line half a block long filled with like minded potential buyers filled with excitment at the opportunity to see what Atelier had to offer.
My clients included investors looking for a good investment opportunity as well as clients looking to get into the market before the skyrocketing prices force them out of the downtown market. I was confident my buyers would have some good choices.
Imagine our surprise and disappointment when we found out that 90% of the units have been sold the evening before. All that was left were the penthouses and subpenthouses. At the Capitol Residences launch earlier this year, the developer held back 2 floors for the pubic event. I’m sure they could have sold them during the VIP and realtor events but this ensured that the public would have some options.
Pre construction sales or pre sales are selling like hot cakes for a number of reasons. We have seen the the real estate market go through a incredible period of growth and investors are speculating that this growth is sustainable. So in investing in tomorrow’s product at today’s prices, investors stand to make a profit without having to deal with rentors whose rent would probably not be enough to cover the mortgage unless the down payment is significant.
The other probable reason is that with Vancouver is now limiting residential high-rise development downtown, there are not that many new developments coming up. The high profile ones are Capitol Residences, Atelier on Robson and Patina.
The 43-storey Capitol Residences stand out, not only as the tallest condo tower in its neighbourhood but because of outstanding value and views and an ideal location. Capitol Residences is unique in its sophisticated design and its development is managed by Wall Financial which bespeaks long-term investment potential.
The 29-storey, $140-million Atelier on Robson project is being developed by Magellen Developments(20/20) Inc. and complements the circular Roman Coliseum design of the public library across the street. Its proximity to shopping, sports and entertainment centres, the Canada Line (once completed) and a famous street (Robson) will appeal to buyers.
Located on Barclay Street just west of Burrard, Patina is steps away from the vintage West End and downtown Vancouver. This 42 storey landmark will open for previewing this September.
Buyer’s agent can be an invaluable tool
Published June 9, 2007 Making Sense Of It All Leave a CommentIt’s easy to assume that negotiating is adversarial. You, the buyer, are on one side — the side that wants to buy a property for the lowest price possible. The opposition on the other side is the seller who wants to sell for the highest price possible. You’re locked in a tug of war to see which side will win.
It’s more productive to look at a negotiation as a problem-solving process. You and the seller may have different ideas about what price the property should sell for. However, you’re united in a common goal of consummating a deal. The challenge is to resolve your differences through a process of give and take until you either reach your common goal, or decide to go your separate ways.
Of course, you have to arrive at a mutually agreeable selling price for a sale to go through. Sometimes this will happen quickly; sometimes it’s a drawn-out process that can last over days or even weeks.
HOUSE HUNTING TIP: Patience can be your enemy. If you wait until other buyers become interested, you could end up paying a higher price if there are multiple offers.
We are in a market where most home sellers sell their home at or above asking. In a multiple offer situation, you basically have no room for negotiating. The offer you make will have to be your best possible offer as there will be no second chance.
When you make an offer and there’s no competition from other buyers, your initial offer price should leave you room to move up in price. But, it should not be so low that it’s insulting to the seller. Otherwise he or she might not respond at all. An offer that’s much lower than the market would give the seller the impression that you can’t afford more, so there’s no point in issuing a counteroffer.
Buyers often think that if they start too high initially, they’ll end up paying too much. Your initial offer price should be good enough to entice the seller into a dialogue. It’s a price to get the ball rolling. From there, you can move up in small increments, if necessary.
Don’t get so caught up in negotiating the price that you overlook other opportunities for consensus building. Most good negotiations have a sense of fairness about them. During the process of your negotiation, you and your agent should brainstorm all the possible ways that you can accommodate the sellers.
Do they need a quick close? If so, they might be willing to give more on price for a speedy close. However, you might want to hold up offering this information at the beginning of the dialogue. That way, you have something more of value that you can offer the sellers in exchange for a further price concession.
THE CLOSING: When you get close on price, offering to split the difference can put a seal on the deal.
REALTORS® are trained professionals, licensed by the Province of BC and are accountable to the Real Estate Council of BC.
REALTORS® are subject to a higher standard than the minimum standard required by the Real Estate Services Act.
REALTORS® are members of real estate boards and as such are required to adhere to the Canadian Real Estate Association’s Code of Ethics and Standards of Business Practice.
Both the Real Estate Council and 12 BC real estate boards use a comprehensive investigatory and disciplinary process to deal with complaints. REALTORS® who are found to have breached either the legislation or REALTOR® Code are subject to sanctions by their board and the Real Estate Council.
REALTORS® have completed stringent educational and licensing requirements and must be of good reputation in order to become licensed.
REALTORS® are committed to continuing education and consistently refine and improve their skills and professional knowledge through participation in the profession’s Professional Development Program.
REALTORS® are covered by a well-funded errors and omissions indemnity plan.
Transaction deposits held by real estate brokerages are protected by the Special Compensation Corporation and are held by the REALTOR®’s brokerage as “stakeholder” until the transaction completes or the parties give instructions as to the disposition of the deposit.
REALTORS® use standardized forms and have access to well drafted (and court-tested) clauses and phrases which affords a high level of protection and comfort to their clients.
REALTORS® are paid when a transaction successfully completes meaning that commissions and fees are not normally paid by the client unless a transaction successfully completes.
REALTORS® have access to and use the Multiple Listing Service® and MLS.ca listing services – the most successful real estate listing website in Canada.
MLS® and MLS.ca® give REALTORS® access to the largest buyer pool in Canada, resulting in sellers benefiting from the widest possible exposure of their properties to the market.
The Multiple Listing Service® is the most complete database of property listings and transactions available in Canada. MLS® helps sellers and buyers establish the market value of a property, eliminating guesswork which results in easier, quicker and more satisfactory negotiations. Only REALTORS® have access to MLS®.
REALTORS® are trained marketing professionals – they know how to price and market properties so that they sell for the most money possible in the shortest time possible.
REALTORS® are trained negotiators. Sellers and buyers do not generally negotiate for a living. This places them at a disadvantage because they can become emotionally involved when they deal directly with an unrepresented buyer or seller.
REALTORS® are thoroughly familiar with representing buyers and sellers in real estate transactions and understand the pitfalls of the process. Sellers and buyers “doing it themselves” can make mistakes, the result of which can far outweigh any perceived or real financial advantages to be gained in saving a commission or fee.
Unrepresented buyers and sellers expect to save REALTORS®’ fees. However, since both buyers and sellers want to save the same commission or fee their negotiations begin at a disadvantage. Their negotiations are further hampered because they do not have an independent party like a REALTOR® to help them negotiate the best possible deal.
REALTOR® involvement can protect consumers against the risk of a potential loss due to misadventure, fraudulent dealings or criminals who case homes during showings. REALTORS® provide ‘on hand’ professional advice, are adept at advising clients how to avoid any financially damaging situations and give consumers peace of mind by providing them with a stream of qualified clients.
REALTORS® are trained professionals, licensed by the Province of BC and are accountable to the Real Estate Council of BC.
REALTORS® are subject to a higher standard than the minimum standard required by the Real Estate Services Act.
REALTORS® are members of real estate boards and as such are required to adhere to the Canadian Real Estate Association’s Code of Ethics and Standards of Business Practice.
Both the Real Estate Council and 12 BC real estate boards use a comprehensive investigatory and disciplinary process to deal with complaints. REALTORS® who are found to have breached either the legislation or REALTOR® Code are subject to sanctions by their board and the Real Estate Council.
REALTORS® have completed stringent educational and licensing requirements and must be of good reputation in order to become licensed.
REALTORS® are committed to continuing education and consistently refine and improve their skills and professional knowledge through participation in the profession’s Professional Development Program.
REALTORS® are covered by a well-funded errors and omissions indemnity plan.
Transaction deposits held by real estate brokerages are protected by the Special Compensation Corporation and are held by the REALTOR®’s brokerage as “stakeholder” until the transaction completes or the parties give instructions as to the disposition of the deposit.
REALTORS® use standardized forms and have access to well drafted (and court-tested) clauses and phrases which affords a high level of protection and comfort to their clients.
REALTORS® are paid when a transaction successfully completes meaning that commissions and fees are not normally paid by the client unless a transaction successfully completes.
REALTORS® have access to and use the Multiple Listing Service® and MLS.ca listing services – the most successful real estate listing website in Canada.
MLS® and MLS.ca® give REALTORS® access to the largest buyer pool in Canada, resulting in sellers benefiting from the widest possible exposure of their properties to the market.
The Multiple Listing Service® is the most complete database of property listings and transactions available in Canada. MLS® helps sellers and buyers establish the market value of a property, eliminating guesswork which results in easier, quicker and more satisfactory negotiations. Only REALTORS® have access to MLS®.
REALTORS® are trained marketing professionals – they know how to price and market properties so that they sell for the most money possible in the shortest time possible.
REALTORS® are trained negotiators. Sellers and buyers do not generally negotiate for a living. This places them at a disadvantage because they can become emotionally involved when they deal directly with an unrepresented buyer or seller.
REALTORS® are thoroughly familiar with representing buyers and sellers in real estate transactions and understand the pitfalls of the process. Sellers and buyers “doing it themselves” can make mistakes, the result of which can far outweigh any perceived or real financial advantages to be gained in saving a commission or fee.
Unrepresented buyers and sellers expect to save REALTORS®’ fees. However, since both buyers and sellers want to save the same commission or fee their negotiations begin at a disadvantage. Their negotiations are further hampered because they do not have an independent party like a REALTOR® to help them negotiate the best possible deal.
REALTOR® involvement can protect consumers against the risk of a potential loss due to misadventure, fraudulent dealings or criminals who case homes during showings. REALTORS® provide ‘on hand’ professional advice, are adept at advising clients how to avoid any financially damaging situations and give consumers peace of mind by providing them with a stream of qualified clients.
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