Day 7 - Shopping

In San Jose, the Bay area is very well known for its shopping. Now, I am not a big shopper, but Christmas is upon us and it wouldn't hurt for me to look around for a few things. In fact, I know that I needed a couple of pairs of jeans, so it was a good chance for me to pick up a couple of pairs.

We went to the Great Mall. This mall is huge, however, it is only one-storey tall. I'm not sure why they used up all of the land to build the mall so flat, instead of parking, but nonetheless, it might give you an idea of what this mall looked like.

Ellin needed a few things, and I wanted to look around. The first thing that I noticed was that in the food court, you were allowed to try free samples. By the time I walked around the food court, I almost ate enough to not want to eat anymore. The food was pretty good too. The second thing that I noticed was that Mall Cops actually have those stupid segways that you see in movies like Paul Blart: Mall Cop. I thought that this was a joke in that movie, but I guess its real.

Well, shopping isn't really all that interesting topic for me to talk about, but I did buy some jeans at the Levi's outlet store. These were the only things that I bought. I'm sure you girls would have been jealous as I know there were a lot of girly stores around that I know are popular. They were the outlet versions too, so you probably would get a good deal.

Day 6 - San Fran Again

On day 6, I no longer had a car, but I had Ellin to drive me around. Ellin had made some time to take me back to San Fransisco to see more of this beautiful coastal town. This time we went to go and see the California Academy of Sciences. This is a brand new museum that only opened last year, but there were many cool things to see since it is situation in Golden Gate park.

San Fransisco is about an hour away from San Jose if you wanted to know. It has a lot of touristy things to do, but it can be an expensive city too.

The California Academy of Sciences has a ton of things inside. It has a planetarium, a rain forest, an aquarium and other displays. The planetarium was neat as it was an imax-like presentation on our solar system. This particular movie was narrated by Whoopi Goldberg and described the life of stars and most notably our star, the Sun.

The Academy also had a built in rain forest complete with birds, fish, and other tropical animals. You were able to walk through the rain forest and observe the various animals inside. The most dangerous of animals, of course, are protected in tanks and display cases. Nonetheless, it was neat walking though such a display.

The aquarium was also pretty cool, but it lost some of its lustre from the fact that I went to the Monterey Bay Aquarium only a couple of days prior. The only exception to this rule was the albino alligator. It was something I definitely had not seen before.

After our trip to San Fran, Ellin and I headed back to San Jose so that we could meet Jer for dinner. We decided to go to japantown and went to a restaurant called Minato. Here, I had some food I had never had before. My Japanese food experience had been limited to Chicken Teriyaki, so it was a very nice experience to be able to try something a little bit different. The food was excellent, and I highly recommend it.

Day 5 - San Fransisco

On day 5, I still had the car, so I decided that it would be best if I got to spend some time in San Fransisco. There were a couple of things that I wanted to see there that peaked my interest.

The first thing was pretty nerdy of me. When I was a kid, I was a big fan of Full House, the television show. The opening scene shows about 5 houses in which it appears that the Tanner's actually lived in. These houses are actually a landmark now in San Fransisco just outside Alamo park. They call these houses the painted ladies, and I decided to go visit and take a picture.

The next thing was a trip along fisherman's wharf in San Fransisco. They have many boat tours and such that go around the island of Alcatraz or near the Golden Gate Bridge. The area also has a ton of shops and touristy things such as the famous street cars that San Fran is known for. I had decided that a trip to Alcatraz would be interesting and educational.

There is only one tour company that has the right to drop you off at Alcatraz. If you ever visit San Fran, please ensure that you go to Pier 33 to actually visit Alcatraz. All other cruise ships will simply cruise around the island, and you never get to experience the island in its truest form.

The first part of my tour on Alcatraz involved a ranger taking us around the island explaining some of the history of the island, from its military roots, to its correctional use, and political activism. The most interesting parts were of course the parts that had to do with the maximum security prison and some of the failed escape attempts.

The second part of the tour involved an audio tour of the prison itself. The audio tour was really neat as I never really had one before. If you're like me, an audio tour is simply a little digital box and headphones that act as your tour guide. It tells you where to go and what to look at. The audio tour lasted about an hour, and it gave a great history of the prison. After seeing Alcatraz, it is more myth than fact that gives the prison such a high esteem. It was very interesting nonetheless.

Day 4 - Whale Watching and hockey game

Day 4 was a Tuesday. I had just spent the night in Monterey. I had to find the fisherman's wharf after breakfast, so that I could go whale watching. I had never been whale watching, so it was a neat experience. First, I should mention that it was a cold experience. After boating for about an hour, the wind becomes very cold for nearly anyone, even a Canadian like myself. I definitely recommend a jacket, mittens, scarves, and tuques if needed, even in California.

We saw two humpback whales. There was a sea lion that found our boat and would pop his head out of the water every once and awhile to throw the group off. We kept thinking it might be a whale since the whales would seem to pop up out of anywhere.

The thing about whale watching is that whales can stay under water for about 6-8 minutes at a time. It seemed like our whales were feeding, so they would be up for a minute or two then swim back down to the ocean floor to get some grub. It was a tricky experience because you never knew where they would pop back up. We were lucky once and they came up pretty much right next to our boat. I tried to snap as many pictures as I could, but its difficult when everyone on the boat is trying to do the same thing.

Whale watching was a lot of fun, but I had bigger plans for Tuesday night. I had to drive back to San Jose to watch Dany Heatley's first game against his former club, my Ottawa Senators.

We got to HP Pavilion pretty early as I was excited for my chance to heckle Mr. Heatley. As I walked around the Shark tank, I noticed that there was a lot of teal and black jerseys. I was just surprised that there were so many dedicated Sharks fans in California. I didn't think hockey would necessarily be all that popular. The reason I noticed this was two fold. First, there were an abnormal amount of people with Jerseys and second, I was looking for people with Sens jerseys on.

I think in the night, I counted about 20 jerseys or tshirts from Sens fans. I didn't think that was too bad considering we were in California. One guy was following the Sens on their west coast trip and some others were just in the area by coincidence.

Our seats were in the nosebleeds. The seats were good, but they were high up. We were the second row from the top of the building. We sat next to some season ticket holders, and it didn't take them long to question why I was at the game wearing my Sens gear.

These season ticket holders were great guys. They knew more about hockey than I would have given them credit for. In fact, one of the guys was wondering if Ottawa was going to get a CFL franchise back. He said he was a sports memorabilia collector and only had a Renegades Tshirt. He knew about the Hull Olympiques are now the Gatineau Olympiques, and many other things that I would not expect from someone from San Jose.

Impressed by their hockey knowledge, I didn't waste any time to let my feelings be known about Dany Heatley. The guys around me seemed to understand my feelings and just let me jeer away without any scowls, dirty looks, or smart-ass comments in return. In fact, they seemed to be jealous that we now had Jonathan Cheechoo on our team. Cheechoo was very respected by the fans in San Jose. I would say more respected than Michalek. (We traded Heatley for Cheechoo, Michalek and a 2nd round pick. Michalek has been tearing it up for Ottawa, while Cheechoo has had a slow start) All in all, I had a great night. I booed Heatley everytime he touched the puck, and I got to experience hockey in California. The bad part was that the Sens lost to San Jose that night 5-2.

Day 3 - Coastal tour

On day 3, Jeremy dropped me off at the local car rental place and I rented a Toyota Yaris. It was cheap, and even cheaper on gas. It was the perfect car for my coastal drive along the Pacific Coast. This was Monday and Jeremy had to go to work. It was a good time for me to start venturing on my own.

The night before, Jeremy and I had devised a route for me to take that he thought I might enjoy. I had my GPS with me, so the odds of getting lost were much less. I began my trip by heading a little north towards San Fransisco, but I simply went this way to be able to drive up some of the hilly terrain that exists in Silicon Valley. Once I drove through this terrain, I ended up along the coast in a beach town called San Gregario.

Once I got to San Gregario beach, I was truly amazed at how nice the beaches were. Some of the beaches weren't really conducive to swimming, but they were still very picturesque. I tried to take as many pictures as I could. I kept driving south along highway 1, which pretty much follows all of the beaches along the coast of California. It was a very nice drive.

Other than stopping quickly along the various rest stops on Highway 1, I decided to stop in Santa Cruz for a walk along their beach/boardwalk. Santa Cruz was a very nice beach and had many attractions to go along with it. Unfortunately, at this time of the year, there were hardly any tourists because it is actually a little cooler in this area than someone in Canada may expect. Nonetheless, it provided for a peaceful walk and nice scenery for me to enjoy.

After my time in Santa Cruz, I quickly drove myself to Monterey. I had booked my hotel there and Jeremy had recommended that I try going to the aquarium there. At the aquarium, they had a few really cool exhibits. These included African penguins, sea otters, numerous jellyfish, and seahorses. They had other stuff, but I would consider those things to be the highlights.

The nice thing about Monterey is that they have a boardwalk to walk along while trekking to places like the aquarium. They have nice little shops and restaurants all along the water. I was particularly excited to see the Bubba Gump Shrimp company as one of the restaurants along the boardwalk. I took a picture of the logo and a bench that was outside the restaurant that had a box of chocolates and a plaque dedicated to the movie Forrest Gump. Later on in my trip, I came to realize that there are many other Bubba Gump stores in the area. Either way, I was still happy to run into this.

I spent the night at a cheap motel in Monterey. We found this place on the internet, and despite its price, it was actually pretty decent. It was probably the cheapest motel I've ever stayed at, but it was certainly not the worst place. I had a pretty good night of sleep there.

I should mention that I tried to go out in Monterey to experience some sort of nightlife in California. I wasn't expecting great things as it was a Monday night, but nonetheless, I was still somewhat disappointed in what I experienced. I was hoping there would be more going on in what appeared to be somewhat of a tourist town. I suppose I might have been looking in the wrong place. Despite this, I did meet a couple of people while out and about and had a decent time.

Day 2 - 49ers game

The second day in California I was planning to go to the 49ers game with Jeremy. We both had never been to a NFL game before in our lives and we weren't sure what to expect. I wanted to get there early, but the commute from San Jose to San Fransisco was not as smooth as one might have expected. We wanted to enjoy some adult beverages at the game, so driving was not one of the options.

On this day, I got to ride the BART (bay area rapid transit) and a shuttle to the game. The 49ers were playing Jacksonville that day and it was a beautiful day to watch the game. It was probably about 21 degrees in the sun, but the stadium was worn down and old. It turns out that Candlestick park is the oldest stadium in the NFL and it certainly showed. I still had a good time, but I doubt I would go back to a 49ers game if I had other options available to me.

Candlestick park holds about 70,000 people. I would guess that on Sunday there were about 60,000 people there, and 50,000 were drunk out of their minds. I even saw a guy being sick all the way down the steps in the upper section in which we were sitting. American love their football and they also love their beer. The 49ers won the game 20-3.

Day 1 in California

This is a little break from my real estate postings. I decided to discuss some of my trip to California. I hope it might give you some ideas if you ever visit the area.

I left Ottawa at 7:15 am for my trip to San Jose. I was set to visit my good friends Jeremy and Ellin that moved to San Jose shortly after Jeremy got a job with Apple. I hadn't seen them in awhile and I had never seen the Pacific Ocean, so I was excited to get away from the grind that I do on a daily basis.

My itinerary consisted of a layover in Denver, Colorado then a flight directly to San Jose airport. Although my view from the Denver airport was limited, I was nonetheless excited to see the rockies for the first time. It turns out that John Denver was right all along as the rockies were indeed rocky.

I arrived in San Jose about 2pm local time. My first day in San Jose was a bit of a slow day. It more or less consisted of flying and then going to a local high-end mall. We did stop at a burrito place as Jeremy highly recommended this burrito to have a true taste of California. First, the burrito is very popular because of the high Mexican-American population in the area, and that this particular burrito came with Avocado, which is in any food that describes itself as Californian. The burrito was tasty, but Jeremy was disappointed as the burrito place hadn't lived up to its previous standards. Jeremy has high standards for burritos.

Saturday we didn't do too much that was exciting. Time was short, so it was just good to get oriented with Jeremy and Ellin by going to the mall and hanging out at their place. I even went to bed relatively early because I was tired from the travel and not yet used to the time change of 3 hours. I also had a big day planned for Day 2.

Dream of Californication

I'm going California dreamin' this week. It's going to be a nice little holiday before the holidays. I'm heading to San Jose, San Fransisco, and maybe a couple of other places. I'll likely not post anything for a few days, but I will hopefully get some reading done while I'm on the plane. I'll try to take a bunch of pictures and then post them on facebook. Ciao!

Books

Admittedly, I was not an avid reader during my younger years. I have, on occasion, picked up a book or two to read a little bit before I fell asleep at night. I tend to like to read books that are non-fiction, and cater to a specific interest that I have. I have read a couple of books about hockey, a book about an old neighbour, and a couple of business books here and there.

The other day, when I was at Chapters killing some time before a date (Mom, don't read much into this as I have already broken things off with the girl), I began to look for a book written by Gary Keller, one of the founder's of Keller Williams. I get asked a lot about this book, so I figured I better read it sooner or later, so that I may talk intelligently about the subjects raised in the book.

I also ended up finding Rich Dad, Poor Dad. I had heard about this book, and was curious about what was inside. In fact, as I picked up the book, a gentleman next to me commented on how good the book was. I decided to buy it. In fact, the conversation led to a possible lead for both my accounting and real estate jobs. This was a guy that was motivated to try to get a little bit ahead in life. He had some misinformation about taxes, and that he needed to be careful about reading some of the stuff that is apparently found in these books. The information may be the truth, but depending on the jurisdiction you live in, there could be some very different rules than those discussed in books. I advised him to consult with an Accountant. I gave him my card.

I have to admit, when I started to write this post, I didn't really have a clear idea of what I wanted to say. In part, I wanted to go in the direction that I would discuss these books in the future and make a recommendation for which one is a good read. I also wanted to tell the story about my latest lead as I didn't really expect to get one while waiting for a date. (I guess you just always have to be on your toes.) I guess it ended up being more story telling than anything, but I will finish up this post by saying that I am almost done "97 Tips for Real Estate Investors". I'm not sure why they couldn't get to 100 tips, but I suppose 97 tips is enough for a person to follow through on. I'll comment on it when I finish it.

Feathersold!

I just assisted with another new condo buy. If you read the paper on Saturday, you would know that the condos on Rideau street made by Claridge are selling fast. They have already sold nearly 100 units, and I was able to assist a couple that were looking to diversify their portfolio. The stock market hasn't been kind, so they turned to real estate to change their fortunes. I know that they will be pleasantly surprised.

Unfortunately, I won't get paid until closing in 2014, but I guess I could start some travel planning for then. :P

Property tax sales

Well, the last couple of days have been very interesting. I was made aware of an upcoming tax sale (today), and I was looking forward to selling this property after it was renovated. It was a very new experience, and it was difficult to gain a lot of information. It was brought to my attention by a friend of mine. With all that being said, I was able to provide some research and information that was very valuable in this type of investment opportunity.

Unfortunately, the tender was not the highest and were not able to secure it. We had some concerns about how the deal could/would be financed, so I tried to get involved in the deal myself. I ensured that this would be OK with my friend (I didn't want to step on any toes). I also promised my friend some compensation if my bid happened to be successful (probably something similar to what my commission would have been on the sale of his deal). Even my attempts were not enough, as the deal that went through was higher than both of the bids that I had an interest in. It was kind of a double-whammy.

Overall, this experience was very valuable. After going through the tender process myself, I have a better understanding about the process and more importantly about the due diligence required. It's a different process that most agents would not be involved in. Agents may be hesitant because there is no commission to be made on the purchase of a tax sale. The proceeds flow to pay off the liens against the property, not to an agent.

I see it differently. I see it as a chance to build a relationship with a potential customer. There is a good chance that a purchaser of a tax property will be simply using the property as an investment and will want to dispose of the property in the near future. It gives me a chance to sell this property for them.

Another article

The low interest rates seem to be having a huge effect on home sales. I know a lot of people are considering home ownership as part of their savings portfolio as stock market returns have had mixed results in the last few years. The ability to leverage with low-rate mortgages has encouraged more and more people to consider real estate investing as part of their path to retirement. The following article shows how the average home price continues to increase. Check out the article here.

1% increase in Ottawa

Check out this article. Found here.

Feathersold!

I like these posts. They bring me a lot of joy. Congrats to Matt and Steph on their purchase of a brand new condo unit. It's their first investment property, but hopefully it won't be their last.

Multi-Unit residential and single family homes

Last night, I attended another Ottawa Real Estate Investor's Organization (OREIO) meeting. They had two guest speakers. The first was Ken Beaton, a specialist that invests in multi-unit residential buildings. The second individual was Peter and he discussed owner single family units.

These meetings I attend are very important because they offer great advice and tips when it comes to properties. It also gives an insight as to what kind of returns the bigger investors are looking for when they see a property. It also gives an idea of some of the expected costs that you need to budget for, for each property.

For example, for a multi-unit residential property, depending on the age of the property, the average cost per unit/door should only cost in the neighbourhood of $400-800 annually. This amount would include painting and upgrades as needed. It also shows you the need to be able to budget and create a plan for your investment. Without a plan, you are shooting aimlessly at your investment opportunity. If you need help with that plan, or know someone that does, I can certainly help point you in the right direction. It's important to base a lot of your decisions on the numbers involved.

My memberships

I'm not sure how many people know this, but I am a member of two very key groups that I believe will help me in servicing you better as a real estate agent. I'm very proud of the fact that I'm in these groups because I believe it gives me a competitive advantage over some of my competitors.

First, I am a member of OREIO. It is the Ottawa Real Estate Investors Organization. This is where small and large real estate investors come together to share ideas, opportunities and contacts with each other. I think the link here for why this is important for me as a real estate agent is clear. Why should you care? Well, even if you are not necessarily interested in real estate investing, you should at least have a salesperson that knows about shady builders, shady home inspectors, or shady sources of financing. By being a member of OREIO, I have a better understanding of the services available in Ottawa and the experiences that go along with them.

Secondly, I am a member of Business Network International. Unfortunately, this group already has a real estate agent involved, but I represent the Chartered Accounting part of the group. This group is key because they seem to offer a wider range of potential services. Electricians, plumbers, home inspectors are directly members of this group and I can talk to them regularly on an informal basis. This becomes especially key when I talk to insurance agents and real estate lawyers. I know that I may be relatively new to being an agent, but I trying to surround myself with the best tools available, so that I can deliver the best service, bar none.

A lesson in Capital Gains

This was a specific question from a friend from my high school days. He wanted to know how capital gains works with investment properties. Granted, there should be some caution in reading this as I do not have all of the specific information for a particular tax scenario. You should likely discuss this concern further with your accountant. ;)

If there is anyone out there that doesn't like numbers, please stop reading. If you're still reading this, I think you might learn something that could be very important.

This is how capital gains works when it comes to an investment property. In its most basic form, it is the proceeds from the sale of the property less the cost of that property. Let's use a couple of numbers. You paid $100,000 for a rental property and you sold it for $150,000. Your capital gain would be $50,000. Of that $50,000, you are generally taxed only 50% of this amount. Therefore, $25,000 gets added to your income for the year.

What kind of tax do you pay on this? Well, it really depends on what tax bracket you fall under. Hence, it is important to discuss this with your accountant. There are things like loss carryforwards, capital gains reserves, principal residence exemptions and cost capitalization that can affect your tax implication. It's beyond the scope of this blog, so if you are serious about investing you really need to learn to find a good accountant. I cannot stress this enough.

The reason is that cash is king when it comes to real estate investing. You need to know how to manage your cash through tools like leveraging, and financial structuring. I'm not just trying to use big business words, but trying to encourage you to use professionals when it comes to these types of decisions. I think it is absolutely critical that you have a professional that you can trust, so choose carefully :P

Buying Condos

For the last couple of weeks, I have been looking at some of the newer condos in Ottawa. Right now, it seems like the hot thing to do, so I am researching as much as I can in each of the buildings. The first thing to do when you are looking for a condo is find someone that knows what they are doing. The reason you have to do this first is that condo builders will only offer a commission to those people if they walk into a building with you.

It's a silly rule, but its an important one. Even if you do not decide to use my services, it would be wise that you hire a professional to help walk you through the process. When you sign up with a buyer agent, they can look after your needs and it would not be the greatest move to not have an agent. It could mean that you pay out of pocket for your agent, and that may not be necessary.

Typically, to purchase a new condo, it takes a pretty large down payment. I'm not a mortgage professional, but it has been my experience that you can purchase a resale condo with a lower down payment than a new condo. New condos have been going for about 15% as a required down payment. It's not a number that is set in stone, but it's a number that you should be prepared for.

Over the next few posts, I'm going to try to talk more and more about condos. I'm getting a lot of good information on them, so I would like to share some of it. All I ask in return is to be able to have a chance to help you or someone you know when there is a chance of doing a real estate transaction.

Are things slowing down?

Not really. I've been busy behind the scenes working for a couple of people. No deals have been finalized, but things are moving ahead. I hate when I have to do these types of posts because I cannot give much in terms of details, but I like to update the blog because I know a few people follow this during the day when they are bored out of their minds at work.

Hopefully, I will be able to talk a little bit more soon when some stuff becomes finalized.

Seller's market

In Ottawa, there is a seller's market out there. What does that mean? It simply means that there are more buyers out there than there are properties for sale. It means that prices go up, and properties go fast. What does this mean for you? Well, it depends on what side of the equation you are on.

If you are a potential buyer, you need an agent that works hard for you. If not, you could be on the outside looking in when it comes to acquiring property. You need an agent that will be proactive in your search, so that you can find the home that meets your needs. However, being in a seller's market, it doesn't mean that you cannot find a good deal. It just means that it takes a little more rolling up of the sleeves and getting your hands a little dirtier.

As a potential seller, you certainly have an advantage, but it isn't necessarily all that simple. You should ensure that you have an agent that knows how to take full advantage of the market to ensure you get the most for your home. If you are selling your home, you want an agent that knows the market well enough to be able to help you price your house right. Even in my short time as an agent, I've already witnessed a few homes that were not priced appropriately. It certainly wasn't a surprise to see the homes sell before the homes went public.

Now, you may be slightly confused about my last sentence. What does that mean going public? Well, sales representatives, like myself, have access to listings before they are listed on the internet. We have this exclusive access for about 3 days, so that can be enough time to buy a property before it becomes public. As a seller, you might have limited your options if you haven't priced your home appropriately. It may not reach a significant pool of potential buyers. Hence, I stress the importance of using an agent, like myself, to guide you through the process.

Fun fact

Here is a fun fact. I've done $1,228,500 worth of real estate deals in my life so far. Some of it is as an agent and the rest is what I've done personally. Hopefully, this number continues to grow!!! Referrals! Referrals! Referrals!

Home Renovation Tax Credit

Some of you have heard about this credit, and since there is only a limited amount of time to take advantage, I thought I would help remind people, so that they may take advantage.

The biggest question I face on this is what qualifies?

Here is the Canada Revenue Agency's words:

"To be eligible, expenditures incurred in relation to a renovation or alteration to an eligible dwelling (or the land that forms part of the eligible dwelling) must be of an enduring nature and integral to the dwelling, and includes the cost of labour and professional services, building materials, fixtures, rentals, and permits.
Eligible expenditures must be supported by acceptable documentation."

For more information, please visit the CRA website found here.

Last week

Last week was a very busy week for me in terms of real estate. First, as my previous post indicates, I made a deal. There were additional items as part of that deal that held me up (like the home inspection), but I thought I would share some of the other interesting things during my real estate week.

First, I was showing a condo in Vanier, sorry, New Edinburgh. It's a very nice place and very convenient for my buyer. He is looking for a 2 bedroom and unfortunately this place is only a one bedroom. I find it interesting because the building is a very nice building and New Edinburgh is growing. Vanier seems to be slowly disappearing as people are realizing that newer and better units are being constructed in the area. The benefit of this is, of course, that Vanier as we know it is disappearing. It's becoming an area that people can live comfortably and safely, but more importantly, close to downtown without paying downtown prices.

Secondly, I showed an investment property near one of my favourite areas to invest in the city. I would have bought this place myself, but unfortunately, I'm kind of at a standstill when it comes to property acquisitions. 3 houses in the last 3 years is enough at this point. I showed the house to a person that is somewhat interested in making an investment in real estate. Unfortunately, the house was a hot item and we were not prepared to get into a bidding war. When making an investment choice, I didn't want any emotion to get involved, so we respectfully walked away.

Overall, I thought it was an interesting week because I had my hands in deep in three distinct real estate opportunities, houses, condos and investment properties. It was very good for me to work in all three to continue to gain experience in the market. Although I may not be posting here as much as I would like, I am working very hard behind the scenes to help ensure that I am the best possible agent that I can be.

Feathersold!

Congrats to Ryan, Melissa and Ben the dog on their new home in North Gower. They bought a beautiful bungalow and some yard for Ben to run around in. I think they should be very pleased with their purchase. I told you I was busy :P

Ok. I'm sorry this took awhile. I've been busy with some real estate stuff, and I'll discuss some of that stuff in a later post. This was the post that I wanted to get online. I've been in my house for one year, and there have been a number of changes. Some changes have been cosmetic, and others have been more structural.

One of the biggest changes that occurred in the past year was the fact that I got a new roof on the house. It was definitely the biggest expense that I incurred, but I know that I shouldn't have any problems now for the next 20 years or so. It was definitely a step in the right direction.

Now, I decided to take some comparative pictures from when I purchased the house to tonight. Now, the house wasn't the cleanest when I took these pictures, so I guess you can say they are pretty good comparables to when I purchased the home. The pictures below show how some of the painting and new furniture have changed the look of my house a little bit. I hope that you can see some improvement in the past year. Hopefully, year 2 will see some more improvement.

Before
AfterBeforeAfter

BeforeAfter

Before
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Before

After

My website

Right now, there are 4 different ways that you can view my blog. First, featherslam.blogspot.com is and always has been the primary source of my blog. I've run this blog in the past, so that I can share some of my experiences with people wanting to be involved in real estate. For example, I've chronicled my first real estate experiences, and I am hoping that you may learn from them. In addition, I've tried to share other experiences for anyone remotely interested in what I am doing. This could be a potential investor, a person selling, or even a person buying. I'm hoping that all of my experiences will help, and that my blog is interesting for people to read.

The second way is through facebook. I have had the notes from my blog imported into facebook for awhile now. I've done this because it is the easiest way for me to share and announce when a new post has been created. It generally shows up on your news feed, so I am going to try to show up there a little more. I want to show you why you should use me as your real estate professional, and why you need a real estate professional whether or not you are buying or selling. To be honest, I don't want to stop there. I want you to recommend me as your preferred real estate professional, and I know the only way to do that is to deliver top-notch service.

Finally, the newest way to see my blog is by visiting www.chadfeatherstone.ca or www.chadfeatherstone.com. Right now, the website only points to the original blog. I'm hoping to get a couple of new things to add to the website to expand your real estate library. I feel that my job is really to educate a buyer or seller in the process, so that they become a part of the process. I feel, by doing this, I am helping my clients understand what is going on and they can feel comfortable with any decisions that they make. I'm hoping that my website will be able to give you a reason to call me.

I know that this post is a little dry, but I'm working on a post in the next couple of days that I think will be interesting. I've past my one year anniversary of my downtown property, and I'm going to post a tribute to that. I want to keep the suspense a little, so I'm not going to go too much in detail, but I thought that I would give a teaser.

New links

I have removed some old links and added some new ones. In an effort to make my website more about real estate and not personal, I had to make a couple of changes. I'll be updating the links periodically for when I find an interesting site that I think will help people out. Please feel free to post links in the comments section.

Feathersold!

Congrats to Dave and Ash on their purchase of their first home. Thanks for the business! I'll post photos later!

First pay cheque

I got my first pay cheque today from real estate. It was from my first deal that I had done in August. It takes a little while for agents to get paid, so it sure felt nice when I saw my bank balance this morning.

My first deal was only a referal deal in Thunder Bay. Therefore, the cheque was not actually all that big.

I'll try to post some pictures of the house sometime soon.

As promised....

featherslam.blogspot.com

Business cards

My business cards are ready. I just have to pick them up before 4:30. I'm going to try to convert my pdf file over to something bloggable, so I can post the proofs later tonight when I get home. In the meantime, I think you should think of people that could use my business card. I offer incentives!!!

Back online...

I've had my blog down for awhile because I wanted to get my website up and running. The website hasn't been fully planned out, so it may take awhile to be where I want it to be. I still wanted to keep everyone posted on my real estate dealings, so I decided to start up the blog again. You'll notice a nice big logo on top of the blog because I am now a sales representative of Keller Williams. KW has been training me for the last month and a bit, and I've really been impressed by their operations. It's no wonder they are #1 in Ottawa in such a short period of time.

Like before, I'm keeping my posts short. I want you to come back and read what I have to write on an ongoing basis. I figure it is the best way to help others learn some of the more important real estate procedures.

A new slogan

Hey,

I'm working tonight on my marketing. I would really like people to help me out with some of the marketing plan. I would like to convey the message that I am the right choice to be the real estate agent of your choice, plus the real estate agent that you recommend to your friends. I think my competitive advantage is my accounting background. I want to portray the fact that I can help you save thousands of dollars by making the best deals possible, from a tax perspective, and from a real estate perspective.

I know I can use my CA to an advantage. I want to incorporate it into the plan. I'm going to put a poll on my blog for people to vote. Please do so. featherslam.blogspot.com

PS. Stayed tuned for a new website....

Sold!

My first deal is done. I completed it a couple of days ago, but with things being so hectic, I haven't had time to upload any information for people. Onto the next deal....

Some articles

http://www.ottawasun.com/news/ottawa/2009/07/13/10121156.html

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2009/03/11/housing-report.html

Be warned, the CBC article is pretty terrible. They quote numbers without actually diving into them. They mention that a home in Ottawa could cost an extra $17,000 after July 1, 2010. This number is pretty unrealistic if you assume a home of about $300,000 (which is the average house price roughly in Ottawa). There is a rebate of 75% that should be available to home buyers. The rebate reduces in amount after $400,000, but incremental costs of $17,000 are still on the high side.

New ideas

Last night, I had someone come up to me and ask me about new homes. I'm glad they did. First, I know that it gives me a chance to share more knowledge with people through this blog. It gives me ideas for topics to talk about. There is nothing more relevant than talking about what people have questions about.

Today's post will be short. Shorter than Danny Devito put through a dryer (my lame attempt at a joke, I thought I was due for one). I just basically want people to continue to ask questions when they see me. They will give me more ideas for posts and more people can benefits from your questions. Tomorrow's post will be about new homes.

Home affordability

I found this article to be a bit of a selling point for me. Owning a house is getting cheap. Click here to see what I mean.

A reminder.

I just wanted to post that, since I already have a couple of leads on some real estate, it is never too early to try to find more leads. If you know someone that would be interested in using my services, please give them my contact information. I've got a new email address for these purposes. Email me at cfeatherstone@kwottawa.ca

On a side note, I should be getting some hockey tickets this year. ;)

2 sides to the coin

Here are two articles that I've read today about the housing market. I think, between the two articles, it reinforces what I've been saying about the Ottawa market.

CTV article about Canada

Sun article about Ottawa

Enjoy.

Tomorrow, I swear

Ok. I might have jumped the gun a little. I'm a guy that likes to get things done and over with without having things linger for a long time. I was pretty certain that I would have been able to sign my papers last week to be a real estate agent, but it has taken a few days on the brokerage's end to set up the appropriate appointment. I would have been there to sign if I could, but I had to wait. Tomorrow, I am meeting with Keller Williams at lunchtime to sign the dotted line. At that point, I'll be open for business. If you've got any leads or potential referrals, I would love to hear from you. I might have some hockey tickets for you.

I've met my match

Today, I met with a brokerage that I think will fit my needs very well. There are some kinks to iron out because of the part-time scenario that I am looking for, but tomorrow I should be able to make it official. I haven't signed any papers yet, but I expect to do so tomorrow. I'm just anxious about the news, and want everyone to know about it.

Hot market

Maybe it's just the people I know, but the real estate market in Ottawa definitely seems pretty hot this month. I know of a couple of people that have just bought or are looking to buy and the properties they are looking at are being eaten up rather quickly. Is it time to buy? Is it time to sell?

I like to think that it is time to buy. 5 year rates have recently inched up, but still near record lows, plus, we're expected to have a mild recovery in the economy next year, and home prices had remained steady over the last year. It seems like it's a good time to take advantage of the buying power you may have, and be able to buy when rates are low and prices are about to rise again.

Now, I think a better indicator of the market is the activity the mortgage people are doing. Usually, this is their busy time of the year, but it seems as if there are a lot of deals out there being had. Not only are people buying again, people are upgrading current real estate investments. It seems as if I can hardly get a hold of my mortgage guy these days. I won't need him for awhile, but I am sure he is doing fine these days.

What's next?

Ok. I've mentioned in a few posts in the past that my next step was to purchase the other half of the semi-detached house. Check.

So, what now?

Well, the first thing is to save up a little bit of money again. It's time to invest into the properties that I own. I need to upgrade things like the heating and cooling systems. I might even try to build a deck in the back yard. I'm going to add some value to the existing properties, and I am considering selling the Stittsville property in the near future. The Stittsville market seems pretty hot at the moment, and it seems as if it is a good time to cash out.

On the other hand, the current tenants have been good. There really is no rush to dispose of the property. If the Stittsville market is hot, I might as well let it fully appreciate. I should do this for two reasons. First, I should try to maximize the value I get for the house. Second, I can maximize the value for the house as I continue to save some money and do a few little upgrades that will expediate the sale.

There is the latest.

It's official!

I'm now a proud owner of 73 Arlington. Ok. Maybe not proud. The place is certainly a student house, but nonetheless, I own in and now have complete control over the semi-detached. SLUMLORD!!!

Gone Fishin'

This weekend is our annual fishing weekend and it's a great chance to get caught up with the boys. On Monday, the deal for 73 Arlington should be completed and any stress that I've had in the last couple of weeks should subside somewhat. If not only because of the deal closing, but because of a nice weekend of fishing.

My business group

Today I had lunch at Mexicali Rosa's on Bank Street. It was decilious. I had a lunch version of fajitas. It was reasonably priced and not overfilling. You might be asking yourself, why do I care about what Chad had for lunch?

The answer is simple. The people I shared lunch with have a variety of backgrounds in business, not only in real estate. The great thing about this group is that we are trying to expand, so that we have a very solid network of professionals that we can go to with various problems. From a real estate perspective, we have lending professionals that serve both residential and commercial properties. We're trying to establish some trust within the group, so that we know that we can refer friends, family and clients to get the best deals possible.

How is this important for you? Well, I'm an accountant, and not a mortgage professional. If you need advice on tax related matters, (or even real estate matters now) I am your man. If you need money, I am not your man. However, I do know people that can help you. I know people that I can trust. Hopefully, you can come to trust them too.

This is how the group works. I refer someone like you to a member of the group. I may know you from Carleton, Bell High School or from just around the neighborhood. If you decide to use my mortgage guy, my mortgage guy might send someone he knows to me for help with a purchase of a home or some tax advice. We both can double our business.

It's a pretty simple idea, but its benefits are great. It's one of the ways that I am trying to make sure that all my clients are 100% satisfied. Making money is about making good relationships with clients. I don't want to simply help you out for a quick buck. I want to help you so that we both benefit from a deal and you'll not only be happy to do business with me, you'll be happy to refer your friends to me too.

The next mission...

Girls, don't be jealous, but I'm shopping, shopping shopping.... for a place to conduct my real estate business.

It's not an easy choice. Residential consumers prefer to work with the national brokerages, but there is a price to pay for that service. This is especially true given the fact that I will only be working part-time. Given that I will have to work pretty hard to get my business rolling, I will need all of the business that I can get. I'm going to push hard to get people I know to push hard for me. I want to take advantage of referal bonuses. If you know someone and it leads to a sale, I will make sure that I don't forget where the business came from.

I'm an accountant, so I've been trained in conducting business with fairness and integrity. I know a good deal when I see one, but I'm going out to make long-lasting business relationships. I think I needed to mention this because if you can refer someone to me, I want to be a trustworthy realtor that you don't mind giving referals to. I know that your referal is also your reputation on the line if a deal between me and a client goes sour. I promise to respect that trust you will have given me. I think it's the cornerstone of my future business.

I'll likely be making some formal announcements with posters, emails, and phone calls to announce when I am a member of a brokerage. You can stay tuned for that announcement soon.

I passed!!!

I have passed the final real estate exam. There are 3 exams that you need to write before you are able to buy and sell in real estate. I've passed them all. The only thing left to do is to sign up with a brokerage and I have a meeting this afternoon. I am looking for a brokerage that will allow me to have a low desk fee. I want to pay as little as I can to start, so that means I'll have to pay more of my commissions to the brokerage. It's a small price to pay, but since I am going to remain an accountant full-time, I won't be able to do as many deals as other salespeople I know.

I'll likely end up working weekends doing real estate stuff. It should work out for me pretty good, I figure. Most people work during the week, especially those that want to purchase homes, so I think I could develop a nice little network by working some evenings and most weekends. I can at least do research for any potential investment properties.

My advantage

I own three properties. Two of the properties are downtown with one in Stittsville. I think that I want to reconstruct the downtown property in 5 years. I want to do a major overhaul. The biggest issue is that I currently live downtown and have no intentions to ever move into the Stittsville property.

Admittedly, I am pretty much stretched in terms of my borrowing for the next little while. There will be just too much risk to bear any more debt. That being said, I will need to work out something so that I will be able to live in a place that I can call home in the next couple of years. The re-construction of the downtown property will eat into a lot of resources as well. The key, therefore, is the Stittsville property. I will have to dispose of that property when I decide that I want to move out on my own. At the moment, I plan to continue to live with roommates for the next couple of years, at least.

The complicating factor is the fact that if I happen to meet a special someone and we need a place for ourselves. I have a couple of years I figure before I have to worry about that too much. It's basically a moot point, but I thought I would throw it in as an option just in case.

So that leaves me with my plan in the next couple of years for the downtown property. I would like to build a nice little deck in the backyard. It should be relatively cheap to build, but it will add to the enjoyment of the property. In addition, I know that the roof needs some repairs, so that will be another point of improvement. I think those are starting points. If cash flow is good, I will want to try to upgrade the kitchens in both halves of the building. The bathroom on the main floor of 73 Arlington needs to be upgraded as well.

I have some more news tomorrow, so stayed tuned.

Lots of news...

Over the next couple of days, I'm going to try to make a few posts. There has been a lot going on in the last little while and it has been hard for me to update this site. Part of the reason that I have had trouble posting is the fact that I do not have a laptop any more. I had it stolen about a month ago and have not been able to purchase a new one. The reason I have not purchased a new one is going to be another post. Like I said, there is a lot to talk about.

I'll try to save some face and actually tell you some news. I'm not going to beat around the bush and not share any information. I guess the first part is that I purchased my neighbor's house. This is subject to closing, which should be within the week, but nevertheless, it's at a point where we are just going to cross t's and dot i's. I'm excited for this as it has taken awhile to negotiate to a point where I would be content. The biggest reason for doing this deal is that it gives me options. I can continue to rent it out to students, which is working really well for my cash flow, or I can build a new structure that would be in a prime location in the city. Either way, I tend to think that I am coming out ahead because of the deal I got when I purchased the properties.

Tomorrow, I think I might go into more detail about what options exist and my anticipated timelines to have things done. I think I need a clear plan for this property. It will help me achieve my goals.

Are things improving???

According to a recent article, it looks like there is a bottom to the recent economic woes, especially in the United States. Read the article here.

Home inpection

I have done another home inspection. This time, it is the neighboring property. Details to follow.

Ott-opia...

Ottawa is a beautiful city and I'm not the only person that thinks so. With many parks, bike paths, monuments, and other things, Ottawa is a place that I am proud to call home. The Ottawa Business Journal has their own take on the city's livability. They detail some information from a recent book that ranks Ottawa to other cities in Canada. Read the article here.

2nd annual Greely Eagles playoff pool.

Greely DNTW Eagles Fastball Club 2nd Annual Playoff Hockey Pool

Pick any 9 forwards, 4 defencemen, and 1 goalie from any team.

Forwards & Defence: 1pt for a goal, 1pt for an assist. Goalie: 1pt for a win, 1pt for a shutout

In the event of a tie in any money position, the team with the most goals will be the winner. If it’s still tied, then the prize money will be split.

Entry Fee: $10. Deadline to enter is Friday, April 17, 4:00PM.
Prize Money: 1st: $400, 2nd: $150, 3rd: $100.
Results to be posted on www.officepools.com
As you can see, I've set the deadline to be two days after the playoffs start, each series will have played one game by that point. Any other questions or if I've missed anything, let me know.

Latest real estate trends.

As doom and gloom the media has made the economy, there appears to be a silver lining in the clouds. Apparently, in Eastern Canada, there have been significant increases in real estate prices. In Ontaio and Quebec, prices have remained somewhat steady. It appears as if it is out West where the problems lay. See the article here.

It has begun!

I've started the final course for real estate! WOOHOO! I'm anxiously awaiting spring where I can start to buy and sell for friends, family and potential investors. I'll let everyone know how it's going, but the exam isn't until May 16th. I still have a bit of time in between. Plus, there is tax season to worry about. Fun times.

Neighbours are out...

The neighbours are out of the house next door. I've left a message with the owner. I should be able to report more in the days to come.

Real Estate Exam #3

This is the final phase that I have to complete before I am able to sign up with a brokerage and begin to buy or sell a home. I guess, at this point, if you are thinking of buying or selling, I could probably start pointing you in the right direction. There are many things to consider before buying or selling a house.

The reason why you would use me as your future real estate agent is that I have the knowledge from a tax and business perspective that will not only help you make the right decision, I will soon have the ability to get you the best deal possible for your home or future home. There are tax planning opportunities that you should be aware of, and these planning opportunities co-exist with your ideal home. It's important that you take advantage of these opprtunities because, for most people, a home is the single largest investment you can make in your lifetime.

As of May, I will also be looking for people interested in real estate investing. With interest rates so low, there are plenty of opportunities out there that people should try taking advantage of. I can bring many small investors together in hopes of finding properties that offer a safer and better performing investment opportunities than the markets are currently giving.

I guess I should mention my background for a change for those that do not necessarily follow my life too closely. I recently graduated Carleton University with Honours in Finance and Accounting with the co-op option. I have been working as an accountant since 2005, and received my chartered accounting designation this year. I have owned property since 2006, and I have two single family homes in my portfolio at this moment. During the last few months, I have been pursuing courses at OREA (Ontario Real Estate Assocation) in order to be a licensed broker. I should be licensed by the end of May, and I am looking to do business.

Pushing for May...

Another quick post today. I'm looking at the course schedule for the final instalment of real estate. It might be possible to be licenced by the middle of May. June would be the latest.

I told you so!

If you have been listening to the reasons as to why I got into real estate, here is an article that further proves my point. It was found in today's paper.

Another property???

Well, there are those that are close to me that might know which home I am moving into to try to buy. At this point, we are still in the negotiation stage, but I'd like to reach an agreement in the next couple of weeks. It's going to be a private deal to save the seller some commissions. I'm hoping that this will translate into some savings for me.

I'll keep people posted. I'm sorry for the vague nature of the post, but I really wanted to share this information. I suppose that a little post is better than nothing right?

Multi-unit family dwellings...

The final topic that I got to see at the OREIO roundtable was likely the least applicable to me at this point in my real estate career. Nevertheless, there is good information for me to know, so that I can help out potential future clients. The topic covered selling multi-unit buildings. The individual that presented seemed nervous, but you could tell that the man had vast experience in dealing with the sales of multi-unit dwellings.

The overall message was very simple. Be prepared. There are many due diligence procedures that a buyer wants to complete before an agreement in place, so you should know the ins and outs of the buying process to help facilitate the selling process. There can be numerous questions surrounding safety and health and the more preparation you do, the more confident the buyer becomes in the purchasing process. Less questions means less doubt for the buyer.

Some of the things that you should get done:

1. Fire retrofit certificate - the more current the better, but a buyer will eventually demand it, so make sure it's up-to-date.
2. Inpect systems - ensure heating, emergency lighting, electrical and security systems are fully functioning and up to standard code. Buyers seldom want to do extra work after purchase.
3. Ensure that the structure is sound. It may sound dumb, but don't cover up any small leaks for example. It pays to have things done right. If there is any hint of problems, buyers will RUN!

These are pre-marketing things. They are important, so that when it comes to list a property for sale, that you can attack with a proper marketing campaign. If these things aren't done satisfactorily, it will compromise your ability to get top dollar from such a campaign. I thought that this part of the information session was the most interesting and insightful. You would be surprised to see how much you need to discount a property if the pre-marketing items are not done right.

Cash-back mortgages

The next guy at the OREIO roundtable was discussing some of the various financing options that exist for people. In some cases, these are very interesting options. They are very creative. I admire how financing companies have adapted to provide different forms of money for investors.

Generally, this speaker spoke on many different forms of financing and tried to enlighten investors on the different options that are available to them. I appreciated this. There are certain rules and procedures that exist that are designed to protect the Canadian credit market, but the presenter was hinting at ways to circumvent these methods. He, to me, seemed sneaky and snake-like. Again, I will not mention any names, but I was very weary of what benefits this guy could provide. It may all have been legal, but the tone I got was different. I'd want more information before I started to deal with this guy.

Business is not about lying, cheating or stealing. It's about relationships between customers, suppliers and employees. In some cases, certain relationships are more pre-dominant than others, but ultimately, you cannot run a business without developing trust along the way. You may get ahead in the short-run, but in the long-run, the costs catch up to you. I think it's critical that you continuously look at ways to make those relationships stronger to be successful.

I guess my point is this for this post. You need to do your homework. You need to be able to trust someone, so you need to know the background information. As a chartered accountant, our profession is built on a strong code of ethics that has greatly enhanced our reputation in the business world. I feel very strongly about upholding this reputation, and refuse to be involved in get rich quick schemes.

Changing the way business is done in Ottawa

There are probably quite a few people that read this blog that do not have any experience whatsoever in real estate. This is fine. It's one of the main reasons that I have this blog. I enjoy sharing my knowledge and experience with everyone. As such, I am going to talk a little bit about another speaker that was at the OREIO roundtable on Monday.

The speaker was a lawyer. Now, lawyer's tend to have the mindset that anything that can go wrong will go wrong and that's not necessarily a bad thing. You want to be protected by the law in case something does not work out for you, especially in real estate. With such high dollar amounts, a bad deal in real estate can take years or even decades to recover from. I was definitely listening closely to what he had to say.

With the recent decline in the markets, there is a greater likelihood that someone will be pulling out of a signed deal. A potential buyer could have second thoughts when purchasing a home, especially if they have just lost their job. Now, as a seller, you need to protect yourself against this. Typically, a deposit is given at the time of offer to show the vendor the seriousness of a bid on a property. In Ottawa, the amount has usually been a token amount, about $1000. This is not the rule, but fairly custom in Ottawa.

Now, the $1000 is all that the vendor has against the buyer if the buyer backs out. This is not sufficient. If you have pulled your house off the market to work a deal, you are possibly letting other potential buyers slip by. You need to be compensated for this. It is not uncommon for a property in Toronto for the deposit to be in the $20,000-$30,000 range. This allows the vendor to recover some of the legal fees and some of the headaches that accompany this type of failed deal.

The lawyer's message was clear. Ask for larger deposits when selling your home. If buyer's are serious in your property they will put up or shut up. It's important that you protect yourself from a bad deal, especially given the deteriorating economic environment.

Home staging

One of the topics that was presented at the OREIO roundtable was home staging. Although I have watched the occasional home renovation/home decorating tv show on HGTV, I certainly do not consider myself a professional decorator, or designer by any stretch of the imagination. My specialty is numbers. I understand what kinds of things that go into costs and budgets, so that I can minimize costs while maximizing profits.

While you minimize costs, there is a second part to maximizing profit and that is maximizing potential revenue. This is where home staging comes in. I was very intrigued by the discussion by our presenter. I had thought that home staging was merely decorating, but it's more than that. It's a marketing plan to ensure that you maximize the potential revenue when you go to sell your home.

So, you might still be wondering what the difference is between decorating and staging. Decorating is making your place look nice, but staging considers what type of clients would enjoy a certain style of decorating and gear the designs around that person, so it becomes more sellable. Staging involves highlighting key features in your home that are attractive, and making them stand out for the buyers. Staging is a marketing plan that is strategic in nature to help you sell your property for more money in less time.

The thing that makes staging work is the fact that people rarely buy a home for themselves without thinking of how they see themself in the house. If you can present to them a certain lifestyle, it certainly helps them have a clearer picture in their head how they would like to live. Real estate agents often do not simply sell houses, they sell lifestyles. People need to know that they can enjoy their time in a building despite most buildings consist of the same basic elements (walls, roof, floors, etc.). It's how a buyer sees themself in those walls the key to making a profit maximizing deal.

Now, I have decided that I would love to start posting free referrals on this blog to help those needing resources to find things related to real estate. However, I think I will reserve posting referral advertisements where I have not either dealt with the person, or found out from numerous sources of their outstanding reputation. As a future real estate agent, I don't want to compromise my reputation based on poor work by another company or individual. Hence, despite an excellent information session by an Ottawa-based home stager, I'm not going to post a link to their information until I actually get to deal with them personally.

OREIO

Last night, I popped my OREIO cherry.

OREIO stands for Ottawa Real Estate Investors Organization. It's a group that meets about once a month on the second Monday of the month. They usually have guest speakers to talk about a variety of subjects relating to real estate. It's a great place to learn, and it's a great place to build up a good little network.

Last night was a freebie. I got to see first hand what a membership would be like in OREIO. It was a roundtable discussion about real estate from many different perspectives. Each session of the roundtable offered a unique insight into one aspect of real estate. Granted, at my level of real estate investment, some of the information was not relevant. I'm not quite prepared to jump into multi-unit buildings just yet. I like the idea of managing single family homes.

I know this post is not about taxes, but the main focus of the blog was originally supposed to be about real estate and sharing ideas and knowledge about real estate. I think real estate is more interesting for people, and it may prove to be a better investment given the economic circumstances that we are currently dealing with, and have to deal with in the near future.

The group meetings offer a new perspective for me. It's a chance for me to gain valuable insights into the world of real estate, and I will likely be able to share my knowledge via this blog. It's a new source of knowledge for me that will benefit anyone that needs information about properties for personal use or for properties for investment purposes. I no longer have to use my own experiences, but the experiences of others to ensure that actions are done with due diligence.

This post has been very vague in terms of offering anything new. I plan on sharing in the next couple of days some of the various knowledge that I received. It's a good excuse for more posts, and it also gets my mind off of taxes a little bit. If I get stuck, I'll put up a tax-related post, but I'd like to avoid that if possible.

Tax-free savings account

There are only three sure things in life. First, there is death. Second, there are taxes. Finally, there is the fact that Dolly Parton sleeps on her back. Even though taxes are a sure thing, you should be aware of any new measures the government introduces to help you save some money. Recently, the government has introduced a savings plan that will at least reduce some of your potential taxes. It's called a TFSA or tax free savings account.

How does it work?

Each year, you are given an allowance of $5,000 to contribute to a TFSA. This amount is cumulative on an annual basis, so if in one particular year you cannot contribute to the maximum, you can carryforward the balance on your account. TFSA can be self-directed or they can be managed by a financial institution. For most people, they would likely manage their TFSA's similarly to their RRSP's, so that would be by a financial institution. The benefit of a TFSA is that any money that you earn with this investment is not taxed. This can lead to substantial savings for the investor over time. This is an excellent way to save money.

Which is better? RRSP's or TFSA's?

Well, both programs are designed to save you money, so you should take into account which form of tax savings work best for you. Each person has different needs with respect to cash flow needs and financial goals. It is probably best if you talk to an accountant. Sadly, that is the best advice that I can give, but there are many considerations that need to be made as to whether you should throw excess cash towards an RRSP or a TFSA.

Home renovation tax credit

This year, and this year only, there is a special credit available to people that are planning to perform some home renovations. Now, since we are at a point in time where you probably haven't got everything together for your 2008 return, I thought it would be a good opportunity to start planning for the 2009 tax year. I feel that this is a good time to maybe suggest what you do with your 2008 refund (if you get one), since you probably haven't received it yet.

There is a temporary credit available for eligible expenditures on home renovation projects. These projects must fall in the period of January 27, 2009 and February 1, 2010. Now is the time to start planning some painting, kitchen re-modelling, etc. There are numerous items that you may be thinking of, so you should take advantage now. This can lead to many benefits. First, you save on your taxes in 2009. Secondly, if you are thinking of selling your home in the near future, this should increase the value of your home. You may wish to discuss with your real estate agent what renovation projects will be most beneficial (or you can ask me).

The government has introduced this piece in the last budget as a stimulus item that will help our economy. It is up to you to take advantage of it. The credit is a one time deal, so be sure that you find out what information you need before proceeding. You may wish to find out which expenses are eligible, and which expenses are not.

More information can be found here.

Deadlines! Deadlines! Deadlines!

Today is the last day to contribute to your RRSP for the 2008 tax year. RRSP contributions are a great way to save money because it reduces the amount of income that you have to pay tax on. You should review your notice of assessment from last year to see how much unused room you have left. You should be trying to use up this room for 2009.

April 30th is the last day on which any taxes owing are due to the government. This means that everyone needs to pay up. You may have a filing date of June 15th, if you are self-employed, but the taxes are still due April 30th. You should do your taxes ASAP in order to properly plan out any amounts owing to the government, plus you avoid any late fees.

Tax season

It's official. We're in tax season. It's time to start thinking about doing your taxes. If you usually get a refund, it's a good idea to get started early. That way, the Canada Revenue Agency will be able to get your refund back to you that much quicker. Money in the pocket is never a bad idea.

This year, I would like people to post some of their tax questions online. You can remain annonymous to protect your financial privacy, but I would like to offer advice so that everyone can save a little bit of money this year. If I save you enough money, you could always treat me to a nice dinner :P

I think I will post some tax tips occasionally because my real estate ventures are currently at a standstill. I'm too busy with accounting at this point to be worrying about completing the last course of the real estate program. I will be back to the real estate thing after April 30th, the tax deadline day.

Home insurance

Today's lesson is in home insurance. I received a notice the other day from my previous insurance carrier that my bill for my home was going to be over $2400. I thought this was ludicrous. I almost would prefer to not own a home. I asked my broker to look into things further, especially given the fact that I was now occupying the home. My broker was not able to negotiate any new rates. I thought I would begin to shop.

In all fairness to my broker, they likely only had a few companies that they deal with. My circumstance is somewhat unusual and perhaps high-risk for some carriers. My broker may not have been able to offer me a better deal.

I called around and did some online quotes. I got a pretty good idea of what I should expect from my insurance. I found a place that offered me a much better rate; and, since I bundled it with my car insurance, I am able to save on both. On both my car insurance and my home, I am about to save about $2300/ year. It looks like a pretty productive lunch.

The lesson is this. Shop around! There are some insurance companies that are very respectable that can offer good rates. It might just depend on the type of insurance you are getting. In my case, I have 3 roommates which is a bit unusual for some carriers and not for others. The trick is to find a carrier or a broker that deals in those types of deals. I didn't skimp out on any sort of coverage, I actually increased my protection (except on the car, it's worthless anyways), but I was able to save a lot of money.

I won't disclose which companies I have used because I don't want to get hit with any sort of defamation lawsuit. I won't disclose which company I have decided to go with either... just in case I find a better insurance carrier, and I want to rip up this carrier in the future. :P

Possible changes of plans

This is likely to be a useless post, but in order to keep everyone "up-to-date" I'm going to say that I am looking at going in a different direction with my Arlington home. I need to get more information before this is settled; but, if I can do what I want to do, I'll be quite happy. Unfortunately, I do not want to disclose what this option is at the moment, hence the uselessness of the post. Sorry for wasting your time?!?!?!

Real Estate Exam number 2

A couple of Saturdays ago, I wrote exam #2 of 3 for Real Estate. I was a little worried that I hadn't studied enough because I had just returned from a week long trip to Holguin, Cuba.

My apprehensions were unwarranted. I got 88% on my exam and now I just have one more exam to write before I can buy and sell real estate. Unfortunately, the next session there is a classroom component that is required. Due to my status as a Chartered Accountant, I will not be able to attend these classes until late spring/early summer. I don't anticipate too many problems, so I expect to have a license to trade sometime in May.

How the budget yesterday affects you...

Incentives! Incentives! Incentives!

As a future real estate agent/chartered accountant, I feel as if it's my duty to report to everyone the items that were offered in the most recent federal budget for real estate participants. Now, the incentives that have been offered are not for everyone. There is a targeted market for the incentives and you should speak to an accountant or a knowledgeable real estate agent for more information for your particular situation.

First, the maximum under the Home Buyer's Plan has increased from $20,000 to $25,000. This means that you may withdraw up to $25,000 tax free (repayments are required over 15 years) from your RRSP to purchase your first home. RRSP contributions reduce your taxable income, so that your taxes owing are much lower. As a result, you may be entitled to a nice refund. If done properly, you can save yourself a lot of money when purchasing your first home. You should speak to an accountant to find out the details of how to best take advantage of the tax implications of your purchase.

Now, the importance of the $5000 increase can be significant in some circumstances. The Canadian mortgage system requires mortgage insurance when purchasing a home for under a 25% down payment. This means that more of your down payment can come from taking advantage of this plan. Please plan your home purchase with a knowledgeable salesperson.

Next, there is a new credit being offered for first time home buyer's. This is separate from the home buyer's plan. You really do not have to do anything to earn this credit other than purchase your first home, and have an acccountant that knows what they are doing. This is a non-refundable credit of 15% based on $5,000. This credit is available to first-tiime home buyers after January 27, 2009.

I realize that I may have spoken a foreign language to you. Basically, the point I want to get across is that if you are thinking of purchasing a home is to think of me. I have the required knowledge to make sure the purchase is done properly, saving your hundreds and possibly thousands of $$$. I have extensive knowledge of the Ottawa market having lived in Ottawa for 25 years, and I have been working in accounting since 2004.

Updates...

Well, it looks like I've been doing a terrible job at updating this blog. I'd like to keep this thing up to date, but there is really a lot of things that have happened in the last month. I actually had to look at the last post to know where to start off.

In my last post, I wrote that I was getting my results for my chartered accounting exam. Of course, I've left everyone in suspense for about a month and a half. Now, given the time lapse, you might think that I have jumped off a bridge, or in front of a car. In fact, I passed my exam; and now, I'm just waiting to receive the official piece of paper at my February convocation.

Again, I don't have that much time, but hopefully tomorrow I will post some stuff about my real estate endeavors. I also have a trip to Cuba that I should talk a little about.