Window Films can Offer Year Round Benefits

Window films can help you solve problems with heat, glare, fading, and privacy without blocking your view. It's a simple, cost-effective way to increase your home's comfort, energy efficiency, and overall appearance. All you need are a few common tools, a helper for large windows, and some free time in the morning or evening to make your home the coolest house on the block.

Window films offer year-round benefits and beauty to your home. A quality residential window film is capable of stopping up to 80% of the heat that would otherwise enter a building. And certain types of window films can block up to 99% of damaging ultraviolet rays that are known to reduce the sun's fading effect on fabrics and furniture.

Safety and security window films are very popular as well. Safety films are thicker than regular residential window films. They generally use a pressure-sensitive adhesive system, which is not designed to prevent glass breakage but to hold glass fragments together when the glass is broken.

Window films also provide a good decorative solution for shower doors, bathroom windows, kitchen cabinets, and pantries. There are many beautiful styles available in the market to choose from at a fraction of the cost of etched glass. Decorative window film can transform a window without a view to a room with a view that makes you wonder if the illusion is real or not.

If you are looking to reduce your energy costs, prevent fading of your drapes and furniture or improve your home's safety select a quality product and then make sure it is installed properly. You can do an expert installation with a moderately or lower-priced window film and get really good results. But you can have the best quality, most expensive window film installed and if it's installed incorrectly it may still block out the heat but it will look terrible. Having a professional installer put the window film on is often the best choice.

You should ask to see the manufacturer's warranty before you make your window film purchase. If the dealer cannot give you a warranty there is a good chance they are not authorized to install the film. The warranty should come with a minimum 5 to 10-year guarantee and cover the removal and replacement of any defective product.

You should ask for a copy of the manufacturer's film-to-glass recommendation chart. This is a chart that shows which products are recommended for use by the manufacturer on a particular type of window. For example, installing dark window film on insulated windows could potentially damage the window. You want to make sure that the window film is compatible with the window before buying and installing it. If the wrong product is installed, your warranty may be voided so it is important to do your research upfront.

Photography is Key in Marketing Your Home for Sale

Since many buyers are turning to the internet to shop before they take a drive around neighbourhoods, photography can make the difference in selling your home quickly.

 
A picture says a thousand words, and with the right listing pictures, you can attract more people to your property by showing your home’s highlights. Below are tips on how you can take the best quality pictures of your property to showcase it so it stands out from the rest.
 
Clean the entire house before taking photos.
Never take photographs of a dirty home. Remove all trash cans from rooms being photographed. Tidy up any clutter and remove personal photos and drawings from refrigerators and bulletin boards.
 
Think about the picture before you take it.
What are you trying to show in the photo?  Do you want to move or remove anything before you take it?
 
Highlight the best features of your home.
Do any of your rooms have spectacular views? You can take pictures of your rooms to show off their views. Let the potential purchaser imagine themselves standing in the room with the view. They will appreciate the picture more knowing where they will be able to enjoy the view when they purchase the home.
 
A general photography rule of thumb is the closer the subject, the better the photo.  However, it may be useful to take a few steps back or use a wide-angle lens to give the viewer more context and make your home seem more spacious.
 
Take a shot of every part of the house including the living room, kitchen, dining room, and other key areas of your home.
 
Pay attention to lighting.
Lighting is the key to good photography, and you must choose the optimum time of the day for the shot, typically when the sun is behind you. If the front of the house faces east, the morning is the best time.  If the front faces west you want to take your pictures in the late afternoon.

A good general time of the day is around noon or early afternoon on a sunny day for most exterior pictures since the sun is overhead and there are few shadows.  If it is overcast you can set your camera to a slower shutter speed to absorb more light and create a brighter image.

The light source also affects colour. When the sun is lower in the sky, either in the morning or in the late afternoon, you get a more intense colour. This time of day makes the sky pop blue and the house shows off its best colour. High noon overhead sunlight tends to wash out colour.

Cloudy and overcast days can often provide surprisingly wonderful diffused light that can bring out a great colour, although shots like this lack the bright blue sky in the background.

For dramatic evening photography, turn on all the house lights, and take the picture after sunset but before it is totally dark.  You will see light coming out of the windows, however, there will be enough exterior light to capture the details of the house.

For interior rooms photography avoid mid-day since on sunny days the light coming in the windows will be too bright.  The best times are after daybreak and just before sunset.  Use a powerful flash or turn on all the lights.

Take many shots.
If you are using a digital camera, you can take multiple shots of the same room and then pick which one looks best. You can try different angles and pick the winning view of the room.

You can touch up your pictures on your computer software including brightening up a darker picture. After you have a look at your pictures, you will have a better idea of how to improve them. Some indoor pictures can look too warm due to the lighting. You can always reduce certain colours with your photo editing software to make it look more natural.

Consider hiring a professional real estate photographer.
Many real estate agents and homeowners simply do not have the time, equipment, or skills necessary to take good photographs of a home or building they are listing for sale. Professional photography is provided by many brokerages as an optional service and the price is extremely reasonable.

Photos of your home are the first introduction of your new listing to the world. This is the visual element that captures the imagination of buyers and sends them running to contact you for a first look.

What is a Mortgage Pre-approval (and why it's important to get one)

Securing a mortgage pre-approval is one of the first steps to take before beginning your house hunting process. A pre-approved mortgage is a tentative promise from a lender that it will loan you a certain amount of money for the purchase of real estate, for a certain term, and at a certain interest rate. The lender will base its decision upon your income, credit score and assets.

A pre-approval is not a binding commitment, but rather an indication that the lender is willing to extend a mortgage to an applicant once a suitable property has been found and secured via a real estate contract. It is usually valid for 90 to 120 days. The final decision is generally subject to certain conditions being met before the mortgage is finalized such as: the appraisal of the real estate is high enough to protect the lender in the case of default, the property title is clear and the property meets inspection standards, plus a number of other factors.

Even though you have been pre-approved by a lender, it is best practice to include a condition of financing in the purchase agreement to give you time to gather your documents and the lender time to review and give final approval to your application. Once you have a signed purchase agreement, the lender will require written income verification and proof of down payment, as well as proof the title is clear, the property meets inspection standards, and the appraisal of the property is high enough to protect the lender in case of default.

Advantages of a Pre-Approved Mortgage

1. Knowing what you can afford
Knowing how much you are able to spend before purchasing a home is always a good idea. With a pre-approved mortgage, you know exactly where you stand before shopping for a home.

Many real estate agents will want you to have a pre-approval in place before they take you house hunting. This is to ensure that they are showing you properties within your affordable price range. As a general rule, your housing costs, including your mortgage payment, taxes, and heating expenses should not exceed more than 32% of your gross household monthly income.

2. Pre-approval makes buying more convenient
If several buyers are interested in the same property, being pre-approved can give you the advantage. Sellers are more likely to accept an offer from a buyer who has been pre-approved over a buyer who has no guarantee that they can attain the financing for the amount they offered.

Rising Interest Rates (and rising inventory) continues to slow the housing market in Canada

Bank of Canada rate hikes, including the 50-basis point hike on June 1, are impacting home buyers in the short term. There is now a psychological aspect where potential buyers are waiting for a bottom in price. This will likely continue through the summer. However, as home buyers adjust to higher borrowing costs, housing demand will be supported by extremely low unemployment, high job vacancies, rising incomes and record immigration.

 

Ontario - Housing Market Conditions Continued to Evolve in Response to Higher Borrowing Costs

Toronto, 02 June 2022 -- Greater Toronto Area (GTA) housing market conditions continued to evolve in response to higher borrowing costs. Similar to April results, May 2022 sales were down on a monthly and annual basis. Conversely, active listings at the end of May were up on a month-over-month and year-over-year basis. More balanced market conditions have provided buyers with more negotiating power. As a result, while benchmark and average home prices were up substantially compared to last year, selling prices trended lower on a month-over-month basis.

"Bank of Canada rate hikes, including the 50-basis point hike on June 1, are impacting home buyers in the short term. There is now a psychological aspect where potential buyers are waiting for a bottom in price. This will likely continue through the summer. However, as home buyers adjust to higher borrowing costs, housing demand will be supported by extremely low unemployment, high job vacancies, rising incomes and record immigration" said TRREB President Kevin Crigger.

GTA REALTORS reported 7,283 sales through TRREB's MLS System in May 2022 - down 38.8% compared to May 2021 and down nine% compared to April 2022. The number of new May listings was similar to last year's level and edged up on a month-over-month basis. With sales down and new listings trend flat to slightly up, the number of active listings was up on a year-over-year basis by 26%.

Market conditions remained tight enough to support an overall average selling price of $1,212,806 for May 2022, representing an annual growth rate of 9.4%. The MLS Home Price Index Composite Benchmark was also up on a year-over-year basis by 23.9%. On a month-over-month basis, both price metrics were lower, reflecting more balanced market conditions.

"Price trends observed over the past three months - both in terms of moderating annual growth rates and the recent month-over-month dips - are in line with TRREB's forecast for 2022. After a strong start to the year, the current rate tightening cycle has changed market dynamics, with many potential home buyers putting their purchase on hold. This has led to more balance in the market, providing buyers with more negotiating power" said TRREB Chief Market Analyst Jason Mercer.

Ottawa’s May Residential Resales Underperform Expectations

Ottawa, June 3, 2022 -- Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 1,846 residential properties in May through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service® System, compared with 2,285 in May 2021, a decrease of 19%. May’s sales included 1,384 in the residential-property class, down 22% from a year ago, and 462 in the condominium-property category, a decrease of 11% from May 2021. The five-year average for total unit sales in May is 2,031.

“With year-over-year resales declining in March and April, and now with this downward trend continuing into May, traditionally the highest performing month for resales, it is quite clear that Ottawa’s resale market is shifting away from the blazing pace of 2021,” states Ottawa Real Estate Board President Penny Torontow. “And if rising interest rates, cost of living, and inflation aren’t enough factors to cause a pullback, the powerful and deadly storm that brought our city to its knees last month has justifiably impacted the market as well.”

“Our data shows a sharp decline in new listings with a corresponding increase in cancelled/suspended listings on the MLS® System in the period following the storm. Overall, in May, however, there were 3,120 properties that entered the market. This is on par with last May and is 5% over the 5-year average. The result is an 18% increase in residential-class inventory. Meanwhile, there was a slight decline (0.4%) in condominium inventory, but this is not surprising since they have likely become an entry point for many first-time homebuyers due to the affordable price point.”

The average sale price for a condominium-class property in May was $472,920, an increase of 11% from 2021, while the average sale price for a residential-class property was $802,393, increasing 8% from a year ago. With year-to-date average sale prices at $824,276 for residential and $470,353 for condominiums, these values represent a 12% increase over 2021 for both property classes.*

“Average prices, while still higher than 2021, are showing signs of adjusting to the pace of the market with a month-over-month decrease of 2% in both property classes. In April, we also saw a decline of 1-3%. In contrast, January to March experienced month-to-month increases ranging from 2% to 12%. This may be good news for Buyers, including the fact that the months of inventory have increased to 1.2 for residential and 1 month for condominiums. We are still a far cry away from a balanced market, but it finally seems to be moving in the right direction,” Torontow suggests.

“Additionally, another statistic that we see increasing is the cumulative days on market (CDOM), which is now 14 days, increasing from 11 days last May. CDOMs are typically between 30-60 days in a balanced market, and usually closer to that one-month mark in Ottawa. I mention this because we don’t want Sellers to panic if their homes aren’t selling as quickly as perhaps their neighbours’ properties did. Buyers will also have a little more breathing room if this trend continues.”

“But at the end of the day, each property for sale has its own hyper-local market factors (location, condition, other properties for sale in the same neighbourhood, etc.) that will affect the final sale price. If you want to know the most accurate price point to sell your home or what is the true market value of a home you are interested in, a licensed professional REALTOR® has the education and the experience with access to the most current market statistics and property information, to guide you into making the optimal decision for you and your budget.”

REALTORS® also help with finding rentals and vetting potential tenants. Since the beginning of the year, OREB Members assisted clients with renting 2,320 properties compared to 1,837 last year at this time.

British Columbia - Spring ushers in calmer housing market trends in Metro Vancouver

Metro Vancouver, 1 June 2022 -- After reaching record-setting levels in 2021, home sale activity has returned to more typical seasonal levels in Metro Vancouver* this spring due, in large part, to rising interest rates.

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential home sales in the region totalled 2,918 in May 2022, a 31.6% decrease from the 4,268 sales recorded in May 2021, and a 9.7% decrease from the 3,232 homes sold in April 2022.

Last month’s sales were 12.9% below the 10-year May sales average.

"With interest rates rising, home buyers are taking more time to make their decisions in today’s housing market. Home buyers have been operating in a frenzied environment for much of the past two years. This spring is providing a calmer environment, with fewer multiple offer situations, which is allowing buyers to explore their housing options, understand the changing mortgage market, and do their due diligence." Said Daniel John, Chair, REBGV

There were 6,377 detached, attached and apartment properties newly listed for sale on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in Metro Vancouver in May 2022. This represents a 10.5% decrease compared to the 7,125 homes listed in May 2021 and a 4.4% increase compared to April 2022 when 6,107 homes were listed.

The total number of homes currently listed for sale on the MLS® system in Metro Vancouver is 10,010, an 8.8% decrease compared to May 2021 (10,970) and a 13.8% increase compared to April 2022 (8,796).

For all property types, the sales-to-active listings ratio for May 2022 is 29.2%. By property type, the ratio is 18.3% for detached homes, 35.5% for townhomes, and 38.1% for apartments.

Government Plans to Assist Homebuyers

Buying a new home is by no means cheap, and moving into large urban areas like the GTA or Vancouver makes that statement all the more true. But the Government of Canada wants people to invest in real estate, and contribute to the economy. To accomplish this, the government has provided many government programs to help first-time home buyers.

 

Home Buyers' Plan (HBP)

The Home Buyers' Plan (HBP) is a federal government program that allows you to withdraw funds from your registered retirement savings plan (RRSPs) to buy or build a qualifying home for yourself or for a related person with a disability. You can withdraw up to $25,000 in a calendar year.

Your RRSP contributions must remain in the RRSP for at least 90 days before you can withdraw them under the HBP, or they may not be deductible for any year.

Generally, you have to repay all withdrawals to your RRSPs within a period of no more than 15 years. You will have to repay an amount to your RRSPs each year until your HBP balance is zero. If you do not repay the amount due for a year, it will have to be included in your income for that year.

Land Transfer Tax (LTT) Refund

This program is for residents of Ontario. You may receive a refund from the Ontario government of up to $2,000 of the land transfer tax you paid on your first home. Other provinces have similar programs. Here's how it works:

• You must be at least 18 years old.
• You cannot have previously owned a home, or an interest in a home, anywhere in the world.
• Your spouse cannot have owned a home, or an interest in a home anywhere while they were your spouse.
• You may receive the refund at the time you register your home purchase. If not, you must apply for it no later than 18 months after the registration date.

First-time Home Buyers' Tax Credit (HBTC)

You or your spouse can claim this tax credit on your annual income tax return. The credit is based on an amount of $5,000. To calculate, multiply the lowest personal income tax rate for the year (15% in 2011 and 2012) by $5,000. For these years, the maximum credit is $750. Here's how it works:

• You or your spouse must have acquired a qualifying home acquired after January 27, 2009.
• You cannot have lived in another home owned by you or your spouse in the year you buy your first home – or in any of the 4 preceding years.

HST New Housing Rebate

The federal government provides an HST rebate of up to 36% to buyers who purchase either a newly built, or greatly renovated, home. The rebate is intended to encourage people to build upon and improve their properties.

Some provincial government provides an even more generous rebate. for example, Ontario offers up to 75% off the provincial part of the HST.

You may be eligible to claim a rebate for a part of the HST you pay on the purchase price of a newly constructed home or the cost of building your home.

Third Consecutive Month of Declining Home Sale Prices

 

KITCHENER-WATERLOO, ON (June 3, 2022) —There were 661 residential homes sold through the Multiple Listing Service® System (MLS® System) of the Kitchener-Waterloo Association of REALTORS® (KWAR) in May, a decrease of 22.7 per cent compared to the same month last year, and 5.5 per cent below the previous 5-year average.

“The increase by the Bank of Canada to the key interest rate in April had the predictable result of knocking some buyers down if not out of the market in May,” says Megan Bell, President of KWAR. “While the impact to prices is small, it has had a critical impact on some buyers and what they can now afford.”

 

Total residential sales in May included 404 detached (down 16.7 per cent from May 2021), and 115 townhouses (down 38.5 per cent). Sales also included 95 condominium units (down 12.0 per cent) and 47 semi-detached homes (down 36.5 per cent).

 

In May, the average sale price for all residential properties in the Kitchener-Waterloo area was $875,194. This represents a 18.3 per cent increase over May 2021 and a 3.5 per cent decrease compared to April 2022.

 

• • • The average price of a detached home was $1,016,834. This represents a 17.0 per cent increase from May 2021 and a decrease 4.2 per cent compared to April 2022.
• • • The average sale price for a townhouse was $708,722. This represents a 17.7 per cent increase from May 2021 and a decrease of 7.2 per cent compared to April 2022.

• • • The average sale price for an apartment-style condominium was $545,825. This represents an increase of 19.7 per cent from May 2021 and a decrease of 9.1 per cent compared to April 2022.

• • • The average sale price for a semi was $730,768. This represents an increase of 10.7 per cent compared to May 2021 and a decrease of 7.0 per cent compared to April 2022.