Montreal Real Estate Blog

Taxe de bienvenue: Qui n’a pas à la payer?

Sheila Iacono — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:30:56 +0000

Dans un article précédant nous avons mentionné que la était applicable sur tout transfert de titre de propriété d’immeuble. Toutefois, il existe certain cas d’exonération dont ceux-ci :

Achat d’un immeuble par un organisme public (gouvernem
Achat de fermes ou de boisés qui continueront d’être exploités
Transaction dont le prix de vente est inférieur à 5000$
Transfert d’immeuble à sa compagnie par un actionnaire détenant 90% des actions dans la compagnie ou vice-versa
Transfert d’immeuble entre parents ex. :

En ligne direct, c’est-à-dire : fils, fille, mère, père
Entre conjoints, c’est-à-dire : époux, conjoints unis civilement ou vivant ensemble depuis un certain temps (habituellement 12 mois)
Entre beau-père ou belle-mère et gendre ou bru
Entre beau-père ou belle-mère et beau-fils ou belle-fille

Lors d’une exonération, la municipalité peut percevoir un montant de 200$ (droit supplétif) ou de 0.5% du prix de vente ou de la valeur de l’immeuble si elle est moindre de 40 000$.

Pour plus d’informations sur les règlements se rattachant à la Taxe de bienvenue ou sur tout autre sujet en immobilier, vous pouvez me contacter directement : Sheila Iacono 514.823.8611.

Ecrit par Sheila Iacono. Courtier Immobilier.

Posted By: Sheila Iacono is Real Estate Broker for RE/MAX EXCELLENCE Inc. Actively involved in the Real Estate industry for more than 7 years. She LOVES HELPING FIRST TIME BUYERS. Contact Sheila at 514.823.8611 http://montrealrealestateblog.com

The difference between pre-qualification and pre-approval?

Danuta Levitzki — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 11:30:19 +0000

Updated from our Mortgage and Financing Archives. Originally posted in March 2009

Pre-qualification is the starting point in your search for mortgage financing. A quick snapshot is taken which includes income, existing debt, savings, length of employment, etc. All of these factors will then be analyzed to determine your loan eligibility.

Pre-approval is written documentation that shows you have the support of a lender who is willing to finance you. It means an underwriter has reviewed your loan application. Based on your income, debt ratio and savings, the underwriter provides the dollar amount you are eligible to borrow. Now you can shop around for houses that fit into that loan amount category.

Here is the nice thing about the pre-approval: It gives you the leverage to shop as a cash buyer!

With a pre-approval in hand, you now have the power to negotiate.
The seller will take your offer much more seriously knowing you are already approved by a lender.
Pre-approval can also shorten the time it takes to close, making even a lower bid attractive to sellers who are seeking to move quickly.

What will my monthly payments be?

The amount of your monthly payment depends on what loan program you choose. We like to provide our clients with an easy-to-read spreadsheet that narrows their choices down and compares different loan programs that meet both current and long-term goals. You will have the opportunity to select a program you feel comfortable with before you make an offer on a home.

What does it cost to get pre-approved?

Pre-approval is FREE! You have absolutely nothing to lose and everything to gain

The Benefits of a Professional Consultant

Choosing the right lender is a key element to managing your mortgage. As a mortgage consultant, my goal is not just to provide you with a loan, but also to help select the one most beneficial to you and your long-term goals, and then, help you manage that debt over time. There are not many lenders out there who provide this type of personalized service.

My job is just beginning when your first loan closes. I will continuously monitor rates on your behalf, and stay in touch with you to make sure we remain on target with your financial goals.

Seek Pre-Approval before you begin your home search.
For a free consultation, you can contact Danuta!

Posted By: Danuta Levitzki. Executive Manager of Mortgage Agency at HYPOTHECA Ac Accredited. With over 10 year experience, Danuta specializes in residential and multi-unit mortgage financing. Offering the lowest interest rates and finest mortgage service in Montreal, Qc. For home purchase pre-qualification, mortgage refinance, renewal or debt consolidation please visit www.RateDirect.ca http://www.hypotheca.net

Q & A: How Many Buying Brokers Can You Hire?

Deya Bautista — Thu, 19 Jan 2012 14:46:51 +0000

This is the first freshly written post of 2012. I hope you all had a great new years!
Today we’re posting a video shot last month, and here we discuss how many agents/brokers you (the potential buyer) can employ when looking for a property.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YqDSNkCPEgs

A reader sent me the question on What’s the limit amount of agents a buyer can work with. My answer is: you can work with as many as you want, as long as you haven’t signed a buyer’s brokerage contract. Something you should know: we brokers share the same database (MLS), so chances are, if you’re working with multiple brokers, you will end up getting emails from all the brokers employed containing the same listings. [if you're giving all brokers the same search criteria]

The idea is to get fast results, right? Having to go through so many people to get the same results seems counterproductive. My suggestion: meet a few agents first, but work with the one (or two) that you like the most, the ones that gives you the best service/results. Keep in mind, however, that once you decide to make an offer in a place, you will have to commit to working with one broker, for that transaction.

Transparency is also encouraged. If you are already working with a broker, when approaching a new one, please be clear and let them know where you stand.

Further questions and comments? Feel free to send me an email.

More videos are now available at the Montreal Real Estate Blog

Posted By: Deya Bautista - Real Estate Broker working as part of the McGill Immobilier team. Specializing in high end condos in downtown and Old Montreal. For buying or selling contact Deya at: 514.917.7889 http://montrealrealestateblog.com/

Should your house be staged before you sell?

Sveta Melchuk — Mon, 16 Jan 2012 13:00:37 +0000

To Stage or Not to Stage – that is the question!
by Sveta Melchuk

Updated from the Home Staging archives. Originally published on Jun 18th 2007.

Staging a Home for sale will cost you money. Is it worth spending time and effort on it? After all, once the decision to sell has been made, you just want to get it over with as fast as possible, right?

First, did you determine the «right» price for your house? It should be based on certain objective criteria, such as the location of the property, sale price of comparable homes in your neighbourhood and today’s market conditions. But don’t forget the desirability factor…
While you can’t control some of the other criteria, you definitely have a say in the way your property looks, feels and is perceived by prospective buyers. Increase the visual/emotional value of your property and you will increase its desirability, therefore the price and the urgency to buy it from potential buyers. Why?

It’s the perception of the value that counts. The first impressions make a big difference in the way we perceive a person, an object or a service and, subconsciously, the decision is taken within the first 90 seconds on whether we’ll be «buying» and what value we assign to it.

Even before the prospective buyers set foot in your house, they are probably shopping on the Internet, checking the photos of the properties available in the selected neighbourhood and within their budget. They will make an opinion about your property based on what they see in the pictures and they will decide right there whether it’s worth their time to visit in person. If you have not managed to draw them in at this stage, you might have lost dozens, maybe hundreds of visitors to your house!

Your strategy should be to make the BEST first impression possible, in the Virtual world and for all the prospective buyers who will come to your door. Once they are visiting, make them focus on the property’s best features and show them the value of what they are getting. Choosing a particular house is a largely emotional decision, so make them choose yours. Statistics clearly demonstrate that a clean, spacious and well decorated home sells faster and for more money than other comparable properties.

Staging uses some simple but highly effective techniques to make your house look its best in preparation for sale. So, by spending a few hundred dollars on preparing your house properly, you will be gaining a lot more at the sale time. And staging services cost much less than a price «adjustment» on the house!

So should your house be staged before you sell?

This article was written by Sveta Melchuk from www.Home-Staging-Montreal.com. A Montreal firm specializing in Home Staging and Interior Re-design services.

Posted By: Sveta Melchuk. Founder of Home Staging Montreal, a Montreal firm specializing in Home Staging and Interior Redesign. Simple and effective solutions, to help you sell your property faster and for more money. Call Sveta at: 514-482-9776 http://www.home-staging-montreal.com/

The Comparative Market Analysis: CMA

Deya Bautista — Mon, 09 Jan 2012 13:30:41 +0000

A comparative market analysis (CMA) is an evaluation tool used by real estate agent’s, based on local listing and sales data, to determine the probable sale price of a property in the current market.

Who can use this information?

Both sellers and buyers alike.
Home sellers can use a CMA to help determine a list price.
Buyers can use it to help them determine the offer price on a property they want to buy.

How accurate is this analysis?

Depending on the quality of the data; the listings used for comparison should ideally be located in the neighborhood, and they should be as similar as possible to the subject property.

Comparative elements:

Property Type (condo, two storey houses, split level,etc);
Numbers of rooms;
Size of the living area and/or building size;
Year built;
Garage or parking spaces;
Basement: finished, semi-finished or unfinished;
Other similar features such as: fireplaces, inground pool, air conditioning, etc.

To determine the probable sale price of a property, the CMA will use the recent sales from the last 6 months. If the current market is changing rapidly, six months may be too long a time frame, in this case, 3 to 4 month sales records will be used as a reference.

The CMA should also include information about currently available comparable listings, as well as information about properties that did not sell during their listing period. These are called expired listings.

For sellers, active listings would be your competition once your home is on the market. How you price your property relative to the competition is critical to your home-selling success.

Thinking of selling your home? Contact us today for a free home evaluation!

Get more home selling tips: subscribe to the Montreal Real Estate Blog!

2011 almost gone. Happy New Year: 2012!

Deya Bautista — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 15:28:24 +0000

It may strike you as an odd type of image, given the fact that it is quite white and cold outside. But the truth is, I will be in Barbados for two weeks as of January 1st . Don’t hate me for it.

So this is what the first day of 2012 will look like in a few hours. And I am so counting the minutes.

In review, 2011 was a year of many changes and challenges. And of many blessings as well. I had a great year as a debutant “mom”. Slowed my pace to enjoy the little things that really matters: Family life. Friendship and travel.

Earlier this year I took my (then) four month old little girl back to my homeland, got in touch with old friends from childhood in Venezuela, and here in Montreal, I reconnected with old friends from my college days.

Business wise: I came back this summers after taking a year off, to attend the new challenge of a new born. And now, work is slowing taking a bigger space in my schedule. I’m easing into it, though. No rush. Priorities have changed. The new word here is: Balance. Easier said than done, of course. But we try everyday :)

And so with the new year, I wish you all the most productive, balanced and life-fulfilling year ever. May you work hard and attain your goals. And most importantly: may you be happy while achieving them.

And while we’re on the topic of goals…
What are your top 3 goals for 2012? – leave me our comments below ;)

Warm wishes to all. And happy new year!

Video Blog, Episode Four: BANK Project in Old Montreal

Deya Bautista — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 12:34:08 +0000

This is something I have been looking forward to shooting since the summer time, when I was first told about the development!
I present to you a video tour of one of the hottest projects in Old Montreal at this moment.

BANK Condo Project offers us 43 units of high-end design, a graceful mix of the historic and the modern.
I had a small interview with Mickael Chaput, Real Estate Broker with McGill Immobilier and he gives us the insights of the projects architecture, features, sizes and prices.

Here is the video…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=05R7mYeglo8

{Special thanks to Mickael Chaput for giving us the tour and to Patrice Groleaux for the video editing job. Merci!}

If you’re not able to view it from your inbox, here is the permalink.

More information on this project, visit McGill Immobilier website.