homes for sale by owner kingston ontario

 

John Marston, BSc., eng.tech.,CIM, CPI

Certified Property Inspector

(613) 893-0159

JohnHomeInspector@gmail.com

www.ActiveRain.com/HomeInspectorMarston

If you are the buyer in a homes for sale by owner kingston ontario transaction, you should hire a professional  home inspector so you have a complete understanding of the money you are about to spend.

A professional Home inspection costs about $350 or so with free Infrared reporting.  A great looking report is a terrific sales tool. But most of all, it is a show and tell document with lots of photos showing the current state of the property. Nobody wants to be the subject of a Holmes on Holmes story.

 

   

          

 

The right image is a typical view and the left is the same area but with an        Infrared camera. This represents a huge thermal loss that needs attention.

 

Understanding your typical real estate agent

 

The Canadian  Real Estate Association says that the average price for a home sold through Nov 2011 was $250,001. In fact residential sales numbered 212 units in Nov 2011. On a year to date basis, some 3,028 homes have traded hands. (Home sales recorded through the MLS system of the Kingston & Area Real Estate Association) http://creastats.ca/king

 

This does not represent transactions negotiated through  homes for sale by owner kingston ontario

 

 If you imagine that the KAREA represents over 500 real estate professionals, less than half of these agents made a sale in the month.  In fact year to date sales average only 275 per month.  In fact if 4% is the average sales commission, or $10,000, and the average sale is one/two month… then that is $60,000/year gross.  The top agents sell more than one/month… so other agents don’t sell enough to live. Which agent are you considering dealing with?  

 

Agents don’t want to be part of a  homes for sale by owner kingston ontario transaction. The real estate agent will try to convince the seller to list the property and the buyer to consider listed properties. And in fact, it might be in your best interests to list your property or engage the services of a quality agent. A quality agent will likely have access to quality buyers… as well as help you find the property that suits you best. After all the buyer pays no commission. So in a homes for sale by owner kingston ontario transaction, the buyer needs to be well informed about the current and future price of the home.

 

A quality agent will not put your home on the market with structural defects, or severe moisture problems. A quality agent will encourage the seller to hire a home inspector to ensure that the home meets quality standards. A quality agent knows that money spent to repair the home will likely be recovered in the sale price, and may result in a quicker sale.

 

 

       

 

Look at the huge heat losses from this before and after view. You don’t have to be a rocket scientist to appreciate the potential dollar savings here.

 

So if you are a seller, $350 is nearly negligible compared to the $10,000 average commission you are going to pay the agent. Or in a  homes for sale by owner kingston ontario transaction, a professional report will offer confidence to a buyer showing that the home is structurally sound and that the seller is not trying to hide anything.  Also, it will give the seller an opportunity to repair something if needed and that expense will likely translate into a higher selling price.

 

 If you are a buyer, $350 is a ridiculously low fee for such a valued service. There is a reasonable chance that the fee is tax deductible for you as well.  Moving Expenses are tax deductible resulting in tax savings of 46% combined Federal and Provincial depending on your MTR.  If your move is at least 40 KM closer to your new place of employment, then you should take a serious look at this.

http://www.cra-arc.gc.ca/tx/ndvdls/tpcs/ncm-tx/rtrn/cmpltng/ddctns/lns206-236/219/menu-eng.html

 

 If you are a buyer in a  homes for sale by owner kingston ontario transaction, then who is going to look after your best interests if you don’t have an interested agent. … YOUR HOME INSPECTOR, of course

 

 Your home inspector needs skills in a number of areas… knowledge of MPAC property values and the 5 major steps used to calculate this fair market value. (www.mpac.ca)  Why is it that the asking price for a home is sometimes equal to the MPAC calculation and others 30% higher or more.  Just like the Holmes on Holmes TV show program uncovers, there are lots of home inspectors that are either incompetent, or simply don’t care about you. There are lots of Real estate agents that are incompetent, or simply don’t care about you.  You need to know the difference in a homes for sale by owner kingston ontario transaction.

 

 

 

 

 

Looking for a Kingston ontario home inspector ?   I'm sure nearly everyone whose interested in homes has seen the TV program Holmes on Holmes.  Don't you think it likely that some home buyers in the Kingston area would likely suffer the same fate,  Why is that? (The fate is that the home inspector tells you the home is wonderful when it isn't)

First, it is important to realize that an Infrared camera is needed to measure temperature differences in hidden places. So if you are a DIY type, or your selected Kingston Ontario home inspector does not have an IR camera or a Boroscope,  you will be short changed.   Also, training is needed to understand how to interpret the images.  This takes many courses just on its own.  So in your evaluation of the competency of a Kingston Ontario home inspector look for the IR symbol of certification.

Second, the air quality you breathe in your new home is important. If the house is so air tight, then maybe there is insufficient air circulation.  You will see this appear as moisture on the inner side of glass windows. Combustion air has to come from somewhere. If you have an old forced air furnace (gas, or oil) for example, then the air for combustion comes from inside the home. Perhaps the product of combustion isn't fully exhausted. You should consider purchasing a condensing type furnace with two heat exchangers where the combustion air supply and the product of combustion come from and exit to the exterior.  These units are 90-95% efficient.

How many other appliances use inside air for combustion in your home:  water heater, fireplace, etc. How many appliances draw air from inside the home only to exit that conditioned air: shower fans, electric clothes dryer, stove exhaust fan. Where does this air come from. Perhaps you have an attached garage and this air is being sucked into the home. This could be a health problem. Newer more air tight homes use HRV's or other mechanical devices to replace and circulate air. You need to chat with your Kingston Ontario home inspector to fully understand positive and negative air pressures.

The Stack Effect draws air into the home with a negative air pressure only to result in exiting air in a positive pressure. Perhaps your attic is not circulating air well: maybe the soffit vents are jambed with insulation. You might find poor circulation resulting in moisture problems.  We'll talk about this next time.

So if you are looking for a Kingston Ontario home inspector,  jot down this number and lets chat. 613 893 0159.

 

Our journey to the “Carbon-Zero” home.

 

The world in not running out of energy resources. The way in which we consume energy in the future and the source from which it comes is where the rubber meets the road.

 

The Earth maintains a balance between incoming solar radiation and outgoing radiation. It’s this balance which determines temperatures on the surface of the earth.

 

Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere absorb radiation (heat which has been reflected or radiated  from the earth)  and then radiated  back to the earth, warming the earth’s surface. Without this process, the temperature of the earth would be below the freezing point of water, so the greenhouse effect is a natural, necessary process.

 

Carbon Dioxide (CO2) is the second most important greenhouse gas. Because CO2 seems to accumulate more than dissipate over time, herein lies the concern. If the natural balance of greenhouse gases is disturbed, the effect over time would be dramatic temperature changes on earth.

 

 

One way to measure the environmental impact of a home is by the amount of CO2 its operation puts into the air, most of which is produced by power plants supplying homes with electricity, oil or gas. The average home in the US is responsible for putting approximately 40,000 pounds of CO2 into the air each year. Compare this to a home using conventional energy sources in a tightly-built home with a photovoltaic system, which produces not only its own electricity for the year, but a small surplus. Homes whose operation produces no CO2 are called Carbon-Zero homes. In addition to money saved on utility bills for a carbon-zero home, the environmental savings are the reduction in the amount of CO2 which would otherwise have been produced by a conventional utility power plant.

 

Two common strategies for working to achieve a zero-carbon-emission home are conservation and supply strategies.

Conservation Strategies concentrate on designs or changes which will reduce the amount of energy needed.

Supply Strategies include installation of technical systems and components such as photovoltaics, solar, thermal, and passive solar design.

 

Supplying consumers with drinking water uses energy for extraction, pumping, treatment, distribution, and dispersal of wastewater. Less water consumption simply means less energy required. Conservation is the mantra.

 

Toilets are responsible for about 40% of indoor water consumption. Use Low Flow Toilets or Pressure-Assist Toilets. Install a displacement bag in the water tank or a Vacuum-Assist Toilet.  Dual-Flush Toilets let you choose between a liquid or solid flush. Composting Toilets contain a tank or multiple tanks in which sewage and waste are composted.

 

How about a Greywater System? (referring to wastewater from showers, tubs, sinks, laundries, and dishwashers). Filtered greywater can be reused for toilets.

 

Landscape irrigation is responsible for about 50% of home water use. Limit turfgrass to 20% of a landscaped area (Xeriscape). Store roof-water and use for irrigation. Use bubblers, micro-spray and drip systems to provide more precise water placement at lower volume. Group plants together that need less or more water. Wind sensors will prevent spray irrigation at windy times. Use a programmable system to budget water.  The best time to water is between 5AM and 10AM. Allow grass to grow up to 3 inches long. This will shade soil and reduce evaporation.

 

Value engineering is the term used to describe enhanced-efficiency rough framing methods for building construction. Wood and steel wall framing members act as thermal bridges in transmitting heat through the building envelope. By reducing the number of framing members, 24 inch centers instead of 16 inch means fewer studs and a greater percentage of the overall exterior wall filled with insulation.

 

The use of Structural Insulated Panels (SIP’s) or Insulated Concrete Forms (ICF’s)  result in a building system that is extremely strong and energy efficient because there are no wall studs to transmit heat to the outside.

 

Daylighting is the practice of using natural light to illuminate a building interior. Light Shelves bounce light deep into a building. Skylights allow passive light in. Light tubes use a special lens designed to amplify low-level light. Sunlight is channelled through a tube coated with a highly-reflective material, then enters the living space through a diffuser. Fiber Optic systems use bundles of light-conducting tubes. At the exterior, light is concentrated on one end of the tubes using a parabolic collector similar to a satellite dish. The other end of the tubes terminates at a hybrid interior light fixture which also contains a conventional bulb. A photosensor will increase light from the bulb as exterior light fades.

 

Use infrared (IR) sensors to detect human body heat and switch lights on and off as needed.

 

 

Author of this article: Bill Marston BSc,CFP,RFP,CIM   Certified Home Inspector

 

 

References:

Facing the Hard Truth     :           http://www.npc.org/

Energy Sources:                        http://www.eia.doe.gov/neic/brochure/renew05/renewable.html

Greenhouse Gases:                   http://www.eia.doe.gov/oiaf/1605/ggccebro/chapter1.html

The Earth’s Energy Balance:       http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Library/#

The Earth’s Energy Budget:        http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/Observatory/

Sustainable Building:                  http://www.greenbuilder.com/Sourcebook/