ty lacroix: How Property Assessment in Ontario is Calculated - 01/14/10 04:51 AM
Property Assessment in Ontario

The Government of Ontario has made a number of changes to the property assessment system that
went into effect in the 2009 property tax year. These changes include the introduction of a four-yearassessment update cycle and a phase-in of assessment increases.
I am constantly asked how MPAC comes up with their assesments and why that property is assessed that way and why another is assessed at a different price. Hopefully the following will help.
Currently, the assessed value of properties in Ontario is based on a January 1, 2008 valuation date. MPAC's last province-wide assessment update … (12 comments)

ty lacroix: Make sure you report repayments to RRSP Home Buyer's Plan or Lifelong Learning Plan! - 01/12/10 01:13 PM
     If you have made repayments to your RRSP for the Home Buyer's Plan (HBP) or Lifelong Learning Plan (LLP), did you know you must complete Schedule 7 on your income tax return? If you fail to designate the RRSP payments as repayments of HBP or LLP, Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) will add to your income the minimum payment that was required for the year.  Your RRSP contributions will reduce your unused RRSP deduction room carried forward, if they are deducted as regular RRSP contributions.
 If you have not completed Schedule 7 properly in past years where you have made contributions … (8 comments)

ty lacroix: Financial Consumers Unprotected - 01/11/10 06:33 AM
"Consumers are at risk from unsafe financial products" says Harvard law professor Elizabeth Warren. "It is impossible to buy a toaster that has a one-in-five chance of bursting into flames and burning down your house. But it is possible to refinance an existing home with a mortgage that has the same one-in-five chance of putting the family on the street-and the mortgage won't even carry a disclosure of that fact to the homeowner!"
How Did Financial Products Get So Dangerous?
Ms. Warren goes on to say that part of the problem is that disclosure has been a way to confuse rather … (2 comments)

ty lacroix: Don't Be POOR In Real Estate - 01/03/10 05:51 AM
Don't Pass Over Opportunities Repeatedly in Real Estate.
 Whether you are an investor, a home or condo owner or a real estate sales person, we all seem to make the same mistakes.
 How many times have we heard or said? "I could have bought that place for __________, look what it is selling for now."
 "If I had the money, I'd buy that place."
 "I'll wait till they drop the price; it will never sell at that price"
 "I'll put my house on the market next year, prices are going up."
 "When I save enough money........."
 Yada, yada yada.
 When is … (6 comments)

ty lacroix: Christmas Believe It Or Not - 12/24/09 04:46 AM
Merry Christmas All and may 2010 be prosperous and healthy. Usually the first 30 to 60 days of a new year people are upbeat and energetic and then for what ever reason, return to that day to day 'why try mode'.
2010 could be the year in which the past 18 months has taught everyone a lesson in humility, finances and other challenges to learn from them and not repeat past errors and mistakes.
Ty
… (8 comments)

ty lacroix: Confessions of A Real Estate Mini-Mogul - 12/20/09 05:49 AM
 
 In this weekly update :
 Ty Lacroix's World: This week's ramblings
Special Report: Are you prepared for survival?
Featured Article: Focus on investments you control
Recommended Resources: "Confessions of a Real Estate Mini-Mogul"
 Ty's World
 Last week was quite busy with Christmas and Year End gatherings with staff, associates and friends. It is amazing every year I say or hear," You know, we should get together more often, have lunch or go for a drink." And I always vow that I will, and, 12 months later, the same thing. Well publicly, for 2010 I announce: "Let's get together more often". … (3 comments)

ty lacroix: Are You Prepared For Economic Survival? - 12/19/09 08:09 AM
Ty's "Did You Know"? ezine
 Dec 19, 2009
 In this Issue:
 Ty Lacroix's World: This week's ramblings
Special Report: Are you prepared for survival?
Featured Article: Focus on investments you control
Recommended Resources: "Confessions of a Real Estate Mini-Mogul"
Last week was quite busy with Christmas and Year End gatherings with staff, associates and friends. It is amazing every year I say or hear," You know, we should get together more often, have lunch or go for a drink." And I always vow that I will, and, 12 months later, the same thing. Well publicly, for 2010 I announce: "Let's get … (2 comments)

ty lacroix: Short Formula For Real Estate Success - 11/29/09 01:45 AM
Show up on time Do what you say you will do. Finish what you start. (An expired listing expires the day you take it.An unqualified buyer can't buy. An unmotivated buyer won't buy) Say please and thank you. (Set up a stay in touch program for life and start at #1 again!)                                                        
… (12 comments)

ty lacroix: A story about golf, but much larger...The very best 10 minutes you will spend today - 11/23/09 06:44 AM
If you play Golf you should watch this video......If you don't play Golf, you should watch this video If you ever had a dream please watch this video...........If you have never had a dream, please watch.........You will be richer for the watching and with no regrets..........http://vodpod.com/watch/1165857-walk-on-espn-video
… (2 comments)

ty lacroix: Did Your Turkey Use a Sunblock? - 11/22/09 02:27 AM
In this world of rules and regulations my neck muscles get a great workout because I am constantly shaking my head!
In an 18 month battle the Organic Council of Ontario has had with the turkey industry marketing board seems to have been settled!
The rule requiring all flocks of more than 50 turkeys to be raised under a solid roof was intended to prevent contact with wild birds that might carry avian influenza.
The solution!
Conventional turkey producers will still be required to raise birds under a roof. Organic birds will only have to be covered by a solid roof … (6 comments)

ty lacroix: What Would The World Look Like If The Population Was 100? - 11/19/09 07:55 AM
If you could shrink the earth's population to a village of exactly 100 people, with all the existing human ratios remaining the same, it would look like this:
•·         57 Asians
•·         21 Europeans
•·         14 from the Western Hemisphere
•·         8 Africans
•·         52 would be female, 48 would be ....?
•·         70 would be non-white, 30 white
•·         70 would be non -Christian, 30 would be Christian
•·         59% of the world's wealth would be in the hands of only six people and all six would be North American
•·         80 would live in substandard housing
•·         70 would … (4 comments)

ty lacroix: The Meaning of Education in Real Estate - 11/16/09 11:11 AM
There is quite a misconception of the meaning of the word educate. Dictionaries do not help the situation because they define the word educate as an act of imparting knowledge.
The word educate has its roots in the Latin word educe, which means to develop from within, to educe; to draw out, to grow through the law of use.
As real estate people, we hear "You have to educate your buyers and sellers", Broker/Owners "You have to educate your agents."
How many of us draw out the client's motivation to sell, the area and style of home, what they can afford, all … (14 comments)

ty lacroix: Dog Tales For A Sunday Afternoon - 11/15/09 05:21 AM
Dog Tales For A Sunday Afternoon
Two guys were out for a stroll. One had a Doberman pinscher and the other had a Chihuahua.  As they sauntered down the street, the guy with the Doberman said, "Let's go over to that bar/restaurant and get something to eat." 
 The guy with the Chihuahua said, "We can't go in there. We've got the dogs with us."
 The one with the Doberman said, "Just follow my lead." They walked over to the restaurant and the guy with the Doberman put on a pair of dark glasses and started to walk in.  The bouncer at … (6 comments)

ty lacroix: Beaver Dams, Real Estate and a building permit - 11/08/09 05:59 AM
Below is a retort and bureaucratic mixup, foul up and a FUBAR event that occurred a few years ago,
This is an actual letter sent to a man named Ryan DeVries regarding a pond on his property. It was sent by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Quality, State of Pennsylvania . This guy's response is hilarious, but read the State's letter before you get to the response letter. SUBJECT: DEQ File No.97 -59-0023; T 11N; R10W, Sec. 20; Lycoming County Dear Mr. DeVries: It has come to the attention of the Department of Environmental Quality that there has been recent unauthorized … (8 comments)

ty lacroix: Suggestion For Fixing Our Economy - 11/06/09 07:06 AM
Dear Prime Minister Harper and President Obama . Please find below a suggestion for fixing our economy! 
Instead of giving billions of dollars to the car industry that will squander the moneyon lavish parties and unearned bonuses, use the following plan.
You can call it the Patriotic Retirement Plan: There are about 10 million people over 50 in the work force. Pay them 1 million apiece severance for early retirement with the following stipulations: 1) They MUST retire. Ten million job openings - Unemployment fixed.
2) They MUST buy a new CAR. Ten million cars ordered - Automotive Industry fixed.
… (8 comments)

ty lacroix: Afraid of Getting a Flu Shot? - 11/01/09 12:24 AM
Over the last 2 weeks I have heard and read the pros and cons of getting the HINI swine flu vaccine shot. I personally will get one when I am elegible to receive one.(I am in a group that is supposed to be healthy and less of a risk of catching it, and because of shortages, high risk groups get it first).
A few points to ponder however:
The Canadian government has agreed to cover the cost of any lawsuits launched against the manufacturer GlaxoSmith-Kline should something go wrong. The Canadian government approved the vaccine before Glaxo finished clinical trials Health Canada … (6 comments)

ty lacroix: NO or Know? - 10/26/09 06:55 AM
                                 Know or No? 
Have you been on a listing presentation and the homeowners said ‘no' to you? Have you been farming an area, not getting results, ‘no' one is calling you? Have you had a buyer say ‘no' to you? What about an offer to purchase which is quite close to asking price and you got a ‘no' for a reply?
In my experience, I have found that they are not saying ‘no', they are saying they don't ‘know'!
If a listing presentation is rejected, did the homeowners say ‘no' to me or was it because they didn't ‘know' … (2 comments)

ty lacroix: The Ability to Sell Any Home Rests On The Three P’s - 10/21/09 02:17 PM

The Ability to Sell Any Home Rests On the Three P's, and they are:
Price, Product and Promotion.
The seller usually has control over the price. The seller eventually decides what price he or she will accept for their home.
The seller definitely has control of the product (the property). The seller controls the neatness, cleanliness and general maintenance of the property while being listed.
 The REALTOR* has control of the promotion.
Missing one of the 3 P's can be quite harmful. If the home is overpriced, it won't matter what kind of promotion the REALTOR* does or the show ability of … (7 comments)

ty lacroix: Activity on 2 Storey Homes in North London - 10/20/09 07:02 AM
Activity on 2 Storey Homes in North London
‘What are 2 storey homes selling for in North London' is a question I get asked weekly. Trying to compare apples with oranges may be simpler, but here is a formula that I use which then would enable me to break it down by specific neighbourhood, then street, then house, then amenities.
The average 2 storey house in North London sold for 98% of the asking price of $313,077 and the average time it took to sell a North London 2 storey house was 50 days!
A breakdown of neighbourhoods is as follows: … (1 comments)

ty lacroix: 52 Weeks to Earn $100,000+ in Real Estate Sales Week 2 Session 1 - 10/19/09 06:27 AM
52 Weeks to Earn $100,000+ in Real Estate Sales
Week 2, Session 1                                                                   
 You should have been quite busy last week getting your name out there and looking for business. (If you say you are still getting a list ready & thinking about the area you want to market), stop right there!
Action will produce results! Success leaves clues! Look around and see what successful REALTORS* in your area do. They market, they market first, they market consistently and I will repeat myself, THEY know the difference between advertising and marketing. There is a huge difference, especially in costs!
                   … (3 comments)