What a wonderful setting that this adult quality highrise condo offers in Byron in South west London Ontario. Living across from Springbank Park in this 5th floor 2 bedroom end unit with a great view, you have no maintenance, a 260 degree balcony, huge rooms, ensuite in master and a a nice working kitchen.    You have a salt water pool, underground parking and a very short walk to downtown Byron, with 2 drugstoresm a METRO, 2 banks, 2 churches, dentists and other professional services. There is even a bus stop in front of the building.   At $195,000 you can't go wrong in this adult building with great amenities. See our virtual tour and then give me a call, you'll see what I mean by the view. 02/23/2011

OPEN HOUSE THIS SATURDAY & SUNDAY 2-4 PM This Saturday & Sunday, February 26 and 27th, this beautiful 2 year old house will be open for you to view, adore and for the cost consience who appreciate value, a great buy! Finished top to bottom with many upgrades, why buy new when you can get this home for only $324,900 on a 184′ lot in a great family neighbourhood, great schools, awesome array of shopping and amenities? See the Virtual Tour and for room sizes and other inclusions, the MLS# is 472085. i'll be there, stop in for a tour or to say hello or to ask questions. NOTE: The Seller is very motivated and is offering a move in allowance OR a fence allowance. If you want both, go kick a tire! 02/22/2011

Want the best of both worlds? Living across from Springbank Park in this 5th floor 2 bedroom end unit with a great view, you have no maintenance, a 260 degree balcony, huge rooms, ensuite in master a nice working kitchen.    You have a salt water pool, underground parking and a very short walk to downtown Byron, with 2 drugstoresm a METRO, 2 banks, 2 churches, dentists and other professional services. There is even a bus stop in front of the building.   At $195,000 you can't go wrong in this adult building with great amenities. See our virtual tour and then give me a call, you'll see what I mean by the view. 02/15/2011

London is one of the most stable real estate markets in Canada. ReMax has completed a national study of home prices increases across Canada during the past ten years. Surveying 18 major centres across Canada they found that the London St. Thomas area had the lowest average price increase from year to year. The national average was an average annual increase of 6.82% while London's average was 4.82%. Not great news if you are real estate speculator and there will be some pundits claiming that real estate is not a good investment, but let's look at what 4.82% per year means. Read more about London and area's real estate market 02/14/2011

428 homes sold in January in the area served by LSTAR (London St.Thomas Association of Realtors) down 9.3% from last year's count of 472.  Average Prices in London were up marginally to $233,073 from $231,020 in December while the average price across the entire jurisdiction is down slightly from $227,056  to $ 223,667. Steady is the word that best describes our local market. View the market graphs 02/14/2011

In the first month of 2011, 428 homes exchanged hands, down 9.3% from the previous year and I personally feel the record snowfall and low temperatures had a lot to do with it. Year Sale    January sales included 347 detached homes (down 8% from the previous year) and 81 condos (down 14.7% from the previous year).    "Average home prices have increased slightly year over year, their increase from one month to the next is far more modest and more fully represents the level and pace of actual appreciation," says the president of our local real estate board. (LSTAR) "If you look at the difference between average price in December 2010 and January 2011, you'll see that we're actually down 1.5%." Compared to the last month of 2010 the average price for a home is down 2.6% and the average pric... 02/06/2011

I was asked to list a house the other day that had been on MLS with another brokerage for 132 days and did not sell. I did my research and felt the asking price was correct and thought to myself, "What is wrong with the place?" After viewing the home, which was in great condition and after meeting the exasperated home owners who are more than affable and motivated, I am pretty sure I know why the home did not sell. The only exposure was MLS No feedback from buyer agents to listing agent to seller Only 3 pictures shown on MLS listing No further promotion, no staging, no farming, basically hang a sign and pray it sells!     By listing with me this home was on 60+ websites, over 30 pictures, 2 virtual tours, all within 3 hours. Here are a few of the sights: 1.   Adicio.com     2.     Agent... 02/02/2011

East London 3 bedroom Townhouses available for sale. As of Jan. 29, there are 31 Three bedroom townhouses for sale on the MLS system in East London.  They range in price from $99,000 to $234,900. If you are looking for a 3 bedroom townhouse in East London, call me today to set up a viewing appointment. 01/29/2011

Every year I get emails from across Canada & Europe from students who will be going to Western or other faculties near UWO (The University of Western Ontario). They are looking for a decent home that they can live in while attending Western, plus, have some room mates to offset the costs. How about a 6 bedroom house, 5 1/2 years old, all the amenities and a few minutes to Masonville Mall and UWO? For only $349,000 or lease the whole house for only $2100 per month! Do the math, value, income and an upscale neighbourhood! 01/29/2011

2 Bedroom Townhouses for sale in East London! There are as of Jan. 28th, 4  two bedroom townhouses available for sale on MLS in East London. They range in price from $79,000 to $89, 900. These would make a great starter home for a first time buyer or they could make an investment opportunity being they are near to London's Fanshawe College. For more information on these or any other property in the London area. Please feel free to Email, call or text me. 01/28/2011

New measures to help Canadian household debt were announced on January 17th. Ottawa is clamping down on the mortgage market with a package of measures to deal with Canadians' record levels of household debt. The adjustments to the mortgage insurance guarantee framework will come into force on March 18, 2011. The withdrawal of government insurance backing on lines of credit secured by homes will come into force on April 18, 2011. The Finance Department new measures are as follows: Reduce the maximum amortization period to 30 years from 35 years for new government-backed insured mortgages with loan-to-value ratios of more than 80 per cent.   Lower the maximum amount Canadians can borrow in refinancing their mortgages to 85 per cent from 90 per cent of the value of their homes.   Withdraw ... 01/26/2011

Reviewing 2010 homes sales in White Oaks 2010 is behind us, how was the real estate market in London's White Oaks neighbourhood? Let's start with detached homes. Detached homes 25 years sold at an average price of $190,096 an increase of 5.8% over 2009. Detached homes younger than 25 years old sold at an average of $224,753, up 3.3% compared to 2009. Semi-detached homes. Semi's over 25 years old averaged $150148 compared to $146,979 in 2009. The newer semi's averaged $164,367 an increase of 5.8% over 2009′s results. Sales volumes of single family homes were 127 units in 2010 down marginally from 130 in 2009. Townhouse Condos.  57 townhouse condos sold at an average of $122,840 in 2010 compared to 54 in 2009 averaging $117,831. For a detailed analysis visit White Oaks Reports 01/17/2011

Below is a news release from The Canadian Real Estate Association covering the 3 changes to mortgage rules just announced 20 minutes ago by Ottawa. As you can see, they are reasonable and within our history of sound financial management of trying to control consumer debt! Some may laugh at that last sentence but I for one am thankful that Canada has not faced the economic challenges that many countries face today due to weak governance.   "As anticipated in CREA's recent Call to Action, the government today announced three loan financing changes designed to address concerns about increasing levels of household debt. A link to the government announcement is here. First, the government will reduce the maximum mortgage amortization period from 35 to 30 years. Second, the maximum amount of ... 01/17/2011

This Saturday from 1-3 PM, January 15 there will be an Open House at 1690 Fiddlehead Place in Sunningdale, an upscale neighbourhood in North London. This 6 bedroom house is completed finished from top to botton, is less than 6 years old and built by the well known and oldest builder in London, Sifton. At $355,000 in this neighbourhood, on a quiet cul-de-sac and minutes to Masonville Mall, University of Western Ontario, Fanshawe College, London Health Science Centre (University Hospital) and just 5 minutes to downtown London. See the Virtual Tour and come and visit and have a chat. I know this neighbourhood well and if you are interested in saving money, need I say more?  01/13/2011

This Sunday, January 16 from 2-4 PM there will be an Open House at 1376 Coronation Drive in Hyde Park, a newer London neighbourhood in North West London.This 2 year old home is finished top to bottom with loads of upgrades and on a 184' deep lot! Hardwood floors, IKEA kitchen, master ensuite, double garage and on and on. See the  virtual tour and all this for $324,900! Ready to move in to and you will love this family neighourhood with great schools, big box stores nearby, play areas, library and only minutes to UWO, downtown London and the quaint village of Hyde Park.   01/13/2011

Almost all Canadian workers will take home less of their pay cheque in 2011 is the latest news from the Canadian Taxpayers Federation. If you live in Ontario as I do, we will get walloped with higher federal and provincial taxes and may catch a break in London Ontario where our new mayor is promising a freeze on taxes. Starting January 1, 2011, Canadians on average will be forking over on average 2% more of their earnings. Get this quote from a research director at the Federation: "In many cases, it's the low & middle-income earners who'll see the steepest increases." The main culprit according to the CTF is increases in employment insurance and Canada Pension Plan premiums. Does anyone in governments at any level have any knowledge on how to stimulate the economy? Taxes are a must in t... 01/11/2011

Lets List it High Because I Know Someone Will Offer Less There is a right way and a wrong way to sell a home. Here are some of the wrong ways. I Want to List it High Because I Know Someone Will Offer LessWhen a home seller interviews a real estate agent it's easy for them to get caught up in the excitement of choosing a sales price. If they can get more money for the home, it means more financial opportunities for the homeowner. Unfortunately, uninformed sellers often choose the listing agent who tells them they will list it at the highest list price. This is, by far, the worst mistake a seller can make.Establishing Value The reality is that it doesn't matter how much money you think your home is worth. The only person whose opinion really matters is the buyer who is going to make an of... 01/08/2011

LSTAR, the London St.Thomas Association of Realtors, recently released sales statistics for the month of December and the year 2010. The average price for a home in the Association's jurisdiction in 2010 rose 6.3% for detached homes to stand at $240,147, 7.9% for condos to stand at $171,098 , and 6.4% for total residential to stand at $227.056. The average sale price is calculated based on the total dollar volume of all properties sold. However, LSTAR cautions that, while average sale price information can be useful in establishing trends over time, it should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. A common mistake is believing that that average increase applies automatically to your home. Let's take a different look at 2010 and 2009 D... 01/07/2011

This Sunday, January 9, 2011 from 1-3PM there will be an Open House at 900 Pond View Road at Unit 38. This wonderful 3 bedroom townhome is located in a great neighbourhood in London, very quiet and easy access to Highway 401. Where for $158,900 can you get a beautiful 3 bedroom , 1 1/2 bath townhouse with a garage, finished basement, a walkout to a patio and a sundeck & balcony off the living room? Extremely large room sizes and everything has been well maintained. A short walk to a great conservation area. Just pack your toothbrush and if you come on Sunday, I'll give you a toothbrush! If you buy it, I'll even give you 2! 01/06/2011

Uplands  is located in the north end of London and is bounded by Richmond Street to the west, Sunningdale Road to the south, Adelaide Street North to the east and London municipal boundary to the north.        Uplands is a relatively newer area of London with a great cross section of executive style homes, one floor bungalows and a great selection of one floor condo homes, both attached and detached.        Living in Uplands is convenient to major shopping, churches, schools, dining, golf courses and other recreation venues and attractions.       For a complete list of homes or condos for sale in Uplands or other information, feel free to contact me. 01/05/2011