R e a l E s t a t e M a r k e t i n g N e w s M o r t g a g e s Te c h n o l o g y O p i n i o n

Issue #239 May 2009

Follow your intuition to close the dealPage 50

4 ways to expand your client listPage 40

Team or solo?Which works better for you?Page 8

TREB’s Maureen O’NeillOn serving a double term as

president of Canada’s largest boardPage 12

Ifyoulookatthenumbers,moreclientstrustRE/MAXwiththeirrealestateneedsthananyotherfirm.Infact,over1inevery3realestatetransactionsinCanadaisdonebyRE/MAXagents.Soifyou’relookingtoimproveyournumbers,getwiththeRealEstateLeader.Theproofisinthenumbers.

Get on the fast track to success. Visit joinremax.ca or call your local RE/MAX office.Each office is independently owned and operated

Noonesellsmorerealestate.

38.6% 17.0%Co.1

14.6%Co.2

5.2%Co.3

All others 20.9% All others 16.6%

All others 5.1% All others 19.9%

3.7%Co.4

Winnipeg

32.8% 15.7%Co.1

14.2%Co.2

14.1%Co.3

6.6%Co.4

Saskatoon& surrounding area

53.9%

Vernon& surrounding area

19.7%Co.1

17.2%Co.2

2.6%Co.3

1.5%Co.4

Edmonton

41.4% 16.8%Co.1

12.1%Co.2

7.0%Co.3

2.8%Co.4

REM MAY 2009 3

hile the U.S. economicstimulus packages are astep in the right direc-

tion, what’s really needed is a fixedinterest rate for the next year and atax credit for all homebuyers,according to one of that country’slargest real estate franchisors.

“In the U.S., housing has dri-ven us out of six of the last sevendownturns, whether they weresevere downturns or recessions,”says Jim Gillespie, president andCEO of U.S.-based ColdwellBanker Real Estate. “That’s whyI’m very strong in the U.S. aboutthe idea of having a tax credit forall buyers and also a fixed interestrate for 12 months. Because notonly are people trying to time thebottom for prices, they’re also try-ing to time the bottom for interestrates.”

Gillespie says that trying totime any market – real estate,stocks, bonds or interest ratesmakes no sense.

“Buying a home is not like buy-ing a lottery ticket. That’s what theU.S. got caught up in, especiallyfrom 2000 to 2005, saying ‘Hey,let’s buy a home, it’s going to appre-ciate in value and we can refinanceand buy new cars and take trips andthen refinance’,” Gillespie says.Instead, people should buy a homefor lifestyle reasons. “You raise yourfamily, you build up your equity. It’sjust a great lifestyle investment.”

Gillespie was in Canada at theend of March to help honourColdwell Banker Canada’s top bro-kers and salespeople at the compa-ny’s Broker Meeting and AwardsGala in Toronto. He came armedwith some dramatic statistics fromsouth of the border: California, forexample, now is selling twice asmany homes as they were selling ayear ago, but prices are down 35 to40 per cent. Throughout the heart-land of America, inventory levelsare up and prices are flat; and interms of consumer confidence,“everybody’s hunkered down.”

“The problem is that mainstreet America is not buying frommain street America – the numberof homes being sold, which hasincreased, are being sold to eitherfirst-time buyers or investors taking

ernie Vogt has re-emergedas the new president andpartner of national reloca-

tion company Dada DestinationServices Inc. and Dada AventureInc. Vogt stepped down as head ofPrudential Real Estate Affiliates ofCanada in February 2008, sayingthat after more than three decadesin the real estate industry, he wasretiring. But at the time he added,“You never know exactly what’sgoing to come up when you’redone.”

What has come up for Vogt isthe opportunity to grow the realestate referral network for Dada,which provides relocation productsand services, as well as referralmanagement for global relocationcompanies and private firms. Dadaprovides comprehensive relocationservices, including preview tours, atemporary accommodation pro-gram, home finding for renters andhome purchase assistance. Thecompany also offers “settling in”assistance for both domestic and

international transferees, includingtransition coaching for spouses ofinternational clients, educationassistance and placement, as wellas orientation information forcross-border and internationaltransferees relocating to Canada.

Vogt is a well-known real estateindustry executive, having workedas Ontario general manager for theformer A.E. LePage, general man-ager for Royal LePage, a member ofthe real estate transition team dur-ing the Coldwell Banker/CanadaTrust merger, president ofCountrywide Realty and then aspresident and CEO of Prudential’sCanadian operations.

Vogt concedes that mostRealtors in Canada are likelyunaware of Dada. “Because of thenature of Dada’s business, servicingboth relocation companies andcorporate clients themselves, weare a niche player and sort of underthe radar.” But he says Dada is wellknown within the relocationindustry, and offers international

relocation firms that don’t haveCanadian outlets access to theCanadian marketplace on an inde-pendent basis, since Dada is notconnected to a real estate network.

“One of the things we’re devel-oping now is becoming an agentfor offshore relocation organiza-tions that do business in Canadafrom time to time but can’t fullyservice it,” says Vogt. “We can betheir eyes, ears and legs on theground, almost be their surrogate.One of the aspects of our strategicplan is to develop that businessinternationally.”

Dada is a member of theToronto Real Estate Board, addsVogt, but not to sell real estate.“We’re a real estate brokerage busi-ness for the purposes of managingreferrals – we will not be listing andselling homes, we’ll work withRealtors.”

Based out of Ottawa, Dada hasbeen providing relocation productsand services throughout Canadafor 10 years. - Kathy Bevan REM

Bernie Vogt relocates to Dada AventureB

Gillespie calls for fixed U.S. interest rateColdwell Banker’s U.S. CEO visits Toronto to fete the company’s top brokers and sales repsBy Kathy Bevan

W advantage of the distressed sales,where homes are 30-40-50 per centless than what they sold for two orthree years ago,” says Gillespie. “Somany citizens in the country are sit-ting and waiting – there are con-sumer confidence issues, andthey’re sitting and waiting.”

Last fall, Coldwell Bankerstaged a unique promotion to try tomotivate “main street” homebuy-ers. On October 10, the U.S. fran-chisor held a “10-Day Sales Event”,where they encouraged vendorsacross the country to reduce theirlisting prices by up to 10 per cent.While the event provided a posi-tive counterpoint to the creditmeltdown that was dominating thenews headlines at the time, not allof Coldwell Banker’s brokeragessupported the initiative. In theSeattle area, Ron Sparks, managingvice-president of Coldwell BankerBain, voiced his local concernsabout the national event, in anemail that was posted on the SeattlePost-Intelligencer’s website.

“While I appreciate the effort to‘make something happen’ relativeto the more adversely affected mar-kets in the U.S., we strongly feelthe ‘retail’ mindset of this promo-tion is not appropriate,” wroteSparks. “Homes are unique, andeach brings a nuanced value propo-sition to the market. We do ourvery best to properly price our list-ings every day.”

From the head office perspec-tive, however, the sale was a suc-cess. “Of the sellers that reducedtheir price anywhere up to 10 percent – each owner could maketheir own decision – over two-thirds of them kept their prices atthe lower amount, because theyrecognized in their heart that theyweren’t pricing their property cor-rectly,” says Gillespie.

Low prices across the U.S. haveresulted in the best affordabilitylevels on record. In January, NAR’sHousing Affordability Index rose toits highest level since the associa-tion first began tracking this databack in 1970. The biggest factorholding the housing market back islack of consumer confidence.

“Conditions have been aligningvery favourably for homebuyers,

with the exception of consumerconfidence,” NAR’s chief econo-mist, Lawrence Yun, stated whenthe January figures were released.“But I am hopeful that sales willturn around by late spring and earlysummer, because history suggeststhat home sales can rise even intimes of job losses when housingaffordability rises.” REM

Jim Gillespie

COLDWELL BANKER’S MAGIC TABLEA team of Coldwell Banker Real Estate executives travelled to Toronto

for the Canadian Broker Meeting and Awards Gala, and while the guests ofhonour were the top Canadian brokers and salespeople, the star of theshow was a tabletop. Not just any tabletop, however – this was a MicrosoftSurface tabletop with customized Coldwell Banker software that turns thetabletop into an interactive home search vehicle.

At the touch of a finger – literally – users can call up visuals of neigh-bourhoods and detailed listing images, and move information across thescreen and into personalized listing portfolios. They can then be emailedto a Coldwell Banker Realtor to set up appointments to view the listings inperson. The Microsoft Surface, with its Coldwell Banker home searchapplication software, is being demonstrated at various Coldwell Bankerevents throughout North America. The franchisor expects to make it avail-able to Coldwell Banker brokers and salespeople within six months.

The Microsoft Surface hardware costs approximately $17,000 US; aprice tag for the combined tabletop and software has not yet beenannounced.

4 REM MAY 2009

Multiple ListingsDo you have news to share with Canada’s real estate community?Let REM know about it! Email: jim@remonline.com

By Jim Adair

wenty-three year realestate veteran Al Sinclairand his 10-person team,

along with Michelle Walker andMark Richards, are now part ofthe Re/Max Hallmark team in theBeaches area of Toronto.

Ken McLachlan, broker ofrecord for the firm, says, “Theirarrival firmly gives us added pres-ence in The Beach and the sur-rounding neighbourhoods whenit comes to resale and new con-struction.”

Sinclair’s team includes hiswife Janet, who specializes innew construction along with res-idential resale. Walker andRichards have developed astrong reputation in the realestate community, McLachlansays. The company says themove increases its market sharefrom 40 to 55 per cent.

Re/Max Hallmark Realty hasmore than 500 Realtors andseven offices throughout theGTA, servicing central Toronto,Leaside, The Beach, NorthRiverdale, Lawrence Park, DonMills and Richmond Hill.

■ ■ ■

Keith and Jennifer Burton,broker/owners of Royal LePageEstate Realty in Toronto, haveexpanded and moved theirbranch office to a new location at1052 Kingston Rd. Royal LePageEstate Realty’s head office willremain at 2301 Queen St. E.,where it has been for 25 years.

T The Burtons have also recruit-ed 26 experienced Realtors, bring-ing their numbers in The Beachto 125.

“Now is the time to be takingpositive action to bolster ourlocal economy and to boost con-fidence in our community,” saysJennifer Burton. “The sky is notfalling and it would be irrespon-sible to support suggestions thatit is.” To that end the Burtonshave been using local contrac-tors and retailers to completelyrenovate the Kingston Roadlocation.

“We believe that we haveseen the worst of this recessionand that the real estate marketin The Beach will remain strong.Our sales numbers of late cer-tainly support that theory withour company’s unit volume up 33per cent over March 2008,” saysKeith.

■ ■ ■

Cornerstone Credit Union, theowner of Renaud Realty andInsurance in Tisdale, Sask., hasjoined the Royal LePage franchisenetwork and will operate under thenew name Royal LePage RenaudRealty. Katherine Ukrainetz willmanage the Royal LePage RenaudRealty team.

■ ■ ■

Sales rep Christopher Suffel ofRight At Home Realty in Toronto,who describes himself as a formerfrustrated first-time home buyer,

recently launched First HomeFinders.

“With the purchase of myfirst home, the intricaciesinvolved in the transaction leftme with more questions thananswers, and little if any support.I knew there was a better way,”says Suffel in a news release. “Itwas this experience that spurredme to develop First HomeFinders. The program seeks toaddress the key issues faced bytoday’s home seekers, and someof the more outmoded approach-es to home buying still beingpracticed today.”

The program uses “detailedneighbourhood profiling andthorough property pre-qualifica-tion ensure a customized selec-tion of the most suitable proper-ties available, and using Twitterand SMS property alerts, first-time home buyers can receivereal-time data whenever andwherever they happen to be,”says the release.

Another key element of theprogram includes a commitmentto buyer representation. “Thisguarantee ensures that firsttimers have their best interests,and not the seller’s interests rep-resented at the negotiationtable,” Suffel says.

First Home Finders also pro-vides assistance with moving,new-home cleaning, applianceinsurance and after-care. Theonline portal for the program isat http://firsthomefinders.ca.

■ ■ ■

Re/Max Options Realtyrecently held its official openingin Halifax. Starting with 1,500sq. ft. on the main floor of theoffice tower at 6009 QuinpoolRd., one of the busiest intersec-tions in Halifax, the brokerageplans to eventually house 40sales associates and support staff,specializing in homes, lands, andbusinesses. The office also hasresident expertise in internation-al real estate, and has plans topromote Nova Scotia to theglobal marketplace.

Dave Kerr, broker/owner ofRe/Max Options Realty, says,“We strongly suspect that NovaScotia, with some of the mostundervalued shoreline in theworld, will attract a growingnumber of aging baby boomersfrom international destinationsin the years to come.”

The company is also posi-tioned to handle the influx ofreturning Nova Scotians, corpo-rate and military transfers intothe area, as well as the day-to-day purchase and sale of residen-tial and commercial properties.

■ ■ ■

Century 21 ExecutivesRealty sales rep Denise Dobierecently awarded a prize of10,000 Air Miles reward milesto Pat and Elle Dean of VernonB.C. She held a year-long con-test as a marketing initiative.

“This contest has been incredi-bly successful for me. It’s generateda lot of interest and people comeup to ask me about it all the time,”says Dobie. The Deans plan to usetheir 10,000 reward miles for a tripto Hawaii to celebrate their 25thwedding anniversary.

Century 21 Canada is the onlyorganization to offer customers Air

Miles reward miles on real estatetransactions.

■ ■ ■

Royal LePage has opened anew corporately owned office at635 The Queensway in the formerCity of Etobicoke (Toronto). Thebranch manager is Kevin Somers.The company says it plans to growthe office to a size similar to thedowntown location at 905 King St.W. in Toronto, which has about 50sales reps.

■ ■ ■

Devencore, Canada’s largestcorporate real estate advisor andbroker exclusively representingcorporate, industrial and retailspace users, has entered into a part-nership with Newmark KnightFrank, one of the largest indepen-dent real estate service firms in theworld. The partnership will oper-ate as Newmark Knight FrankDevencore.

Jean Laurin, Devencore’sCEO, says, “This enables us to offerour clients a complete range ofstrategic real estate services acrossNorth America and international-ly . . . Our goal is to become one ofthe top three service providers inthe world.”

Newmark Knight Frank’scapabilities and coverage extendthroughout the United States,Europe, Asia-Pacific, LatinAmerica, Africa and the MiddleEast. It has a staff of 6,900employees.

“We needed to have a presencein Canada,” says Barry M. Gosin,CEO of Newmark Knight Frank.“We are pleased to be partners withDevencore, a firm that is wellknown as an innovative providerof real estate solutions with anexceptional service model and anexcellent reputation.” REM

Keith and Jennifer Burton Dave Kerr Denise Dobie Kevin SomersKatherine Ukrainetz

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6 REM MAY 2009

PublisherHEINO MOLLS

e-mail: heino@remonline.com

General ManagerJOHN COOPER

e-mail: john@remonline.com

Director, Sales & MarketingDENNIS ROCK

e-mail: dennis@remonline.com

Brand DesignSANDRA GOODER

EditorJIM ADAIR

e-mail: jim@remonline.com

Senior EditorKATHY BEVAN

e-mail: kathy@remonline.com

Art DirectorLIZ MACKIN

Graphic DesignSHAWN KELLY

REM is published 12 times a year. It is an independently owned and operated company and is not affiliated with any real estate association, board orcompany. REM is distributed across Canada by leading real estate boards and by direct delivery in selected areas. Subscriptions are $40.95 per year(including $1.95 GST), payable by personal cheque. Entire contents copyright 2009 REM. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission from the publisher is prohibited. The opinions expressed in REM are not necessarily those of the publisher.

ISSN 1201-1223

2255B Queen Street EastSuite #1178Toronto, ON M4E 1G3Phone: 416.425.3504www.remonline.com

If you have industry news or want us to know about your company or services

Email jim@remonline.com

M AY 2 0 0 9Cover photo:

MARKO SHARK

erek Austin, broker/owner of Century 21 YourRealty in Innisfail, Alta.,

is the 2009 president of theCentral Alberta RealtorsAssociation.

“I’ve had the pleasure of work-ing with Derek for over 15 years.Throughout his career, from therole of a sales representative intothe role of an owner, he has shownthe kind of professionalism andleadership that is admired andrespected by all who work withDerek,” says Don Lawby, presidentof Century 21 Canada. “Under hismanagement, Century 21 YourRealty has grown into a successfuloffice, with sales associates whoexemplify the highest standards incustomer care and expertise in realestate.”

Austin has been a member ofthe association since February1989. He became a director of theassociation in 2005.

■ ■ ■

K. Scott Russell is the2009/2010 president of the RealEstate Board of GreaterVancouver. Russell replaces outgo-ing president Dave Watt.

“I look forward to serving myprofessional association in the yearwe celebrate its 90th anniversary.The history of our board closelymirrors that of Greater Vancouver.For generations, our associationhas been committed to protectproperty owners, ensure economicvitality, preserve our environmentand build better communities,”Russell says.

Before being elected president

by the REBGV Board of Directors,Russell served as a director for sev-eral years. He has also served as adirector of the B.C. Real EstateAssociation. He has been active inreal estate since 1980, and is thebroker/owner of Sutton Group -Seafair Realty in Richmond andSouth Delta.

Supporting the president in2009 are president-elect JakeMoldowan and vice-presidentRosario Setticasi.

Other members of the REBGVBoard of Directors are: Ray Harris,Re/Max Sabre Realty Group;Eugen L. Klein, Royal LePage CityCentre; Gordon Lockhart, SuttonGroup - Seafair Realty; J. DarcyMcLeod, Keller Williams ResultsRealty; Howard Or, Sutton GroupKillarney Realty; David Peerless,Dexter Associates Realty; DeborahJ. Spicer, Angell Hasman & Assoc.Realty; Lani Jo Weaver, RoyalPacific Realty; Mercedes Wong,Royal Pacific Realty; Sandra T.Wyant, Re/Max Ridge MeadowsRealty; David Yang, Royal PacificRealty; and Sing Yeo, Royal PacificRealty.

■ ■ ■

The Ontario Real EstateAssociation (OREA) says theprovincial government’s plan toharmonize the GST and PST willadd over $2,000 to the cost of areal estate transaction, hurting theresale home market and prolong-ing the housing industry’s recoveryfrom the current economic down-turn.

“Now is not the time to beerecting barriers to homeowner-

ship,” says Pauline Aunger, presi-dent of OREA. “We need con-sumers to invest in housing to helpget our economy going again.”

Under a harmonized sales tax(HST), homebuyers and sellers willhave to pay extra tax on a range ofservices associated with real estatetransactions such as legal fees, mov-ing costs, real estate commissionsand home inspection fees.Currently, consumers only pay thefive per cent Goods and ServicesTax (GST) on these services.

“These additional taxes couldprice some homebuyers, especiallyfirst-time homebuyers, right out ofthe market,” says Aunger.“Harmonizing will not help home-buyers in any way.”

For a resale house priced at$360,000, a HST could add over$2,000 in new taxes to closingcosts. In total, a HST will add $313million annually in new taxes toresale home transactions.

“In the last decade, Ontario’shomeowners have faced a barrageof new costs,” says Aunger. “Frommunicipal land transfer taxes to skyrocketing property taxes, home-owners are being pushed to thebrink to accommodate increasingdemands from government. A har-monized sales tax is yet anothercash grab on Ontario’s alreadyovertaxed homeowners.”

■ ■ ■

The rights of real propertyowners will improve when pro-posed changes to the B.C. StrataProperty Act take effect, says theBritish Columbia Real EstateAssociation (BCREA). The legis-lation was introduced in the B.C.Legislature on March 23.

“More affordable and efficientways to resolve disputes will helpowners of strata units protect theirhomes and manage their invest-ments,” says BCREA presidentScott Veitch.

In addition to measures relatedto the dispute resolution processesavailable to strata corporations and

strata owners under the StrataProperty Act, the changes pro-posed in Bill 12 clarify someadministrative processes andrequire strata corporations to getand retain reports regarding repairor maintenance of major items.

“Access to more – and better –

information, such as depreciationreports and audited financial state-ments, will help owners and poten-tial buyers make informed deci-sions,” says Veitch. “As a Realtor,I’m sure this will give my clientseven more confidence in their pur-chases.” REM

D

Derek Austin K. Scott Russell

Jake Moldowan

The Lethbridge and District Association of Realtors recentlyannounced their 2009 Board of Directors. Back row, from left:Rick Braden, Margaret Van (EO), Brad Cook (past-president),Kris Dennis, Michael Gott, Dale Stuckey. Front row, from left:Cathy Maxwell, Audrey King (president), Stan Mills (presidentelect), Fran Soroka.

Rosario Setticasi

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11103M_10X11_REM5186_11103_REM.indd 15186_11103_REM.indd 1 2/11/09 2:30:40 PM2/11/09 2:30:40 PM

8 REM MAY 2009

ara Rosen of ColdwellBanker The Real EstateCentre in Vaughan, Ont.

goes it alone.“I did have a personal assis-

tant but I ended up feeling like Ididn’t know my clients. I feltthey deserved to talk to me, notmy assistant,” she says. “When itcomes to delivering cheques andsuch, I prioritize and send acourier so I can have more timewith my clients. Being handson, I know exactly what is goingon at all times. The only personI can hold accountable is me. Ialso set up weekly schedules formyself to make sure I am gettingthe right balance in my life.”

Rosen says, “Everyone doesneed some personal time or theywill burn out and that does nothelp your clients. If I ever getoverwhelmed, I refer someclients out to my colleagues thatI know will take as great care ofthem as I do.”

Being an independent alsoworks for Graydon Peavoy ofRemo Valente Real Estate inWindsor, Ont. “The mostenjoyable part of working inde-pendently is knowing who isresponsible for my success or fail-ure,” he says. “Past experiencewith partnerships has alwaysproven to be disappointing asyou seem to get let down at themost inopportune times and youdon’t seem to share the samedrive.”

But Cynthia Lawlor, who hasthe number one team forPrudential in Canada and is

Tara Rosen Cam Sterns Shelley GossettCynthia Lawlor

Benefits of joining a teamIs it better to be a solo Realtor or to be a member of a team? Those on both sides of the topic weigh in.By Toby Welch

based in Halifax-Dartmouth, hasa different take. “There are manyimportant tasks a Realtor has toperform daily. A busy, successfulRealtor has to do CMAs, showhomes, meet with prospectivesellers, attend inspections andclosing inspections, deal withoffers and counter offers andmany other tasks too numerousto mention. If a Realtor has sev-eral of these going on simultane-ously, it is almost too much toexpect that one person can jug-gle all these and have each trans-action go smoothly,” she says.

What about the argumentthat you lose money working ona team, since you have to sharethe commission? Cam Sterns, apartner with The Fowler Teamwith Re/Max House of RealEstate in Calgary, says that work-ing on a team and closing moredeals compensates for having toshare commissions.

What about the business youmay lose if you take time off andhave no teammates to cover foryou? Shelley Gossett of Re/MaxLittle Oak Realty in Abbotsford,B.C., isn’t concerned. “Becauseof today’s technology – myBlackberry Pearl is my businesslifeline – I am kept in touch withclients and inquiries. My web-site lets me know if someone vis-its and I am able to respondimmediately. Any sign callscome to me directly. I mightmiss a few walk-ins looking forme but if they mention myname, office policy is to redirectthe folks to me.”

Peavoy agrees. “This industrydoes provide the opportunity forample time away if you planaccordingly and work around it.Personally, I would much rather

hit the links just after sun up,which allows me time for 18holes and still a full day of busi-ness. I also prefer to holiday inthe winter, which works out wellas winter months tend to beslower for us.”

Sterns says a team might bethe ideal way for a new agent toget his feet entrenched in theindustry. “Most agents look tojoin teams for one reason –leads,” he says. “They don’t havethe resources to generate enoughleads so they come to an estab-lished team or agent to benefitfrom the experience and marketshare. Within our team, we con-tinually strive to improve theskills and training of our agents.As an individual agent you arereally on your own. Unless youhave a very large sphere of influ-

ence upon which to draw fromfor your business, it is very diffi-cult to get started in the realestate business.”

Sterns says for many new

agents, “The cost to advertiseeffectively becomes very highand without any revenue, it canput many out of the industrybefore they can realize howlucrative this business can be. Ipersonally started as an individ-ual agent, and quickly becameaware that if I didn’t do some-thing quick, I was certain tobecome one of the many thatdon’t make it. That is when Idecided to join a team, and havenever looked back.”

What if there are personal orprofessional differences betweenmembers of a team?

“With any group dynamicthis is a common occurrence,”says Sterns. “There is no time ortolerance for any personal orbusiness issues that affect theteam in any respect. If any team

member has an issue with anoth-er or with me, it is immediatelydealt with in a professional andbusinesslike manner. This busi-ness is too tough to begin with;there is no time to deal with any-thing that distracts our teammembers from growing theirbusiness. The environment ofthe team needs to stay positive,no matter what.”

Gossett shares what she seesas pros and cons of working inde-pendently:

PROS:• Answer to yourself• Don’t share your commis-

sions • Schedule your own time • Have an office usually to

yourself (able to focus ratherthan socialize)

• Set your own goals • Don’t pay salaries to sup-

port workers• If you want to go away, you

just book off • You are responsible for

monitoring your own progress

CONS:• You are on your own –

there is no “inter-dependency”• Having to “rah rah” your-

self. In a team it is easier toaccomplish the hype!

If you are working solo nowbut are considering joining ateam, Lawlor has some advice:“Do some joint work with anoth-er Realtor before going into anyformal arrangement. Each mem-ber of the team has strengthsthey can offer and they also havethings they don’t do as well asothers. Find Realtors you like towork with because there has tobe chemistry among the mem-bers. Make sure you draw up aformal agreement in order toavoid ill feelings should thegroup have to split.”

She says it is essential that theother members on the team havethe same work ethic and determi-nation as you and that their skillscomplement yours. REM

T

“This business is too tough tobegin with; there is no time to

deal with anything that distractsour team members from

growing their business. The environment of the team needs to

stay positive, no matter what.”

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10 REM MAY 2009

eal estate boards and asso-ciations across the countryare lobbying hard to pro-

vide relief from land transfer taxes(LTT).

In Winnipeg, the local boardsays Manitoba has seen its LTTrevenues increase from $31 millionin 2006 to $44.8 million in 2008, a44 per cent increase.

The board cited a November2007 land transfer tax study byWill Dunning, the chief economistof the Canadian Association ofAccredited Mortgage Professionals(CAAMP), in which he said that“the taxes levied on land transfersare far in excess of any social orgovernmental ‘costs’ that resultfrom the activity of home buyingand therefore these discriminatorytaxes are not justifiable.”

WinnipegRealtors says thatbased on Manitoba’s average resaleprice of $168,421 in 2007 com-pared to $85,404 in 1997, theamount of LTT payable inManitoba increased 358 per cent,versus the 97 per cent house pricerise. Dunning said this is far inexcess of any reasonable estimateof costs to operate the provincialland registry system.

WinnipegRealtors are suggest-ing that Manitoba bring in a first-time home buyer exemption asB.C. and Ontario have. (Albertaand Saskatchewan do not have aland transfer or home buying tax.)

B.C.’s threshold for first-timehome buyers is $425,000. It wasraised from $375,000 in February2008. Ontario has a threshold of$222,000, which means the first-time homebuyer pays $975 in LTTon a $300,000 home.

“A first-time home buyerexemption will encourage youngManitobans to stay in Manitoba,”says Don Cook, chair ofWinnipegRealtors Civic andLegislative Affairs Committee. “Itis hard enough already for them tocome up with the necessary moneyto make a decent down paymentand meet all of their closingcosts…

“Our bottom line is the provin-

Realtors lobbyagainst landtransfer taxes

cial land transfer tax makes homebuying more costly,” says Cook. “Intimes when the economy is goingthrough a slowdown the govern-ment should do anything in itspower to support a key sector of theeconomy that creates millions ineconomic spin-offs and jobs.”

In B.C., a survey sponsored bythe British Columbia Real EstateAssociation (BCREA) says thatavailability of affordable propertiesis the key barrier in a home pur-chasing decision. Other majorfinancial barriers include employ-ment security, ability to qualify fora mortgage and the provincialProperty Transfer Tax (PTT).Almost one in five says the PTT isa major financial barrier to homeownership.

Fifty-seven per cent of thoseplanning on purchasing a homewere aware of the tax, but most ofthem can’t describe what it is orcite the tax rates.

In Toronto, where last year thecity tacked a new land transfer taxon top of the existing provinciallevy, the Toronto Real EstateBoard (TREB) released a poll thatshows 60 per cent of Torontoniansbelieve that the city is not beingrun as efficiently as possible.

The poll also found that 70 percent of Torontonians believe theToronto Land Transfer Tax is not afair way for the city to address itsbudgetary needs. This is up from 62per cent of Torontonians who feltthe same way according to an ear-lier Environics poll conducted forTREB in 2007, prior to the imple-mentation of the tax.

“Over a year ago, the Mayor’sFiscal Review Panel identified, lit-erally, hundreds of millions of dol-lars in savings and efficiencies thatthe city could be taking advantageof,” says TREB president MaureenO’Neill. “Two years ago, when thecity first proposed the TorontoLand Transfer Tax, the public over-whelmingly agreed with Realtorsthat this is an unfair tax, and, nowthat it has been implemented, theyagree even more strongly today.”

REM

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12 REM MAY 2009

REM: For the past two years, TREB has led a very pub-lic campaign against the City of Toronto’s land transfer tax increase – is this the kind of advocacy role you see TREB con-tinuing to undertake?

O’Neill: Our lobbying efforts are becoming increasingly important, due to government intervention or government plans, which seem to be attack-ing the housing industry right at this very critical time of our economic picture. We’ve always lobbied in support of MLS, for private property rights and other issues, and those efforts have been successful at the federal level and at the provincial level. But the municipal level now is getting very, very busy and I see all boards across Canada having that same fight.

What’s happened in Toronto is a second land transfer tax, which was imposed upon the

home buying public and really doubles their tax. TREB’s cam-paign against Toronto’s land transfer tax was overwhelmingly popular. We did a ground move-ment – we met with politicians, we lobbied, we got our members to write to their city council-ors. It was a two-year battle and we were very successful in terms of getting people politicized. In spite of this, we lost by one vote, but we haven’t stopped.

The C.D. Howe Institute had a wonderful independent study by two professors at the University of Toronto and they determined there’s been a $170 million loss to Toronto as a direct result of the increase in the land transfer tax. We are never going to stop our efforts to have that tax repealed.

I think all this government intervention is going to move into other municipalities in time too. I think Toronto is the

prototype; other municipalities are going to see housing as a cash cow.

Now, we’re facing the har-monizing of the GST and PST here in Ontario, which is going to have a very negative effect. We’ve also got all the extra taxes with garbage and water. So to me, advocating on behalf of our members on behalf of our clients, I see as a very important issue today.

REM: Your extended term as TREB president means you’ve been head of Canada’s larg-est board during both strong and weak markets – how did your role change as the market flattened?

O’Neill: I had to closely monitor things; to ensure we didn’t put any “spin” on figures, and to calm down the press, to give some perspective to the U.S. picture in comparison to the Toronto one. We could see our market declining, but not because of most of the issues people in the U.S. were facing. So as president of TREB, I had to be cognizant that the right story got out.

As a broker/manager, I came into the best market we’ve ever had. Really, it’s been an unprec-edented 10-year run. I’ve been in the business a long time, and I’ve never seen a run like this – it usually lasts two or three years. But people started getting used to the idea that this was going to last forever – that mentality was there – and when it didn’t, it was quite a shock.

People had bought homes and

paid a lot of money in Toronto’s peak market, because they thought, “if I don’t get in now, I’m never going to buy a house.” Now, in today’s market, you have all that psychological pres-sure happening – “I bought at the peak, I’m not going to make up for it”. So it’s been an inter-esting time.

I’m very happy that we’re in 2009, because we’re now com-paring 2009 figures to 2008, which was a stabilizing, bal-ancing year. Last year, when everything was declining, we were comparing 2008 to the best market ever – 2007 – so natu-rally the public said, “What do we do? Should we wait? Is this going to get worse?”

Normally we find that as soon as people start waiting for the bottom, it’s usually gone back up again. You’re waiting for the bottom, and then it’s too late. That’s why it’s called a real estate market – it’s a mar-ket like any other market. We just haven’t been used to the flexible things that have been happening in the stock market, for example – but real estate is a market and it’s always been a good long-term investment.

And as to the utilitarian aspect of living in a home – you can’t live in a mutual fund. I heard that saying a while back and I use it a lot. Memories of home live forever. You raise your family there, you have your friends there – it’s just that whole thing around house and home that is so very important. For most of the buying public that’s what it is – living in

and enjoying their home. The majority of people buy because they want a home and they want a lifestyle and they’re prepared to wait out their investment.

REM: As a broker/manag-er, how are you advising your Realtors to work with prospec-tive clients in this market?

O’Neill: We’re in the infor-mation business, giving people options. Information is not knowledge – people have to have the knowledge that goes along with all the statistics. I tell my Realtors to sit down with their client, do a portfolio with them and find out what their long-term and short-term plans are. And then, based on their needs, their budget, and their lifestyle, advise them as to what might work best for them.

What we’re telling people who say they’re going to lose something on their condo if they sell now, is that they also have the means to buy some-thing good now too. There’s an old saying that you should always buy up in a down market. So if somebody says to me that they’re going to take $20,000 less for their condo than they did last year, I tell them they’re going to make $60,000 to $70,000 by buying up, because the high-end homes have come down a lot more. So is it worth it to wait and then not have that happen in three years – when you’re buying and selling in the same market, with all prices going up?

I tell Realtors to look at each case individually and not go by the herd mentality of what

Maureen O’Neill first began working for the Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) in 1980, as corporate relations manager; this year, she is part-way through her second term as TREB presi-dent. She had just begun serving as president-elect in 2007 when the new president accepted a job transfer out of Toronto. O’Neill moved up into the presidency a year early and, as a result, has been president during both the real estate market highs of 2007 and the lows of 2009. O’Neill met with REM senior editor Kathy Bevan recently to discuss the challenges of the past year and a half, as well as the more prominent public advocacy role TREB has taken on.

In conversation with Maureen O’Neill

Continued on Page 14

Photo: Marko Shark

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14 REM MAY 2009

Sub-leasing: An opportunity for Realtors

In conversation with Maureen O’Neill (continued from page 12)

By Lloyd R. Manning

The economic recession is taking its toll, with

businesses of all types being hit by the fallout. Everywhere Realtors are bemoaning the lack of activity in their traditional markets.

But Stan Krawitz of Toronto’s Real Facilities Inc. tells REM that the sublease market is super hot. He reports that although some cities such as Winnipeg and Edmonton are a bit slower, in Toronto, Montreal, Calgary, Vancouver and elsewhere, head lessees are seeking to reduce operating costs and prospective tenants are searching for bargains, creating more than ample opportunity for Realtors.

The impact of changing technology and the recession is affecting the way companies do business. Many corporations

with a few years remaining on their leases are downsizing. Startup companies often need swing space or shorter-term leases until they can feel out the opportunities in their market. Commercial Realtors should consider targeting their efforts toward subleasing, particularly office and warehouse space, as the opportunities in these markets are expected to be more prevalent in the coming months.

When subleasing, a third party assumes the tenant’s rights and obligations. The new tenant pays rent to the original lessee, who pays the landlord. Generally a property is subleased when the tenant needs to move quickly or perhaps is in a long-term contract that is not beneficial, has surplus space no longer required, or alternatively is likely to outgrow the space it has. Often, larger tenants do not consider this as a permanent arrangement, preferring to hold on to space until the market improves and the recession ends. Corporations, professional practices and service companies are reassessing their space needs and estimating what they will require over the next three to four years with the view to dumping any excess.

As tenants negotiate

increasingly favourable lease terms, they gain more flexibility in determining what they can do with their space, which includes subletting all or part of their space. Sublease rate discounts are normally in the 15 per cent to 20 per cent range, but Krawitz reports that in Toronto, office space rents to head lessees are in the $28 to $30 per square foot range, and sublease space is about $16 to $18 per square foot. This is a discount of 40 per cent! He says few owners have reached the desperation level but all are wide open for dickering. Often the goal is not to make money but to minimize losses from space no longer required.

This makes the lessee a different player than the building owner. It’s a buyers’ market. For the most part the rental rate is determined by the amount of space available, the term remaining on the head lessee’s lease, its location, configuration, amenities included, renewal and/or carryover clauses and options, and the financial situation of both parties. The shorter the remaining term, the larger the discount. Available sizes, locations, and configurations are all over the map. Areas range from a few hundred square feet to several thousand. Some

buildings are bare box while others contain a host of tenant’s improvements.

Not all of today’s subleasing market is money driven. Sub-tenants weigh a variety of factors including the building itself and what is contained in the package. Historically, one of the problems for sub-lessees has been the shorter term and the lack of assurance either with the head tenant or the building owner that the lease can be carried over after expiration. Krawitz says that often the remaining term is five to seven years and frequently the building owner is prepared to negotiate with the sub tenant for continuance after expiration. Carrying over could be beneficial to the owner, as it may not be necessary to pay the cost of re-leasing and run the risk of having no tenant for a protracted period.

For many, the sooner that space is off the market the better. On the other hand, in some cases subleasing can be a mixed blessing for property owners who may find themselves competing to lease space in their own building(s) at rental rates that are lower than anything they can offer.

Although the third party becomes the lessee, the primary tenant is still liable to the

property owner for the rent, property maintenance, and to uphold all other clauses and conditions contained in the head lease, a condition sometimes misunderstood by both parties. It is important that Realtors first assure themselves and prospective sub-tenants that the original lease allows sub-leasing. Be certain to read the head lease carefully and understand all of its clauses and their ramifications. Ensure that your sub-lessee client knows and understands what is involved.

There are pros and cons to subleasing. Taking over unused space is a great way to secure short term space at below market rent, but it’s not without its shortcomings. Be ready, willing and able to explain the benefits and shortfalls of subleasing. For some Realtors this may prove to be more difficult than head leasing because there are more entities to satisfy. Still, it could prove rewarding in these recessionary times.

Lloyd Manning, AACI, FRI, CCRA, PApp is a semi-retired commercial real estate and business appraiser and broker who now spends his time writing for professional journals and trade magazines. He resides in Lloydminster, Sask. Email lloydmann@shaw.ca REM

everyone else is doing. In any market, people should be pru-dent about their financial affairs. That’s what happened in the United States – people went in with no money down, they didn’t have any equity. There’s a price to pay for not making prudent decisions.

REM: There’s a large num-ber of Realtors working today who were also working in this industry during the last big downturn in the ’90s. Do you think those Realtors were bet-ter prepared for this downturn,

having survived the last one?

O’Neill: I think people quite readily forget the bad times when they’re in the good times. However, I do know what this group of people brings to the table and here at TREB alone it’s a huge group of people. This year we have 500 new 25-year mem-bers and something like 40 peo-ple celebrating 50 years, in addi-tion to everyone who’s already in those two categories. What they bring to the table, more so than their optimism, is their ability to withstand the market. They’ve

been there before, they know how to tough it out, they’re not as panicked as some of the new people who haven’t been through this before. So they take a much stronger, more optimistic approach – they know that hous-ing will always rebound.

Realtors, including myself, believe so strongly in real estate, the investment in real estate and what it brings to your life. I’ve just been so privileged to be able to work with Realtors who are in it for the long term, who aren’t just in it for the good

times, who are in it to make sure their clients are satisfied. They’re very paternal about their clients and their care, all through the years. It’s the Realtor mentality – they’re in it for their career and they don’t give up.

REM: When you can finally step back from your two terms as TREB president, what do you hope people will say you were able to accomplish, through strong and tough markets?

O’Neill: I hope I’ll be seen as continuing to raise the bar of

real estate as a profession. But I would also want them to think that I did everything in my power to put Realtors first – they are certainly No. 1 priority for me, the Realtors – and that I truly cared about their liveli-hood. Also, that I was able to help us make tremendous strides in the charity aspects of what we do at TREB – in our shelter-related efforts for example – and that we’ve been able to show the public that Realtors have a heart for the community. REM

QAaron, your success in this businessis a bit surprising considering youmade the leap here from teaching.

AThat’s right, I was a high school artteacher for four years before I got intoreal estate. I really didn't have the

background or business acumen. But I metthis real estate agent when I was buying myfirst house. She showed up in a shiny Lexus. . . and I wanted one! Well, you can't get ashiny Lexus on a school teacher’s salary, orvery few people can do that – unless you'rejust working forever to do it. And I wasalready doing that! I was spending 80, 90hours a week between teaching and coachingbasketball, making about 40 cents an houronce all was said and done. I was also about$50k in debt, so I knew I needed to findsomething better. I liked the idea of beingmy own boss and making lots of money. Ifigured if my agent could do it, so could I.So I went ahead and got my real estatelicence. About six months later, I quitteaching and went into real estate full time.

Q: What was that like? Was it as easy as you thought?

A: I think the biggest surprise when I firstgot into real estate was how much harder itwas than I thought. I think the biggestproblem was being fairly young, about 25,and not having any experience in thebusiness. I didn't have any credibility to offerand it was very hard to get clients. Mybroker told me to follow around theexperienced agents and do what they weredoing. Well, mostly what they were doingwas contacting their sphere of influence andworking past clients, and I had none ofthose. So they told me to jump on phonecalls, answer the up-time phone, sit at openhouses . . . things they no longer needed todo and didn't want to do, so they hadsomebody do it for them -- i.e “me”.

Q: So how did that work for you?

A: It was really tough. I worked at it forabout 8 months and only sold 6 homes eventhough I was working 60-80 hours a week.

That doesn't really equal a whole lot ofincome. I was actually making less as a realestate agent than as a teacher.

Q: How did you turn things around for yourself?

A: I saw a big full-page ad talking abouthow successful this young agent fromOklahoma had become after he started usingCraig Proctor’s system and I thought if thisguy can do it, why can’t I? I got Craig’ssystem and was blown away by how simpleeverything sounded and how easily youcould create leads without having to do thehard things in real estate like doing openhouses and cold calling. It got me reallycharged and I think I only slept an hour ortwo hours a night over a three-day periodbecause this stuff was running through myhead the whole time. It was amazingactually. I started bringing in contractsconsistently on a monthly basis. I closed 26homes in the next six months and that wasjust off one little ad Craig gave me that onlycost about $25 to run.

Q:What’s happened to your business since then?

A: My career has really taken off. Mysecond year in real estate I did 53transactions and I increased that by almost70% the next year to 89 transactions. Lastyear I did 114 and every single month Imake more money than what I used to makein a whole year of teaching. Craig showedme how to easily make more money pertransaction through transaction fees andother back-ending, so my advertising iscompletely paid for each month by the extrasno one else charges for. Every dime thatgoes into my checking account now ismine!!! I know I’ll be selling 300-400+homes in not too long.

Q:And are you still working round the clock?

A: No! That’s the best part! I only spendabout 40 hours a week, plus I can take a lotof vacation time... 4-6 weeks a year. My wifeand I have a little daughter now so it’sperfect to have that family time, and becausewe now have great money rolling in, she wasable to quit her job and stay home with our

daughter. I can’t tellyou how importantthis is. Not long agomy sister was very illwith only a 50%chance of surviving.She was actually in acoma for two weeks,and I was there forthe entire six weeksshe was in thehospital. The doctorsnow say it was amiracle that shesurvived, and themost rewarding partfor me was when shewas asked after thefact if she was conscious of anything whilein the coma. She said to me “The only thingI remember was you. Hearing you andseeing you.” I think it's because we don’tnormally see each other very often as shelives in a different state, so I guess I stoodout. The amazing thing is that during thatwhole process, my business still ran. We stillclosed transactions. We still listed homes.That is the ultimate business dream and Ijust thank Craig and his system for allowingme the opportunity to do that. One of thebiggest benefits of building my business theway Craig has shown me to is that it’sallowed me opportunities to do things Icould never have done previously. I couldn'tdo those things and still make money. Iwould have lost my job. We just copyeverything Craig does and it works exactlythe way he says it will.

Aaron KinnAaron@AaronKinn.com

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16 REM MAY 2009

very year, we hear of analleged computer bug orvirus that is scheduled to

launch on April 1 Well, AprilFool’s came to my office with a“twist” and I send this article toyou as a warning – although I donot know how anyone will be ableto avoid such a humiliating andembarrassing situation.

It has been my practice foryears to occasionally e-mail toclients what I call Practice Tips.These are things that I find unusu-al or surprising or of interest, andthey form the subject matter of avery curt message.

On April 1, I sent one out withthe ironic title of Too Much of aGood Thing.

That evening I received a callthat someone had received theemail 300 times! I immediatelycalled our technology guru,Dominic, who ran to the office totry and fix the problem. He wasthere all night and in fact for thenext five days. The “fault” jammedmy computer with over 35,000rebound responses.

It turns out that our computersystem was free and clear of viruses.We work hard and adopt the latesttechniques to keep it safe. But arecipient lawyer’s computer hadnot been properly maintained andit began to “loop” and re-sendemail after email of Too Much of aGood Thing to my contacts.

Who would have thought thatsuch a thing was conceivable?Who would have thought that themost conscientious efforts to notharm others could result in arebound without fault? Well, as aprofessional you “take it”, you apol-ogize, you warn the offender andyou go on to bigger and betterplaces in your endeavours to learnand service clients.

I would not wish the AprilFools Day joke on anyone.

■ ■ ■

LEGAL ISSUES

By Donald H. Lapowich

MyAprilFoolsDay

Some notes on recent cases:Bylaws: Putting up a shed and

garage without a building permit isa risky matter, particularly if it con-travenes a zoning bylaw. In addi-tion, storing trailers and a boat onproperty may not be a wise deci-sion.

A recent court decisioninvolved a lot with sheds and agarage but no dwelling unit. Theexistence of the vehicle, structuresand equipment contravened thetownship bylaw and the court con-firmed a township order to“remove and demolish” the shedand garage within 30 days. It was acostly lesson in failing to comply.

Easements: Some courts arevery cognizant of the doctrine ofequity, which may be interpretedas fairness in any given factual sit-uation.

Take the case of purchaserswho bought a rural property in1973. Access was over an old roadthat wound through neighbour L’sproperty.

L convinced the purchasers tomove the road so it did not runthrough the middle of L’s property.

Twenty-nine years later, thedefendant bought L’s property anddenied the purchasers access by thenew road.

The British Columbia Court ofAppeal stated it was inequitable toallow the defendant to assert anexclusive right to the land todeprive purchasers 25 years of useof the new road, especially wherethe latter had helped construct andmaintain the new road.

Donald H. Lapowich, Q.C.Hon. FRGD is a partner at the lawfirm of Koskie, Minsky LLP inToronto, where he practices civil liti-gation, with a particular emphasis onreal estate litigation and acts for pro-fessionals including lawyers, realestate agents, insurancebrokers/agents and dentists. REM

E

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f you knew Dermot Murphy,you are a very fortunate personindeed, and likely a member of

one of the following groups:A. IrishB. CatholicC. Real estate regulatorD. RealtorE. Yachtsman, step dancer, or

large ‘L’ Liberal.I eulogized Dermot in column

#160 (available on REM’s websitearchive) and don’t intend to repeatthose remarks – although it hassome funny bits. My purpose todayis to encourage those who knewDermot to participate in a tribute.Chaired by Tim Pringle and Dr.Stan Hamilton, the P. DermotMurphy Tribute Committee has anambitious goal – to establish twoendowments, one funding twoundergraduate awards in businessfor students at Simon FraserUniversity; and the other to fundan annual activity focused onethics in business.

To quote from a recent letterfrom Dr. Hamilton, “…the visionthat Dermot held for his entirecareer – a vision where ethicalconduct is the norm, not theexception, for conducting busi-ness.” And further, “the two stu-dent awards will help reach theyounger audience and hopefullyreinforce the importance of ethicsamong their peers. The annualevent, be it a symposium, a touringspeaker series or a competition,will provide a strong link to theprofession Dermot served so wellfor many years.”

If you are interested in makinga donation to the fund because youknew Dermot or because you are acommitted supporter of ethics inour business, please contact thetribute committee throughStanley.hamilton@sauder.ubc.org.It is a tax deductible donation.

Speaking of ethics, have you

RealtyPromoter

software

18 REM MAY 2009

I

METES & BOUNDS

By Marty Douglas

On ethics andsuccesstaken the online course inCanadian ethics available throughthe CREA home page? (I got therethrough RealtorLink.) It’s interest-ing, informative and by the way,mandatory.

Now to the subject on whichwe finished last month’s column –success. Although I’m curious toknow how many of you will goback and check, take my word forit. My curiosity about the compo-nents of the mechanism that makesome folks tick in our businesswhile others hit a resounding tockhas been going on for more than35 years. I’ve been in the businesssince 1970 but it took a few yearsfor me to figure out you didn’t suc-ceed solely by showing up. If youdid show up, it had to be to theright place. Sitting in the bullpendoing the daily word scramblemade me a little smug, but notmuch money.

After a few years of thinkingothers were just luckier, I lucked into a sale skills program written byIBM, as I recall, and it involvedlive role playing, script memoriza-tion and objection handling.Wow! Hardly seemed fair to theclients if the salesperson knew theanswers to every objection aheadof time and were selling a servicethe customer wanted.

Alas – as I found it in manage-ment – many folks would ratherrely on luck than hard work. Everytime I examined a success story, Ifound evidence of hard work. Notworking hard at the same things –just hard work. Thomas Edisonsaid, “Opportunity is missed bymost people because it is dressed inoveralls and looks like work.” Thatexplains why the Nigerian emailscam and high return mortgageschemes in a low-interest economystill find suckers who believethere’s a shortcut to wealth.

So, if you don’t believe me,read a book. If you read one non-fiction book this year, make itMalcolm Gladwell’s Outliers. Hecurrently has three books on theGlobe & Mail’s bestseller listincluding Blink and The TippingPoint. (And he’s Canadian so youget points for content if you readthe book aloud over the radio.)The thrust of Outliers is the impor-

tance of effort (10,000 hours ofpractice) and timing (to be born inthe right month or year) as compo-nents of success. It containsinsights for success grounded in thepestle of – are you ready for this? –Canadian Junior Hockey. Whowould have thought?

I try not to use the same sourcewithin a year, but Bill Harrington’sinsight on effort is too good not touse as a close. “Lazy Realtors arelike Slinkies – not good for muchbut they will bring a smile to yourface when you push them downthe stairs.”

Marty Douglas is a managing bro-ker for Coast Realty Group (ComoxValley) Ltd., managing two of 15Coast Realty Group offices onVancouver Island and the SunshineCoast of B.C. He is a past chair of theReal Estate Errors and OmissionsCorporation of B.C., the Real EstateCouncil of B.C., and the B.C. RealEstate Association, and is a currentdirector of the Vancouver Island Real Estate Board. Email mdou-glas@island.net; 1-800-715-3999;Fax (250) 897-3933. REM

REM columnist Marty Douglasrecently appeared as one ofCinderella’s step-sisters in a Rogers& Hammerstein review called AGrand Night for Singing. “Here’swhat happens when you get old inmusical theatre – you either play abad guy or they put you in drag,”he says. “Not sure which this is!”(Photo by Ross Robinson)

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nvironmental concerns areubiquitous. Although eco-nomics have taken a front

seat in most discussions these days,the environment is not far behind.Events such as Earth Day con-tribute to raising awareness aboutenvironmental impact and theways in which people can act tomanage their ecological footprint.

With concern about the envi-ronment at such a high priority,individuals and organizations whocan deliver information and stepsthat people can take to improvethe environment are in a strongposition to deliver their message.

It was with this educationalobjective in mind that theNational Association of GreenAgents and Brokers (NAGAB)partnered with Ontario’s Ministryof the Environment through theGo Green Fund to assemble aHome Energy Conservation infor-mation kit and distribute it toRealtors. The idea was to provide asingle source of highly usable infor-mation to Realtors, who in turncould act as hubs to pass this infor-mation on to homeowners toreduce greenhouse gas emissionsand also reduce the costs of homeownership.

The study has resulted in aprovince-wide savings of 1,414tonnes of greenhouse gas emis-sions, an excellent response basedon a smaller than expected trackeddistribution number. Feedbackfrom homeowners was extremelypositive, and the net effect of theefficiency-enhancing measurestaken was far greater than wasexpected.

“The message is getting out to

GREEN REAL ESTATE

By Elden Freeman

Raising eco-awareness

E

the Realtors,” says Jennifer Sikic, acourse designer for NAGAB whocontributed to the information kit.“We are providing them with somereal concrete information thatthey can take to homeowners,which opens the door for them tohave a conversation about homeenergy efficiency with their clients.We’re paving the way – it’s stillearly on in our efforts. I think thatwithin six to 12 months we’ll seesome real benefits coming back.”

Realtor feedback was similarlypositive, indicating that the kithelped Realtors effectively com-municate to buyers and sellers howthe green factor of a given homecould save them money. It alsohelps Realtors assess how greenhouses are, and provide a clearpoint-by-point list of how andwhere sellers and buyers could savemoney on a given property. Aswell, Realtors who provided infor-mation from the kit on their web-sites reported a significant increasein traffic, indicating the demandexists for the type of informationNAGAB provides.

Every year, millions ofCanadians take part in Earth Dayto help address environmentalissues in both local and global con-texts. Since 1990, Earth DayCanada has pursued its mission toimprove the state of the environ-ment by empowering and helpingCanadians to take positive envi-ronmental action. The work EarthDay Canada does in promotingenvironmental awareness is one ofthe many factors contributing to agreater awareness of ecologicalissues in all markets, not just realestate, and dovetails withNAGAB’s mission to raise aware-ness of how energy can be saved inthe home.

Elden Freeman B.A., M.E.S.,AGB, broker is the founder and exec-utive director of the non-profitNational Association of GreenAgents and Brokers (NAGAB).Freeman believes that Realtors acrossCanada can play an important role ineducating their clients on increasingenergy efficiency, conservation andreducing green house gas emissions.(416) 536-7325, www.nagab.org,info@nagab.org. REM

Not all agents are created equal.

RE/MAX agents have more experience, meaning we have been through several market cycles

RE/MAX agents have more designations, meaning we are on the top of our game

regarding industry trends

RE/MAX agents are top producers. No other agents rival our productivity Now, more than ever, results matter

RE/MAX agents sell 1 in 3 properties in Canada. This places us on the pulse of the inventory,

gives us the advantage in market comparables, and generates the market presence to attract buyers

Each office is independently owned and operated.

Award Top 10Team

by Commission

Barry CohenRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Rick DeCluteRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Clare EstlickRE/MAX Professionals Inc.

Etobicoke

Sylvia HoughtonRE/MAX Classic Properties, Inc.

Unionville

Christopher InvidiataRE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp.

Oakville

Sam McDadiRE/MAX Performance Realty Inc.

Mississauga

Dan PlowmanRE/MAX Rouge River Realty Ltd.

Whitby

Craig ProctorRE/MAX Omega Realty (1988) Ltd.

Newmarket

Melanie WrightRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Kelly DaCostaRE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Cambridge

#1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 #7 #8 #9 #10

2008Award

Top 10Individual

by Commission

Audrey AzadRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd

Toronto

David BatoriRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Angie CormpilasRE/MAX Performance Realty Inc.

Brampton

Peter HogeterpRE/MAX Del Mar Realty Inc.

Stoney Creek

Sandy KennedyRE/MAX Realty Services Inc .

Brampton

Vesna KolencRE/MAX Excellence Realty Inc.

Woodbridge

Peter KwanRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Markham

Frank LeoRE/MAX West Realty Inc.

Toronto

Faisal SusiwalaRE/MAX Twin City Realty Inc.

Cambridge

Joy VerdeRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

#1 #2 #3 #4 #5 #6 #7 #8 #9 #10

The Best of the Best in 2008!

Audrey AzadRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd

Toronto

Vesna KolencRE/MAX Excellence Realty Inc.

Woodbridge

Angelo ToscanoRE/MAX Metro-City Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

David BatoriRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Award ClubDiamond

Leslie BenczikRE/MAX All-Stars Realty Inc.

Markham

Barry CohenRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Angie CormpilasRE/MAX Performance Realty Inc.

Brampton

Al CosentinoRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Hamilton

Rick DeCluteRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Peter HogeterpRE/MAX Del Mar Realty Inc.

Stoney Creek

Sylvia HoughtonRE/MAX Classic Properties Inc.

Unionville

Peter KwanRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Markham

Frank LeoRE/MAX West Realty Inc.

Toronto

Sam McDadiRE/MAX Performance Realty Inc.

Mississauga

Ray OttenRE/MAX Metro-City Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

Robert PettigrewRE/MAX Professionals Inc.

Etobicoke

Dan PlowmanRE/MAX Rouge River Realty Ltd.

Whitby

Andy PristolRE/MAX Haliburton Highlands Realty

Ltd. Haliburton

Craig ProctorRE/MAX Omega Realty (1988) Ltd.

Newmarket

Faisal SusiwalaRE/MAX Twin City Realty Inc.

Cambridge

Anna TurnerRE/MAX Metro-City Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

Joy VerdeRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Drew WoolcottRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Burlington

Lindsay WrightRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Melanie WrightRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Christopher InvidiataRE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp.

Oakville

The Best of the Best in 2008!AwardChairman’s

Club

Michael AdelsonRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Thornhill

Glenn BurlingtonRE/MAX Chay Realty Inc.

Barrie

John CreppinRE/MAX Metro-City Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

Clare EstlickRE/MAX Professionals Inc.

Etobicoke

Greg HamreRE/MAX Metro-City Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

Rosalee JacksonRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Beverly JonesRE/MAX Professionals Inc.

Toronto

Wayne KahnRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Liam KealeyRE/MAX Metro-City Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

Sandy KennedyRE/MAX Realty Services Inc.

Brampton

Tariq KhursheedRE/MAX Performance Realty Inc.

Mississauga

Brian KondoRE/MAX Quality One Ltd.

Ajax

Tatiana KonkinaRE/MAX Unique Inc.

Toronto

Steve HamreRE/MAX Metro-City Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

Holly HendersonRE/MAX Realty Concepts Corp.

Kingston

Jerry HendriksRE/MAX Garden City Realty Inc.

St. Catharines

Betty HillierRE/MAX Affiliates Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

Gregory HoRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Michael HopeRE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Mississauga

Derek HoughtonRE/MAX Classic Properties, Inc.

Unionville

Len HowellRE/MAX Realty Enterprises Inc.

Mississauga

Terry HutchisonRE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp.

Oakville

Tasi FarquharRE/MAX Professionals Inc.

Etobicoke

Rosemary FerroniRE/MAX Del Mar Realty Inc.

Stoney Creek

Rod FrankRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Hamilton

Emily GillanRE/MAX Garden City Realty Inc.

St. Catharines

Robert GolfiRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Hamilton

Joanne GoneauRE/MAX Metro-City Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

Stephen GreenbergRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Marlene GuimondRE/MAX Crown Realty (1989) Inc.

Sudbury

Jerry HammondRE/MAX Ultimate Realty Inc.

Toronto

Kelly DaCostaRE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Cambridge

Maurice De LaereRE/MAX Tri-County Realty Inc.

Tillsonburg

Evan DebrincatRE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Georgetown

Mark Debruyn-SmithRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Hamilton

Vince DelvecchioRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Hamilton

Bill DennisRE/MAX Sarnia Realty Inc.

Sarnia

Ken DigalakisRE/MAX All-Stars Realty Inc.

Toronto

Richard DuggalRE/MAX 2000 Realty Inc.

Toronto

Randi EmmottRE/MAX Excellence Realty Inc.

Woodbridge

Marion CarconeRE/MAX York Group Realty Inc.

Aurora

Kenneth CarmichaelRE/MAX Metro-City Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

Claudio CerritoRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Dennis ChanRE/MAX Goldenway Realty Inc.

Richmond Hill

Ray CochraneRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Cindy CodyRE/MAX Twin City Realty Inc.

Kitchener

Thomas CookRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Susan CowenRE/MAX York Group Realty Inc.

Aurora

Niels ChristensenRE/MAX Professionals Inc.

Etobicoke

Nader AkhbariRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Cynthia AvisRE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp.

Oakville

Steve BaileyRE/MAX Twin City Realty Inc.

Cambridge

David BeatonRE/MAX Quality One Ltd.

Ajax

Dawna BorgRE/MAX Premier Inc.

Vaughan

Jean BoyntonRE/MAX High Country Realty Inc .

Flesherton

Brenda Brennan FeltonRE/MAX Sarnia Realty Inc.

Sarnia

Jainarine BrijpaulRE/MAX West Realty Inc.

Toronto

Leslie BullockRE/MAX Garden City Realty Inc.

Burlington

Steven W. KuulaRE/MAX Crown Realty (1989) Inc.

Sudbury

Geoff McGowanRE/MAX Affiliates Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

Raymond PaceRE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp.

Oakville

Peter PapousekRE/MAX Professionals Inc.

Mississauga

Cindy RickettsRE/MAX Ability Real Estate Ltd.

Oshawa

Jason SimsRE/MAX Centre City Realty Inc.

London

Alison WalshRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Burlington

Andrew WilliamsRE/MAX Realty Services Inc.

Brampton

Adam WolmanRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Paul ZammitRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Harry SiuRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Markham

Todd SlaterRE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.

Mississauga

Dillon SmithRE/MAX Ability Real Estate Ltd.

Courtice

Shahnaz SoltanianRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Richard SteinmannRE/MAX Twin City Realty Inc.

Waterloo

Bill ThomRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Gary VanderburgRE/MAX Sarnia Realty Inc.

Sarnia

William WallaceRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Mary RoyRE/MAX First Realty Ltd.

Claremont

Rob SandersonRE/MAX Advantage Realty Ltd.

London

Joe SaraceniRE/MAX West Realty Inc.

Toronto

Drago SaricRE/MAX Del Mar Realty Inc.

Stoney Creek

Mary Ann SchiralliRE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp.

Oakville

Richard ScullyRE/MAX Muskoka Realty Corp.

Port Carling

Anne ShaddockRE/MAX Rouge River Realty Ltd.

Whitby

Danny ShahrokhiRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Samuel ShingRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Steve PeroffRE/MAX Landmark Realty Inc.

Keswick

Colleen PickettRE/MAX Aboutowne Realty Corp.

Oakville

Tony PullaRE/MAX Lakeshore Realty Inc.

Cobourg

Rocco RacioppoRE/MAX Omega Realty (1988) Ltd.

Newmarket

Mohammed RahmanRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Markham

Cliff RegoRE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Cambridge

Toni ReyesRE/MAX Performance Realty Inc.

Mississauga

Ralph RichardsonRE/MAX Ultimate Realty Inc.

Toronto

Chris RichieRE/MAX In The Hills Inc.

Caledon East

Tony MenchellaRE/MAX West Realty Inc.

Toronto

Jay MillerRE/MAX Omega Realty (1988) Ltd.

Newmarket

Ambrose MoranRE/MAX Country Classics Ltd.

Apsley

Marg MorrenRE/MAX Garden City Realty Inc.

Burlington

Marian NealRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Anna OstapykRE/MAX Metro-City Realty Ltd.

Ottawa

Paul OulahenRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

Zoi OuzasRE/MAX Garden City Realty Inc.

Grimsby

Jan OystrickRE/MAX Crown Realty (1989) Inc.

Sudbury

Kevin LaroseRE/MAX Realty Enterprises Inc.

Mississauga

Lupe LedesmaRE/MAX 2000 Realty Inc.

Toronto

Hersh LitvackRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Thornhill

Sarah LogueRE/MAX Escarpment Realty Inc.

Burlington

Scott LyallRE/MAX Hallmark Realty Ltd.

Toronto

Yousef MahmoudzadehRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Thornhill

Dianna MandzukRE/MAX Spirit Inc.

Oshawa

Mark MaurerRE/MAX Solid Gold Realty (II) Ltd.

Waterloo

Paul McDonaldRE/MAX York Group Realty Inc.

Aurora

Mike KrauseRE/MAX Real Estate Centre Inc.

Georgetown

Robert KrollRE/MAX Realtron Realty Inc.

Toronto

The Best of the Best in 2008!AwardChairman’s

Club

Proud Entrepreneurs

Frank PolzlerChairman and Co-Founder

Pamela Alexander CEO

Michael Polzler Regional Director, EVP

Walter Schneider President and Co-Founder

Frank Polzler and Walter Schneider founded RE/MAX Ontario-Atlantic Canada, which has become the largest RE/MAX region in the world. They have instilled their vision and entrepreneurial spirit into the entire organization. RE/MAX is a privately owned company run by realtors dedicating themselves to providing the best possible environment for top producers.

Real Estate is your best Investment.

$80,000

$60,000

$120,000

$140,000

$160,000

$180,000

$200,000

$220,000

$240,000

$260,000

$280,000

$300,000

$320,000

1980 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 2009 **FORECAST

**

Canadian Housing Values 1980 – 2009

A Few Reasons to Work with the Best!

You can’t live in an RRSP.

Real Estate is your best Investment.

n today’s economic climateof tighter credit require-ments and increased unem-

ployment rates, there’s no doubtthat you will come across someclients who will not fit into thetraditional banks’ financing boxesas easily as they may have just ayear ago. While some clients withcredit blemishes may be able torepair their situations quickly,others may face a longer road torecovery.

While putting some time intoyour relationships with theseclients may not immediately payoff, they will appreciate the timeyou took to suggest ways to boosttheir credit scores. And whenthey’re more credit worthy, theywill remember your assistance andlikely enlist your services whenthey’re ready for their next realestate purchase. By partneringwith mortgage professionals,bankruptcy trustees and creditcounsellors who are experts in thecredit repair niche, you canextend your own expertise andoffer assistance to clients youcome across that could use somecredit repair techniques.

If your clients have some equi-ty built up in their homes and stillhave manageable credit scores, forinstance, they can often refinancetheir mortgages and use thatmoney to pay off high-interestcredit card debt. By clearing upthis debt, they are more likely tobe able to upgrade to their dreamhomes down the road, which willbring you some added business.

In the current lending envi-ronment, with interest rates at anall-time low, now is an ideal timefor clients to refinance their mort-gages and possibly save thousandsof dollars per year, and they canpay more money per monthtowards the principal on theirmortgages as opposed to the inter-est – which, in turn, can helpbuild equity quicker.

Following are five steps youcan explain to your clients to helpthem attain a speedy credit scoreboost:

1) Pay down credit cards. The

26 REM MAY 2009

I

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Helping credit challenged clients By Collin Bruce

number one way for your clientsto increase their credit scores is topay down their credit cards sothey’re only using 30 per cent oftheir limits. Revolving credit likecredit cards seems to have a moresignificant impact on their scoresthan car loans, lines of credit, andso on.

2) Limit the use of creditcards. Racking up a large amountand then paying it off in monthlyinstallments can hurt your clients’

credit scores. If there is a balanceat the end of the month, thisaffects your clients’ scores – creditformulas don’t take into accountthe fact that your clients mayhave paid the balance off the nextmonth.

3) Check credit limits. If yourclients’ lenders are slower at report-ing monthly transactions, this canhave a significant impact on howother lenders may view yourclients’ files. Advise your clients toensure everything is up to date, asold bills that have been paid cancome back to haunt them.

Some financial institutionsdon’t even report your clients’maximum limits. As such, thecredit bureau is left to only use thebalance that’s on hand. The prob-lem is, if your clients consistentlycharge the same amount eachmonth – say $1,000 to $1,500 – itmay appear to the credit-scoringagencies that they’re regularlymaxing out their cards.

The best bet is for your clientsto pay their balances down or offbefore their statement periodsclose.

4) Keep old cards. Older cred-it is better credit. If your clientsstop using older credit cards, theissuers may stop updating theiraccounts. As such, the cards canlose their weight in the credit for-mula and, therefore, may not be asvaluable – even though yourclients have had the cards for along time. Your clients should usethese cards periodically and thenpay them off.

5) Don’t let mistakes build up.

Your clients should always disputeany mistakes or situations thatmay harm their scores. If, forinstance, a cell phone bill is incor-rect and the company will notamend it, your clients can disputethis by making the credit bureauaware of the situation.

If, however, your clients haverepeatedly missed payments ontheir credit cards, they may not bein a situation where refinancingor quickly boosting their creditscores will be possible. Dependingon the severity of the situation –and the reasons behind the delin-quencies, including job loss,divorce, illness, and so on – part-nering with other professionalssuch as the ones mentioned abovewill help you address the concernsof your credit challenged clients.

Collin Bruce is a mortgage associ-ate with Dominion Lending CentresKey Financial based in Edmonton.He has been an expert in the credit challenged niche for the past three years. 780-436-2511;cbruce@dominionlending.ca;www.collinbruce.ca. REM

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28 REM MAY 2009

FRI designation makes you stand out By Lee Arbon

n an economic time wherethe only thing that is for sureis that nothing is for certain,

individuals working in the realestate industry are looking forways to help them stand outagainst their competition. Oneoption is earning their Fellow ofthe Real Estate Institute (FRI)designation.

The FRI designation is offeredto real estate agents and brokers asa form of advanced real estate edu-cation through the Real EstateInstitute of Canada (REIC). It ispart of the institute’s Sales &Leasing Council along with theCertified Leasing Officer (CLO)and Certified Real EstateSpecialist (CRES) designations.

The first designations wereawarded in the mid-1950s, andsince then more than 2,000 peoplehave earned their FRI, with closeto 750 of them still active acrossCanada.

REIC national presidentMyrton Bello made her decision

based on how she felt this designa-tion would portray her to theindustry and public. “I decided toacquire the FRI designationbecause it is the most prestigioustitle anyone can acquire in the realestate business,” she says.

James Murphy of Halifax says,“When I make my presentations, Iemphasize my qualifications, andexplain what it takes to earn theFRI designation. I make sure thebuyer or seller I am working withunderstands that I have what I feelis the best qualification for the job,and that they can be confidentthey will receive the highest levelsof service available. They quicklyrecognize that my FRI shows Ihave made a career commitmentto real estate, and that means a lotto them. I am finding more andmore consumers recognize the FRIdesignation, and make a consciousdecision to list with a real estateprofessional that holds the FRIdesignation.”

REIC was established in 1955

as the Canadian Institute ofRealtors, before changing its namein the mid 1970s. The institute’sgoal is to help advance opportuni-ties for people in real estate. Toachieve this, REIC offers educa-tion courses, some of which aretaught in French in the majormetropolitan cities across Canada.This is how Murphy earned hisdesignation while in Halifax.

“The courses that lead to theFRI designation are certainly moreintense, in depth, and difficultthan other real estate educationtraining,” says Murphy. “Licensingprograms expose students to thebasics of many, many topics.Continuing education offered byreal estate boards and associationsgoes beyond the basics, andexplores topics in more detail, usu-ally in a lecture format in my expe-rience. Courses offered by REICare distinctly different. Coursesizes are smaller, and the presenta-tion is interactive. It involves andengages the participants.”

The education courses focuson a wide variety of topics that anindividual would deal with on adaily basis when working in realestate. These include businessethics, consumer behaviour, nego-tiating, investment analysis, legalissues in real estate and leasing.

“The main misconception wereceive from people regarding theFRI is the number of educationcourses someone has to take toearn this designation,” says ElaineLeibner, associate director forREIC. “Due to provincial regula-tions for earning a real estatelicense in each province beingdifferent, the FRI requirementsvary from province to province.For instance, if you reside inOntario it can be as few as threecourses; in other provinces it maybe more.”

Earning and keeping your des-ignation from REIC requires thatyou become a member of the insti-tute. It’s a component of your des-ignation that, Bello says, you can’t

find in the classroom and can real-ly allow you the chance to experi-ence all aspects of the industry.

“I joined because I felt it is theonly organization that has thediversity and variety of memberscomprising different areas of realestate, be they brokers, manage-ment companies, mortgage andfinance specialists or other peoplerelated to the field,” she says.

Through its unique in-depthanalysis as well as the interactionbetween the students while in theclassroom, and its ability to pro-vide insight into all areas of realestate through the people youmeet, the FRI designation adds acomponent to an individual’scareer unlike any other within thereal estate industry. Murphy says ithelps an individual evolve intothe complete package that’s want-ed in a Realtor.

Lee Arbon is manager, marketing& communications, with the RealEstate Institute of Canada. REM

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32 REM MAY 2009

Canadians win Top Re/MaxInternational award

Bryon Brandle and BradMarsh, co-broker/owners of theRe/Max offices in the NorthOkanagan and Shuswap Areas,received the highest broker/ ownerrecognition possible from Re/MaxInternational at its convention inLas Vegas. They won theBroker/Owner of the Year,Multiple Office award.Considering that the Re/Maxorganization currently has morethan 7,000 offices in 70 countriesand nearly 100,000 agents, beingrecognized as the No. 1broker/owners is a lifetimeachievement.

“We really believe that theawards should be viewed as officeawards, rather than broker/ ownerawards,” say the duo in a newsrelease. “It is everyone in ourgroup of offices that made therecognition possible, both licensedand unlicensed.”

The group currently has 136Realtors working from sevenoffices in the North Okanaganand Shuswap Areas, and 45 unli-censed support staff. Last year, thecompany sold more than $64 mil-lion in real estate.

Alan Van WartGiven Dave HawkinsAward

The New Brunswick RealEstate Association (NBREA) hasbestowed this year’s DaveHawkins Award on Alan VanWart of Fredericton, whoseachievements span 42 years in thereal estate business. The award ispresented annually to an individ-ual who has made an outstandingcontribution to the real estateindustry in New Brunswick.

Van Wart was one of thefounding members of the RealEstate Board of the FrederictonArea. He operated Van Wart

Realty for many years before tak-ing over a well-respected propertymanagement firm. He has servedas president of the FrederictonBoard twice, and continues to beactively involved with the board’scommittees. “Alan is an amazingperson who has never lost his pas-sion for this business,” saysNBREA president Dwayne Hayes.“His resume is a testament to alevel of dedication that few otherscan equal.”

Van Wart served on NBREA’sboard and on various committees.His commitment to volunteerismalso goes beyond his own industry.He has worked with VON, one ofCanada’s leading national not-for-profit home care and communitysupport service organizations, with

Ducks Unlimited, and with theRotary Club. He is a past-presi-dent of the Fredericton Y, a past-president of Pine Grove NursingHome, and currently serves on theSEED Board of EnterpriseFredericton (helping studentsbuild work experience).

Joe Orazietti recognized forfundraising

Joe Orazietti of Sutton Group- Sault Ste. Marie Realty in SaultSte. Marie, Ont. was just seven-years-old when he first displayedhis knack for selling. He began byhelping his father sell tickets forvarious Rotary Club fundraisingdrives. Since that day 69 yearsago, his ideas and efforts havehelped to raise more than $2.5million for the Rotary Club, theSault Area Hospital Foundation,the Conservation AuthorityFoundation and the MarconiClub. Orazietti and his familyrecently received the HonourableJustice I.A. Vannini Award ofMerit from the Marconi Club.

Continued on page 34

Bryon Brandle and Brad MarshElizabeth Hawkins with AlanVan Wart

Justin Wyllie Arnold Shuchat

Pamela Prescott, broker/owner of Century 21 Heritage Group, wasrecognized with a Business Achievement Award by Richmond HillMayor David Barrow (left) and chairman of the board of the Chamberof Commerce Earl Skye.

JudiWhytereceivesher awardfrom DaveWatt,REBGVpresidentfor 2008.

The Irvin TremblayTeam of Century 21Conexus Realtywon the No. 1 TeamAward for Units in2008. Team leaderIrvin Tremblayaccepts the awardfrom Century 21Canada chairmanand CEO Gary

Charlwood (right) and president, Don Lawby. Other members ofthe Irvin Tremblay Team are Barb Sokalofsky, Jessica Eaton, IrisViney, Doug Woodside, David Aschenbrener, Amy Hawkins,Bernice Lee and Lori Patrick.

Century 21 Conexus Realty broker/owner RodSpence (middle) accepts the company’s No. 1 FirmAward for Production and the No. 1 Firm Award forunits. The awards were presented by Century 21Canada chairman and CEO, Gary Charlwood (right)and president, Don Lawby on March 6.Joe Orazietti

34 REM MAY 2009

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“It means a lot because it’s avery prestigious award in this city,”says Orazietti. “Vannini was arespected lawyer and judge, so thisis a great honour.” Also acceptingthe Marconi Club award will behis sister Adelia, brother Robertand their extended family.

The Marconi Club was estab-lished by Italian immigrants in theearly 1900s. It became a popularcentre for social events, weddings,meetings and English classes.

During seven years as a volun-teer member of the Sault AreaHospital Foundation Board,Orizietti proposed a uniquefundraiser: a five car draw. “Whenyou have just one car, there’s justone draw and someone is alwaysdisappointed with the style. Myidea was to have a mix of fivesports cars, family vehicles, pick-up trucks and SUVs,” he says.Now in its 19th year, the AnnualFive Car Draw typically nets$190,000. The money is vital topurchase hospital operating equip-ment that is not funded by theprovincial government.

Pamela Prescott winsChamber ofCommerce award

Pamela Prescott, broker/owner of Century 21 HeritageGroup, was recently recognizedwith a Business AchievementAward by the Richmond Hill(Ont.) Chamber of Commerce.

And the honour goes to...Continued from page 32

The award recognizes the openingof Century 21 Heritage Group’snewest office and the resultingboost in real estate services thatwill be accessible to the RichmondHill area.

“It is always a team effort whena company wins any award. Oursales representatives are truly pro-fessional and they are backed by agreat management team and sup-port staff. I feel very fortunate tobe surrounded by such a dynamicgroup of people,” says Prescott.

She has been with Century 21since 1994 and since has grownher business into six offices withmore than 300 sales reps.

Judi Whyte given topREBGV award

Judi Whyte of PrudentialSussex Realty became the firstrecipient of the ProfessionalExcellence Award during the RealEstate Board of GreaterVancouver’s (REBGV) President’sRecognition Dinner recently. Theaward is in recognition of out-standing professionalism, knowl-edge, civic-mindedness and life-long learning. There were eightnominees in the running for theaward.

Whyte entered the real estatefield in 1977 and joinedPrudential Sussex Realty in 1992.A past-president of the KootenayReal Estate Board, past-presidentof the Real Estate Institute of B.C.,and a graduate of the U.B.C.Urban Land Economics Diploma,she is presently serving as chair of

the Real Estate Council of B.C.,and continues to be one of the topproducers at the West Vancouveroffice of Prudential Sussex Realty.

“To win this award demon-strates the dedication Judi bringsto her work and the respect shereceives from her peers as a resultof her professionalism,” says ScottRussell, REBGV president. “Sheis one of the most highly respectedpeople in our field, and truly sets astandard of excellence.”

Arnold Shuchat and JustinWyllie were each recipients of2008 Realtors Care Awards duringthe REBGV banquet.

In 2008, Shuchat, of MultipleRealty Ltd. in Richmond, helpedraise $40,000 for the RichmondJewish Day School and the LouisBrier Foundation for the Aged byorganizing a hugely successful‘Battle of the Bands’ fundraiser.His belief that the young and theold rely on the support of eachother drove him to unite these twoorganizations for this event. Thelively fundraiser was such a hitthat it has become an annualevent.

Wyllie, of Re/Max SabreRealty Group in Port Coquitlam,led the Tri-Cities Operation RedNose program to great success. Hisenthusiasm attracted a recordnumber of volunteers to the pro-gram and provided 258 party-goerswith a safe ride home last holidayseason. The program more thantripled its donation to Kidsport, anorganization that helps to giveunderprivileged kids the opportu-

nity to enrol in community sportsprograms.

Royal LePage winsaward for 7th time

Royal LePage is the recipientof a Leading Real EstateCompanies of the World MemberAchievement Award, The GlobalAlliance Award, for the seventhconsecutive year. The award isgiven to the member with themost outgoing cross-border closedreferrals for the 2008 sales year.

The award was presented dur-ing the Awards Gala at theLeading Real Estate Companies ofthe World annual conference inScottsdale, Ariz. The eventattracted top real estate brokers,managers, relocation professionals,sponsors and guests from the U.S.and eight other countries.

KW Ottawa again oneof ‘best places to work’

Keller Williams Ottawa Realtyhas ranked eighth on the 2009 listof Best Workplaces issued by theGreat Place to Work Institute. Italso ranked second on the 2009list of Canada’s Best Workplacesfor Women. For an organization tobe eligible for this list, at least 50per cent of employees must bewomen and at least 50 per cent ofexecutive positions must be heldby women. Brokerage CEO SunnyDaljit says, “We are truly gratefulto all of our Realtors, staff, teamadministrators and managementthat make our company a greatplace to work.”

The Great Place to WorkInstitute is a U.S.-based manage-ment and consultancy company.

RECA wins ConsumerChampion Award

The Real Estate Council ofAlberta (RECA) has been recog-nized as a “Consumer Champion”by Service Alberta. RECAreceived a Service AlbertaConsumer Champion Award ofDistinction for its consumer tools,which include online and printmaterials to help consumers makedecisions about working with realestate industry members, and withbuying and selling residential realestate.

The Alberta ConsumerChampion Awards, now in theirthird year, recognize individuals,organizations, businesses andmedia that demonstrate commit-ment and innovation in educatingAlberta consumers and promotingfairness in the Alberta market-place,

RECA’s award-winning entryincluded consumer brochures onbuying and selling real estate, theAgency Relationships Guide andAgency Relationships video, andthe Property Inspection RequestForm, all of which are available toconsumers, free of charge, throughthe RECA website atwww.reca.ca, Production of theconsumer tools was made possible,in part, with the aid of a grantfrom the Alberta Real EstateFoundation. REM

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ou can’t succeed online ifyou don’t connect with peo-ple. The Internet is driven

by people like you and I, and themore contacts we have, the better itis for our business. These peoplearound the web are our readers,advertisers, promoters, prospects andcustomers. To us Realtors, network-ing on the web is as important as net-working elsewhere.

First, let’s get the fundamentals

out of the way. A weblog, betterknown as a blog, is a type of website,maintained by you with regularentries of commentary, descriptionsof events, or other materials such asgraphics or video. You can write on asmany subjects as you’d like, and yourentries can be indexed, archived, anddisplayed in any order. Many blogsprovide commentary or news on aparticular subject; others function asmore personal online diaries. Thewriting possibilities are endless. Yourwebsite can be your blog, or you canhave a blog on your website. Mostsites developed for Realtors nowa-days also offer a blogging tool.

Now, your blog is immortal andnothing dies on the Internet. If youwrite something, it’ll be indexed onsearch engines such as Google, and

people will keep coming to your blogforever. Yes, if you build it, they willcome. For Realtors, blogging is justone of the many elements of anInternet marketing strategy that weshould implement. However, theecosystem of blogging is more impor-tant than the content being generat-ed. You need to write often, and topublish your posts to a wide audienceand get them to come back to yourblog to read more.

In order to connect with otherbloggers and blog readers, you needto be in the blogosphere. This is acollective term encompassing allblogs and their interconnections. It isthe perception that blogs existtogether as a connected community,or as a collection of connected com-munities, or as a social network. Sites

such as Technorati, BlogPulse,Tailrank, Digg, and BlogScope trackthe interconnections between blog-gers. Taking advantage of hypertextlinks, which act as markers for thesubjects the bloggers are discussing,these sites can follow a piece ofconversation as it moves from blogto blog. You job is to ensure yourposts are properly tagged so that theblogosphere can properly indexyour posts.

A tag is a non-hierarchical key-word or term assigned to a piece ofinformation. This kind of metadatahelps describe an item and allows itto be found again by browsing orsearching. For example, if I amwriting a blog about my open houseon Sunday, I can tag it as OpenHouse, Selling, Richmond Hill, or

any other tag my heart desires.Once again all up-to-date bloggingtools offer tagging features that youcan take advantage of, and if does-n’t, request it.

The size of the blogosphere hasdoubled every five to six months.Over this time, blogs have gone frombeing a word that sounded insultingto an online trend embraced byprime ministers and senators runningfor president.

Implement a blog into yourInternet marketing strategy andyou will see the advantages socialmedia can offer your business ororganization.

Kory Gorgani is a Realtor withCentury 21 Heritage Group inRichmond Hill, Ont. He holds anMBA in operations management, andhas an IT background. He can bereached at kory@gorgani.com. REM

36 REM MAY 2009

By Larry Easto

Consider launching a community websiteBy Larry Easto

YBy Kory Gorgani

Get into the blogosphere

ing delivered by community news-papers can be, and in fact alreadyis, delivered by overlapping alter-native print media such as dailynewspapers and various electronicmedia. Not surprisingly, the com-munity newspapers’ share of auto-motive advertising can be expect-ed to decrease substantially, if nottotally disappear.

The third major element ofcommunity newspapers’ advertis-ing – classified ads – has alreadybeen largely taken over by eBayand Craigslist.

All things considered, this willnot be a good year for communitynewspapers.

If you have a well-definedniche market, you can develop acommunity-focused website toreplace the community newspaperin your market. That really isn’t ashard as it sounds.

In practice, a community web-site serves much the same purposeas a community newspaper: avehicle for providing news andinformation to a local community– your niche market. A websitefocused on your niche market willalso serve as a vehicle for you topromote yourself, your services

and client listings to the people inthis market.

Unlike a community newspa-per, which is owned and operatedby someone else, your communitywebsite is all yours. You have totalcontrol over what does and whatdoes not go into it.

As an active real estate agent,you are very busy and can’t beexpected to add the task of creat-ing a new website to your alreadyoverloaded to-do list. However,there is no reason that you cannotinitiate the project, either alone orin association with other like-minded people. Get someone tohelp you. This could be a willingfamily member, an eager studentintern or a “sweat equity” partnerwho can contribute sweat to start-ing and running the project, inhopes of future compensationfrom site-generated revenue.

Once your site is launched, as atrusted advisor in your community,you become the public face of thesite, while the day-to-day mainte-nance of the site is delegated tosomeone else. You can alsoinvolve other qualified businesseson your site. Qualified businessesoffer at least the same level of ser-

vice to their clients as you do. They could include referral

partners or clients and contactsthat operate their own businessesin your niche market. These busi-nesses would participate on a freeor fee-for-service basis. There areadvantages to each, so choosewhichever approach or combina-tion works best for you.

By adding e-commerce capa-bility to your community website,you can create a sustainable rev-enue stream that will help yoursite become self-supporting. Onceyou have your site up and runningwith lots of visitors coming to yoursite daily, many doors open for youto create even more incomestreams such as:

• Paid referrals to others inyour industry (make sure you oper-ate your site separately from yourreal estate business).

• Paid advertising on your site(You might also be able to pick upsome of the community newspa-per’s former revenue sources.)

• Google AdSense income. You can obtain content from

local resources such as editors andjournalists of any communitynewspapers that may have folded.

You can also add content fromInternet resources suchActiveRain consumer informa-tion or websites that offer e-zinearticles, but you may be requiredto pay for them.

For local news and views, youcan add Web 2.0 capability to yoursite. This feature is a combinationof Wikipedia, MySpace and flickr.In effect, visitors to your site createlocal news content for you butyou, or your assistant, control whatis added.

The concept works. LoganJones, a Realtor with San Antonio(Texas) Homes For Sale says, “Ihave a community website and itdoes great for me…it does get yourname out there and when peoplethink of a Realtor, they think ofmy site and call me.”

Pessimists will no doubtmourn the reduced role, if not thecomplete passing of communitynewspapers. Optimists will seethis change as an exciting newopportunity to grow their busi-ness and serve their local commu-nities. Count me among the opti-mists.

Larry Easto is a best-selling busi-ness writer, syndicated columnist andauthor of four e-books about real estate marketing. He is also pub-lisher of www.real-estate-marketing-link.info

To learn more about communitywebsites, see http://www.real-estate-marketing-link.info/community_web-site.html. REM

his is going to be a chal-lenging year for local andcommunity newspapers,

but this challenge also offers anexciting opportunity for real estateagents.

Traditionally, the bulk ofadvertising revenue for communi-ty newspapers came from threesources: real estate, automotiveand classified ads. According tothe 2007 National Association ofRealtors Profile of Home Buyers andSellers, 84 per cent of home buyersuse the Internet as part of theirhome search. No doubt this per-centage is higher now, some twoyears after this survey was com-pleted.

Real estate agents consistentlyreport shifting their advertisingfrom print to online media.

As the automotive industry re-invents itself, corporate and dealeradvertising will certainly be a tar-get for reduced expenditures. Inmany cases, automotive advertis-

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38 REM MAY 2009

arl Sagan said, “One of thesaddest lessons of history isthis; if we have been bam-

boozled long enough, we tend toreject any evidence of the bam-boozle. We’re no longer interestedin finding out the truth. The bam-boozle has captured us. It is simplytoo painful to acknowledge – evento ourselves – that we’ve been socredulous.”

This is the first of what I hopewill be many columns, in which Iplan to share with you some ofwhat I have learned along the wayto help to de-bamboozle the sub-ject of income tax in our highlytaxed country.

I should make it quite clearthat I am not an expert, self-pro-claimed or otherwise, but rather aperson who has gained a fair bit oflife and business experience, andwho, because of an on-goingdesire to learn, would like to shareand teach on the subject ofincome tax and how to reduce it,and other matters relating tosmall and medium business.

I came from many years ofworking in trade association man-agement, to starting and runningmy own service business with apartner. At the time, several yearsago, after seven or eight years inbusiness, we were doing nearly $1million a year in sales with 10 full-time and a dozen steady part-timeemployees. We had incorporated,which was a mistake, and we hadchartered accountants doing ourbooks and tax returns…and I did-n’t know a thing about taxes.

I had a strong feeling that Iwas paying too much tax and Ithought I wasn’t getting all thehelp that I could or should fromour accountants. They were goodaccountants and did help us insome ways…but not when it cameto taxes.

To shorten the story, I found asmall company that had a differ-ent approach to tax and became aclient; eight months later Ibecame an associate and now I ama tax consultant on my own,working to educate and help peo-ple reduce their taxes and deal

Tax chat and other mattersA new column about how to reduce your tax load without fearing the Canada Revenue AgencyBy Michel Chevalier

with Canada Revenue Agency(CRA) audits and problems.

Income tax has been made into a complicated subject andunnecessarily so. I think this ispart of the bamboozle. There is noone person who is expert in allareas of taxation. I would ventureto guess that the closest thing

would be a small and select groupof gnomes buried in the bowels ofCRA who have learned how tomanipulate and control the sys-tem pretty effectively to ensurethat as much money as possibledefaults to CRA, the biggest col-lection agency in the country.

Over the years, and on differ-ent occasions, tests have beenundertaken that show just howmuch grey there is in the tax sys-tem. In one such test, one persons’tax return was given to 10 tax pre-parers… the result was 10 differ-ent tax returns. This is not a goodthing – especially for the taxpayer.I mean, if trained tax preparersand accountants can’t agree,where does that leave most of us?I know that when I had my ownbusiness prior to becoming a taxconsultant, I didn’t know what Ididn’t know and I didn’t reallyknow where to go to find out.

In future columns, I will shedsome light on how CRA operatesand what mechanisms are in placeshould a taxpayer disagree andwish to take issue with CRA. I

will even, I hope, get the messageacross that it is a good thing totake issue with CRA, when youfeel you have a case. Contrary topopular belief, it is better to fightthan simply write a cheque tomake them go away.

If you’re right you areright…and guess what? CRA’s jobis to collect money. If you simplypay them whatever, wheneverthey ask, they will come back formore. On the other hand, if youmake it difficult and time con-suming and you have a case, andyou take the time to make yourcase, you will more than likelysave yourself some money overtime, thereby making it time wellspent.

I will be writing about the bestway, in my view, that anyone canuse to reduce taxes – which is tobe in business or to have your ownbusiness. All of you real estateagents and brokers are in businessand until you are making a greatdeal of money and can afford theexpense of tax accountants, taxlawyers and trusts, the absolutebest thing you can do is to growyour business, maximize yourincome and do everything youlegally can to deduct legitimatebusiness expenses – money youspend to generate businessincome.

What you will be reading infuture columns is based on directhands-on experience with whatworks. I look forward to the jour-ney.

Michel Chevalier has many yearsof business experience combining over20 years managing multiple tradeassociations representing severaldozen industries; building his ownsmall business from the ground up andmore recently as a consultant special-izing in helping individuals and smallbusiness significantly reduce taxes byimplementing legal business strategies.He has also represented clients inaudit and other difficult situations withCanada Revenue Agency. Email:michel@mcchevalier.com; www.tax-action.net REM

C

Contrary topopular belief,it is better to

fight thansimply write a

cheque tomake them go

away.

†Royal LePage is a trademark used under license.

Katherine Ukrainetz

Andy Puthon, Executive Vice President, NetworkDevelopment, is pleased to announce that effectiveApril 1, 2009 Cornerstone Credit Union, the proudowners of Renaud Realty and Insurance, havejoined the Royal LePage franchise network and willoperate under the new name Royal LePageRenaud Realty. Katherine Ukrainetz will managethe Royal LePage Renaud Realty team.

Katherine obtained her real estate license in 1992and started her career at Renaud Realty andInsurance with Jere Renaud. She was born andraised in Tisdale, is married with 3 children, and isinvolved in the Christian and Missionary AllianceChurch. Katherine is a 3rd generation farmer andholds a paralegal diploma.

With respect to joining Royal LePage, Katherinesays “I love the global exposure and feel that RoyalLePage has an open policy of freedom for

community involvement and business within theindividual franchise.”

The team at Royal LePage Renaud Realty can bereached at:

Box 416, 713 – 100th StreetTisdale, SK S0E 1T0Phone: (306) 873-5900 • Fax: (306) 873-2991Email: katherineukrainetz@royallepage.caWebsite: www.tisdalerealty.ca

Please join us in welcoming Katherine, and wishingher and everyone at Royal LePage Renaud Realtycontinued success.

For information on the Royal LePage franchise program, please call Andy Puthon directly at (416) 510-5827.

ROYAL LePAGE RENAUD REALTYTisdale, Saskatchewan

†

†Royal LePage is a trademark used under license.

Kevin Somers

Andy Puthon, Executive Vice President,Network Development is pleased toannounce the opening of a new RoyalLePage Real Estate Services Ltd. office inthe Former City of Etobicoke.

This new office will be managed by brokerKevin Somers, who will also continue to bethe area manager of 3031 Bloor Street West,and 2320 Bloor Street West, managed by AlOrlando.

The opening of this office positions RoyalLePage Real Estate Services Ltd. to capturean even greater share of the south Etobicokemarket place and there are plans to grow itto an office of similar size to the successfuldowntown location at 905 King Street West.This strategic move has already allowedRoyal LePage to increase its share of

condominium sales in MLS district W06, with the addition of 6 incremental sales associates, and further allows them a significant recruiting opportunity for years to come.

(South Etobicoke Office)635 The QueenswayToronto, Ontario M8Y 1K6 Phone: 416-252-4368 Fax: 416-252-5302 Email: kevinsomers@royallepage.ca

Please join us in wishing everyone great success with this new and exciting opportunity.

For information on the Royal LePage franchise program, please call Andy Puthondirectly at (416) 510-5827.

ROYAL LePAGE REAL ESTATE SERVICES LTD. - expands!

Toronto, Ontario

†

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40 REM MAY 2009

By Leon d’Ancona

eal estate professionals arefortunate. No other indus-try presents its members

with so much information. Needprecise information about whereyou should you work? What typesof homes are selling? What priceranges were best sellers last month?What is the average price for four-bedroom, three-washroom homesin the postal code starting withM5M? What price difference isthere between three and fourwashrooms in the same location?What are the highest turnoverstreets? All the information isyours for the asking.

The source of all this informa-tion is your MLS. My studies show

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4 easy ways to expand your clienteleWhen you are perceived as knowing your business, people will seek you outthat fewer than half of one per centof Realtors bother getting accuratestatistical information. Becauseconsumers in 2009 tend to be themost informed ever, if you want toget their business, they rightfullyexpect you to know a lot morethan they do.

I meet many agents who tendto obfuscate real market condi-tions. They feel the bare truthmight cause them to lose a listing,or send buyers elsewhere. To themI say that if you succeed getting aclient on those terms, and thenchange your story in midstream,you can rest assured they will notonly get out their commitment toyou as soon as possible, but willnever recommend you to friends oracquaintances. So if you are in realestate for the long term, tell it as itis, with facts and figures.

Professionals who strive to beinformed need to realize that read-ing a newspaper is not goodenough, because your clients readas well. When all is said and done,

buyers and sellers look for the per-son who impresses them with pro-fessional knowledge. Here are fourways you will be the mostinformed:

Days on market – Know thedays on market for the geographi-cal area you are working in.Prepare trending graphs for the lastyear. This information gives visualcredence to the longer listing youlikely need in today’s market.

DOM will vary widely fromarea to area. They are a harbingerof what lies ahead for the next fewmonths. Use them as your measureof consumer confidence, becauseyour client will not have this pow-erful forecaster.

Sold-to-ask ratios – Have thelast 12 months of sold-to-ask ratiosready. Sellers should be shownwhat market conditions allowthem to expect. Buyers need to bein tune with the fact that offeringway less than what is asked for willnot further their cause.

In today’s difficult real estatemarket, 93 per cent of a reasonablelast asking price is not uncommon.Prepare your seller for what liesahead. Use this measure of seller’sconfidence in the market.

Homes sold at 100 per cent ormore of the last asking price – Ihave long been a proponent of thismeasure. That figure varies from ashigh as 60 per cent to as low ofthree per cent. It is a logical reflec-tion of market conditions that realestate agents should use constantly,yet very few do.

This tells the vendor that anyoffer he is likely to receive willneed tough and very persuasivenegotiation. It tells buyers that thefirst offer is not likely going to beaccepted. Long before the word“commission” is mentioned, yourclients should understand thatthere is a lot more to buying andselling a home than they thought.

Units sold – The most obviousstatistic, yet infrequently used byprofessionals, is the measure ofunits sold. Saying that in an entiremetropolitan area sales were up ordown does not indicate a highamount of knowledge. Yourprospective client already knowsthat. Being prepared with a graphabout the clients’ own narrow dis-trict makes a lot more sense.

If a picture is worth a thousandwords, then the graph shownbelow certainly shows the need forthe seller in this case to be flexiblein his pricing aspirations.

Even the most stubborn sellerwill understand that times havechanged since May of ’08, andwhile she may have been readinggreat things about her city, it is herneighbourhood that the purchaserwill evaluate in his offer.

Your approach to clients shouldbe permeated with honesty andintegrity backed by irrefutable cur-rent statistics. You might lose aclient here and there, but clientsdo not automatically provideincome. When a client is totallyunrealistic, my advice is to bow outgraciously, saying, “Mr. and Mrs.Smith, I understand you wanting$350,000 for your home, andbelieve me, I wish you well. Butmay I ask you for a favour? If yourhome does not sell with the otheragent, please call me again, and Iwill do my best to get you the bestprice this market will allow.”

In conclusion, here is a statisticthat will work for you based on myexperience of more than twodecades of coaching agents, team

leaders, owners and brokers in theuse of real estate statistics. Thosewho adopted the premise ofinforming the consumer with sta-tistics about their upcoming deci-sion have consistently outper-formed their peers. More than 85per cent of this elite crowd movedup to an earning plateau in the topnine per cent of income earners.

Using statistics, especiallywhen they are provided by a thirdparty, allows you to take theapproach that you are a “victim ofthe market” as much as your clientis. You no more control what thehousing market is doing than youcontrol the stock market.

There are lots of homes selling,what are you waiting for?

Leon d’Ancona B.T.L.,M.T.L., RRESI, is president andfounder of IMS Incorporated, andcreator of REality, an online serviceused by franchises, brokers and agentsto improve their bottom line. Authorand writer, he is a regular speaker atreal estate gatherings throughout thecontinent, and is well-known for hisentertaining, illuminating presenta-tions. Email: Leon@realestatestatis-tics.com. REM

42 REM MAY 2009

Harvey Kalles sellingSt. Kitts resort project

Toronto independent broker-age Harvey Kalles Real Estate hassigned an agency agreement withOcean’s Edge Resort, a resortdevelopment project on theCaribbean island of St. Kitts.Harvey Kalles will market and sellthe luxury properties to Canadiansinterested in purchasing a secondhome or vacation property on theCaribbean island.

Ocean’s Edge Resort is a vaca-tion home resort currently underconstruction. It includes 170 con-

What’s

New

What’s

New

dominiums and 23 villa plots over-looking the ocean. A variety ofleisure facilities are planned,including a clubhouse, fitness cen-tre, restaurants, pools and tenniscourts as well as concierge, house-keeping and a rental managementprogram. Despite the current eco-nomic climate, interest at Ocean’sEdge continues to grow, the com-pany says. Pricing starts fromUS$359,000.

Ocean’s Edge Resort will bemarketed by Harvey Kalles underthe agency’s InternationalDivision. The department, led byKathie Wood, launched in March2008 and now represents proper-ties in Spain, Italy, France,Morocco, Vietnam, Austria,Antigua, St. Kitts, Panama, andthe Dominican Republic.

“Despite the downturn in theworld economy, we have alreadyseen an incredible reaction fromthe Canadian market for this par-ticular project following some ini-tial marketing efforts,” says Wood.

“The project offers great valuefor the money and will include amanagement and rental programso ownership will be worry-free,which is important for our clients.Other key features that attracted usto this project are the fact that St.

Kitts is politically and economical-ly stable with a form of govern-ment similar to our own here inCanada; has advantageous taxlaws; and offers a well-developedinfrastructure and banking systemand a developing tourist industry.”

In 2007, St. Kitts was listed byIslands Magazine as one of the top20 islands on which to live world-wide and in the October 2008 issueof Robb Report’s Vacation HomesMagazine, the island made the listof 10 great places where the besttime to buy is now. Clients with aninterest in purchasing property canparticipate in a three-night subsi-dized inspection trip to experienceSt. Kitts and Ocean’s Edge firsthand.

For information: www.har-veykalles.com.

Quinte board signs onwith Filogix DMS

The Quinte and District RealEstate Board has become the 35thboard to select Filogix DMS as itsexclusive MLS technologyprovider.

“Quinte is a real feather in ourcap,” says Joel Shears, director ofbusiness development, Filogix RealEstate Division. “The Quinte

Board has made the decision tomigrate from their own internalself-managed system to DMS andwe are excited to have them onboard.”

Quinte and District Real EstateBoard executive officer ElaineO’Hara says, “Filogix is the onlyMLS provider that could offer usthe inter-board connectivity,which allows our members to workwith the other boards in the area –most of whom are on the Filogixsystem. That is a huge plus for ourmembership.”

Filogix DMS is a comprehen-sive Internet-based MLS system. Itprovides Realtors with full controlof their day-to-day business includ-ing online, real-time access to theirlistings, mobile access, full report-ing functionality, auto prospecting,real-time website listing and IDXsolutions, integrated mapping,electronic forms solution, and inte-gration with mainstream partnertechnologies, the company says.For information: www.filogix.com.

Genworth site offershelp for buyers

Home buyers have a newresource to help guide themthrough the home buying

process – an online plannerintroduced by GenworthFinancial Canada.

Peter Vukanovich, presidentof Genworth Financial Canada,says, “Homebuyers don’t have togo it alone. The Home Plannercalendar helps home buyers plantheir journey and become home-owners with confidence, know-ing they haven’t missed a singlestep along the way.”

Homebuyers can register atMyHomePlanner.ca to createtheir own roadmap to navigatethrough the various stages of thehome buying process, includingautomatic email reminders foreach task prior to closing day.

Free resources of My HomePlanner include a personalizationfeature that populates your calen-dar with standard and customizedhome buying tasks leading up toclosing day. You can save yourown Home Planner to your desk-top or laptop, and print it for easyreference. It also includes inter-active tools such as “What Can IAfford” and “Rent vs. Buy” cal-culators. The site also includes alibrary of articles filled with tipsand advice about the home buy-ing process. REM

Sotheby’s International Realty Canada in Toronto is pleased to announcethat Alex Pino has achieved the designation of Fellow of the Real EstateInstitute of Canada. The FRI, Canada's preeminent real estate designation,is a mark of excellence earned by a select few of top real estate professionals. Fellows of the Real Estate Institute of Canada demonstratean ongoing commitment to the highest standards of education, experienceand ethical conduct in the real estate industry. Alex specializes in residential real estate in downtown and midtown Toronto.

Sotheby’s International Realty Canada, Brokerage497 Davenpor t Rd.Toronto, ON. M4V 1B7Business: 416.960.9995Fax: 416.960.3222

ANNOUNCEMENT

Alex Pino, FRI, Broker

Sotheby's International Realty Canada, Brokerage. Independently owned and operated.

First-time buyers expect too muchirst-time home buyers areprimarily concerned withaffordability when choos-

ing a new home, but their expec-tations may be too high relative totheir current financial buyingpower, according to a ColdwellBanker survey conducted amongits brokers and sales representa-tives in markets across NorthAmerica.

While nearly half of theColdwell Banker survey respon-dents reported that affordabilitywas the No. 1 concern for thisgroup, 82 per cent said today’s first-time home buyers consider move-in conditions to be very importantwhen searching for homes. Onlyseven per cent are looking to pur-chase “fixer-upper” homes thatthey could buy at a lower price andrenovate themselves.

“In the past, first-time homebuyers were willing to purchaseolder, more basic houses in aneffort to save money and breakinto homeownership,” says Jim

Gillespie, president and CEO,Coldwell Banker Real Estate.“Today, this group has greaterhome expectations because theyhave grown up more accustomedto their parents’ lifestyles. It isimportant for first-time homebuy-ers to remember that by consider-ing a ‘fixer-upper’ for their firsthome purchase, they can buildequity over time and move up andinto a second-stage home that bet-ter reflects their expectations.”

Survey findings also suggestthat first-time home buyers worrymore about credit ratings andapproval than they did a decadeago, but less about down payments.This may be because they havesaved money themselves, or havereceived additional support fromparents to help their first-timehome purchase.

According to 29 per cent ofbrokers and sales representativessurveyed, first-time home buyerswere more concerned with downpayments 10 years ago than any-

thing else, while only 23 per centsaid this is the biggest concern intoday’s market. Meanwhile, surveyrespondents said that only six percent of first-time home buyers wereworried about their credit scores adecade ago, while 15 per cent saidit is more of a concern today.

Additional key findings fromthe survey include:

• 70 per cent of respondentsnoted that first-time home buyersare looking for larger homes thanthey were 10 years ago.

• According to 38 per cent ofthe respondents, proximity to jobis the No. 1 attribute first-timehome buyers are looking for in ahome.

• 33 per cent of the surveyrespondents said “investment” isthe No. 1 reason first-time homebuyers are making their purchase.

• 46 per cent of the surveyrespondents reported that first-time home buyers look at five to 10homes, on average, before makinga purchase. REM

F

44 REM MAY 2009

ne thing home buyershave in common is theydiscover that all homes

have issues. There is no perfecthouse, not even a new one.

Keeping that in mind, Realtorsshould advise their clients thatproblems found in new homes arecompletely different than problemsin resale homes. New homes don’thave older systems that are nearthe end of their service life.Instead, problems involve incom-plete work, damaged systems, miss-ing pieces and imperfect workman-ship.

New home construction prob-lems primarily fall into the follow-ing four categories:

1. Incomplete work. Often pro-jects don’t get done. This may be assimple as missing a layer of paint toa room that has no air ducting. Insome cases, the incomplete work isnot detected for some time afterthe homebuyer moves in.

2. Damaged systems and finish-es. Things get damaged duringconstruction – rain, snow, impactdamage, stacking and storage dam-age. A common example is duct-ing that gets squashed under atticinsulation.

3. Missing elements.Sometimes there is just an over-sight during construction. Forexample, there may be no insula-tion in the attic.

4. Imperfect or sloppy work-manship. It’s impossible to haveperfect workmanship throughoutthe construction project. However,there are numerous reasons whythings can go wrong on a construc-tion site – a contractor gets delayedon another site and then is in ahurry to finish, or it may start rain-ing before the house is closed in,and trades have to be diverted toanother site.

Here are a few of the morecommon problems experienced innew construction.

Interior and exterior finishissues – This seems to be the mostcommon problem in new homes.Every new house has nail pops,imperfections in the cabinetry or asmall chip out of the counter top.These are typical and common.

Tile and floor damage – Floordamage is very common in newconstruction. The damage may bea minor surface issue (crack orscrape), or it could be more serious

Taking a closer look at new homes By Dan Steward

O such as a floor structure that persis-tently telegraphs through the floorfinish. A line of cracked tiles usual-ly points to a sub-floor issue. Areplaced cracked tile will crackagain. The tile will need to beremoved.

Water – As with old homes,water is a problem with new homes.Foundation cracks combined withpoor exterior grading results inwater infiltration. Leaks from show-er stalls are also common.

Siding – Buckling siding isoften present in new homes. Vinylsiding expands and contracts as itis heated and cooled. If the siding isnailed tightly to the walls, as itexpands, the siding will buckle andpop out. Home buyers are oftensurprised when they touch thevinyl siding and it feels loose. Thisis normal. In fact, it has to be likethis to perform properly.

Manufactured wood siding hasvery little tolerance to moisture.Perfect installation is required forthe system to perform well foryears.

Exterior grading issues –Grading problems in new homesstem from the constructionprocess. Land is excavated to pre-pare the area where the house willbe built. After the foundations arein place, the space around thefoundation is backfilled. Two com-mon problems arise:

1. The backfill settles, resultingin negative grade (land slopestowards the house).

2. The backfill is too high onthe foundation.

Roofing issues – Most issueswith new roof surfaces involvesloppy workmanship. If the shin-gles are installed in cold weather,the shingles don’t stick. If a windstorm strikes before enough heat ison the roof to stick the shinglestogether, the shingles experiencewind damage. There are tech-niques for installing shingles incold weather that involve adding adab of soft roof tar to each tab. Thistakes a lot more work, so it is usu-ally omitted in favour of the hopefor the best approach.

Insulation – Missing pockets ofinsulation or insufficient depth ofinsulation can be found in newhomes. The insulation is usuallyblown in with a machine from theattic hatch. If all areas cannot bereached from the hatch, the

installer may have to enter theattic or remove a roof vent toreceive proper coverage. In manycases, the installer will simply dothe best he can, often leaving voidsin areas shadowed by an obstruc-tion.

Insufficient depth is also foundin new homes. Most times, thecause involves an inexperiencedinstaller. There will be some settle-ment of the insulation, but theamount it settles should be wellknown to the installer.

Ducting – Damaged ducting orducting that is not properly sealedleads to rooms that don’t have anyair flow. Often ducting gets dam-aged where it runs through uncon-ditioned spaces such as the attic.Ducts leaking into the attic causemore than energy waste; they cancause serious condensation andmould. The damage may go un-noticed because of the insulationcoverage.

Structural issues – Moststructural problems with newhomes are minor. There is eitherno implication to the structuraldefect, or the effect is localized. Ofcourse, this is a generalization,and there have been cases ofmajor structural problems involv-ing new construction.

The two most common struc-tural defects with new construc-tion are foundation cracks anddamaged or improperly modifiedfloor joists and trusses.

Improperly modified floor joistsare one of the most common struc-tural problems found in new con-struction. A plumber may removea section of floor joist to make wayfor the drain for the toilet, locateddirectly above. This problem mustbe addressed and can be fixed by agood carpenter.

Remember, new homes can beinspected to uncover the defectsdiscussed. Knowing upfront whatissues might arise in the future cansave home buyers thousands ofdollars. Realtors should advisetheir clients to take all means tofind out what problems may existin a new home. The most reliableway to uncover problems is by hir-ing an un-biased third-party homeinspector.

Dan Steward is president of Pillarto Post. For more information, visitwww.pillartopost.com REM

The grade has been backfilled too high, and the soil is too close to thebrick. The brick will soak up water and disintegrate. Moisture can getover the foundation and into the sill causing wood rot in the walls.

This foundation crack is fairly large (greater than one-quarter inch)and it has moved in more than one plane. If you look closely you cansee that the crack faces don’t line up. This crack has opened up andsheared. This usually indicates a more serious foundation crack thatwill require further evaluation.

This photo shows backfill settlement. Water from the downspout willflood around the window well. This is a wet basement waiting to hap-pen. A short-term solution would be to add an extension to the down-spout leader to minimize the water that gets to this low area.Ultimately, comprehensive re-grading will be required.

In this photo, the ducts sections have separated and there is no airflowin the roof above.

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Learning Objectives: To understand clearly what staging is, who does what, when to do it and dispel myths and misconceptions. To understand and communicate the process, benefits and investment to a seller or buyer. How to overcome challenges and objections to home staging. How to handle sensitive issues like death and pets odors. What to expect and how to hire a real estate stager.

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Real estate professionals will gain the knowledge to identify greenfeatures of homeowner’s properties and help their green efforts with resources and information. These green features can be highlighted during the selling process.

Did You Know? of people surveyed said “Green” features are important when

buying a property of consumers surveyed buy environmentally friendly products are willing to pay more for such items say they make a special effort to patronize retailers with a green

reputation. is the forecast rise in energy cost by 2010 of new homes are being built with green features

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46 REM MAY 2009

Good WorksGood Workseing interviewed aboutwho he is, his professionalbackground and why he

wanted to undertake a 210-kmbicycle ride isn’t why Stuart Gasswanted a story in REM. Instead, it’sall about getting people to donateto a worthy cause – a cure for can-cer, says the agent with Re/MaxHallmark Realty Ltd. in Toronto.“If there’s limited space, the partabout how people can donate isthe most important, not how I gotinvolved,” he says.

On June 13 and 14, Gass, fel-low Realtor Wes Stitt of Re/MaxRouge River Realty, Stitt’s wife,Diane, and long-time friend PeterLambert will participate in the210-km Ride to Conquer Cancer.

Fifty-six-year-old Stitt, captainof the team called Oldspokes, sayshe got inspired last year when hefirst heard about the ride. “I likedto cycle, so I talked to my friendPeter. He said, ‘No. We haven’tdone anything like that in 30years.’ I thought, he’s the sensibleone and I’m crazy. But he calledback two weeks later and said let’sdo it. Both our mothers died ofcancer. Stuart heard about it” andwas inspired to join this year’s ride.

Fifty-two-year-old Gass, whosewife and mother are both cancersurvivors, has participated in fiveand 10-km runs, but this will be hisfirst ride.

He began training lastNovember, riding in good weatherand bad, on the road through traf-fic. “I wanted to train under theworst-case scenario,” he says. Hewill ride a Rally Grand Prix bike hebought in 1976. “No modificationswill be made.”

Stitt began training November2007 to ride in June 2008 and has-n’t stop training. “I lost 54 poundsand am in much better health,”says Stitt, adding he rode all theway through last year’s ride, albeitslowly up Hamilton Mountain.

Participants of the two-day rideto benefit Princess MargaretHospital research will start inToronto and bike to Hamilton onDay 1, and then travel on toNiagara Falls on the second day.

“There’s strength in numbers,”says Stitt, who is asking Realtorsfrom across the country to jointogether and support the cause bydonating to their ride. Each mem-ber of the Oldspokes team mustraise $2,500 in order to participate.

To donate, visit www.conquer-cancer.ca. Search for ride partici-pants Wes Stitt or Stuart Gass tosupport the Realtors.

■ ■ ■

Eight Century 21 companiesfrom Canada have ranked interna-tionally in the Top 21 Easter SealsFundraising Award category for2008. This is Century 21's 30thanniversary of its commitment toraising awareness and funds forEaster Seals. To date the global sys-tem has raised more than $98 mil-lion. To commemorate the 30thanniversary of the partnership, theorganization has set a goal of sur-passing the $100 million mark thisyear.

The companies that achievedinternational ranking: No. 4 –Century 21 Conexus Realty,Regina; No. 5 – Century 21 A.L.L.Stars Realty, Edmonton; No. 11 –Century 21 The Professionals,Calgary; No. 12 – Century 21United Realty, Peterborough,Ont.; No. 13 – Century 21 B. J.Roth Realty, Barrie, Ont.; No. 14 –Century 21 Seller’s Choice, St.John’s; No. 17 – Century 21Classic Realty, Halifax; and No. 21– Century 21 Assurance Realty,Kelowna, B.C.

A significant portion of themonies raised by these offices havesent children with disabilities tosummer camp under a Century 21Canada and Easter Seals Canadainitiative called Century 21 Kids toCamp. This joint initiative waslaunched in September 2008.

Since last September, systemmembers across the country havecommitted to raising $2,100 byholding garage sales and barbecuesand donating a portion of commis-sions.

Century 21 Heritage Groupsales rep Michele Denniston inAurora, Ont., is organizing a char-

ity fashion event to send four kidsto camp. The evening will featurea fashion show of designs andhaute couture from local up andcoming talent. Guests will also betreated to a wine and appetizertasting and will get a chance to winraffle prizes at the May 7 event. Formore information, visit www.cen-tury21.ca/michele.denniston.

■ ■ ■

May is Shelter month at RoyalLePage, and is also Canada’s unof-ficial spring cleaning month. RoyalLePage offices across the countryare holding fundraisers and de-cluttering for a cause.

On May 23, Royal LePageoffice locations in every provincewill participate in the NationalGarage Sale for Shelter in supportof the Shelter Foundation.Balloons and bargains will deco-rate offices, parks and other sites ineach community for a fun day ofshopping. Proceeds will go to shel-ters to help more than 30,000women and children victims ofviolence.

The Royal LePage ShelterFoundation is Canada’s largest

public foundation dedicated exclu-sively to funding women’s sheltersand violence prevention programs.Royal LePage Realtors have raisedmore than $8 million to createsafer homes and communities.

For more information, visit:www.royallepage.ca/shelter.

■ ■ ■

Sandi Hegland of Sutton -Partners Realty Group in Calgarydevotes much of her spare time toInn from the Cold, which providesemergency shelter for families andothers who are homeless. Recentlyshe took on the responsibilities ofInn co-ordinator, which involvesrecruiting, training and supervisingvolunteers; sorting through dona-tions, and generally making guestsfeel welcome and safe. In a singleevening, more than 25 volunteersdo the shopping, cook, plan enter-tainment for the guests and set upas many as 15 beds. In the morn-ing, patrons of the inn are treatedto a hot breakfast and a baggedlunch.

“If no one was available to takeon the co-ordinator role, the inncould not continue at our commu-

nity centre location,” saysHegland. “I felt it was importantto keep the shelter open and I alsofind this work is very satisfying. Itmakes me happy and reminds meto appreciate what I have. I knowguests appreciate what we do forthem as they try to get back ontheir feet.”

■ ■ ■

The Home OwnershipAffordability Partnership(HOAP), initiated in 2004, is acommunity partnership betweenthe Realtors Association ofHamilton-Burlington, Scotiabankand the City of Hamilton.Recently the partnership’s latestfamily received the symbolic key totheir newly renovated home. Thetenth project marks a milestone forthe affordable housing initiative.

HOAP has also teamed upwith Pioneer Petroleums to launcha unique way to donate to theaffordable housing program. BonusBucks earned at Pioneer when youfill up can now be donated toHOAP. Participants can visit

B

Continued on page 48

Stuart Gass Wes Stitt

Lincoln Thompson and his team at Gardiner RealtyRoyal LePage present a cheque to Dr. Rob Leckey of theStan Cassidy Rehab Centre.

Century 21’s Kids to Camp logo.

Marianne Woodrow of Coast Realty Group presentsa medal at the International Paralympic World Cupevent held recently in the Comox Valley onVancouver Island.

Sandi Hegland Bob Metcalf

48 REM MAY 2009

Chief Executive OfficerExcellence, Innovation and Ethics in the Real Estate Profession

The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board is a non-profi t association representing more than 2,900 REALTORS® who live and work in the communities of North Delta, Surrey, White Rock, Langley,

Abbotsford and Mission. With a committed and experienced team of approximately 35 persons and the expert governance of a volunteer Board of Directors, the organization provides a wide and expanding array of strategic REALTOR® services.

The current CEO, who has provided exceptional leadership for more than 25 years, will retire at the end of August, 2009. The Board of Directors wishes to recruit an outstanding individual to provide sound strategic and operational oversight to this complex organization. With the wisdom to work effectively with a volunteer Board of Directors, the ideal candidate has earned respect and stature as a leader and has the capacity to develop a solid understanding of the real estate sector provincially, nationally and internationally. A politically astute pragmatist with persuasive communication skills and the fi nesse to move in many circles, the preferred candidate must possess the demonstrated ability to anticipate and navigate change and build solid relationships with members and staff and as well as with representatives of government and industry associations within and beyond British Columbia. The candidate we are seeking can set a vision and stretch goals and inspire others to be and do their best. An excellent listener, negotiator and member advocate with abundant common sense, fi nancial acumen, high personal energy and integrity, the new CEO must have a successful leadership track record that speaks to the talent to ignite innovation, collaboration, effi ciency and exceptional member service.

All qualifi ed candidatesare encouraged to reply, inconfi dence, quoting fi le #14297 to:

search@janetdavid.comWe thank and acknowledgeall applicants and willproactively contact thoseselected for interviews.

ith real estate for salesigns spending longeron Canadian lawns,

Realtors must make the most ofan interested buyer, says Liz Clay,a Mission, B.C. mortgage brokerand entrepreneur. The way to dothat is home staging or ensuringthere’s more curb appeal, shesays. To that end, she launched anew company, Design2Sell toassist Realtors in the LowerMainland.

“Home staging is now a house-hold buzz world. It used to be aRealtor’s secret but there is nodoubt that it motivates the buyers.It clinches the sale on a place,”she says. Clay offers a basic four-hour service for $375 where acrew will arrive to do the sweatlabour. Volume discounts apply topartners – Realtors, developersand builders who send repeat busi-ness.

“We work alongside the clientto physically remove the clutterand to get three major roomsready for photos so they willattract the right buyer. So manyRealtors forget that it is the pho-tos on the MLS that first attract abuyer. Photos are the best way tolure the client in and home stag-

ing makes sure that it is as nice aswhat they see.”

Clay fell into home staging asa “labour of love,” she says. “I hada real estate mortgage business(Greenwood Estates & MortgageCorporation) for a number ofyears and my passion was pickingup houses and doing a full retrofit.I would do a home staging for thesale.

“At some point, my clients(on the broker side) began askingme to help them with theirhomes.” For three years, shepitched in, helping clients set thestage to make their homes marketattractive to new buyers, andgradually, through trial and error,found what works. Multiple offerson properties convinced her thatthe staging was actually givingproperties the market edge.

Clay says the key to successfulhome staging is having a profes-sional team able to offer a range ofservices from the basic four-hourpackage through to more compre-hensive services such as renova-tions. She has assembled a team ofhome renovators, employees, andmovers that will respond to clientand Realtor needs in as little as 48hours. Team members are sensi-

tive to the fact that the seller maybe going through a personal lifetrauma or upheaval. Divorces andseniors downsizing are two majorgroup candidates for the homestaging. Clay says both come withspecial considerations.

“We always have Kleenex onhand,” says Clay. These sensitivesituations are best handled by athird party such as the home-stag-ing professional. “The Realtorsshouldn’t be down on their handsand knees packing a client’sknick-knacks,” she said. Also, theadvice that the home stager givessometimes is difficult for thehomeowner to hear, so it’s betterto have a third-party stager bringforward that information, Claysays.

“The divorces are often miss-ing furniture,” she says, after onespouse has carted off furnishing.Clay says she is fortunate to haveher own mover and a warehouseof new, classic and antique piecesthat can be moved to the homeand to complement the existingpieces. The Realtor is consulted toensure the home reflects the lookthat the Realtor believes willattract more clients to the home.

The flip-side of the divorce is

the aging couple or single, movingfrom a long-time family homeafter 30 or 40 years in the proper-ty. It’s a traumatic time, as theproperty may need to be de-clut-tered, freshened up, and re-staged.Clay says her staging professionalswork with the family in a support-ive role, sorting through furnitureand finishing. She insists that theelderly person or a family memberbe on site when the work is done.As the home is restaged to attractbuyers, Clay says her professionalswill still try to ensure the seniordoes not feel displaced in thehome during that sales period.

“We try to keep their personalobjects – such a china collection,but we will have it really beauti-fully displayed with just a fewpieces.”

Clay has hosted seminars fordevelopers who want to stage newproperties coming onto the mar-ket. She is also available to meetwith a group of clients from aRealtor to give them tips on dosand don’ts in staging. Finally, shesays, she is often called in to workwith buyers of a new home to pro-vide advice on how to improvethe interior design. For informa-tion: www.design2sell.ca. REM

Pioneer’s website at www.pio-neer.ca and register a Bonus Buckscard to donate to help a family.

■ ■ ■

Gardiner Realty Royal LePagein Fredericton recently held apotluck luncheon auction to raisemoney for The Stan CassidyRehab Centre’s Foundation fortheir new therapeutic park – thefirst one in Atlantic Canada.Everyone in the office brought inwrapped gifts. Kelly Murdockacted as the auctioneer and every-one bid on the still-wrapped gift.Once a successful bidder was deter-mined, the gift was opened, reveal-ing everything from homemadefudge to a chocolate fountain.

The team raised $1,720 andGardiner Realty Royal LePagematched the amount to bring thetotal to $3,440.

■ ■ ■

Bob Metcalf of Sutton -Partners Realty Group is involvedin a range of volunteer projects,from playing Santa at parties forchildren with special needs, tochairing the committee that orga-nizes the Juvenile DiabetesResearch Foundation’s annual golftournament.

Of playing Santa, he says, “It’s ahumbling experience when I seethe children’s joy and expecta-tion.” He says he does it every yearfor “the smiles, the hugs, the mem-ories I receive and I’m sure I passon to others, who with their phys-ical and mental limitations mayhave few others in their life.”

Metcalf’s other volunteer pro-jects include escorting residentsfrom the Dr. Vernon FanningCentre to Calgary Flames gameseach month and donating to theCalgary Herald Christmas Fund inlieu of mailing calendars to clients.

■ ■ ■

An International ParalympicWorld Cup event was held recent-ly at Mt. Washington in theComox Valley on VancouverIsland. Athletes from 23 countriesparticipated in the key qualifica-tion and development stage in thelead-up to the 2010 ParalympicWinter Games. Three local realestate companies, Coast RealtyGroup, Re/Max and Royal LePageparticipated in an Adopt-a-Nationprogram with local schools.

REM

W

Mortgage broker moves to home staging By Jean Sorensen

Good WorksContinued from page 46

If you’re tired of living payday-to-payday and worrying about the financial security of your future, it’s time to make your EXIT today! EXIT Realty provides you with the best return on your invested time through supplementary income streams so you can work smarter, not harder.

Imagine being able to harness the energies of others, doing the work once and getting paid over and over again, achieving the lifestyle of your dreams and striking the perfect balance between work and play.

Sound too good to be true? Think again…

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THINK BIGGER! tHinK residuaLs!

EXIT ad May 2009.indd 1 4/15/2009 2:31:42 PM

ave you ever chattedand chummed with aclient whom you

believed warranted special con-sideration, only to discover toolate that you should have paidmore attention to their partner?Or encountered this sce-nario…buyers with a paper-towel roll of requirements whoinsist they can’t go a pennyabove $500,000? After youspend that and more in gas tochauffer them for three months,they give up on you and findanother agent and miraculouslyfind another $300,000 to spend.

“Darn,” you curse after the

50 REM MAY 2009

By Gene Hayden

Follow your intuition to close the dealHow to get your instincts back when your instincts have upped and gone fishing

H

fact, “I knew it.” And researchconfirms that you’re right. Youdid know it. Or at least, your gutdid. But in times of stress, our gutand our head often stop talkingto each other.

Real estate agents, like allsuccessful people in business,need to be part-psychic and readtheir clients. There’s nothingotherworldly about that. Studieson how we communicate showthat we are all walking antennas,constantly picking up non-ver-bal signals from each other. Ourbody language, expressedthrough our vocal pitch andtone, facial expressions, posture,gesture and energy, communi-cate 78 per cent more informa-tion than our words.

But although we have theability to pick up all kinds oftelling information about peo-ple, when we’re anxious we tendto direct our antennas inward,

not outward. Instead of focusingon what others are expressing,we tune in to the chatter that’sgoing on in our heads. Mostly,we’re listening to what we thinkthe client is thinking about us.When a client makes a com-ment, or a face, we neglect to digdeeper and instead debate withourselves what it signifies for us.

When that happens, we flickthe off switch on our intuition.Research for my new book TheFollow-Through Factor: Gettingfrom Doubt to Done shows that los-ing touch with our businessinstinct is one of the 15 mostcommon, and daunting, obstaclesthat can get in the way of success.I interviewed hundreds of high-achievers from real estate andother industries to learn theirstrategies for tackling these hur-dles, which range from a lack ofmoney and know-how to erodedpassion, confidence and instinct.

Behaviouralists describe intu-ition as “super thinking.” It’s thebridge to brilliance in business.The experts explain that deepwithin our brain, we have a data-base of sorts where we storereams of data acquired by senso-ry input – that is, informationour eyes, ears, and other sensesrecorded too quickly for ourplodding minds to notice. Weget a sixth sense when ourbrains, working at hyper-speed,make a match between the sig-nals we’re picking up in themoment and situations from ourpast. The brain is always seekingpatterns, and when it finds one,we have a heightened sense ofawareness and probability.Wayne Gretzky is legendary forhis intuitive powers on the ice.He was known for saying that hewould skate to where the puckwas going to be. He could sensepatterns.

When we’re at our mostinsightful in business, we’redetecting patterns. We’ve all hadexperiences where, half-waythrough a meeting, we toss out apre-prepared strategy and take adifferent tack to successfully winover a client. When asked, we’ll

say we “just had a feeling” that itwas the right thing to do. Infact, behaviouralists would saywe picked up clues because ourantenna was tuned exclusivelyon our clients.

We have a problem on twofronts when we’re not beingintuitive in business. We’re notcatching revealing cues fromclients, and we’re transmittingthe wrong signals. Instead of sig-naling genuine interest, we’resending off signs of stress orneed. These may be extremelysubtle but, at some level, otherscan pick them up. And theirtrust is affected.

So what do you do when thestress is real, and your sixth sensehas gone mute?

“Keep asking questions andreally listen to your client’sresponses. Talk less. Listenmore,” says Janet Piotrowski, aToronto sales rep with BosleyReal Estate.

Here are some techniques tohelp you hear, intuitively.

Ask your clients questions,using the words “thinking, need-ing, and feeling”.

Ask someone what they’rethinking, and they’ll share theirthoughts on what works anddoesn’t and why. Ask whatthey’re feeling and they’ll talk oftheir enthusiasms and their fears.Ask what they need, and they’llshare their expectations as wellas the demands that weigh onthem.

Don’t just listen, look: Whensomeone is talking as they tour aproperty, it’s common practicefor you to also look at housedetails rather than directly atthem. But it’s critical to put yourattention on observing theirenergy surges and dips, theirassuredness and hesitations,their smiles and shrugs whilethey speak. Their words alonedon’t provide enough informa-tion to spark your intuitivemind. When speaking on thephone, listen as much to theirpauses and their inflections.

Repeat back a key point yourclient makes: This is effective

for three reasons. When you onlyhear a word, you don’t relate to itas deeply as when you say theword. The act of repeating a keyword or phrase can trigger anintuitive sense of how torespond. Secondly, the speakerfeels heard. Finally, this tech-nique prompts the speaker toclarify what they really mean soyou get greater insight. Here’san example of how it works:

Client: “I feel very over-whelmed right now.”

You: “You feel over-whelmed...” (You understandthe feeling of being over-whelmed, and so may be tempt-ed to offer a solution – but don’t.Not yet. Instead, let the clientjump in to give you moredetailed insight into whatthey’re truly needing, feeling,wanting.)

Client: “Yes, I feel terrified ofmaking the wrong choiceand….”

When the client elaborates,you’re better able to assert yourexpertise by tackling specificconcerns, one by one.

Being more in touch withyour business instincts doesn’tmean you turn into an infalliblefortune-teller. But it certainlyallows you to communicate withgreater insight and improves thequality of your interactions. Youtrust yourself more when yourhead and your gut are talking –and your confidence and calmare signals that clients arethrilled, and relieved, to pick upon. Ultimately, that secures alasting relationship.

Gene Hayden is a communica-tions coach and follow-throughstrategist who is renowned for hertrack record in helping sales andother professionals achieve theirgoals when life isn’t making it easyfor them. Her book The Follow-Through Factor: Getting fromDoubt to Done (available on ama-zon.com) is a practical, provenguide for getting past the 15 majorobstacles that can get between aperson and their resolve. For moretips, visit gchayden.com. REM

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Visit caamp.org to fi nd an AMP near you

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52 REM MAY 2009

ntario’s proposed GreenEnergy Act is touting50,000 jobs, the closure

of coal fired plants and a prosper-ous future for Ontarians andOntario industry.

A portion of the GreenEnergy Act is a mandatory timeof sale energy label. This meansthat every house sold will requirea kilowatt and BTU per squarefoot rating, like a fuel efficiencylabel on a vehicle: L per 100km.While this particular label willonly apply to houses, it promises

ECOHOME NEWS

By Chris Chopik

Why Ontario needs the GreenEnergy Actto raise public awareness of ener-gy price related to real estatevalue. Stimulus for solar and winddevelopment creates energyinvestment that will be guided bypure self interest and financialreward.

Imagine the south facingfaçade of every condo tower andevery household rooftop filledwith solar panels – poised to har-vest the power of the sun to pro-vide the electricity grid withenough energy to completely off-set the cost of air conditioningand lighting. Not only is it possi-ble, but it makes financial sense.While the time to market will bebogged down by theCondominium Act and supplychain development lag, there maybe opportunities to take towerrenewal to new platitudes of ener-gy performance. Learn how to cre-ate a community solar project in

O

your farm neighbourhood by visit-ing www.ourpower.ca.

The revised feed-in-tariffmakes solar and wind energy pro-duction secure and profitableinvestment for communities andcorporations. Feed-in-tariff refersto a guaranteed purchase price forenergy produced from wind, solarand biofuels. The FIT programcreates a strong and guaranteedrevenue stream, which allowsinvestors and community stake-holders to partner to createrenewable power generation.Learn more about wind energyand community power atwww.windshare.ca and www.can-wea.ca. Learn about the positiveeffects of wind on land values inother North American markets atwww.repp.org/wind/index.html.

Home energy ratingsThe Home Energy Rating Act

2008 was received in an unevent-ful way. It received all party sup-port in Ontario’s ProvincialLegislature. The press gallery wasvirtually empty and the Globe andMail had only a 300-word storyburied in the folds of a weekdayissue.

Labels like the one proposedin the Green Energy Act are inplace in the United Kingdom,Denmark, France and Germany.The U.K. example takes the formof a 20-page report that is simpli-fied into a BTU per m2 and KwHper m2 per annum output. Thepublic protection rationale is thatwhen you buy a car or an appli-ance, you receive an energy rat-ing. It makes sense that thelargest asset we own as individu-als also comes with a clear disclo-sure of energy consumption.

Why can’t we have a volun-tary label?

The voluntary label’s time haspassed. The real estate industryhas failed to help consumersunderstand the recoverable valueof insulated walls, and even to puta value on highly efficient heat-ing systems such as geothermal.When I teach at boards across

Ontario, I consistently hear feed-back that “consumers are unwill-ing to pay for…insulated walls,and geothermal heating sys-tems…”. In my view this showsthat despite our efforts and inten-tions, Realtors have not been suc-cessful in shaping a new view forthe consuming public aroundhome energy performance.

How will the process work?The absolute specifics for

deployment are still unclear, butthere is some detail. The programwill be enhanced from the exist-ing Natural Resources CanadaecoEnergy program. This programhas been in operation in someform for more than 20 years. Itprovides a 0-100 rating calledEnerGuide. This is the same rat-ing used to measure building per-formance of EnergyStar homes,and is a fairly easily and consis-tently delivered program. Thehome energy rating industry ispoised to manage the growthexpected from the legislation,according to ecoEnergy industryexperts.

Why is the government push-ing this agenda?

In Ontario, the cheapest formof energy production is conserva-tion (at just $.02 per KwH). Weare supposed to get 13.8 per centof our future mix of energy fromconservation. Time of sale energylabeling will help Ontariansachieve this target by monetizingconservation. The value of ener-gy conserving infrastructure, suchas efficient lighting, air condi-tioners, and hot water tanks willhelp Realtors and clients under-stand that “energy is the secondprice of any house”.

Section 112 of theCondominium Act allows theboard of a newly created condo-minium to terminate three typesof contracts within 12 months ofbeing elected to replace the boardappointed by the developer. Thisprovision was included in the actto prevent developers from enter-ing into non-arms’ length and“sweetheart” deals at the expenseof the condominium’s future

occupants and owners. However, it has the unintend-

ed consequence of eliminatinginvestment by third parties ingreen energy systems and assetsthat require long-term amortiza-tion. The effect of this restriction,together with the omission fromthe enforcement provisions of theact of certain remedies for thebenefit of creditors of a condo-minium, has affected third-partyfinancing for energy efficiencyprojects to such an extent thatbanks and other private sectorcommercial lenders are not will-ing to participate in energy-effi-ciency projects, such as geother-mal systems, or in making securedloans for energy-efficiencyenhancements to new develop-ments. These concerns have beenraised to Minister Smitherman’steam.

How will it affect buyers andsellers?

When a Realtor lists a proper-ty for sale there are myriad fea-tures listed and posted to theMLS for public consumption. Iexpect that the energy rating willtake the form of a searchable fieldon an MLS listing called EnergyRating or EnerGuide Rating. Ibelieve there will be very littlemeaningful change in our prac-tice and how we conduct ourbusiness.

In addition to existing piecesof diligence undertaken byRealtors at time of sale, such asco-ordination of the homeinspection, termite inspection,mould inspection, and status cer-tificate, I expect that we will helpclients book an energy audit. Thecost is $300 to $400 for the audit,and the homeowner receives$150 back from the government.

There is an emerging energystaging business in the U.S. andthis may become part of a listingprocess in Canada. The act willnot require “improvements”, onlydisclosure. I don’t believe this willsignificantly disadvantage a seller.When I list a property with anantiquated furnace, for example, Inote that there are grants avail-

REM MAY 2009 53

ADVERTISEMENTable to offset the cost of likelyimprovements to be made by pur-chasers.

OREA’s positionI am surprised with the force-

fulness and emptiness of OREA’sobjection to this legislation.There are some points made byOREA that are genuine con-cerns around implementation,and others that are empty objec-tions easily resolved with logicand math. For example, OREAhas raised a very weak assertionthat seniors will be unfairly dis-advantaged by the legislation.Based on my math, the seniorthat can borrow the money forshort-return improvements forenergy efficiency will be cash-flow positive with lower energybills and a debt service that isless than energy savings. In addi-tion, a house that is sold that“requires upgrading” receives anappropriate price in the market-place today and I do not see howthis legislation will change that.I believe that OREA could havean exceptional influence onshaping the delivery of the actand the time of sale energy labelby simply moving its officialposition to “in favour of labelingwith appropriate caveats, includ-ing ‘Realtors should not be thepolice, responsible for deployingand managing the rating’”.

There is no doubt that theGreen Energy Act will have acompelling and lasting impacton Ontario’s real estate marketand energy-scape in the comingyears. I am convinced that thisemerging market will have astrong and very positive influ-ence on the future of real estatevaluation. Our industry is a hubof economic activity and thislegislation will ensure the buoy-ancy of Ontario’s housing stockin a predictable future marketwhere energy inflation has amuch more significant implica-tion to value.

Chris Chopik is a Realtor withBosley Real Estate, and vice-chair ofthe Toronto Real Estate Board’sGreen Task Force. He is available toteach/speak at your board or office.Chris@evolutiongreen.com; (416)993.4870. REM

he following is for those ofyou who have newsletters.You can reproduce the arti-

cle but only in its entirety and onlywith acknowledgment that it wasproduced by the Accredited SeniorAgent professional program. If youdo use it, please let me know. You donot have to use the reference to theprogram at the bottom.

If you’re reading this column,chances are it’s been awhile sinceyou sold lemonade from a stand infront of your house. But entrepre-neurial spirit never dies. So hereare some grown-up ideas for mak-ing money from your home.

Empty nesters, for example,could rent a room or basementsuite to students. Even better, bycarefully screening potentialapplicants, you could find a stu-

54 REM MAY 2009

T

THE SENIOR AGENT

By Barry Lebow

Making money from your home dent who’s sufficiently trustwor-thy to leave in charge of the housewhile you’re away. Or he or shemight volunteer to help withhousehold chores in return for areduced rent.

What about that garage youdon’t use? You could always rentit as a parking spot, but youcould also clean it out and rent itto someone who desperatelyneeds storage space or a place towork on a hobby such as restor-ing old cars. If you are consider-ing renting out the garage orbasement for storage, why nottake it one step further and offershipping supplies? Small home-based industries seldom have thespace to store or pack their prod-ucts for shipping.

Here’s a way to make moneyfrom Canada’s role as HollywoodNorth. Film companies comblocal registers and scout neigh-bourhoods looking for just theright place to serve as a backdropfor their movie. You can registeryour home with the local film liai-son office. One acquaintancemade over $1,000 a day rentinghis upscale property to a U.S. filmcompany. They put the houseback exactly as they found it, andaside from the inconvenience ofhaving to vacate the premises forthe duration of the shoot, nothing

was lost, broken or stolen. Addedbonus: you may just catch aglimpse of your favourite star.

For those with a now empty in-law suite, why not consider rentingout the kitchen to a catering com-pany or other food prep organiza-tion? You also could rent a base-ment room as a photography dark-room or a soundproof garage tolocal musicians for practices.

Don’t overlook the garden.You can grow vegetables, flowers,even turf on the back 40 and sellthe results online or through locallandscapers.

Then there are the home-based businesses: bed and break-fasts (particularly in demand intourist areas); baby sitting servicesor daycare; pet boarding; musiclessons and tutoring; antiques(great if you have an old barn orlarge shed on your property)…the list could go on and on.

For entrepreneurs willing totake risks, there are opportunitiesin buying real estate as an invest-ment. Many now-millionairesstarted life with one duplex, livingon the top floor and renting thelower. With your expenses paid bythe renter, you can buy a largerduplex or a triplex to rent out.The secret, says one wealthyentrepreneur, is to make surethere is money in your pocket

after you’ve covered all yourexpenses. When you’re assessingan investment, determinewhether the rent you can chargewill pay not just for the mortgagebut renovations and mainte-nance, property taxes and utili-ties, as well as a certain percentageset aside for potential vacanciesand bad debt. Then make surethat still leaves with you a smallprofit.

Ask the seller for documenta-tion (or rent rolls), which will tellyou how much each unit is rentedfor. You can even ask for past renthistory. Then check going ratesonline or in newspapers. Rentsshouldn’t be too high (which dis-courages renters) or too low(“there’s something wrong here”)for the area.

Finally, for empty nesters whoare reluctant to sell the familyhome, why not rent it and down-size to a condo or smaller home?This has the advantage of keepingthe home in the family (perhapsthe kids will want to buy it fromyou when they’re settled and morefinancially secure). It also has thedisadvantage of making you alandlord.

Depending on the tenant, thecondition of the house, the areaand a whole host of other factors,you may be taking on midnight

phone calls, angry neighbours andpotential damage to the building.

Other downsides of makingmoney from your home:Government regulations affectinghome-based industries may makeit hard to set up a pet-boardingfacility or catering kitchen.Parking for customers may be aproblem for home businesses. Filmcompanies, and particularly adagencies who want to film com-mercials in your home, may notbe scrupulous about returning thehouse to its original condition.Tenants could damage your prop-erty. Students could be noisy.

But then, even selling lemon-ade from a stand in front of yourhouse years ago probably violatedsome health regulation. It didn’tstop you then. Will it now?

This information is brought toyou by the Accredited Senior Agentprogram. ASA designated membersare experienced real estate profes-sionals who have graduated from aspecial education program focusingon the needs of those 55+. For information: www.theseniora-gent.com or contact Barry Lebow,president and founder of theAccredited Senior Agent designa-tion, (416) 784-9806 ext. 107;ba r r y@the s en i o r a g en t . c om.

REM

ave you ever stopped andconsidered how manycups of coffee you con-

sume over the course of a day? Addin the ones that your clients offeryou while you’re waiting for an offerto get negotiated, and you may besurprised to discover just how muchyou really are drinking.

Recently I did the math. It wasn’t pretty.

April 26: After reading one toomany articles (online, where every-thing is truer) about the ill effects oftoo much coffee consumption, Ihave decided to go cold turkey andabandon that particularly delightfulmorning beverage. I recognize thatcaffeine has certain addictive quali-ties, but I’ve always consideredmyself to be one of those “tough-as-nails”, “unbreakable spirit” “iron-willed” types, allowing me to scoffat the siren song of a tempting, aro-matic cup of freshly perked coffee.

Right after I finish today’s sec-ond pot of java, I will map out myaction plan for coffee-free living.

April 27, am: Day One withouta cup of coffee to start my day – awalk in the park! No, I don’t mean

that it’s been easy – I’m thinkingmaybe if I take a walk in the park Iwon’t be tempted to tackle JuanValdez off of his donkey, and chewon a handful of fresh coffee beans.

April 27, 12:01 pm: Couldn’tdo it – ran out to Tim Hortons andleft with two steaming extra-largecoffees with double cream. In mydefence, I resisted buying theportable party thermos for groupsof 30.

April 28, am: My efforts to quitdrinking coffee clearly aren’t goingas well as I had hoped. I hadswitched to a caffeine-free productthis morning, to fill the gaping holeleft by the abandonment of thatglorious morning nectar of the gods.With absolutely no caffeine con-tent though, I suddenly found thatby around mid-afternoon I was feel-

ing walloped by withdrawal symp-toms, which essentially felt likesomeone tightening banjo stringsbetween my ears.

Frankly, I’m a bit surprised to seethat my steely Navy Seal-like deter-mination just hasn’t been enoughto overcome the addictive powersof coffee. What’s it going to be likewhen I quit eating chocolate nextweek?

May 2: Quitting coffee – defi-nitely not going so good. I havecompletely abandoned the caffeine-free drink that I had brieflyswitched over to. Started to pick upa latte for a substitute hot morningbeverage and I am now routinelystarting my day with one small cupof instant java as well. Still not asbad as the two or 12 cups from mydrip machine that I was havingevery morning, but still a far cryfrom shunning it altogether. Oh,the unkind mercy of temptation –whatever that means.

May 4: What the heck? Turnsout that my latte, something I pre-sumed to just be boiled milk c o n t a i n e d … E S P R E S S O !Concentrated coffee! (Sweet moth-er of milk, that espresso is GOOD.)

So now, instead of weaningmyself off of coffee, I was sneakinga cup of instant coffee every morn-ing, plus a latte just to ensure thatthe cranial gong show would stayaway. What a vicious circle!Coffee, you are evil, but clearlyhard to leave!

Say, do you suppose there’s sucha thing as a prescription coffeepatch? Or maybe one of you outthere has a coffee farm listed forsale?

Humour columnist and authorDan St. Yves was licensed with RoyalLePage Kelowna for 11 years. Checkout his website at www.nonsenseand-stuff.com, or contact him atThatDanGuy@shaw.ca. REM

A FUNNY THINGHAPPENED

By Dan St. Yves

H

Farewell, caffeine!

Regina broker isCREA’s 63rd President

Dale Ripplinger, a veteran REALTOR® from Regina, is the63rd President of The Canadian Real Estate Association(CREA). He was sworn into office at the Association’sAnnual General Meeting in Ottawa on April 4th, 2009.

“Change, particularly in a non-profit volunteer driven organ-ization, is typically not dramatic or profound…but gradual,”the new CREA President told delegates at the CREALeadership summit.

“With leadership that encourages creativity and fosters anenvironment of change, over time continual improvementsoccur which cumulatively build to create a stronger, more rel-evant and valuable association. And ultimately more effective-ly delivers service to its members” Dale Ripplinger added.

“My vision for CREA is not to build a legacy, not to beremembered for a special achievement, not to be recog-nized for a particular accomplishment but to be one ofmany who helped make this organization better. One ofmany who made suggestions for improvement. One ofmany who had an idea and wasn’t afraid to present it. Oneof many who attended the meetings and rolled up theirsleeves to get the work done. One of many who contributedto making our Association just a little bit better.”

Dale has over 25 years of experience in the industry, work-ing both as a salesperson and Broker. He is currentlyBroker/Owner of Realty Executives Dale Ripplinger andAssociates in Regina.

He has been a member of the CREA Board of Directorssince 2005, serving first as Regional Director forSaskatchewan, then as Director-at-Large. Dale was alsothe Chair of the CREA Federal Affairs Committee in 2006.

An updated study prepared by the Altus Group (for-merly Clayton Research) for CREA shows that eachMLS® residential transaction in Canada between2006 and 2008 generated $46,400 in ancillaryspending, up from the $36,600 estimated in thecompany’s previous report.

“Resale housing transactions across Canada gener-ate significant economic activity,” the Altus Groupreport says. “The purchase and sale of homes via theMultiple Listing Service® generates fees to profes-sionals such as appraisers, lawyers, real estateagents, surveyors, as well as taxes and fees to gov-ernment. When Canadians move house, they typical-ly purchase new appliances or furnishings and under-take renovations that tailor the new home to specifichousehold requirements.”

According to the study, this meant that the sale ofexisting housing through the MLS® systems of localreal estate Boards and Associations across Canadagenerated ancillary spending of $22.3 billion peryear across Canada. That, notes CREA PresidentDale Ripplinger, “is a major pillar of our nationaleconomy that cannot be ignored.”

The economic impact of MLS® sales was alsobrought to the attention of MPs during the annualPAC Days meetings in Ottawa April 26th-28th.Representatives from real estate Boards andAssociations met with MPs and political office staffto present the study results, and to discuss two pro-posals developed to promote home ownership,renew our urban centres, and help the environment.The PAC Days sessions also marked the beginning

of the implementation of the Quality of Life programfor the national association.

“The government recognized the important role TheHome Buyers’ Plan plays in stimulating the economyand making home ownership a reality for thousandsof Canadians,” PAC Chair David Herman said.REALTORS® are now recommending the govern-ment permanently index the HBP withdrawal limit toinflation to ensure it never loses its buying power. Inmeetings on parliament hill, CREA also recommend-ed the plan be extended to all homebuyers for twoyears, similar to the way the Plan was introduced tohelp alleviate the 1990s recession.

The second proposal from PAC Reps involved achange to The Income Tax Act that would encour-age urban renewal and help the economy. Thechange would allow the deferral of the capital gainstax and the recaptured capital costallowance when a rental real property is soldand the proceeds are reinvested in anotherrental real property within one year.

The federal tax system acts as a lock onprosperity by discouraging real estate rein-vestment and redevelopment. Removing thedisincentives to reinvestment would rapidlytrigger a chain reaction of economic stimulusthat could accelerate the economy. ManyCanadians are reluctant to sell and reinvestin real property because of the capital gainstax and recaptured capital cost allowance.This punitive taxation, which follows the dis-position of real property, leaves investors in a

reduced equity position and unable to acquire aproperty of similar value. The result is investors are“locked-in” to a particular real property. By exten-sion, this restricts redevelopment, which typicallyfollows a sale as new owners seek to re-positiontheir newly acquired property.

In the Greater Toronto Area, a study identified 1,000buildings that consume as much as 20 per cent moreenergy per square meter than a single-family home.The retrofitting that can occur after an investmentbuilding is sold could cut energy use and carbon out-put of rental properties in Canada by over 50 per cent.

“Greater fairness in the tax system is needed,” FACChair David Herman said. “By treating real estateinvestment more like other investments, smallinvestors will be encouraged to sell, buy and redevel-op existing properties, to the benefit of all Canadians.”

Deb Goodfellow accepts award on behalf of the commercialcouncil of the Winnipeg REALTORS® Association

Representatives from CREA met with Prime MinisterHarper in February to thank him for the budget initiativesinvolving the Home Buyers' Plan

Each MLS® sale means $46,000 in economic spinoffsNews and Views from The Canadian Real Estate Association you can contact us at info@crea.ca

The Canadian Commercial Council has handedout Merit Awards to two real estate Boards inrecognition of their outstanding service to theircommercial members, while supporting themission and objectives of the CanadianCommercial Council of REALTORS®.

One recipient of the CCC Merit Award for Boardswas the commercial group of the Ottawa RealEstate Board. “They have a strong and loyal fol-lowing from their commercial members, and pro-vide them with pertinent continuing educationopportunities and a number of sold-out breakfastmeetings,” CCC Chair Jim Gammer said inannouncing the merit award recipients.

The commercial division of the WinnipegREALTORS® Association was awarded theother CCC Merit Award for 2009. “They hostCCIM programs and golf tournaments, theyhave launched a new awards program basedupon transactions, they promote both the ICXand the CCC logo prominently in all of theirmessaging, and to top it off last year celebratedthe 40th Anniversary of their commercial divi-sion,” Jim Gammer told delegates to the CREALeadership Summit.

The awards were presented during the openingceremonies of CREA's 2009 LeadershipSummit held April 5th, 2009.

Commercial Awards go to two Boards

CREA_REM_may09:Layout 1 4/15/2009 4:02 PM Page 1

56 REM MAY 2009

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For complete listings, visit www.remonline.comTo add a listing to this calendar, email jim@remonline.com

Compiled with the assistance of BobCampbell at Colourtech Marketing,www.colourtech.com

Canadian Real Estate Association- PAC Days April 26 - 28 Fairmont Chateau Laurier, Ottawa Christa Girard – cgirard@crea.ca

Toronto Real Estate Board Realtor Quest 2009 May 6 - 7 Toronto Congress Centre, Toronto Stella Guo – sguo@trebnet.comwww.realtor-quest.ca

HomeLife 2009 InternationalConference May 7 – 8 Crowne Plaza Hotel, Ottawa 1-800-668-0186

National Association of RealtorsMidyear Trade ExpoMay 13 – 15Marriott Wardman Park HotelWashington, D.C.www.realtor.org

Accredited Senior AgentConvention Tuesday, May 26 Monte Casino Banquet Roomsand Hotel, Toronto www.thesenioragent.com

2009 Real Estate Institute ofCanada Annual ConferenceMay 27 - 31Marriott Harbourfront HotelHalifaxted.kellow@reic.comwww.reic.ca/en/annual-confer-ence.cfm

Appraisal Institute of CanadaAnnual ConferencePillars Of Professionalism:Education, Experience, HighStandardsMay 27 – 30Mont Tremblant, Que.www.aicanada.ca

Canadian National Association ofReal Estate Appraisers Annual Convention and AnnualGeneral Meeting May 29 - 31 Tigh-Na-Mara Hotel and Resort Parksville, B.C. www.cnarea.ca

Canadian Real Estate Association AEC Seminar June 8 – 11 Hilton Hotel Whistler, B.C. Christa Girard – cgirard@crea.ca

Shift into Overdrive with GaryKellerWednesday, June 10Paramount Conference CentreVaughan, Ont.www.millionairesystems.com

Century 21 Canadian Conference2009 September 25 – 27Vancouver Exhibitor inquiries:pinpin.luk@century21.ca

Realtors Association ofHamilton-BurlingtonRealtors without BordersConference & Trade ShowThursday, Oct. 8Hamilton Convention CentreHamilton, Ont.Sheila Sferrazza - sheilas@rahb.ca

National Association of Realtors2009 Realtors Conference &ExpoNovember 13 - 16 San Diego, Calif.www.realtor.org

58 REM MAY 2009

THE PUBLISHER’SPAGE

By Heino Molls

Mayor Hazel McCallion

Moderated by John Oakley, AM 640 Radio Morning

Show Host.

Mayor Frank Scarpitti

Councillor Michael Thompson

Councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong

Councillor Karen Stintz

love dogs.I’ve had many dogs in my

life. The best dog that thereever was in the whole world wasour family dog Lou, who died threeyears ago. I will miss him forever.There never was before and therenever will be again a dog as won-derful as our Lou.

As I now live in a world of con-dos and co-ops and apartmentbuildings here in the downtownToronto world headquarters ofREM, I find myself astounded byhow many people have dogs intheir apartments. I am torn by thisbecause I think dogs are so greateveryone should have a dog in

Dogs, condos and apartments

I

their life, but I also think big dogsshould not live in apartments.

Things sure have changed.There was a time when pets werenot permitted in buildings. While Ithink it is wonderfully progressiveto see apartment and condodwellers have pets, I am alarmed bythe number of dog owners who donot seem to take their responsibili-ties for pets seriously.

The problem is that the major-ity of dogs I see only seem to get afew short moments outside torelieve themselves, and not nearthe time they need to enjoy gettingoutside. I am not so much referringto small dogs that are happy andpleased to live in an apartmentwith brief times outside. My con-cern is for the many big dogs thatare kept in apartments. I have seenRottweilers, German Sheppards,Greyhounds and even GreatDanes that get out for only a fewshort moments in the morning andevening.

I must clarify that I have seenmany, good, decent and kind dog

owners who take their dogs out forlong walks daily and I do wish tomake clear that I am makingassumptions from my own briefobservations. I have no facts tobase my opinion on. I may be fullof baloney on this issue so if youdisagree you may as well stop read-ing right here.

It seems to me that there aremore pet owners that do not takeresponsibility for their pets thanthose who do. I worry specificallyabout the large dogs that some peo-ple get for the novelty.

Sometimes I have walked bythe “off-leash” areas that cities pro-vide. On a nice Saturday orSunday I sometimes see a lot ofdogs running around. Yet on week-days and even weekends that areslightly inclement, there is a vastdifference. There are far fewer dogsrunning around. It leads me toconclude that there are manythousands of dogs spending longdays and nights alone confined tosmall apartments in our cities.

It is terrific that buildings and

cities are more receptive to petowners. I’m sure it helps Realtorssell these residences when petowners are permitted to bring theirfour-legged family members intothese homes. I note also that manystores are pleased to allow pets tocome into the premises with theirowners. That’s something new forme in the big city.

How many times do we have tosee news reports of animals foundabandoned in apartments – eventied up to an appliance in thekitchen area? How many of thesepets are simply under the radar andnot reported at all?

The Humane Society alwayswarns us about people who get adog as a novelty or an impulse.People get in a mood to have a dogaround but then quickly tire of thework involved in caring for a pet.

As much as we are progressingin a society where doors are opento dogs living in apartments, havewe created a situation that mayprovide more opportunities forneglect and cruelty?

I cannot think of a better com-panion for anyone than a good dogwho is always pleased to see you nomatter what. Always ready to gofor a walk and never complainabout their day once. I think a bigdog needs to have a good sizedbackyard or at the very least a com-mitted responsible owner who willtake them out frequently for longwalks.

Given that our society is chal-lenged with growing child poverty,spousal abuse, violence in ourmidst and drug abuse, we have a lotof priorities that need to beaddressed. But all of it seems tocome down to one thing.Responsibility for our own behav-iour and for those in our midstincluding our pets.

Maybe banning large dogs fromapartments is something to consid-er. At the very least we should edu-cate people about being responsi-ble for these wonderful animals.

Heino Molls is publisher of REM.Email heino@remonline.com. REM

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