Toronto realtor

Lighten Up!

2011-09-21T08:03:00.001-04:00

More than ever before, people want to make efficient use of their resources, reckless behaviour costs a lot of money. Whatever your motivation, there are many things that you can do to improve your home and reduce your ecological footprint at the same time.

Often, you may notice that your home is too dark in the evening. Even though you light up all the lamps and put them up at full power, you simply can’t see as well as you’d like. Poor lighting makes you feel sleepy, therefore you have no energy on an evening as well as causing eye strain.

Many individuals as a rule resort to buying bulbs with more output or even more lamps with more bulbs in them. Any new lamp you buy or stronger bulb you put in will have an influence on your pocket as they cost not only to buy, but to run as well.

To make your loft or house lighting more powerful you need to be looking at brightening up your home in other ways. To get the most of your light sources, you can make a small amount of minor alterations to save your dollars and learn how to benefit further from your home.

1. The most straightforward way to freshen up is to paint your property with bright colours. There are are a multitude of paints on the market that range from a dull to a bright colour scheme, even whites have different levels of brightness.

2. Painting may not be for every household or you may not have the time, so if your rooms have dark walls then look at replacing or renovating the furniture so it is a lighter colour. Items with a metallic finish are often useful for a dark room as it has a reflective surface unlike dark wood.

3. Place mirrors in strategic areas around the room or even around the entire building. As mirrors are so reflective they are a brilliant way of reflecting what small amounts of light you do have and give a certain ambience to a room.

4. If you aren’t up for repainting or buying new furniture, maybe you could look for things to clean up or dispose of from your living space. Clutter makes a room seem smaller and darker, keeping a minimalist appearance to a room could also improve its brightness.

5. Sometimes your drapes share a bit of the blame; pale curtains will throw more light back into the room than darker ones.

6. Look at the lighting you already keep in that room, as rearranging these could solve the difficulties, saving you time and money. Direct all bulbs to where you need light most and use existing mirrors and light surfaces to aid you increase the brightness of your room.

Loans For University Students

2011-08-05T05:44:00.000-04:00

For over two decades, tuition fees in Canada have been on a rise. Currently, the growth of tuition fees is double the country’s inflation figure, which increases the financial burden of education all of us keen on learning.

Indebting oneself early in life is a serious burden to bring upon oneself. This means that all your outlooks, your future as far as you can see, contain some kind of a debt repayment schedule you must stick to.

The necessity of paying back your liabilities reduces your discretionary income – what’s left in your pocket when you’ve settled all your necessary recurring bills. In the more extreme cases, qualifying for a mortgage sufficient to buy you a worthy apartment or house may be nearly impossible

According to Statistics Canada, it lasts 7.4 years on average to get rid of tuition loans. This is a pretty extensive timespan, and it is only the average, so there are bound to be students who take even longer to do away with this immense weight. Hence, such person can hardly afford a mortgage until she or he is thirty.

Keeping a strong credit rating is thus critical. Stable rating may ensure that higher amount of financing, when asked for going may be obtained on better terms and more easily in general.

Well, you desperately want to become an owner of a real estate property? Mortgage is not that bad, however, since as soon as you’ve moved into your own dwelling, you have no rent any more. In effect, then, your mortgage is actually not that much harder on your budget if you have been renting before. Also, there is no need to purchase life insurance until one has kids or a dependent spouse. Hopefully, the university degree will give the ambitious young person more chances of getting accepted for a more lucrative vocation and let her or him achieve financial self-sufficiency sooner.

Fight In-House Air Pollution Easy And Green

2011-04-11T08:51:00.001-04:00

Most people lack knowledge of a crucial fact: the air which stays inside our flats, schools and offices can be highly polluted. This may sound distressing, but no stress – there is a lot of trivial choices to purify the air in your flats.
My clients usually ignore the weight of air cleanness. Homeowners take it for granted that because their flats are clean, their indoor air is hygienic as well. However, light pollutants such as smoke, black mold spores, and skin particles can be extensive in even the cleanest of apartments. There are many air purifiers sold on the market, but if you’d rather go for a ecologic solution, we recommend the following options:

1. Green Plants
All vegetation are capable of expelling harmful particles from in-house atmosphere, test by NASA shows that certain purifying plants are remarkably efficient in expelling toxins and carbon dioxide from the air we breathe. A homeowner should have a purifying plants for every 9 sq m of living area. The more effective the purifying plants, the more air it can clean. The following purifying plants can be found in top: Janet Craig dracaena, English ivy, Australian sword fern, peace lily, rubber plant, and weeping fig.

2. Olatile oils
It was examined that distributing essential oils into the surroundings is one of the best options to sanitize the surroundings we live in. These essential oils boast certain antiseptic characteristics which aid to reduce chemicals and bacteria in the surroundings.

3. Beeswax
Standard paraffin candle sticks are made from petroleum sludge that intoxicates the surroundings every time you burn the candles. Candles made from natural wax, on the other hand, represent a great improvement over crude oil ones: when they are used, they cleanse the surroundings effectively , in the same time offering a wonderful honey odour, a calming and yellow fire. This is a wonderful solution for tall rooms - Toronto condos as an example

Natural wax is the only material able to produce negative ions, that help clean bacteria from the surroundings.

picture by DaraTSturm

How Can You Change Your Lifestyle So It Is Nature Friendly?

2011-02-22T06:36:00.000-05:00

Everywhere you will overhear individuals talking about going green, what can you do to become more Eco friendly? We may appreciate the idea of saving money, but here are some tips that could save you money, maybe improve your health and be green friendly at the same time.

Donate your old glasses

Supporting many of people around the world with sight problems is as easy and donating your old glasses. According to the World Health Organization, nearly 87% of the world's sight impaired reside in developing countries. Just by giving away one pair of glasses you have helped improve someones life drastically. Old glasses are clearly not the major pollution source, but recycling this item gives you an extra good feeling.

Get a rain barrel

Why use water from in the home, which you are charged for, when there is a brilliant and free resource outdoors - the rain! Have a look around the shops to see a large range of tubs on offer, or be more environmentally friendly and make your own.

Instead of making use of a tumble dryer, let your clothes dry outdoors

Our mothers and grandmothers hung their clothing outside and they didn't have any issues with it. If you hang your clothing out, not only you don't need to pay for electricity to dry it, but your clothes will get the fresh smell of sun and wind, something you can never really get with an electric tool. Do not worry; it will not damage your social stading. Being eco friendly is in – do not feel apologetic, feel pleased instead!

Bathe less frequently, shower instead

Health issues can be exacerbated by bathing and showering too much or for long periods of time; apart from that your bills will rise and heating of water consumes lots of energy. You can drink the water from your taps safely but with the high concentration of chlorine in it, the fumes created when you heat it can have a serious impact on your health. One more brilliant thing to do is to use an attachment on your shower that cuts down the amount of water it lets out.

Share a car ride with some work mates

Car sharing is not a new discussion and it is supported by authorities, but many car owners still don't do it through lack of incentive or knowledge. Unfortunately, as a Toronto condos professional I need to drive a lot. Think about an average car driver, they commute about 100 km a week and approximately 5000 km a year. If you car share, then between you, you would save on approximately 170 litres of fuel and 400 kg of CO2 each year, think about how much you could share if there were 3 or 4 of you in a car. Some company's have a car sharing scheme already in place which is worth checking into, if not try and set one up yourself; ask people to see who would be interested in saving money.

Two of a kind

2011-02-08T10:14:00.003-05:00

Year 2010 is gone with the wind, so is the previous decade. But memories remain and turn slowly into history- also the green ones. What were the most important green events of the decade? These two articles are trying to find the answer:

Green Events Over the Past Decade

and

Green Events Over the Past Few Years

Supporting the Needy - From Residences to Lives

2011-01-24T12:35:00.000-05:00

We say change is great, well volunteers made a big change; from organising where people live to lives. In 2006 volunteers began aiding the poor after years of owning a company called Artful Organizers, where she was a personal organizer.

The organization is a healthy or wealthy community that is embodied for the rejected and abused. The Sanctuary strives to help and support everyone regardless of the colour of your skin or your faith. The community has members from all walks of life, both sexes and a diverse age group, nobody is excluded. Each year the Sanctuary gives help to thousands of individuals, assisting about 500 different people each week.

An outreach team of 2 volunteers or staff go out into the community providing help and support on an individual's own turf, many who have previously been let down or ignored by others. There is also a drop in centre, a health clinic and rehab provided, the charity believes in helping the entire person, a holistic approach. Another thing the charity does is give employment training, which can only mean more relevant employment for people.

To celebrate Xmas, the Sanctuary has a massive Christmas feast which takes place each year. With Xmas gift bags, a feast, talent shows and a play, this is really a special time for all those involved. Through the warmer months there is a 5k walk and in September the charity puts on a music concert. Whilst donations are wanted, the charity hopes that those that donate will also become involved in other ways. The rich and the poor, the charity want to could the gap. Those that feel that they have no self worth left are helped to see that their life is worth something, thereby giving them back their dignity. To really help these people, time, a feeling of camaraderie and friendship are just a couple of things that make a difference to an individual previously shunned by society.

The charity is not a replacement for social services but an extra service set up to help. Here we have individuals who were living on the street and they are now living in a home. These people could not do it by themselves, therefore the Sanctuary has helped them find a home and furnish it.

To give you an idea on one of the success stories of this mission, is one of a female born in Toronto and grew up there. The foster care system is where this young baby ended up not long after her birth due to horrendous wrongdoings. This poor baby never stood a chance of a nice life when it began with a family member setting fire to her crib. Poor hygiene led to her grandmother seeing her covered in cockroaches. but she was sexually abused. She bounced from foster home to foster home and relationship to relationship, and she was addicted to many things she shouldn't. With support from quite a few people the woman is now moving forward with her life and has been a regular at the sanctuary for 4 years.

Julie Kinnear is GTA MLS professional and volunteering activist.

Articles of the month!

2011-01-03T07:32:00.003-05:00

Again, here is the summary of the top articles of previous month! Happy New Year everybody!

Wanting To Move Into A House in Toronto? The fourth part of my series of FAQ for home sellers and home buyers from GTA area. Follow also the second part.

Green lifestyle is my hobby and this article is proof. It summarizes the key green events of the last decade.

Don't forget to visit also my triplet from hubpages: What does MLS stand for? Solar panels - Canadian government grants and Asbestos In Buildings : Are You Endangered?

Key Green Events Of The Few Years

2010-12-20T10:20:00.002-05:00

When we talk about events that affect the world we live in, two words are commonly used - green and environmental. Policies and marketing are are deluged with points of sustainability and renewable resources. What are a few of the most important developments, which made green lifestyle a hot topic for politicians, businessmen, scientists, and a high number of the western world citizens?
Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs

A simple green substitute to lighting is the CFL or compact fluorescent lamp, which has been designed to reduce the usage of the old, energy inefficient incandescent bulb. Using less power and having a longer life span while still giving the same light, these bulbs are an alternative bulb source for lots of us. On the other hand, just like all fluorescent lamps, CFLs also include mercury which makes their disposal more complex.
But saying that, they are more environmentally and purse friendly, as they last so much longer; even though the price is somewhat higher, you do not use as many.

Extreme Weather

Extreme Weather is a name for weather incidents that are at the excesses of historical occurrence. Since 2000 many extreme weather occurrences have happened, these natural events starting with a surprising heat wave in Europe in 2003, through to earthquakes across Haiti in 2008. It is accepted that these disasters are only the start of it, with more problems coming our way, though many climatologists can't agree whether mankind is having a negative impact on the world we live in.

Renewable Energy
There are many renewable energy resources around from sunlight to geothermal heat; these resources are naturally occurring therefore the resource is never ending.

Growth of the use of these sources has advanced over the last decade and is the way forward for sustainable development of the future. We can no longer rely on the supplies we have at the moment to generate electricity and need to look in other directions to create it To cut emissions and find long term solutions to the supply, renewable energy is an significant part of our future.

Mexican Gulf Oil Tragedy
It is doubtful many of you will not know about a rather recent disaster, one that is still being felt worldwide - the Mexican Gulf oil spill. At 9:56pm CDT April 20, 2010, a large explosion occurred on the Deepwater Horizon oil platform. Indications that the oil spill was relatively minor were the first reports seen, but later those reports were revised to show that the spill was of immense proportions. The approximate amount of oil lost per day was quadrupled by the end of May, from 5,000 to up to 19,000; the size of the spill was escalating.
We may not hear about problems surrounding oil very often, but they are becoming more frequent, which is unacceptable news. Recent events raised questions once more - are we even capable of underwater oil drilling without threatening the environment substantially?

Becoming green is a matter of one's decision - everybody can decide for unique way. I am trying to be green Toronto condos agent. Can you imagine any solution for you?

picture by BoyReale

Some Good Articles!

2010-12-13T07:31:00.002-05:00

I run through some of my articles posted in other networks from October and November, and realized there are some interesting pieces, so here is my list.

MLS and Regulations: Survey

Big changes in Canadian MLS system don't leave our realtors without reaction.

Chemicals and Cleaning

Using toxic chemicals to clean your home? try it the other way!

FAQ3

The third round of most frequent questions and answers about Toronto real estate. The second set is on Amazines.

Wanting To Move Into A Home in Toronto? - Part 4 of Advice and Questions

2010-11-19T06:54:00.001-05:00

picture by Postbear

I'm trying to find a for a trustworthy contractor, can you help?

Certainly! Every realtor is always pleased to supply advice. Knowing how hard it is to find a reputable contractor many realtors have put together a list of many professionals who we know will do a fantastic job and who can be trusted. All the contractors & tradespeople have usually undertaken work for the realtor, his/her friends, family members and/or clients, and are highly recommended.

My basement isn't finished, does this mean I can't rent it out? Will I be in breach of any laws if I do decide to go ahead and rent it out?

There are many by-laws in the City of Toronto relevant to retrofit status of a basement space. The fire department recommends many fire codes for basements so that the tenants are secure, so many of the laws are surrounding these. To achieve this status a basement needs to be finished, as a result an unfinished basement would not be approved. You are unlikely to be the only individual in Toronto who is in this situation as there are quite a few basements that do not come up to standard, even the rented ones. I am unaware who reinforces the situation. It may affect you rhome insurance plan as well if there was ever an issue

I recently bought an apartment but am not quite comfortable with my decision. Is there any sort of minimum time I should allow before placing the condominium back on the market?One thing I did manage to find out is the banks policy they do not have problem.

It's not normally a good financial decision to sell your condominium soon after buying it.First off the best advice is not to sell your condo too fast after you paid for it. We appreciate that you are not happy with your new condo, but it really isn't a good idea to sell it so soon after purchasing it. Typically, you should forget about selling for at least 3yrs in order to make some equity If you would like to buy a property as well as sell the one you are in now, the same agent can act on your behalf for both transactions. Sometimes individuals buy directly from a developer so never had an agent, it doesn't mean you have to sell via the developer, you can hire your own realtor.

Do they have right to demand a new management with a petition and a lawyer representing their interests?

If the management isn't living up to their contract and you are an apartment owner, not a tenant, then definitely you do have the right to do this. Every condominium corporation will have a board of directors, you will need to contact them before you do anything else. At this level you may not need to employ a lawyer as the condo corporation have the right to terminate the management company's contract. The condo management will have a contract with the condominium corporation and this could be terminated if they do not live up to their contractual liabilities. Of course, this is not meant to be legal advice.

Questions replied by Houses for sale in Toronto realtor.

Part 3 of Toronto Real Estate - Some Vital Facts

2010-10-22T07:49:00.002-04:00

If I change my mind about some elements after I have signed an agreement of purchase & sale, can I still modify anything?

That depends on what you have signed! If the firm (no conditions) offer has been accepted by the seller, and is not a special circumstance (as in with new apartment construction for example, where you may be granted a cooling-off period) you can try to discuss changes with the sellers. The law is on the side of the person selling if your agreement hasn't been accepted with provisions to modify. In the long run both of your lawyers may have to be involved. Subsequently your retainer, legal costs and the like are at stake if both parties cannot agree.

For Bloor West Village, how much more do houses with finished basements sell for compared to houses with an unfinished or partially finished basements.

Good question - that is of course based on a lot of different situations. As a finished basement can range from dug out professionally carried out, with bathroom, perhaps a kitchen, fully wired for sound/stereo, spacious laundry, bedroom and separate side entrance, all the way to an old panelled room that is low ceiling height, potentially damp etc. Obviously any finished basement is going to be of benefit to a possible buyer, this village is a family neighbourhood and having that extra space is certainly a plus point. As previously pointed out, there are many variables and degrees of quality in a finished basement therefore its not possible to pre-empt the cash advantages.

I've heard there are different sorts of parking in relation to condominiums, what are they?
You can buy a parking space along with or completely separately from your apartment unit or even a property purchase, this is classed as owned parking. Subsequently once you own it, then with the majority of things you buy, it is yours to do with what you want. When you buy and sometimes rent a condo, there is frequently parking reserved for your use only while you own or rent it and is classed as exclusive parking If there is no exclusive parking for your unit or you can't buy parking, it may be possible to rent space; your property manager should have the details on this facility. Some lofts in Toronto are famous because of potential troubles with parking pads

What would 80,000 is money give me in the GTA area?

A mortgage expert will be able to help you sort out what you can afford if you are using the cash as a down payment on a property. There are lots of mortgage brokers in Toronto, but if you contact us via e-mail then we would be pleased to pass on some recommendations to you.

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Renting Condo? Questions and Answers

2010-09-17T07:29:00.002-04:00

• Can I evict the tenants that came with the house I purchased, and get my own tenants in there?

The agreed notice to relinquish the tenanted area must be given to your tenants under the Tenant's Protection Act, so the answer is 'no', you can't just evict them. Seek legal advice if your tenants refuse to move out, a tenant does not necessarily have to vacate the property if they do not wish to. There are exceptions to this: If you own the property and your immediate family is going to move into the tenanted space, then once the correct period of notice has expired, the tenant must leave.

• Am I able to lease out my finished basement?
As with leasing out any type of real estate there are items that must be complied with. Before putting up the For Rent sign, it would be in your interest to check that the basement apartment complies with the Ontario Building Code, Ontario Fire Code, local Zoning By-laws, and other applicable regulations. That will give you the real scoop on what reno's could need to be finished (such as putting in another exit) to bring your finished basement into compliance as a secondary unit.

• There is a difference between my occupancy date and my registration date, please explain why is this?
If you are acquiring a newly built condos or Lofts in Toronto, then occupancy fees become your responsibility from the occupancy date, even if you haven't moved in yet. There comes a point when the unit is livable even if you haven't moved in and regardless of whether those finishes you requested are carried out. The registration date is relevant to the date the condo build is completely registered and closed and the condo is yours legally to do with as you please.
• What is a reserve fund?

Repairs have to be made to community areas of a condo building from time to time, the reserve fund which is legally set aside, is for this eventuality. Money is added to it each time you make a payment for your monthly maintenance charge, though if large repairs are needed this money can disappear fast.
• If things breaks in my condo, do I have to mend it or does the condo corporation take care of it?

Your condo is regarded as your effects - one of the benefits of ownership! As a result if something is broken, then it is up to you to fix it. Repairs outside the condo and general maintenance like cleaning of hallways etc. are covered in your monthly maintenance fees.

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Part 1: You and Your Toronto Real Estate

2010-08-18T15:18:00.002-04:00

Can you tell me what is a building permit, and when do I need to be given a building permit?

The City of Toronto may need to give you formal authorization, a building permit, before you can make a start work on your house, which includes construction, demolition, additions or renovations. There are quite a few rules that your plans must comply too, they also include the Ontario Building Code and local Zoning By-laws. There are quite a few instances when you will need one, here are some of them: Assemble a new building or put on an extension, make structural alterations, some reno's, demolish or remove all or a portion of a building, change a building's use, install, change, or remove partitions and load bearing walls, make new openings for, or change the size of, doors and windows, construct a garage, balcony or deck, excavate a basement or construct a foundation, install or alter heating, plumbing or air-conditioning systems, install or reconstruct chimneys or fireplaces or wood burning stoves, create a new basement entrance or second suite the list goes on.

Why is my insurance firm asking so many questions about the property I bought, can my realtor tell me why they want to know?

When you buy a house, your insurance company will need to know things such as how big an area your building takes up, any updates to the systems in your house such as roofing, the material used to build the home, plus many other things. The best people to answer these questions are the people selling the property, we can contact their listing agent on your behalf if you would like us to. Exact records are not always available but an insurance business will sometimes accept the approximate price and date these changes occurred.
When looking at purchasing a property, which is the better investment, a house or a condominium?
We specialize on Toronto houses for sale but I can tell you that this all depends on your personal situation, how you visualize the future and what you are expecting out of the opportunity. For example, a house might provide the opportunity to live in while renting out, while a well-located condo pays for itself (given average Toronto rental prices) while appreciating more slowly. We will analyze your own unique situation to help you decide!

Why do prices for the same sort of unit alter so much in the same block?

By installing an upgraded kitchen or bathroom, wanting a parking space, how the condo is finished all add to and are reflected in the price. Also, the higher the floor in the building, the larger the price (ie penthouse suites can sell for a lot more than ground floor suites). Finally, remember that list price - asking price - is not always the same as what the apartments will actually sell for!

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Are the Proposed Changes to the Property Industry a Positive Move?

2010-07-22T08:51:00.002-04:00

A poll says Canadian property agents are not in favour of deregulation. Many of 1,726 real estate agents polled by Royal LePage Real Estate Services believes the proposed changes to MLS represent a wrong way to improve the real estate industry.

The debate concerns for the most part the extent, to which the MLS listings should be administered only by accredited specialists. The overall belief amongst agents is that customer service and safeguards set up to protect a customer, are going to drop if there is an influx of amateur service providers. The housing market is already highly competitive according to most agents, with less than 2% replying there was no competition, within the housing brokerage market.

The survey also tried to find in what way real estate specialists help buyers and sellers in completing their transactions. There were many options given, but the essential three considerations were: Optimizing and protecting client's monetary well-being, completing the transaction in a timely manner and providing the full package of brokerage services. Barely 0.6% of polled professionals said, they never helped a client avoid financial or transactional problems. 51.4% declared they did so very 'often' and 37.1% 'often'. When looking at the market side of their responsibilities, the survey showed that realtors were out there in this area. Toronto MLS, open home, local advertising and own websites were frequently used by more than three quarters of of those polled.
Membership of Royal LePage for an average of 15 years was a frequent answer when realtors were directed to answer questions on professional development, along with visiting formal courses and seminars up to four times per year.

The Royal LePage Real Estate Advisors Survey was administered online in April 2010 and can be seen on the official website.

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Toronto Needs to Put the Effort into Being Greener

2010-06-27T08:41:00.001-04:00

A new chart has been printed by Mercer Consulting when it released its annual Quality of Living statement, called the Eco-City Ranking. While Toronto was positioned at a solid 16th place in the world and in third place in North America, in terms of regular quality of living, our position in the Eco-City chart is not so good.

The chart is worked on a number of factors such as water availability, how good the sewage systems are and air pollution. To sum up, if your city creates large amounts of pollution and doesn't use its renewable resources then it's not going to rank very highly. Industrial cities such as Pittsburgh and Düsseldorf beat Toronto, which only saw a rank of 39, not good news.

Narrowing the figures down somewhat, Toronto only came in 11th when linking it to the North American cities. Our Canadian cities do however score extremely well - Ottawa was in joint place for 3rd along with Helsinki, Honolulo 2nd and first place goes to Canada with Calgary being named the highest eco-friendly city. Montreal and Vancouver also did well for Canada, ranking a joint 13 in the eco-city article.

When looking at the overall figures from the article, Toronto came in at 16, which doesn't seem too unsatisfactory, but we need to be aware of our eco responsibilities. "A city’s eco-status or attitude toward sustainability can have significant impact on the quality of living of its inhabitants", was the points made by a senior researcher at Mercer and that's what we want to be looking at.

What we need to think about is, our environmental quality of life will influence us right now and in the long term.

Julie Kinnear has been local eco activist and a MLS listings Toronto realtor

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Green Toronto Award Goes to the Best Innovators in the GTA

2010-05-28T18:29:00.000-04:00

Green Innovators Awards content knows its three prizewinners. At the Green Living Show held at the Direct Energy Centre, Exhibiton Place, the mayor, deputy mayor and CityNews meteorologist reported the prizewinners of this esteemed award on April 23. Each of them were handed the prestigious Green Toronto Award and they will split a $50,000 prize.

The young scientists aim to support the environment, the prize money is just a bonus. All the finalists presented interesting green solutions and improvements. Since the idea was to show real resolutions, most of the projects were affordable and easily applicable, so one day you may see them applied also in your neighbourhood, or in your own home.

Here are the top three prize winners:

Olivier Trescases, PhD and Chris Lea, with Green Gym: A gym built to use energy from exercise equipment; and send it to the grid.
Sarah Lazarovic and her concept GreenHouseTO; Not just for architects but for everyday individuals comes a web and mobile renovation application that is for Toronto buildings.
Robert Kori Golding, for his concept My Green City: For people that enjoy gaming on the iPhone or Facebook Construct a virtual town on these applications/games and claim reward points to use on your town by helping the environment.

So the prizewinner is GREEN!

As well as Green Innovation Awards there were 9 Green Toronto Awards handed out: for Community Projects Award, Energy Conservation Award, Environmental Awareness Award and another six. Charities also won, as all finalists were awarded a prize of $5,000 each to share with a charity of their choice.

Article delivered by Julie Kinnear, Royal LePage Toronto

The green real estate: What is keeping it back?

2010-04-29T11:57:00.002-04:00

Developers would like to see green property projects jump rapidly. While they are moving forward very fast, appraisals are not keeping in line with this fast growing industry. Take a house that would typically cost half a million dollars to assemble. You decide that you want the house to be more environmentally friendly, therefore you ask your architect to design the new property so it takes advantage of the sunshine and you put in high quality insulations and solar panels. Due to these green choices, this will add another $100,000 to the cost of the building.

Unfortunately this is not how your bank or mortgage appraiser values it. It doesn't do a lot of good to solely add value based on cost, but the question is, How much will the market pay on resale?' says David Snook, an appraiser and representative of the real property committee on education for the American Society of Appraisers.

Shall we finish with our example? Your bank or mortgage lender will only accept a $550,000 price. Therefore you would need to look for an additional $50,000 as a down payment. With a high-ratio mortgage 5% down payment, you will need $77,500 instead of $27,500. That is a large increase particularly if you are on a budget and every cent matters. This might force you to search for the cheapest green option, using older and cheaper technologies, or maybe you will forget about the whole green idea of the project altogether.

However, as a green MLS GTA agent I realize even though there is a rise in cost going green does make a difference Look at it this way, green real estate sell over 20% more rapidly with an 8.5% increase on price, according to Green Work Realty report. This information doesn't help you though if you are dealing with bank or mortgage business appraisers who don't have much if any experience with the green property technology.

There is not much that can be done about it right now . While there is no standardization for environmental and energy efficiency at this time, I think that they will soon be on their way. Green real estate is about cost as well as the all important environment. When looking at purchasing a motor car, one of the first things you look at is its fuel consumption, how many miles to the gallon does it do. Making sense of home energy consumption is the natural next step.

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Weed Businesses Found - Toronto Sales Rep Put in Jail

2010-03-21T20:38:00.001-04:00

As with all careers, sometimes you find that this is not for you and start looking out for for another occupation. In many of the properties he rented, Phu Nhi Trac decided to do just this, and started another job. This was no regular gardening pastime, but the biggest illegal marijuana operation in Canada.

With entry refused to her own house, a landlady took matters into her own hands and turned up at the rented house and blew the whistle on Trac's illegal farms. It was entirely empty, except of a collection of hoses leading to the basement, which was turned into a weed jungle. The owner expressed how distressed she was to find the illegal goings on in her property. No surprise there.

Just less than 30,000 plants were seized totalling $30 million when the police uncovered the other 53 businesses. Mr Trac was a managing head of a small group (including another real estate agent), which used fake IDs to swindle more than fifty house owners during years 2000-2002. And he was a skillful manager ? he was well informed about the growing process, studied the market prices and even tried to find franchises for his criminal activity.

Mr Trac, who's real estate license with Living Realty until it was cancelled last year, was sentenced to 14 years; with some terms to be served simultaneously it means he will spend 5 years behind bars. He didn't just get away with a jail sentence, he also was handed out a $1 million fine, which will make a big hollow in his wallet.

Eric Chan, ex-president of Living Realty, said Trac "never had any concern with his honesty and integrity and had won a important award for top producer of the branch office in the industrial commercial investment sector?.

Well, we have always encouraged you to take the process of picking an agent seriously. This type of issue is very uncommon and I would like to add gardening is not a regular hobby for a real estate agent in Toronto.

Cleaning Without Chemicals

2010-01-28T13:57:00.000-05:00

After the holiday season your property will most likely need a thorough clean to bring it back to good condition. With many expensive cleaning items on the market or the choice of a professional cleaning service, this job could be expensive. On the other hand, if you are one of those groups of people who'd want to do it themselves, here is an alternative for you. Natural or homemade products offer a choice of benefits, including hardly any health risks, lower costs, and yet another opportunity to go green. The largest worries are germ control and cleansing effectiveness, which can be accomplished without toxic chemicals. Here are a few ways on how to clean up without chemicals (or, at least to reduce their use in your home). Julie Kinnear, Toronto MLS expert famous for her green approach, will share few tips with you!

First Job: Microwave

Don't just fixate on the outside of your appliances, food debris gets left inside the microwave causing nasty smells and a hard to clean surface. Slice lemons and oranges and deposit them in a dish of water before placing them inside the microwave - a tip from hygiene experts from Britain. Cook on full power for about 5 minutes before wiping clean with a soft cloth or sponge and you will notice how easy the debris wipes away due to the steam made. (The oranges absorb the grease while the lemon eliminates odours) Water from a damp cloth will give off steam if the dish and citrus fruit method can't be done - a note for safety: always use a damp cloth as dry cloth could cause a fire. The item of cloth needs to be left in the microwave for a few minutes for the greatest result.

How to Wash your Fridge

To get rid of food spillage and other blemishes in your fridge, simply use soapy water including very little soap). Using an old toothbrush with some of your everyday toothpaste, clean in the corners and those little spaces that are hard to get to. Turn off your freezer if that needs cleaning out and place a bowl of hot water inside, this creates heat which helps the ice thaw. Once the ice has melted use some lemon water to clean and freshen the inside of your freezer.

Cleaning the Top of your Kitchen Cooker Thoroughly

Owning glass-ceramic or induction cookers means you need to pay particular attention to your cleaning methods due to the fact these products can be grazed easily. Day to day cleaning of your cooker, by wiping of any spills and marks to stop build up of stubborn marks should be an important part of cleaning your cooker. Nevertheless, if there are any food spillages or you can't get rid of the greasy film, use a mixture of baking soda and water and a plastic scrub brush to lightly scrub the top clean.

Scrubbing the Oven

I bet like most people you don't enjoy scrubbing your oven. If you aren't fortunate enough to own a self-cleaning one, the task is not fun. With quite a few ways and means of completing the job, it can be quite effortless. One of the simplest mixes that you can make up at home that really does the job is: Mix 5 tbsp of baking soda, 3 drops of liquid soap, and 4 tbsp of white vinegar into a heavy paste. Using a sponge to scour, apply the mix to the surfaces of your oven. Then, just wipe the whole oven clean, rinse it out thoroughly, and let it dry. Half a cup of ammonia left in a closed oven overnight is another accepted cleaning method. Dispose of the ammonia in the morning and sponge the surfaces down with a wet cloth to see the outcome of your work.

How to Make Black Mold Vanish

2009-11-19T18:39:00.003-05:00

Many houses across the country including Toronto are finding that with the onset on Autumn and more moisture in the air, those horrible mold stains are returning. Mold and spotless houses are normal, don't think that mold says you have a grimy home. Items break or crack in a home and they are not always noticed immediately. That’s usually when mildew crawls into your beautiful home, unseen, until you either discover the well-known displeasing smell or you spot the atrocious growing stains. For some homes, mold is an ongoing problem in rooms like kitchens or bathrooms due to the increased moisture and humidity in these areas. Whether the mold is seasonal or year round the answer to the problem is totally the same.

Do you employ experts or undertake the DIY method?

Of course there are masses of companies out there that would gladly solve this problem for you, but since many people think twice before paying out money on work they can do themselves, here’s some DIY, eco-friendly solutions. Having said that, should you discover that the area affected by mold is rather big (ie over 10 sq ft or so), calling a professional would be a good idea.

Be aware of safety before you try to solve the problem

Even though most species of mold are harmless to humans, there are certain types (like black mold) that are rather toxic. So before you embark on any sanitation, arm yourself with a pair of hefty rubber gloves and an N95 respirator. If you want to be extra careful, you could acquire a test kit from a hardware shop and send a sample of the mold to a lab. If a member of your household has an allergy or respiratory problems then this kit would help you decide which option you pick.

Eco-Friendly Detergents

For cost effectiveness, environmentally friendly and availability, white vinegar comes the best for dealing with mold. Just like it will drive away ants (as we recently reported in the first issue of Toronto homeowner’s guide), it will not only obliterate the fungi, but also bacteria; it will even dissolve lime scale. While there is always expensive anti-fungal solutions on your supermarket shelf, distilled white vinegar is totally bio-degradable.

Extermination and Prevention

Mold and its removal requires more than a single treatment. The space the mold has developed must be carefully cleaned. Then it is imperative to make the rooms in your home less mold-friendly. When cleaning hard surfaces such as tile or ceramic, linoleum, tile grout, or plastic such as shower curtains, wet the effected area so that the spores don’t become airborne, then simply give it a good scour with a cleaner of your choice. Once you have finished cleaning, totally dry the space.

It is nearly impossible and at best extremely difficult to erase surfaces that are porous of mold. We would advise you throw away these items and purchase new ones. To stop mold returning is a fairly simple thing to do. Try to rid your home of the situations where mold breeds, such as leaky water pipes; also keep a watch on the humidity in your home with a hygrometer so you can take preventative action if it gets too high. Airing rooms often is a very simple step and one that doesn't cost you any effort. Keeping the humidity to less than 60% helps obstruct mold returning. In hot weather humidity increases, so invest in a good air conditioner, if it has filters, as these are a breeding ground for mold, make sure they are regularly cleaned. For colder months, you might need to invest in a dehumidifier. Best of luck, and here's to a mold free house.

Picture by checoo.

United Nations Climate Change Conference 2009 in Denmark

2009-11-18T12:55:00.001-05:00

Today I decided to put pen to paper about a climate change meeting coming up in just a couple weeks in Europe. I make my living as a realtor from Toronto, but that doesn't mean that worldwide problems do not concern me. A topic that holds my curiosity is the climate and its change.

The United Nations Climate Change Conference will take place in the Denmark capital during the first half of December. People attending the conference are trying to reach a decision on lessening the intensity of climate change from 2012. Whilst this discussion is on the table, it certainly isn't the only item up for analysis. With many different opinions it will definitely be a lively debate.

When Barack Obama was appointed president, many activists hoped for a new age in climate change mitigation. The question is what this age should look like. The Kyoto protocol, understood to be a springboard for meetings of this kind, is less and less admired, even by environmentalists themselves.

The minimizing of emission rates accepted back in 1997 (and never accomplished) are about to be reevaluated. By the year 2020 its is desired that GHG emissions will be reduced by 20% based on the 2005 figures. While people call for this reduction they fail to remember that Kyoto didn't work and that called for a 5% reduction on the 1990 figures. The protocols of Kyoto are being relaxed further even though there is a very lax approach to keeping the the schedule in the first place.

There is another area of conflict that this problem is connected to. The North thinks Kyoto and subsequent environmental actions will have the biggest impact on its economy, while the huge polluters of the South (like China, India, Brazil and South Africa) will remain untouched. The South as a whole believes it’s in the right, because the North owes them a lot – southern countries are much more affected by climate change than those in the North. With China emerging as a world power and the economic problems around the world, developing countries such as India and Brazil are not happy about making sacrifices; though the North understand the need for higher fuel emissions in developing countries.

The emissions trade is another issue that worries the anti-climate change movement. Imposing market rules that offset any negative economic repercussions of restrictions is also debatable according to opponents, who see this as an outlet for the black market trade. To stop this type of trade and the risk of climatic disaster, the opponents want to see larger control given to local communities.

Crucial decisions may be achieved at Copenhagen, but it’s almost sure they won’t be radical. Having said all that, probably, the most important thing to come out of it all is the lobbyists are now getting together to try and make some advances. This can only be fantastic news as more voices shout maybe those at the conference in Copenhagen will pay attention.

Image by Amyvdh.

How to Get Rid off Leaves

2009-10-24T11:50:00.001-04:00

Every year, as the summer ends and kids return to school, you might just suddenly realize that deep in your heart, you really are an autumn person - however much you like summer sun and holidays. It doesn't matter whether you drive to work or just walk along the streets, all that colourful beauty covering everything around just keeps attracting your eyes. You might secretly want to go back in time and be 10 again, running up and down the streets and kicking your way through the thick carpet of leaves. In this dreamy autumn mood you get home and the dream ends when you look at your own lawn. As leaves usually are great fun, but your own leaves are not, as they are your problem and you have to get rid of them somehow. However don't worry, as we are here with the 2nd Toronto Homeowner Tip, focused on the greatest ways how to get rid of yard waste.

In the past, people didn’t make a big fuss around it: they either burned it or used it for mulching. Burning is out of question today, unless you want to apply for an open burning permit, and quite honestly, this could take you until Spring time. An obvious solution is to sweep all your leaves into your neighbours yard, but this can lead to you getting twice as many in reward next year.

Community services

First, you should choose if you are able to do most of the work yourself, or if you would prefer the community services pick up your organic waste. For the community services, get enough kraft bags, as yard waste packed in any kind of plastic bags is no longer accepted in Toronto. Next, you will have to gather all the leaves into these bags. You can do this by using a traditional rake, or employ a more sophisticated leaf blowing machine. You can do this yourself or call your own or neighbourhood kids - for sure they will be eager to earn some pocket money. In any case, you will have to consult the collection schedule to see when to put the bags out for collection.

(Please go to my original text How to get rid of leaves to see the rest of the story.)

Photo source: Nico Cavallotto

Policies on Tax and Property Benefaction

2009-10-15T08:24:00.002-04:00

In Canada since 1996, the situation for charitable gifts in relation to capital has been improving. A paper by Malcolm Burrows from C D Howe Institute called Unlocking More Wealth, discusses augmenting capital gains exemption for donations of real estate donations and the relation to Canadian Federal Tax policies for Charities.

There have been over 20 tax incentives of differing kinds brought in during the last 13 years in Canada on capital gifts. The overall effect on the charity environment evaluated in the volume of gifts was positive; charitable giving grew by 140%.

Just because there is an increase in gifts doesn't mean there is no space for improvement. While the total volume of gifts rose, the quantity of donors has been shrinking. What is prominent is that donations are coming as a one time only big donation rather than continuous, but smaller, contributions. Vulnerability to economic fluctuations is an undesirable side effect of have little in the way of regular donations.

Property and private company shares don't qualify for capital gains exemptions. These policies therefore cause a market imbalance. Charities and owners are left with unfavourable circumstances. Property is not often donated as it is passed down in families.

Bequeathing real estate includes some challenges. Policy makers need to work out a reasonable market cost of an donated property. This problem can be increased if the person donating do not give an accurate value. Problems can emerge for the charity to whom the bequeath has been bequeathed too. Real Estate bequeathing bring more pressures than capital bequeathing to a charity. Charities will find these predicaments include tax and maintenance problems once the property is under their control.

These problems are not insurmountable. Malcolm Burrows presents two potential ways of making real estate donations.

One of these is by selling the real estate first, then donating the cash. Acquiring cash from the property sale bypasses any problems with valuations, tax and upkeep. The Income Tax Act has made possible for the cash from some property sales to be used as revenue since 2000. Increasing the legal base to contain real estate properties should allow for any percentage of the sale to be donated.

If someone wants to give a bequeath of real estate. Property value altering is one of the main problems with real estate donations. Making sure the new owner is not permitted to sell the property for a number of years and the services of independent real estate appraisers are a couple of ways around this issue.

Deterring real estate donations would have a negative blow upon charities, a big proportion of assets from companies and individuals is real estate. Tax exemption legislation has had a lot of work completed on it over the last few years but there is still a way to go to even up the market. To reform the inequality there needs to be a way of approaching the tax exemption of this area of real estate gifting.

Photo: Faces Helped By Charity Water by Chris Sacca

Calmer times have arrived to Toronto housing market

2009-09-19T09:36:00.000-04:00

All Toronto realtors and homeowners can be happy about the numbers concerning the August development on the market. The Toronto real estate board published their monthly report showing that the market is still very active, however slowing down a bit after the turbulent times in the previous three months. For example the number of items sold in August was somewhat lower than in July, but much better compared to August 2008.

The development concerning all the other key indicators is quite similar - figures are generally a bit smaller than in June or July, but higher than for the same period last year. For more details, why don't you read the who GTA real estate article.

Ants - Friend or Foe?

2009-09-06T18:17:00.001-04:00

Annually, with the arrival of warm weather, a lot of people living in houses and condos in Toronto have to fight against thousands of uninvited guests. There are two kinds of ants that most usually move into people's houses - sugar ants and carpenter ants. Whereas real Sugar Ants live in Australia, the small black Pharaoh and Pavement ants that you keep stepping on in your kitchen are usually called ‘sugar ants’ in the US and Canada because of their inexhaustible appetite for sweet foods. They would be seldom found living indoors.

Sugar ants are tinier than Carpenter ants, the other common ant species, who are sometimes even half an inch long. A common mistake is confusing the Carpenter ants with termites. However, termites eat wood and they are white, while Carpenter ants are black and they only use the wood for making homes for their colonies, they don't really eat it, just burrow into it. They usually live in old tree stumps or fence posts, but sometimes they try to find a cosy place inside of a human house. If there is anything attractive for these ants in your home, they will keep coming there, so in order to get rid of them, just take away they favourite things.

How to close the ant restaurant It's quite likely that the ants only come into the house to search for food. In that case, these easy cleaning routine steps, done for at least two weeks, may help. If not, there is always time for something more radical. The great place for ants is your kitchen sink area, as it provides them with food and water. So you have to keep this place clean and dry. Always try to wash the dishes so that they are not left dirty overnight, and make sure you wipe the sink dry, so that there is no food or drink offered for the ants. A great tip is also using bleach or white vinegar for wiping down all the kitchen surfaces every night. The floor should also be washed properly - you can use the vinegar or bleach for this too. Vinegar is a very environmentally-friendly but effective cleaning agent. And when you clean the sink, also pour a couple of drops of bleach or white vinegar down the pipes. This is also a really practical advice. Keep all groceries in air tight boxes. Take the rubbish bin out at least once a day, but if you manage to do it more often, it's better. If there are any cracks in the walls of your home that the ants can use as the entrance, seal them up. Expanding Foam is probably the easiest and fastest choice to achieve this (your local Hardware store will stock this). If they still find their way in after all your efforts, toss some bay leaves or cloves nearby and this should do the trick.

How to find the nest To prevent Carpenter ants from nesting near or within your home, the optimum thing to do is to get rid of rotten wood in your garden and damp places in your home. But it's likely the ants have already moved into your house, usually if you cannot find any nest outside but the ants are still in your house. So you will have to use your detective skills to find out where the nest is placed. Carpenter ants enjoy damp wood, so look for old trees or fire wood in your garden. Look around sweaty pipes, washing machines, dishwashers and any other damp spots. Remember that the damage caused by one ant colony (as there may be up to 3 or even 10 thousands ants in it) can be quite extensive and possibly dangerous, depending on its location within the house's wooden structure. Sawdust can give away the ant nest, as Carpenter simply love feeding on wood. Or at silent times you might hear a dry rustling sound, also detectable with stethoscopes. Even if you use the services of a professional exterminator to clean your home of these horrible creatures, if you don’t deal with the damp wooden areas around your property that attracts them, then for sure they will be back to visit you again next year. If you don't want the ants to come back, you will have to get used to keeping your kitchen perfectly spotless, or no bait will be of any help.

Photo source: nullboy

Is Canada the preferred choice for real estate investors or is the USA?

2009-09-04T07:10:00.002-04:00

Real estate properties have interesting discounts available now the boom period prices have been regulated. This is what real estate investors are always anticipating. To pick up a bargain. What are the dissimilarities between the rivals?

The USA real estate prices are not yet seeing recovery, whereas in Canada the MLS have plenty of real estate and prices are beginning to rise. As prices are lesser in the USA wouldn't you think this was the prime place to invest? If you have additional money to invest, professionals still say Canada is the top investment.

Global Property Guide professionals still warn of rushing into the US market and suggest Canada as a more practical option. Even though prices seem to be levelling off in the USA, experts expect that there may be more busts ahead. Profits are moderate to poor, the tax system is perplexing and the rental market heavily pro tenant. The long term investment grading chart only awards the USA 2 stars out of 5.

Although Canada is not the top market in the world (top rated is Uruguay, followed by other South American markets), we have been given 3 stars, primarily for good yields, secure economy, a better tax system and a strong rental market for immigrants (Canada is represented by Toronto and the USA is represented by New York).

Buying real estate in Canada has less expensive fees joined with it. Example property (resale $250 000 condo in major city, cash paid) transaction costs (inclusive of registration costs, real estate agent charges, legal charges and sales and transfer taxes) count for 6.96% of the sale price in Canada, while it is 9.07% in the USA. Real estate investors will appreciate the 2% lower fees.

Photo source: swisscan

Asbestos : Are You Safe?

2009-09-02T15:09:00.002-04:00

Because of its great characteristics such as resistance to heat, fire, wear or chemicals, asbestos used to be a very desirable material - until a short time ago.

For decades it was used in making thousands of products, from building material to clothes and toys, until about 50 years ago when it became clear that it was also poisonous. What is asbestos poisoning? The advantage and disadvantage of asbestos at the same time is its durability, which has been exploited in various industries. On the other hand, when present in human bodies, the body has no way of disposing of it.

If asbestos is part of some material, as long as it stays in it, it is not dangerous. It only becomes dangerous when the tiny needle-like fibers become airborne, which makes them possible to be inhaled. The trouble with asbestos poisoning is that its primary symptoms such as dry cough, tightness in the chest or shortness of breath match the symptoms of a lot of less serious diseases. Regarding also the long latency period, it often happens that the real cause of the sickness is found out only when it is too late.

The most common sicknesses that have been linked to asbestos poisoning are asbestosis, mesothelioma and lung cancer. Asbestosis is caused by the lungs trying to get rid of the asbestos fibers by producing acid, scaring the tissue, causing it to harden. Eventually, the capability to breath is very limited. Mesothelioma is an cureless cancer of the outer lining of the lungs. Mesothelioma can be caused also by only a brief, even accidental exposure to asbestos poisoning (unlike asbestosis). More than half of the people dying from asbestos poisoning suffer from asbestos-induced lung cancer. Nevertheless, if the diagnosis is determined correctly and the patient starts the treatment early, he/she is quite likely to lead an active life for many years after.

Asbestos in Canada, being once one of the most important asbestos producers in the world, still supports its use in its less dangerous variations. The asbestos mines in Quebec are still in use. Until the 1980s, asbestos had been widely used in most office buildings, public buildings and schools, usually for thermal, fire and sound insulation. The people who were most 'at risk' were mostly the workers installing asbestos materials, especially in cases where health and safety rules were ignored. Then the dust from the installation process could get into the air and people were breathing in the poisonous toxins. The use of asbestos still hasn't been banned in Canada. Nevertheless, improvements have been made - Ontario banned using asbestos as insulation back in 1973. Local governments have been trying to get rid of this material from public buildings and any work that involves either installing or removing it is governed by very stringent regulations.

Asbestos in Toronto Since 2007, Ontario has established strict regulations for asbestos used in buildings. If a landlord finds any suspicious material deteriorating in the building he owns, he has to submit it for examination. There are professional companies that can remove the asbestos safely, if its presence is discovered. If there is any danger of continuous deterioration, the whole impacted area has to be removed, again following strict safety rules.

The most common use of asbestos in non-domestic buildings: - insulation on pipes - ceiling tiles - panels boards - cement panels - sprayed coatings on walls - asbestos ropes and cloth - textures coating The most common use of asbestos in residential homes in Toronto: - exterior surfaces: deck undersheeting, roof felt and shingles, window putty - all kinds of insulation - flooring: vinyl asbestos sheets, tiles and undersheeting - interior surface: sprayed-on acoustic ceilings, acoustic tiles - appliances: water heaters, range hoods, clothes dryers and dishwashers Asbestos is still not a solved problem. A year ago, there was the Sunrise Propane blast, as most of us can still remember. Five streets were hit by asbestos debris and 3000 inhabitants had to leave their homes until a complete and careful clear up of the place. One of the assignments for our local governments is to keep struggling against the danger posed by asbestos. Nevertheless, the extent of this danger is very hard to quantify. As only 0.5% of asbestos in material is considered toxic, it’s hard to trace back all the potential risks.

There are professional companies that you can summon and they will inspect your home in case you have even the smallest suspicion it might have been impacted (there is a list of such companies available in the Toronto region). Under no circumstances, you should try to deal with the suspect material yourself!

Photo source: Marshall Astor

Will algae oil save the Earth?

2009-08-27T10:17:00.002-04:00

In our green real estate section we usually try to focus on environmentally friendly advice for our homes. But this text will be focused on an interesting research, which may lead to helping us if we are feeling guilty because of our cars eat up too much gas. Oil is an crucial part of our everyday lives. Nowadays, the crucial part of a life in the developed world is a car, and nearly everybody has one. So do I, of course, as a realtor who drives around daily. Without our dear cars, the life would be so much harder. Of course, the two crucial issues of driving are well-known: prices driven up and down because of unsure oil supplies, and the environmental harm made by fuel burning and emissions of carbon dioxide.

An American biologist Craig Venter is also a successful businessman, who founded The Institute for Genomic Research. Genetic engineering is the main interest of his work, that has provoked a great deal of heated debate by his latest project.

Algae are known for creating natural oil, which is already part of a number of experiments with biofuels. But Craig Venter is ready to find out more than that. He is trying to find out if it's possible to change the genomic make-up of algae in order to make them create oil of almost the same structure as the traditional crude oil. This possibility is so much better, as you can use current oil industry infrastructure like refineries, and even produce plastics in the same way as from crude oil refining employing the same production plants that are currently being used. As Exxon Mobile, being one of the most successful oil producers in the world, heard of all this, they gave Venter a $600 million subsidy to go on with his research.

And now you may be demanding, OK, but what is so great about it from the ecological point of view? Well, just this. Oil production based on algae could quite likely be the solution to one of the most serious threats facing the world today. During the photosynthesis process, plants take the carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and use it to produce the oil, which is later burned and turned into oxalates. Of course, this miracle solution won't be available this or next year, but for sure it is a good way to go. The team of Craig Venter are trying to win where others have tried and failed, but this time there is a good chance of success. There are many people in Canada and elsewhere that would love to protect the environment, but due to their occupation, it is very difficult for them to stop using cars, just like so many of my Toronto real estate colleagues can't.

Photo: Saab Aero by gmeurope

Restructuring of Public Transport in Toronto: Finally!

2009-08-18T11:24:00.001-04:00

In the Ontario region a vital public transport restructuring has been hugely expected by the public since 2007. GTA will mainly benefit from the ‘MoveOntario 2020’ project. This 12-year plan comprises of 52 transit proposals including the growth of various subways, train, and bus lines and selected highways. From the real estate point of view this reorganization will ultimately have some real decisive effect on the real estate demand in the affected regions, alongside with the environmental consequences on the life of Torontonians.

Rising real estate values

Accessibility to a property is an important variable when measuring property prices by real estate agents. Various studies have analyzed that nearby railway station significantly raises the value of property. For example in Portland, houses within 500m range of light rail way station sold by over 10 per-cent more than houses positioned further away. Overall the positive ramification of new stations on the property prices rise is recorded in a half-mile range.

Improving air quality: A genuine environmental impact.

Unsafe elements of exhaust gases harm our bodies. Long term these gases cause serious disease and possibly premature death. The parts of the body most afflicted are the lungs, heart and veins.

Since the air we breathe is not pure, the pollutants and fine specks enter the body through mouth or nose and part of it stays in our lungs, causing its aggravation or irreversible damage. Air pollution can either cause or worsen asthma or bronchitis or other lasting respiratory disorders, it can cause blood clotting or heart attack and of course it can eventually lead to premature death. Research is continuing but at the moment, in Toronto, about 1.700 premature deaths are associated with air pollution each year.

The affect on automobilist

The shake-up plan claims to be designed to cut greenhouse emissions by replacing about 300 million car trips. Can it work? Is this the best idea to have cleaner air? Day to day drivers must not be ignored, but this proposal aims to focus on the public transport system. This includes railways, bikers and pedestrians supporting people to use these modes of transportation. At the moment, automobilists in Toronto spend about 67 hours in traffic jams every year. A study into congestion has found that 70% of all excursions in Toronto will still be made in cars in 20 years. This is although the increased capacity of other means of transport. For example, I know for sure that most of my colleagues working as real estate agents will never give up their cars no matter the cost or availability of public transport system.

Exhaust gas emissions are higher when traffic is stopping and starting. Cuting out congestion and improving traffic flow will improve air conditions. Or maybe the way to go is to find ideas in the recent plans of Israel or Denmark. These countries decided to heavily advocate electromobile vehicles by exemptions and by building a giant system of charging stations throughout the country. Expanding the public transport system should not be the only upgrades GTA makes. It has to answer the needs of those who chose cars as their main means for transportation.

(picture by ithinkx)

Why should you switch?

2009-06-27T14:38:00.000-04:00

Two of the most cited reasons for switching from the traditional light bulbs to environmental bulbs are mostly 1) saving the environment while 2) saving money. The environmental bulbs are economical in several ways: they can be used up to ten times a longer time than the "normal" bulbs, and the amount of emanated warmth is smaller, therefore there is less air conditioning necessary, which is significant mostly for large offices. Another fact is that the environmental bulbs use only one-third of the energy usage of the traditional bulbs, which is good both for the environment and also your pocket.

Except for running a Toronto real estate agency, I'm always looking for ways to make my lifestyle a bit more Earth-friendly. The range of environmental light bulbs in the stores is very rich, and if you are not an experienced buyer, you might get a little decide while shopping for light bulbs, we have summed up some easy tips for you.

The perfect light bulb for you

These bulbs come in all shapes and sizes so the best thing to do is to bring the traditional bulb you want to replace to the shop and match it with the available environmental bulbs. You will only need one-quarter of the original wattage (60 watt traditional bulb = 15 watt environmental bulb). Also read the label if it's suitable for dimmers, should you wish to use it in a dimmer light.

Where to use environmental bulbs

For spaces with high temperature and insufficient ventilation, such as recessed ceiling fixtures, it would be a bad idea to use a environmental light bulb. The bulb takes anything between one and three minutes to light up and doesn’t like to be switched on and off often. Therefore use in places where the bulb can stay on for at least 15 minutes at a time to prevent early damage.

How to dispose of environmental bulbs

Always recycle your bulbs at designated places. Be very careful if you smash a fluorescent bulb. There is some mercury in it, which is a poisonous heavy-metal. Do not try to clean it with a vacuum cleaner. You also shouldn't touch it with bare hands. Instead, try to sweep the mercury bits with a piece of carton paper. Pick up smaller bits with sticky tape and wipe the affected space with a damp cloth. Open the window for at least 15 minutes to avoid mercury exposure.

Solar panels - get some grant from Canadian government!

2009-06-06T10:22:00.002-04:00

Just like many of you, I too feel responsible for our environment. Being a Toronto real estate agent I am always looking for new opportunities to make green living more accesible either for my clients or for whoever is interested. Today let's find out what the Canadian government grants are there for solar energy.

Why energy from solar panels?
The greatest advantage of solar energy is its

nature-friendliness. With more people being able to create their own energy by nature-friendly means, the better for the environment. With the price of energies growing fast in the last couple of years, many countries all over the world started to endorse the clean energy over the conventional energy. Canada is among them.

Before you start

Without the home energy audit you will not be suitable for receiving any grants, so let's have a look at what needs to be done.
- You only get the grants if you start all the installations AFTER the auditor's first visit.
- You have to be finished with all the repairs within 18 months since the auditor's visit.
- To ensure you will have no problems claiming all your government grants, don't forget to store all your documentation and receipts and even take photos during the works.
- Forgetting to book and complete the follow-up visit could be costly since without it you cannot receive any funding.

A note about the cost: The home energy audit will cost you at least $498.75 (first visit $341.25, the second visit $157.50, inc. GST) or a little more (depends on the sq ft of your home). The government will refund you $150 towards the cost of the first evaluation visit.

So what are the grants?

Basically at the moment there are two solar technologies that are available to masses: the solar photovoltaic system (sunlight --> electricity) and the solar thermal system (sunlight --> hot water). But no matter what you choose, the government is here to help you. There's a nice sum of up to $500 from the federal government, should you choose a system that is in compliance with the CAN/CSA standards. No need to hurry, since you can apply for the grant till March 2011. But the federal grant is not all you can get: the Ontario government will much the federal grant so you can get up to $1000. Another good news is that you can claim a refund of the 8% RST from the Ontario government.

Currently you can only claim the RST on the equipment purchased until the end of 2009.

(photo by powerhouse museum)

Do you know what MLS is?

2009-05-22T20:10:00.001-04:00

Heard of MLS? If you've ever dealt with a realtor, you surely have. Working as realtor, most of my work is somehow connected to Toronto MLS listings. Wanna know why? Read on.

The essentials of MLS

Multiply Listing Service is nothing less or more than a database of all property for sale, connecting two agents, one that represents the seller and the other representing the potential buyer. It is region-based.It holds all the available information about the property in question (the owner, its address, footage, number of bedrooms and so on). It also gives info on the local area (services, transportation, etc.) and other information that the owner wished to public.

If I made it sound as if MLS was simply another list of properties not much different to let's say a listing available on your realtor's website, it's not quite so.MLS is not a public database: only realtors have a full access to it.The information on the available property on various real estate blogs are not complete. You might get an idea about the property, but will always have to contact the realtor for more information in the end.

The history of MLS

50 years ago the MLS originated as listing sheets or ringed binders with information on the property for sale in the region, manually updated twice a month.The first "upgrade" of the system came up when the real bound MLS books appeared once a month with weekly updates.The system relied on membership fees - can you imagine how much it must have cost to keep it running properly?The 70s brought the 3rd generation: the database was finally computerized and accessible through dumb terminals and phone lines.The so far last generation of the system is based on PCs and Internet. The conversion started in the 90s and the web-based system of regional databases hasn't changed much since.

MLS 5.0

Some people think that it's about time to upgrade the system once more.Particularly in the USA the discussing fellowship of realtors came up with the idea of another upgrade of the system to MLS 5.0, mainly by incorporating the functionalities of the 'web 2.0'.
The are three main differences of the 5.0 compared to the current MLS: the new system should be parcel based and therefore store information on all the properties there are, should be nationwide and customers, vendors and developers should be allowed to participate on it to some degree.But Canada has yet to think of such an upgrade, so let's stick to the MLS of today.

So how can MLS be useful to you, the customer?

Right now about 75% of all property is sold through the MLS or with its help.MLS is very important for the seller because it allows them to get their property as much exposure as possible.Equally the buyers benefit from MLS: thanks to MLS their broker has a very good idea of what's on the market.Thereby always make sure your realtor is a member of the local board of realtors and have the proper access to MLS where you intend to buy a property.

Have you ever heard about TGS?

2009-03-14T16:23:00.002-04:00

What is really TGS? It is Toronto Green Standard, actually meaning "designing buildings and landscapes that is more environmentally friendly. Achieving the targets set-out in the Toronto Green Development will help to improve air and water quality, reduce green house gas emissions and enhance the natural environment".

Is it possible for us to contribute to this goal? Yes of course! As a green Toronto realtor I always encourage people to follow some specific advice in order to save energy in their houses and help with sustainable development. It's the time we cared for our planet and support sustainable development. We do it not only for us but for future generations too... for our kids...

Architecture in Toronto

2009-03-13T18:40:00.006-04:00

Having lived and worked for many years as a Toronto realtor, I am mostly impressed by the amazing cocktail of architectural styles in this city, varying from those developed in Europe - USA and brought in this lively capital to the unique "Bay-and-gable" and "The Annex" styles.

One of the most prominent buildings is the CN Tower which remains a symbol for Canada and it is one of the tallest free-standing structures in the world (533.33 metres). An interesting building is considered "The University of Toronto" that covers a wide range of different styles, from Victorian revival styles on campus to Collegiate Gothic and modern/ postmodern styles. Besides, the Royal Ontario Museum with enormous crystals rising dramatically five storeys from the street surface attracts the tourist attention.

As for the building material, bricks, cinder blocks and stone prevail. However, sandstone is historically a readily available building material with large deposits quarried from the Credit River Valley and it is the main material used in the unique Annex style house.

In general, Toronto strikes as a very beautiful city not only for an architect lusting for inspiration but also for tourists and inhabitants.

Call energy auditor for a visit!

2009-01-19T08:02:00.003-05:00

I guess nobody is pleased to see his monthly bill for heating (especially here in Canada). Our homes, especially the older ones, are like Emental cheese, when talking about energy efficiency.

There are some precautions you can do on yourself (check our green living section on Toronto mls listings site), or you can order a complete refurbishment. But the problem is in aiming. Is the roof main gateway out for heat, or is it better to aim the effort on walls? Or maybe windows? and what about the fireplace?

Certified energy auditors are the ones to help you with this problem. You can order this service for about $350 for the first visit and $150 for the second one (with possible $150 government refund!) in more places (for example Windfall Ecology Centre, the pioneers on this field). During this hardly 3 hour visit, auditor will check every single part of your home for energy leaking. consequently, he will prepare a project for you to get rid of them!

Considering your energy bills, this is a very important first step! And it's not only about bills - low energy consuming house has bigger price on the real estate market. And of course - it helps our planet too!

Inukshuk and me

2008-11-22T18:16:00.008-05:00

If you visit our Houses for sale in Toronto website, you may notice our motto:"Guiding you home" and our logo - the inukshuk. Inukshuk is not only our logo - we based our whole business philosophy on it!

If you don't know what is an inukshuk(so it means you ar not Canadian! :)) - inukshuk (or inuksuk, plural inuksuit) is statue, made of few stones, resembling cross-like figure (inunnguaqs are human like, with two separate legs). The have been erected by the Inuit, Inupiat, Kalaallit, Yupik, and other peoples of the Arctic region of North America, from Alaska to Greenland.

And in these days, they are erected by fans, tourist, artist, or just citizens on their gardens. You can find it in logos of many companies, institutions or persons. In a year, it will be world know - it was chosen as official logo for Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games.

And why do we use it in Toronto Houses for sale company?

Because an Inuit word that literally translated means "stone man that points the way." Inukshuks are stone cairns that were erected by Inuit at prominent locations throughout the barrens to serve as guideposts or markers. They were also erected to help herd caribou during their annual migration towards where they could be more easily hunted by the ancient Inuit.

It resembles what we are doing - we are here to guide you safely and comfortably through the sale and/or purchase of your cherished asset, your home. We are not just here for today but for life. Our goal is to employ our combined experience and expertise to assist you to realize your housing dreams.

Canada is the first!

2008-11-07T07:46:00.004-05:00

Many people are concerned about their banks in these days. I am dealing Toronto houses for sale so for me, a sound bank system is extremely important - real estate business and banks are very closely bounded.
Full of negative thoughts and dubitations, you should open World Economic Forum's survey The Global Competitiveness Report 2008-2009, because in chapter 8.07 (named The soundness of banks) you can find very interesting information. Canadian banks placed as the soundess in the world!
Around 10000 proffessionals were asked between the years 2007-2008 to evaluate banks in more than 130 countries. They should give 1 to 7 points (the more the sounder bank). Canada recieved average score 6.8 points and placed 1st! This is definitely nice information, which may fortify people's trust in our bank system - and positive thinking and trust is the main core for the banks.
You may think that business proffesionals had tendency to overvaluate banks in developed countries, but if you look at the results you will see it's not true. Germany placed 39th, USA 40th and UK even 44th, beaten by Botswana or Senegal for example.
The worst banks are in Algeria (3.9 points, last place), Libya (4.0), but also Argentina (4.2), or Russia (4.86 points, placed 107th).

Market in August

2008-09-29T07:44:00.002-04:00

While waiting for results from September, why not to have a look on August?
As Market Watch reports, trend of falling sales continued also in August and sales drop reached -22% compared to the same month of 2007 and even -9% compared to August 2006. This drop results in active listings increase (+31%), but this news shouldn't be interpreted pessimistically - offer is now broader, but there is no uncontrolled inflow of properties - new listings were down -1% compared to the last year's number and average days on market reached still pleasant value of 35 days.
Price growth was below inflation (+1% overall, -1% for the City of Toronto, +2% for the rest) so that means your investments into the real estate are losing power, on the other hand it opens the market for the buyers, especially the first-time buyers, troubled by skyrocketing prices till now.
Generally, as a Toronto realtor I still can feel enough optimism on the market. Financial crisis in the USA has not influenced the market much till now and business remains fast-turning.