Jeff Gingerich - Blog - Jeff Gingerich

Recent Blog Posts by Jeff Gingerich
The Mystery of the Disappearing Toilet When I was a kid, I used to read a series of mystery books involving the Hardy Boys. Each book would see the brothers tackle and solve a mystery. Real estate doesn't have many but recently, when a client took possession of their resale home, a mystery ensued. Remember the excitement of buying your first home? As a Realtor, the experience ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on January 21, 2011		More
Kitchener Waterloo Real Estate Update November 2010 While November has a reputation for dismal weather, real estate sales in the Twin Cities this past month were bright and sunny. Residential MLS sales for Kitchener-Waterloo totalled 365 in November versus 413 for November 2009. For those keeping track, this represents a 12 per cent decline. However, it's interesting to note that in November, ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on December 2, 2010		More
Kitchener-Waterloo Power of Sale Report June 2010 Power of sale activity on the Kitchener-Waterloo Real Estate Board rocketed higher in June 2010. Active MLS residential listings in mid-July totalled 18. This represents a sharp increase over the 13 and 10 active listings in mid-June and May respectively. Of note, 17 are located in Kitchener and 1 in Waterloo and the great majority of listings are concentrated under ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on July 16, 2010		More
So Why Do I Need Title Insurance? This is a popular question from my first-time buyers. So what is title insurance? It's an insurance policy that protects residential property owners and their lender against losses related to the property's title or ownership. Likely the biggest reason to get title insurance is protection against title fraud. For a complete primer on title insurance in Ontario, visit ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on July 12, 2010		More
Kitchener-Waterloo Power of Sale Report November 2009 The local improvement in economic conditions appears to have led to fewer Power of Sale properties in October. Active listings under Power of Sale as of November 15th totalled 11 versus 12 in mid-October. Of these, 10 are in Kitchener and 1 in Waterloo. Properties bought under Power of Sale in October declined to 10 versus 17 in September. Of note, there ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on November 17, 2009		More
Kitchener-Waterloo Market Update September 2009 The Kitchener-Waterloo Real Estate Board reports 375 sales in K-W for September 2009 which represents a 15% decline over the 441 sales reported in September 2008. Of note, the end of $0 down and 40 year amortization program was rapidly approaching in September 2008 and sales were artificially high as a result. The median price for September 2009 sales in K-W was a September record ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on October 4, 2009		More
Paying the Bills A recent headline in the Toronto Star read "Credit Card Defaults at Record Level". It indicated a record level of accounts being written off as uncollectable for 3 straight quarters. So what does this have to do with real estate? Most real estate buyers will need a mortgage. As part of the approval process, the lenders will turn to a credit reporting agency to determine ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on October 2, 2009		More
But It's New, What Can Possibly Be Wrong With It? I get asked this question often by buyers and sellers of new or newer homes. Why should I spend $400 for a home inspection? Isn't it covered by the Ontario Tarion warranty program? My answer is always the same...spend the money. It will give you peace of mind and may save you grief at resale time. I recommend taking a home inspector along for your pre-delivery ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on August 26, 2009		More
Kitchener-Waterloo Sales Continue To Surprise Residential real estate in June 2009 provided a bit of sunshine in an otherwise gloomy economy. Kitchener-Waterloo shows approx. 569 sales through the Multiple Listing Service which surpassed June 2008's total of 564. Of note, 75% of sales were under $300 000 and new construction accounted for only 6% of the totals. The average days on the market ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on July 3, 2009		More
Recession Proof Your Housing In my last post, we looked at the consequences of higher interest rates upon the renewal of your mortgage. Here are 10 tips designed to protect you from becoming overextended financially in this event. 1. Don't buy too much home. Avoid the temptation to overspend based on what you qualify for. Downsize your expectations and upgrade when you have more equity. Remember ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on July 3, 2009		More
I'm Just Saying... As Realtors, we are certainly thankful for the resurgent real estate market Canada-wide. Low interest rates have been instrumental in increasing affordability to entice first-time buyers into the market. Real estate is local so let's look at a typical scenario in Kitchener-Waterloo. A couple buy a detached home for $250 000 with 5% down and get a 4% mortgage with a 5 year ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on June 25, 2009		More
Irrational Exuberance? The Kitchener-Waterloo Real Estate Board reports 527 residential sales in K-W for May 2009 representing a 9% increase over May 2008 sales. The average price declined year-over-year by 1.4% to $261,628. Right about now you're probably thinking "What about the Recession?" This increase in sales is being driven by low interest rates resulting in increased affordability. ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on June 9, 2009		More
A Tale of 2 Markets Residential sales in Kitchener-Waterloo for the first 2 weeks of May show a 15% increase over the same period in May 2008. Of note, out of 257 sales recorded by the Kitchener-Waterloo Real Estate Board, 199 were under $300 000. The supply of homes in this price range is shrinking rapidly due to high activity from first-time buyers. Average days on ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on May 21, 2009		More
The Pride of Waterloo Waterloo's top employer Research in Motion(RIM) defied analyst's expectations today in announcing fiscal 4th quarter profits easily eclipsed last year's results. RIM now has 25 million subscribers and is growing market share in the midst of a sluggish global economy. These results are a huge positive for the local economy and for Wateroo Region real estate. For the full ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on April 2, 2009		More
Wild Horses There is an emerging trend for city folk to become town and country folk. The reasons for this trend are many and varied. For some, it comes down to price - more house and land for less money and lower property taxes. For others, they want to escape - the houses that are too close together, the noise, traffic, air pollution, litter and crime. Others see their ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on March 30, 2009		More
Business As Usual An analysis of early March MLS sales activity in Kitchener-Waterloo point to a relatively healthy market. Unit sales for the first 2 weeks of March totalled 151 versus 225 for the same period in 2008 representing a 33% decrease. However, the average sale price year-over-year declined by less than 1% and the list-price to sale-price ratio was a robust 97.6%. The average days on ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on March 19, 2009		More
February 2009 Sales for Kitchener-Waterloo Preliminary sales figures for February 2009 point to mixed results. The Kitchener-Waterloo Real Estate Board saw 290 residential sales which paled by comparison to the 405 sales in February 2008. This equates to approx. a 28% decline in unit sales making it the lowest total recorded in this decade. However, in my opinion, the glass is half full. Active listings ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on March 3, 2009		More
February Bonus Air Miles Offer Century 21 is featured on the Air Miles home page for the month of February. Collectors can earn 121 Bonus Air Miles reward miles when buying or selling a property through Century 21. Gold collectors qualify for 200 Bonus Air Miles reward miles. For details and to print a coupon, visit www.Century21.ca/Air_Miles/bonus_offers Posted by Jeff Gingerich on February 12, 2009		More
January 2009 Sales Results for Kitchener-Waterloo Preliminary figures from the Kitchener-Waterloo Real Estate Board show residential unit sales in January 2009 totalled 217. This figure represents a decline of approx. 28% from January 2008's total of 301. Active residential listings in Kitchener-Waterloo total 1240 or almost a 6 month supply. This would indicate a buyer's market. However, to put our local real estate ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on February 3, 2009		More
2009 Kitchener-Waterloo Residential Sales Forecast Over the last number of years, veteran market watchers(those over age 40) always wondered when the local real estate boom would end. My answer was "when the rates go up considerably or the jobs disappear." As recent job losses and layoffs have unfolded, we've once again discovered real estate markets are cyclical. The local market has shifted and a buyer's ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on February 3, 2009		More
Kitchener-Waterloo Residential Sales 2008 Year in Review Preliminary sales figures indicate that 2008 sales were the 3rd highest on record for the K-W Real Estate Board. The 4966 sales trailed record-setting totals for 2007 with 5546, a decline of approx. 10%. The sales for 2008 were more in line with the 2005 and 2006 sales of 4988 and 4905 respectively. Of note, the 4th quarter sales from Oct. 1-Dec. 31, 2008 were 766 compared ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on January 6, 2009		More
December 2008 Residential Sales Results in K-W Preliminary sales results from the Kitchener-Waterloo Real Estate Board indicate unit sales fell in December by approx. 25% year-over-year. In December 2008, there were 171 sales of single family homes versus 229 for December 2007. Approx. 60% of sales were under $250 000 and approx. 10% of sales were over $400 000. There are currently 1044 active residential listings. Check ... Posted by Jeff Gingerich on January 6, 2009		More
November 2008 Residential Sales in Kitchener-Waterloo Preliminary results of unit sales in November 2008 indicate a market shift has occurred. In Kitchener-Waterloo, 240 residential properties changed hands. This represents a 40% decline over November 2007 when 400 properties were sold. There are currently 1330 properties for sale which equates to approximately a 5 1/2 month supply. Posted by Jeff Gingerich on January 6, 2009		More
Realtors Now Required to Seek Identification Effective June 23, 2008, Realtors in Canada must obtain identification from clients and customers as part of a Canadian government initiative to fight money laundering and terrorist financing. This applies to both buyers and sellers of real estate. Full information is available at www.fintrac.gc.ca or toll-free 1-866-346-8722 Posted by Jeff Gingerich on July 8, 2008		More

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