About Linda Klein

Reposted letter BY GREG NINO

Several times a year I am approached by people who want to become a Realtor. Many of them think it’s a great way to supplement their income while they keep their day job. A lot of others are interested in a career change. I decided to type this blog to save myself time. Each time I’m asked I’ll simply send the inquiring person a link back to this post. So, with that said, grab your favorite beverage and read below, because you’re about to get a heavy dosage of what it’s like to start a real estate career.

1. PASSING THE EXAM is easy. Creating a business with real income is a different story.

2. Now that you have your license be prepared to lose friends and get your feelings hurt. Most, if not all of your friends and family will avoid using you the first year or two that you’re licensed. Simply put, you don’t know what the hell you’re doing. Earn your battle scares. Even after you’ve gained experience, you’ll have friends and family who will not work with you because you’re a friend or because you are family. It happens every day to Realtors across the country.

3. If you don’t spend money you won’t make money. You needs to spend THOUSANDS of dollars to create a business. Most of what you are thinking is a cute and new idea has already been tried a thousand times. You will do what every new agent does… spend money (A LOT OF IT) on the wrong things. Over and over again. There’s a famous saying in this business…”If you want to get rich in real estate, sell stuff to Realtors.”

4. You and your smart phone will become inseparable. You will have to get up from eating, watching a movie and sleeping to take calls, return emails and respond to text messages. Of course you don’t have to do this, but you also don’t have to make any real money in this business. You’ll get out of it what you put into it. Ignoring a call could be a $20,000 mistake. Or more.

5. Be prepared to be second guessed, doubted, questioned, accused and lied to repeatedly. Buyers and sellers have the propensity to lie just like you and the guy next to you at the grocery store. People have perceptions about lawyers, mechanics and police officers. They have them about us too. Even after years of experience there will be clients who will second guess your every move. This will never go away.

6. You will show thousands of houses. Showing a house isn’t just about unlocking a door. Sometimes you get rained on while showing. Sometimes the house says active on the market when it’s already under contract with another buyer. Sometimes you are late to the appointment because of traffic. Maybe your buyer will be late. The number of things that can go wrong are practically endless.

7. Almost nobody will respect your time. Almost everyone thinks you are over paid.

8. Expect people to ask for kickbacks both legally and illegally. Buyers and sellers will often want to haggle with your commission.

9. You will pay taxes. A lot of taxes. Expect to pay for the gizmo you use to unlock doors. You will pay for this yearly along with dues to three different associations. You’ll pay for signs, lock boxes, tools, equipment, cameras, advertising for both you and your listings, leads, websites and on and on and on.

10. You will pay for your own health and life insurance. There is no 401k matching in real estate. You are an independent contractor. In fact, YOU will PAY to be at your local real estate office! The broker will take money from you. You will also pay for an office if you want one. Your phone is your costs. Your internet is also your costs. So is your paper, pens and everything else imaginable. You’re running a small business. It’s ALL your costs. You’ll also pay for errors and omissions insurance. The list is really long. Yay!

11. You will get screwed in this business. It’s not for the naive, light hearted, ignorant or thin skinned. You will work your rear end off and sometimes not make a dime.

12. You will deal with a certain number of psychopaths each year.

13. You will meet criminals, convicts and felons, especially if you work in the leasing industry.

14. Strange men and women will ask you to meet them at houses RIGHT NOW.

15. You might get a gun pointed at you while showing a house or two. Sometimes rabid Pitt bulls will chase you down.

16. Expect to get towed at least once.

17. Eventually you’ll get in a wreck while showing. You better hope your clients aren’t with you. Is your auto insurance updated correctly?

18. There is no disability insurance. So, if you break a leg while playing softball you’re screwed. It’s going to hurt your business.

19. You might get sued even when you aren’t at fault.

20. When you become successful your competitors might file complaints on you because they are jealous. You won’t like this.

21. As you show houses you’ll be in questionable neighborhoods from time-to-time. You need to learn self-defense, carry a gun or a can of mace. Everyone should be concerned about their safety.

22. Be prepared to leave a social event early to run and show a house or to get yelled at by one of your clients for something you did not do. It doesn’t matter, you are the chew toy sometimes.

23. It’s likely you’ll get audited by the IRS. You have too many write offs and once again… you make too much money.

24. Lawyers are annoyed by Realtors.

25. Expect to list homes and never sell them. No agent sells every home they list. You will waste time, money, energy and resources.

26. Your signs will be stolen, spray painted and eventually played with by the local kids.

27. Your flyer box will always be empty because kids, passerby’s and neighbors will take too many. Sometimes they’ll take all of them in one day. Then you’ll be chastised for not having flyers in the flyer box.

28. Did I mention you’ll deal with at least two crazy people each year?

29. EACH real estate transaction you work means you are likely dealing with at least 8 different people.You’re responsible for 15-20 things. Right now I am trying to close 11 contracts. I am a little stressed. Sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night thinking about my paperwork, my clients and my business.

30. You will become an unlicensed therapist, divorced lawyer and counselor. You aren’t allowed to give legal advice, and you shouldn’t. You aren’t a doctor, but everyone will unload their personal lives with you. You will sometimes live their life.

31. Your spouse will at times hate what you do for a living. 

32. Your wife/husband will despise the fact that you are always on your phone.

33. When you’re sick… you still work. There’s no floating holidays.

34. While on vacation…. you still work. You can get an agent to cover your business, but NOBODY will care for your business the way you do.

35. Sometimes when you make mistakes it costs people money. You can’t just apologize.

36. You have to have a nice car. You must wear nice clothes.

37. When you first get started everyone will know you don’t know what you’re talking about. It’s a fact. This sucks. But if you stick it out, you’ll be okay. 75% of the new agents don’t make it.

38. You get to work with agents! Not all of them are put together correctly. A lot of your problems in this business will be because of the other agent. You will get upset, angry, pissed and offended. Ego’s are here too.

39. Wait for it….. friends, neighbors and family will ask you for real estate advice while they are involved in a real estate transaction….. YOU aren’t.

40. Other Realtors will give your client advice when they aren’t supposed to. Every buyer and every seller knows an agent somewhere.

41. Each market is different. Very different sometimes, but that won’t stop friends and family from influencing your client. Your client will become confused at times.

42. You have a better chance of meeting E.T. than you do working real estate part-time and being successful. It takes time, effort and money to be a part-time Realtor. In fact, being a part-time agent can be even more difficult.

 
So why do agents do this?

You’ll have the amazing opportunity to reap what you sow. You can work when you want. No matter how bad your boss is (client) you are only working for them for a certain period of time. You get new bosses all the time. You can make a real difference in a lot of people’s lives. You literally help shape dreams. YOU can be the difference in someones life as they look to sell and buy a home. And not all clients, buyers and sellers are bad. Most of them get it. It’s awesome when everything works out.

And sometimes the money is really good.

DLC Weekly Rate Minder courtesy of Starr Webb

DLC Weekly Rate Minder courtesy of Starr Webb

When homeowners receive provincial Property Assessment notices, some will smile and have a bit more spring in their step, feeling the assessed value is accurate or perhaps even overly positive. Others will wilt and lament a modest gain or even a decrease in the assessed value over the previous year or period. Reactions will of course vary factoring in the potential increase in property taxes that tends to come along with stronger assessments.  The reality, setting aside taxation concerns, is that neither parties’ emotions should be tied to the ‘value’ printed on these notices. 

A provincial property assessment is an approximate value based on the (broadly) estimated market value as of the previous years. There is a lag time between the estimation of valuation and delivery of the envelope. It also fails to involve a formal site visit or viewing of the inside of the home to consider either significant upgrades or significant deterioration.

To put this in perspective, few lenders will work with a detailed official appraisal report that is even 90 days old.  Most prefer a report completed with 30 days, as markets can move significantly month over month.

For these reasons, among others, a provincial property assessment should not be relied upon as a totally concrete indicator of value for the purposes of either purchase, sale, or financing.

Always enlist a licensed professional, or perhaps even two or three, in order to get a timely and detailed appraisal of current market value. This will provide a much more accurate reflection of current market values reflecting recent comparable sales, value for zoning, renovations and/or other unique features to the property.  An appraiser is an educated, licensed, and heavily regulated third party offering an unbiased valuation of the property in question.

Think of your provincial property assessment as something akin to a weather forecast spanning far larger and more diverse areas than the unique ecosystem that is your neighborhood, street, and specific property.

The forecast may call for rain in your city, yet you might have a ray of sunshine radiating upon your street specifically.

Use our Property Transfer Tax Calculator.

The Property Transfer Tax is a tax payable to the Provincial Government by purchasers of real estate. The tax applies to all types of real estate, whether residential, commercial or industrial.

The amount of the Property Transfer Tax is 1% on the first $200,000.00 of the property’s fair market value and 2% on the remaining fair market value. For example, if the fair market value of the property is $200,000.00, the tax payable would be $2,000.00 (1% of $200,000.00). If the fair market value of the property is $250,000.00, the tax payable would be $3,000.00 (1% on the first $200,000.00 = $2,000.00 and 2% on the remaining $50,000.00 = $1,000.00).

“Fair Market Value” is best described as the price that would be paid for a property on the open market (which is usually the actual purchase price paid for the property).

There are a number of exemptions available to avoid this tax, the most common being for “First Time Home Buyers”. To qualify as a First Time Home Buyer, the following criteria must be met:

• Purchaser must never have owned an interest in a principal residence anywhere in the world at any time;
• Purchaser must be a citizen of or a permanent resident of Canada;
• Purchaser must have resided in B.C. for 12 consecutive months immediately before the date they become the registered owner, or the Purchaser has filed two income tax returns as a British Columbia resident within the prior 6 years of becoming the owner;
• To obtain full exemption, the purchase price must not exceed $475,000.00. A partial exemption is available for homes between $475,000.00 and $500,000.00 (see formula below);
• Purchaser must move into the property within ninety-two days after registration of the purchase of the property and reside in the property for at least one year;
• Pro rata exemption where property exceeds .5 hectares or a portion of the property is not residential (i.e. commercial lofts) – purchase price of entire property must not exceed the price limitations.

Other exemptions exist as well, such as a transfer of a principal residence between family members. For details on this and other exemptions, go to http://www.rev.gov.bc.ca/RPT/ and pick the “Property Transfer Tax” button located on the right hand side on this screen.

Property Transfer Tax should not be confused with Property Tax. The Property Transfer Tax is a one time tax paid to the Provincial Government by purchasers of real estate. The Property Tax is the tax paid on an annual basis to the local City/Municipality.

Please remember that the Property Transfer Tax Act may frequently change along with the exemptions for payment of this Tax. While we try to keep our website up to date as much as possible, please do not rely upon the information without talking to one of our lawyers.

The information you obtain at this site is not, nor is it intended to be, legal advice. You should consult a lawyer for individual advice regarding your own situation.

Copyright © 2008 by The Spagnuolo Group of Real Estate Law Firms. All rights reserved. You may reproduce materials available at this site for your own personal use and for non-commercial distribution. All copies must include this copyright statement.

DLC Weekly Rate Minder courtesy of Starr Webb Dominion Lending

RBC cuts mortgage rate, price war coming?
It was always going to happen, but while last week the big lenders were reluctant to pass on the Bank of Canada’s interest rate cut to borrowers, this week there’s talk of a price war. Royal Bank of Canada is the first of the big banks to cut mortgage rates, dropping its five-year fixed rate deal to 2.84 per cent and also cutting its other fixed products. Flexible rates are unchanged though along with other lending from the bank. Of course, these rates are the bank’s published deals and brokers frequently secure better ones, but a ‘battle of the rates’ creating headlines can only help the perception that now is a great time to buy. How low those rates go is anybody’s guess, but there are already predictions of sub-two per cent mortgages.

“GENERAL INFORMATION”

What started years ago as a replacement for a survey certificate has now become standard on real estate purchase or refinance transactions. If you are buying or refinancing your home, expect title insurance to be a requirement of your lender.

What is Title Insurance?

In its simplest form, title insurance protects the lender and homeowner against a number of risks related to the property’s title or ownership.

What does Title Insurance cover?

From the point of view of most lenders, the main coverage is fraud, which can occur in a variety of ways.

With identity theft on the rise, it is not difficult for a fraudster to obtain legitimate identification claiming to be the true owner. The fraudster then deals with realtors and lawyers as if they were the owner, and proceeds to sell the property. Alternatively, the fraudster may work with a lender or mortgage broker, again with identification, to place a new mortgage on the property. In either situation, the true owner is unaware of the fraud and the fraudster absconds with the sale or mortgage funds.

Other typical examples include spousal impersonation and lawyer fraud.

In most cases the Assurance Fund of the Land Title Office may reimburse the true owner, but this may take several months and thousands of dollars in legal fees. Title Insurance is usually quicker and less expensive.

In addition to protecting against title fraud, title Insurance can cover:

a. violations of municipal by-laws;
b. encroachments onto an adjoining property;
c. property tax arrears;
d. existing work orders;
e. lack of legal access to the property;
f. unpaid strata assessments;
g. zoning and setback non compliance;
h. forced removal by a governmental authority of a structure built without a required building permit;
i. legal status of any septic system;
j. gap coverage.

How much does Title Insurance Cost?

For properties with a purchase price under $1,000,000.00, the cost of title insurance is generally $225.00, with $175.00 to the Lender Policy, and $50.00 to the Owner Policy. For every additional $1,000.00 over a purchase price of $1,000,000 the price increases by $0.90.

Unlike life or house insurance, purchasing title insurance is a one time cost, with no annual premium.

Courtesy of Spagnuola Group

Copyright © 2015 by the Spagnuolo Group of Real Estate Law Firms.  All rights reserved.  You may reproduce materials available at this site for your own personal use and for non-commercial distribution.  All copies must include this copyright statement.

When staging a bathroom, it pays to think of some of the most used bathrooms in the world – those in hotels – and model your client’s water closet after that.

“People love to walk into the hotel bathroom and see everything is new and clean and the towels are perfect and everything is lined up,” Ella Zetser of The Last Detail Home Staging, tells REP. “It makes you feel like no one has used it before.”

That fresh tone is what agents should be going for, but how do you get there? Here are eight tips for expertly staging a bathroom.

1 – Remove clutter and clean
As with any room in the house, a good clean and a solid de-cluttering works wonders. Bathrooms, of course, should be spick-and-span and free from knick-knacks and other miscellaneous items.

“[Selling agents] need to remove all the clutter,” Zetser says. “There shouldn’t be anything in the bathroom other than white towels – which reminds [buyers] of a hotel. Make sure it’s clean. All the toiletries should be gone.”

2 – Play up the vanity
When potential buyers walk into a bathroom, the sink and vanity are usually the first things they see, and Zetser says that should be what agents embellish.

“The focal point, usually, is the sink, the vanity,” she says. “That’s where the buyer usually walks in and they’re looking for that. That’s where they’re going to.”

3 – Add flowers
Flowers are the easiest way to brighten up a space, and a bathroom is no different. They smell great, they can match any existing colour scheme or style, and they’re (relatively) cheap.

“Flowers make a new focal point,” Zetser says, “and it adds colour.”

4 – Light it up
There’s nothing worse than a great bathroom mirror with poor lighting. Check that the lights around the vanity are in good condition and that the light fixtures are not outdated.

“[Agents] should really look at the functionality and the condition of the bathroom,” Zetser says. “Check if the light fixture over the vanity is in good condition – does it have the right bulbs, does it look nice. Sometimes by changing the light fixture it makes the bathroom look like a whole different bathroom.”
5 – Art and Mirrors
Art isn’t just for living rooms and sleeping quarters. Bathrooms, too, can benefit from a painting or picture. And, as Zetser explains, strategically placed art can make the bathroom look larger.

“We also like to put art in the bathroom so it reflects in the mirror,” she says. “So when you walk in, the mirror has the sink right below it and the light above it. Then you have the art behind it, and you see the art in the mirror and it makes the bathroom look bigger.”

6 – The curtain versus door debate
You might not believe it, but Zetser suggests replacing sliding shower doors with – gasp! – a white shower curtain.

“A sliding door makes the bathroom look old, so I recommend getting a shower curtain,” she says. “They make the bathroom look tight. They close off the tub.”

7 – To bath mat or not to bath mat
Bath mats were once staples of the bathroom, but Zetser says they’re an option in the modern bath, depending heavily on the floor beneath it.

“If the floor is not updated, you might want to cover with a bath mat,” she says. “But if it’s a beautiful floor you do not want to cover it up.”

8 – Colour
Like the rest of the bathroom, the colour of the walls should mimic a hotel bathroom, exuding a feeling of calm.

“Most of the time, a good colour is light blue or beige or light grey,” Zetser says. “But sometimes painting it a dark colour makes it moody and more expensive-looking. But you should paint it to match the rest of the bathroom.”