Richard Silver

REALTOR Representation Guru Adorna Carroll Explains…

A few years back I did some work for the Real Estate Buyer's Agent's Council (REBAC) of the National Association of REALTORS (NAR) as they were exploring how successful REALTORS were using Social Media. It was through that group that I met the most amazing trainer/teacher that I have ever come across: Adorna Carroll... Adorna is totally irreverent, and exacting in her teaching and understanding of Rules, Regulations and just plain common sense within the Real Estate community.  After a class...Continue Reading...

The Toronto Real Estate Board moves to “Neighborhood Searches”.

Over the past three years the Toronto Real Estate Board has been involved in a major rewite of our database to provide for Neighborhoods instead of alpha numeric designations. This was launched on July 5th. Here is an article by CAROLYN IRELAND of the Globe and Mail. Please note: there is a mistake in her report. Cabbagetown does exist as one of the neighborhoods. Toronto— From Friday's Globe and Mail Published Thursday, Jul. 28, 2011 11:27AM EDT TREB move to neighbourhood names draws flak Toronto...Continue Reading...

Greater Toronto REALTORS® Release Mid-July Resale Market Figures

Toronto, July 18, 2011 – During the first 14 days of July, Greater Toronto REALTORS® reported an increase in sales and the average selling price compared to the first two weeks of July 2010. The number of sales through the TorontoMLS® system was up 35 per cent to 3,609, compared to 2,672 last year. “Low mortgage rates, rising incomes and good news on the jobs front have kept consumers confident in purchasing a home in the Greater Toronto Area. In fact,...Continue Reading...

Toronto: It’s that time of year again! Gardening Time!

Spring is here and I love it. Great to see people working in their gardens and yard waste bags full at the curb. I do have some yard waster bags left over from last week's drop so let me know if you'd like some and I will personally deliver them to you. (more...)Continue Reading...

Why You Should Sign a Buyer Representation Agreement!

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g15BaodM6M8[/youtube] Here is a great new video released by the Toronto Real Estate Board  on why you should sign a Buyer Representation Agreement . Make sure that you are being properly represented in the transaction. Feel free to contact me and I will give you a full run down of what a REALTOR can and cannot do with or without a Buyer Representation Agreement.Continue Reading...

October 2010 Toronto Housing Market Charts

Here are the latest Housing Market Charts for October 2010 from the Toronto Real Estate Board. I love these as it really puts not only this year but the past three years into a more realistic perspective. Interested to know what you think. Feel free to comment. Toronto Area Housing Market Charts OctoberView more presentations from Richard Silver.Continue Reading...

Real Estate: Understanding Representation and Agency

Representation and Agency are not very well understood by the consumer public...but also not well understood by some salespeople. When a Salesperson is representing a product, whether it be a suit of clothes or a house, they are acting under Agency and their fiduciary duty belongs to the party paying for their services unless they have a contract that says otherwise. If you walk into my Open House and ask me questions about the property, like "what will they take?", it...Continue Reading...

Toronto Real Estate: Holding Off Offers.

Over the past years a technique has developed that Realtors and the Public call: Holding Off Offers. The idea is that the Seller and Realtor bring a property to the market through the TorontoMLS system with a note in the Broker's remarks that although showing can commence at the time of listing, offers, if any, will be reviewed at a later date. What is the reason for this? Are the Realtor and Seller manipulating the market to force multiple offers in an Auction-like scenario? Could...Continue Reading...

Impressions of REBarCampNYC and Inman Connect NYC 2010!

So I have been home a week and trying to make sense of all the information that I gleaned in the four hectic days of meetings in New York City. Instead of the usual "Blow by Blow" and who said what, I will just give you some of my impressions: First and foremost, the four days were all about Social Media . Like it or not, just the way we used to say that Realtors with Technology will replace Realtors without it, now,...Continue Reading...

New Year’s Resolutions 2010

It is the end of the year and the beginning of a new one. At this time of year there is a natural tendency that I have had to make New Year's resolutions. I'm sure that I am not that unusual and it is probably a trait that goes back through my family history. Was it a half-empty glass scenario? So this morning, I was taking a nice long New Year's walk...around the deck of a Cruise Ship as we are...Continue Reading...