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Amidst all the frantic preparations and celebrations in the coming weeks, be assured that we’ll still monitor and report on everything Toronto real esate, while continuing to discuss and debate the many facets of house & home’
Bookmark the Urbaneer Blog! We’ll keep you informed! Here is what you’ll find inside our November 2019 E-Newsletter:
First, we share our Homewatch News contribution, ‘How To Mitigate The Effects Of Light Pollution On Your Health & Home Life’. An excellent article from National Geographic summarized the growth and negative impact on the globe of light pollution – and it’s worrisome! According to this article, 83 per cent of the world’s population is living under light-polluted skies. In rural areas and less densely populated countries, the problem is less severe, but in highly illuminated urban centres (like say, Las Vegas), the sprawl of light pollution can extend to 40 miles away. In fact, artificially lit areas have increased by 2.2 per cent annually from 2012 to 2016, with the trend continuing up, and it’s having an effect on every ecosystem in the world! Read more, here!
Each month we share the tale of what one of our buyers have recently purchased in our Home of The Month feature. This feature typically provides a snapshot of the journey that one of our buyers has recently taken to rent or buy property in the City of Toronto.. However, this month I’m sharing the tale of an architect couple who want to build a multi-unit dwelling. The site they finally found to develop provides a unique opportunity to build a structure that will be, in essence, multipurpose. Being a home that will allow this couple to age in place is important, but as well, they will be contributing to the city housing stock in a subsection which is currently lacking. After all, a well-built unit designed for long-term occupancy is a boon to any neighbourhood! More specifically, the apartment sizes will be varied, to appeal to different demographics, but will all have two bedrooms or more to accomodate families. All of these goals – a home and a legacy – will be built in a form that will fit well into the existing residential neighborhood setting. Follow their journey here!
September’s installment of our Dear Urbaneer series is entitled, ‘What Should I Know About Buying Canadian Real Estate As A Non-Resident?’ This time around, I’m helping a client who has been living abroad for some years, who intends on returning home to Canada. She and her partner have plans to start a business, and hope to purchase land that would allow them to live and work there. Here’s this month’s query: “After years of living abroad, we are keen to return back home. We have been incubating a business idea that would see us purchasing a piece of land. We would utilize the land for the business and also build a home there (possibly a tiny home because of ease and speed of construction). What do we have to know about approaching this project from overseas? Secondly, what do we need to know about financing and other considerations?” Read Steve’s advice here!
The Urbaneer Team posts a bunch of blogs each week, where we share our love of all things real estate and Toronto! According to Urbaneer.com’s monthly statistics, our most read blog was How Toronto Real Estate Is Shifting From ‘Fixer-Upper’ Flips To ‘Tear Down’ New Construction. There are a number of reasons we’re witnessing a shift from flipping to new builds. When the government interventions were implemented and effectively dampened the scorching hot freehold housing market causing Buyers to withdraw – and the mortgage stress test impacted the ability for everyone, including flippers, to easily access larger sums of capital – it derailed the speculative “get rich quick” market. As property values flatlined amidst buyer restraint, it forced inexperienced flippers to withdraw from the market, deflating the competition and the demand for fixer-upper flips. As the shelter industry regained its footing, those construction firms still operating in the urban market had less competition, which resulted in their having a larger cache of properties to select from. And they started selecting sites that could support a luxury new builds rather than the quicker, but riskier, and lower-profit-generating flip.
The second most popular post was ‘Walk Score: The Measure Of A Pedestrian-Friendly City‘. Walk Score is group of researchers that includes an advisory board of expert urban planners who use a patented method of calculating how walkable or pedestrian-friendly neighbourhoods are. They offer a number of different data products, including walk score, transit score and biker score. This information isn’t just useful to prospective home buyers hoping to find a location that lets them live their best pedestrian life, but is alsouseful for professional groups like urban planners, realtors ,and scientists! How does your neighbourhood rank?
And – for lovers of unique urban spaces – don’t miss our sensational Toronto real estate listed for sale or lease on our site for your consideration!
We LOVE Toronto real estate!
Steven & The Urbaneer Team
Bosley Real Estate Ltd., Brokerage • (416) 322-8000
http://www.urbaneer.com • info@urbaneer.com
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*Love Canadian Housing? Check out Steve’s Student Mentorship site called Houseporn.ca which focuses on architecture, landscape, design, product and real estate in Canada!