Happy New Year!!
A big thank you to all of our phenomenal clients, colleagues, and readers who helped make 2018 another successful year!
The Urbaneer team and I are grateful for all of your support.
As we roll into 2019, I wanted to share with you the Top 5 Most Popular Urbaneer Posts of the year, which span the gamut from astonishing sales to Canadian real estate policy changes to the history and development of Toronto! Reflecting on the year’s highlights is both a nostalgic and gratifying experience, but more than that, it also helps the Urbaneer Team and I gauge what content is capturing the interweb real estate zeitgeist. One of my own take-aways? A lot of these blogs are crammed with information and err to lengthy, which contradicts the school of thought that says ‘keep it brief’. My own challenge is that there are often times when I can’t, as exploring a topic with sufficient depth requires, well, a lot of words. The fact that these blogs garnered tremendous traffic suggests to me that investing the time and energy to write in-depth content is a-okay, so on that note Here are the most popular Urbaneer blogs of 2018:
#1 Here’s What’s Happening With The Toronto Condominium Market
Once an unusual housing type prior to the 80s, it’s amazing that in 40-ish years it’s become the dominant housing type in Toronto’s downtown core!
The condominium sector continues to be one of the biggest influences in Canadian real estate; understanding where high-rise housing stands – and where it’s going – helps paint a clearer picture of the current state of real estate in Toronto and allows us to predict future market trends. New condo completions in 2018 surpassed the 10-year average for the first time since 2015, indicating we may be entering a period where supply begins to balance with demand. But it’s not all roses in condo-land; there have been a spate project cancellations due to rising construction costs and other red tape issues! Read more here!
#2 Canada Revenue Agency Takes Steps To Discourage Fraudulent Real Estate Activity In Canada
Why was this post so popular? Perhaps because, as a country, we not only want someone or something to blame for skyrocketing real estate prices and the unaffordability of housing, but we also want to know exactly what the government plans to do about it.
When you sell a property, you realize capital gains (profits after expense). But there are exemptions for paying capital gains tax, which is advantageous to the investor because it improves the overall return on the investment; if the home that you sell is your principal residence, you are exempt from paying that capital gains tax. The reporting framework around the system – as it had been constructed until recently – not only offered an opportunity for legitimate real estate investors, but it’s fairly sizeable loopholes allowed for shady investors to circumvent the system and perpetrate fraud.
#3 35 Offers On 3 Downtown Properties Signals Rocketing Demand
This installment is from my ‘Tales From The Real Estate Trenches’ series, where I periodically post my real-time experiences on the Toronto real estate market.
While the ferocity of Canadian winters usually have buyers and sellers hibernating till at least March, this particular weekend in January boasted warmer than usual temperatures and the sun shone in all its glory. The result of this weird change in weather? It was all Buyers needed to tour en masse the handful of Saturday & Sunday Open Houses – in the hopes something perfect suitable acceptable habitable – would match their budget. One pair of my Buyers were delighted to find one magical well-priced contender, despite noticing there was an abundance of stylish latte-drinking mobs of Buyers lingering far too long in the Open House subconsciously staking out their finder’s claim. Yes, underneath the veneer of social niceties and fake fur parkas, everywhere one could feel yet another bidding war brewing.
By midweek, I discovered an unseasonal amount of sales began firming up, including 3 astonishing properties that received a total of 35 offers!!
#4 A Brief History On The Intensification Of The Danforth In Toronto
Have you noticed how much The Danforth from Jones to Victoria Park is undergoing redevelopment these days?
The pace of any neighbourhood’s revitalization has been a topic of fascination for Canadian urban academics for the past sixty years. The Danforth neighbourhoods were originally developed as “streetcar suburbs” in 1920 after the Bloor Viaduct opened in 1918. However, although it features moderately successful small businesses and boasted multiple subway stops, the area east of Pape in the City of Toronto has long lacked the vibrant pedestrian presence and the critical mass of foot traffic that distinguishes Greektown to the west. As a result, these areas are underutilized despite being so centrally located and had not – until recently – reached the tipping point necessary to fuel rejuvenation.
Thankfully, today this community is beginning its rebirth, with a multitude of condos and apartments being developed along the strip which will include commercial spaces on ground level. Combined with the existing transit infrastructure and the multitude of retail and restaurants, the east half of the Danforth – all the way to Main Street and beyond – is finally getting its due!
#5 Gentrification, Densification, And The History Of Toronto Real Estate
This post was a pleasure to write; thanks to my graduate degree in Urban Studies, I’m fairly knowledgeable on how housing in Toronto has been shaped over the years. My insights and observations as a realtor have served to expand and support this knowledge and curiosity, including my interest diasporic settlement patterns, gentrification, and the evolution and lifecycle of neighbourhoods!
When I first started selling real estate in Toronto, it was still largely cultural heritage that defined the flavour of our downtown residential fabric. Today, the city’s urban neighbourhoods more so reflect the incomes and social demographics of its residents. How has gentrification affected shaped not only the geography of Toronto but also the diversity of its residents? Find out here!
We are so grateful to be part of the Toronto real estate industry! Thank you for your continued trust and support!
At urbaneer.com, we LOVE what we do, and consider ourselves most fortunate, both to be in the business that we are and to have the amazing clients that we do. The Urbaneer team makes it our mission to guide you from your first to final purchase, plus any property in between. Along with educating, advising and gently steering you, our mandate is to identify the best locations and properties within your budget, and recommend the appropriate dwellings that offer the best opportunity, whether it’s as a personal residence or part of your investment portfolio.
Thinking of selling? At Urbaneer.com, we take great pride in offering you our insight and guidance to make your property the most ‘sellable’ it can be. Offering a comprehensive sales and marketing program including print ads, direct mail flyers, and a multi-faceted social media program, we also offer a design service, access to contractors, and a warehouse of home furnishings available as part of our competitive listing commission. With designer discounts, sterling trades, and connections to several of the city’s best purveyors of home furnishing product and fittings, we are your one stop real estate boutique that will pull out all the stops to enhance your property and attain top dollar. It’s why my team and I are consistently one of Bosley’s Top Ten Realtors, out of over 250 associates.
If you, or someone you love, is looking for real estate expertise with a commitment to service, please know we’re here to help!
~ Steven
Steven Fudge, Sales Representative
& The Innovative Urbaneer Team
Bosley Real Estate Ltd., Brokerage – (416) 322-8000
– we’re here to earn your trust, then your business –
Celebrating Twenty-Five Years As A Top-Producing Toronto Realtor
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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!