Real Estate Toronto Online Information Guide
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NEWSLETTER - SEPTEMBER / OCTOBER 2003
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 ENERGUIDE FOR HOUSES
Recently, the Government of Canada announced a grant program to encourage homeowners, particularly those who have older homes that are in need of energy efficiency upgrades, to retrofit their homes to make them more energy efficient and reduce greenhouse gas emissions that contribute to climate change. Grants will not be available until the official launch of the program, but it has been determined that the house must achieve a minimum energy performance improvement before it can qualify for a grant. Only homeowners who have had the EnerGuide for Houses evaluation and have followed up on recommendations will be eligible for a grant. There is a cost to the homeowner for the EnerGuide for Houses service, which includes a pre-retrofit evaluation with blower door testing, a rating and recommendation report. Delivery agents may also include the cost of the post-retrofit evaluation to assess rating improvements in the initial fee. Homeowners can find out more about how the grant program will work by visiting the EnerGuide for Houses website, published by the government of Canada. Keep checking back for more questions and answers that will be added as information becomes available.
Full story: http://oee.nrcan.gc.ca/houses-maisons/english/homeowners/grant/grant.cfm?PrintView=N&Text=N
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 If you own real estate in the Greater Toronto Area and you are considering to sell your property, we will be happy to prepare a free Comparable Market Analysis (CMA) for you. Please give us a call at 416-461-0925 or send us an e-mail:
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 Toronto's Fall Home Show is filled with ideas and inspiration on renovation, decorating and the celebration of the holidays. The show features over 300 exhibits and experts on-hand to offer advice and new ideas for your home. The colder season ahead encourages people to "cozy" their home, whether it's a major renovation, a new chair or a fresh coat of paint. Guests look to the Fall Home Show for solutions on how to create their "cozy" home!
Oct. 2-5, 2003: Automotive Building, Exhibition Place, Toronto
Show Times: Thursday Noon - 9:30 p.m. Saturday 10:00 a.m. - 9:30 p.m.
Friday Noon - 9:30 p.m. Sunday 10:00 a.m. - 6:00 p.m.
 The Toronto International Home Show is Canada's largest fall show. This is a selling show open to the public. Visitors can explore close to 500 home and interior decorating products and services. Major features include Model Decor Rooms; Dream Home Court; Learn how to Do-It-Yourself Theatre; and The Kitchen and Bath Pavilion. Our Innoventions World features new products being introduced in the Canadian marketplace.International Home Show
Oct. 10,11,12,13
Toronto International Centre
6900 Airport Road -- North of the Airport at Derry
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The Toronto resale home market continued its winning ways in August, chalking up 6,549 sales, the best-ever figure for that month ever recorded, TREB President Cynthia Lai announced today. "Sales were up 12 per cent from the 5,845 figure of August 2001, which was our previous record, and up 21 per cent from last August. With 22,666 sales in the past three months we are on pace for our best summer market ever and a record-breaking year." Prices continued to decline in August, down another one per cent to $285,772 from the $289,880. "Even though sales have surged in the second half of the year, prices have begun to moderate," noted Ms. Lai. "This is because we have a fairly healthy supply of inventory. The 19,134 active listing figure is up 16 per cent from the 16, 535 number recorded in August of 2002."
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 The Bungalow style harkens back to wayside shelters used by the British during Victorian times along the main travel routes in India. The word comes from the Bengalese word, "bungla," and the style was first known as Bungaloid.
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 HOME INSPECTION Never buy an existing house without hiring a competent, unbiased home inspector. The home inspector's job is to assess the condition and structure of the house and tell the buyer if major repairs are necessary or if there are fundamental flaws in the building. Since there is no warranty on a used home, it is surprising how many people won't spend a few hundred dollars to protect the hundreds of thousands invested in their new home.
In the early 1990s, only 5 to 10 per cent of purchasers had a home inspection done. Now, the figure is between 40 and 60 per cent and a further 10 to 15 per cent growth is expected in the next few years. With increased demand has come more people jumping into the home inspection business, both qualified and unqualified. One of the most important points to note is that there's no regulatory body for home inspectors. They might belong to a professional order or the self-governing Ontario Association of Home Builders or have no affiliation.
Qualified members of the Ontario Association Of Home Inspectors have the exclusive right to call themselves RHI's under The Ontario Association of Home inspectors Act, 1994 (The Ontario Government Bill 158). RHI's must meet specific criteria in the area of education, technical background, and experience. All RHI's have proven ability, experience and a mandatory Errors and Omissions/Comprehensive General Liability insurance program.
Even though inspectors should be very clear with clients that not all deficiencies can be discovered in a relatively short, three hour inspection, and all clients should be informed that the inspection is NOT a guarantee, warranty or insurance policy, this has not prevented lawyers and dissillusioned purchasers from pursuing claims. As a result premiums for the Errors and Omissions/Comprehensive General Liability insurance program have increased 500% over the past five years. Inspectors with poor claims histories may opt out of OAHI membership. To protect yourself be certain to screen your home inspectior for continued good membership standing in The Ontario Association of Home Inspectors. If your inspector is not "RHI" you may be taking an avoidable risk.
Tips for choosing potential inspectors:
 Check out two or three inspectors, including their references.Ensure they're not in the renovation business as well.Ask how many years they have been inspecting homes.Don't be afraid to ask if they have ongoing court cases or have been the object of successful claims.Ensure they're insured for liability as well as errors and omissions.Stay away from self-taught inspectors.Call the Ontario Association of Home Inspectors, a self-governing body, to ask for a reference at 1-416-256-0960 or visit the web site: http://www.oahi.com/A typical inspection costs $200 to $350, but it could run higher. A good inspection takes at least two to three hours.
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CONTACT INFORMATION
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Rick McGuigan
Toronto real estate sales representative
Coldwell Banker Case Realty
Phone: 416-696-5100
Pager: 416-461-0925
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