The Hidden costs in a Real Estate Transaction

Over the past 10 years, home prices in Canada have gone up a lot, especially in Toronto, Victoria, and Vancouver. However, this growth is kept going by something that is often overlooked: the lack of transparency in the residential real estate sector.

Even though many things, like an imbalance between demand and supply, property speculators, and foreign buyers, are said to be to blame, the opaqueness of the market only makes the already serious problem of housing affordability in Canada worse.

I don't agree that the problem is foreign buyers. Instead, the biggest problems in the market are property speculation and a lack of supply.

A more open market could help a lot with the problem of rising house prices, and this is something that all Canadians should be interested in.

The blind auction method used to buy and sell real estate should be phased out to lower prices. Properties should be sold in a way that makes it easy for potential buyers to quickly figure out how much a home is worth on the market.

Switching to open auctions would be the easiest way to make things clear. People could look at what other people had offered before making their own. People wouldn't be able to offer $300,000 more than the last offer. Realtors couldn't make buyers make a lot of offers by playing on their fears.

This would also stop the common practise of underpricing a property to start bidding wars that raise the price above what it's worth. Even though this change would require a change in culture and may face strong opposition from realtors and some sellers, it would allow market participants to make better buying decisions and stop paying too much.

All Canadians would benefit from a residential real estate market that is open and honest. This could help slow the rate at which house prices go up. The lack of transparency in the market right now is a big problem, and fixing it could help solve the housing affordability crisis.

Bidding wars on real estate

Bidding wars can make the process of buying a home nerve-wracking and very competitive. To avoid these situations, it's important to do thorough research and keep up with the trends in the real estate market. This means looking at recent sales data, looking at what the local market wants, and keeping an eye on the economy as a whole. Stay out of it if other people want to act like clowns and offer $400,000 more than what is being asked. Give it to them.

You can also avoid bidding wars if you have a clear budget and stick to it. If you know exactly how much you're willing to spend on a home, you can be a more confident and knowledgeable buyer. Also, getting pre-approved for a mortgage can show the seller that you are financially stable and increase your chances of making a strong offer without going over budget.

If you have all the paperwork and documents you need and are ready to look at properties as soon as they become available, you have a much better chance of getting the property you want without having to get into a bidding war.

You should also stay away from places like Richmond, Burnaby, and Markham, Canada, where bidding wars happen often.

Hidden expenses

Buying or selling real estate can be a complicated and expensive process. There are often hidden costs that can add up and have a big effect on the total cost of the deal. The list of costs can be overwhelming. It includes things like title searches, title insurance, property surveys, legal fees, home inspection fees, real estate agent fees, property taxes, and moving costs.

When making a budget for a real estate transaction, it's important to be aware of these hidden costs and plan for them. This is especially important because these costs are often big and have a big effect on the total price.

Follow @keylink_homes for updates in housing market.

-Karan Chawla