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TIPS FOR SPEEDING UP YOUR HOME SALE Selling  your home is a huge undertaking to  begin with, but if the process drags on for months and interest trickles in much slower than expected, it can be frustrating and stressful. To avoid this, there are a few steps you can take to prep your home and sell quickly. DECLUTTER .  Survey your home and store any items that are not essential to the décor of the room. This can include personal photos and mementos, excessive throw blankets or pillows, children’s artwork, vases, lamps, knick-knacks, and more. The cleaner you keep counters, shelves, and mantles, the easier it is for potential buyers to picture themselves in your house. PAINT . A  fresh coat of paint on the exterior or interior of your home can go a long way and is one update you can likely do yourself for fairly cheap. Repaint your home with a neutral color, like taupe, cream, or gray, that will allow potential buyers to easily envision adding th...

RRSP vs. TFSA: Which is the Best Investment Tool for First-Time Home Buyers? So, you've decided you're ready to buy a home. Now the real work begins--saving enough money for a down payment. “It's absolutely critical the down payment is a good size on a first home—somewhere in the range of 10 to 20%,” says Lesley-Anne Scorgie, a personal finance author. “The rationale simply being that the habit of saving is the same habit you'll need for actually owning a home—keeping up with the payments and preparing yourself and your bank account.” There are many online mortgage calculators available to help you determine how much home you can afford. REALTOR.ca's  mortgage affordability calculator  can help guide you through this entire process. It's important to save a healthy down payment to avoid, what could be, steep mortgage insurance fees. To help, the federal government has set up a number of tools you can use to build up sizeable sa...

BUYING A CONDO IN TORONTO It’s 2019 – why are you still paying rent? This is the year that you can change how you invest in yourself. Instead of giving your hard-earned money to your landlord each month, why not invest it in yourself and your own property? It is possible, especially in Toronto! If you work in Toronto, commuting will not necessarily save you money in the long or short term. Living as close to work as possible is one of the smartest financial decisions you can do. So why not step the ante up and see what you can buy? Here are some essential tips to help you buy a condo in Toronto. Redo Your Finances With the market being so hot right now, it’s almost guaranteed that the prices of downtown Toronto condos have increased from the time you began saving for a down payment. So if your budget was $500 000 and you had your eye on a specific type of condo with that price, chances are that condo is now worth $550 000. So either you ne...

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BRITISH REAL ESTATE PRICES IN THE ERA OF BREXIT London House Prices Struggle in City Waiting for Brexit by  Bloomberg News With Brexit uncertainty showing no sign of letting up, just two districts in the U.K. capital are seeing strong house-price growth. In the south-western borough of Richmond prices rose 5.5 percent over 12 months, according to Bloomberg's analysis of preliminary data from the  U.K. Land Registry . That figure is 6.1 percent in Southwark, just south of the River Thames. Elsewhere there is modest growth in the east and south, enough to counter slight declines in north-western suburbs and an ongoing deep-freeze in prime central areas (including Tower Hamlets, home to the Canary Wharf financial district). Nationwide Building Society named London the U.K.'s  worst-performing region  in first quarter of 2019. Mortgage approvals are down.  Asking prices  are low. And yet the city is still called home by more  members of the su...

WHAT CAN TORONTO LEARN FROM NEW YORK CITY?

HOT HOME TRENDS IN 2019 With the change in seasons may come the urge for change, whether it be in your habits, activities, clothing, or in your home. If you are looking for a home refresh, look no further than the top hot home trends for 2019. Below are five of our favorites! Biophilia . One of the largest décor trends this year center around connecting with nature by bringing the outside indoors. Natural materials such as wood and stone paired with ocean blues and various shades of greens or grays are a common theme. Jewel Tones . Colors such as indigo, emerald green, ruby reds, and sapphire blue are making a statement this year. Whether they are used on walls or for accent pieces and furniture, these colors create a rich, luxurious atmosphere in any room. Bold Backsplashes . Homeowners are looking to spice up their kitchens by opting for bold colors or graphic tiling for their backsplash. Additionally, there has been a lot...

PLANET EARTH IS HURTING &   HERE'S WHAT YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT! As hard as it would seem to be, there are still plenty of people on the planet who simply do not believe in Climate Change. Or further, that human beings in our short history upon this planet have caused such a significant impact on Earth. And, despite these naysayers, incontrovertible evidence mounts day after day after day that we have done just that -- perhaps even pushing our own extinction towards inevitable. Well, whether the above is true or not, nobody can deny the benefits of healthy stewardship of one's resources. So, with that in mind, I have assembled below a list of some easy things you the individual can do that will ultimately contribute something positive to the planet's survival as well as to not hasten our own demise. TEN EASY THINGS YOU CAN DO TO MAKE PLANET EARTH A HEALTHIER PLANET FOR ALL! 1.  PLANT SOMETHING : Whether it's a tree, a flower or a garden, nothing puts you...

OUTDOOR SPRING-CLEANING CHECKLIST A bit of outdoor spring cleaning will prepare you for the season and make you feel good about spending time in your yard and garden. Getting your outdoor space cleaned up and ready for Spring can really get you motivated to plant, pot and grow your favourite herbs and vegetables. Preparing your yard takes some work, so here are some tips and tricks to help you make the most of your spring-cleaning project. PROJECT 1: Clean Out the Shed You'll feel good reclaiming space that has been cluttered with seldom-used equipment (tip: make some extra cash by selling items in good working condition). Removing cobwebs and grime may inspire you to repaint and put up new shelving, which will improve the functionality of the space. Time commitment:  One day What You Need: Garbage bags  (for a particularly cluttered shed, rent a disposal bin) Storage bins, totes and baske...