John Lavin's (jlavin) Blog

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Real Estate Agent - Re/Max Ultimate Realty Inc. Brokerage
RECENT BLOG POSTS
In a word no! Title insurance is no substitute for a survey. It seems to have become somewhat of a common practice in the last few years for newer inexperienced real estate agents to advise clients against the expense of a survey, along with the recommendation to purchase title insurance as a way...
05/21/2009
The Dalton McGinty government has introduced legislation to implement the harmonization of the Federal Goods and Services Tax (GST) with the Provincial Sales Tax (PST) in 2010. So instead of seeing a 5% GST and an 8% PST on whatever you buy, you will see a combined tax of 13% HST. Sounds harmless...
05/11/2009
Most home buyers recognize the wisdom of inserting a conditional provision in their agreement of purchase and sale on a home inspection. Many condominium buyers however have difficulty justifying the cost. Some have even been discouraged from performing an inspection by either their real estate a...
05/04/2009
You would have to go back to the 1950's to find low mortgage rates such as we are experiencing today. The big question around Toronto real estate and Mississauga real estate circles these days is  "is it time to lock-in your mortgage at these low rates" The Bank of Canada recently lowered its ben...
04/30/2009
A bold statement to be sure in these dark and gloomy times.  However, as author, politician and former Governor General of Canada, Sir John Buchan said "Those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it". So let's look at a little recent history. The 1970's Back in the beginning of the ...
03/23/2009
Asked is not entirely accurate. Gouged is more apt. This week the City of Toronto council will introduce and approve it's new budget, one with a provision to hire 1300 more employees and hike property taxes 4%. One of the positions they intend to create is a "Blackberry Specialist" to look after ...
03/22/2009
Perhaps "killed" is an exaggeration but the patient has been severely wounded. In February 2008 the City of Toronto introduced a Land Transfer Tax payable on all Toronto Real Estate sales. This is in addition to the already punishing Provincial Land Transfer Tax. The result has been a crippling e...
02/26/2009
An offer to purchase real estate will usually contain a clause asking the seller to warrant all appliances included in the sale, be in good working order on the day of closing. This warranty usually specifies that it will not extend beyond the closing date.  What Do You Do If Appliances Need Repa...
02/24/2009
The changing market in Mississauga Real Estate, Toronto Real Estate or Oakville Ontario Real Estate has led to the realization that you will need the services of an experienced real estate agent if you want or need to sell your Mississauga Condominium, Toronto Condominium or your Oakville Ontario...
02/19/2009
A couple of new changes introduced by the Canadian government in it's budget recently are sure to please First Time home buyers in Mississauga and Toronto. Under the federal Home Buyers Plan, first-time home buyers will be allowed tax free withdrawals to a limit of $25,000 from registered retirem...
02/18/2009
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John Lavin

Realtor - Mississauga - Toronto Real Estate
local_phone(416) 487-5131
smartphone(416) 712-2895
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