Welcome Back!

I'm going to welcome myself back. I haven't posted in quite a while and there are a number of reasons for that. I have had an interesting year full of change and personal growth. I started the year scrambling to finish my final articling credits and came right down to the wire after I had to attend commercial real estate in Collingwood, writing my final exam on the day my licence expired! Has procrastination known a better poster boy!

Maybe I learned my lesson because that was the last time I procrastinated on anything this year. We started and completed our home renovation on time and on budget! Great work too! JNM Painting were the general contractors and I would use them for just about anything and wouldn't hesitate to refer them to friends and family.

Personally, I started going to the gym in March and by November had lost 70 pounds and toned up quite a bit. I feel healthier, younger and full of energy! The wife likes it too! ;) I've had a lot of positive comments from friends and co-workers and that makes it worthwhile and gratifying!

Through all this I watched my business come to a screaching halt. When you do what I do you need to be consistently prospecting and I rested on my laurels from hard work in 2009 and entered the fall with no prospects. I have to thank my broker Ken McLaughlin for two things in particular. Directly, he and Corey Silver facilitated a book study class on 'The E-Myth Re-Visited' which served to really re-engage me with my business and indirectly, he moved back to our office on Pape in Greektown and has been around much more to provide encouragement and guidance. Ken is one of the smartest people I know in the real estate industry and his passion for our profession is infectious.

So now it's December and during a month when most Realtors slow down I'm ramping it up! I'm going into 2011 with guns blazing and, for the record, it will be far and away my best year. Nobody reads this blog yet, that will change! 2011 will be a banner year for me but it wouldn't have been possible without 2010 and all the challenges and personal growth it offered.

Dramatic Rebound in Luxury Home Sales

Okay, yes it's been a while...what can I say...I've been busy...have you looked at the market lately?

This just out from RE/MAX:

Dramatic Rebound Characterizes Canada's Luxury Home Segment in 2010

69% of markets report best first quarter ever

Mississsauga, ON April 26, 2010
Luxery home sales soared in the first quarter of 2010 as affluent purchasers moved to take advantage of favourable market conditions across the country, according to a report released today by RE/MAX.

The RE/MAX Upper End 2010 Report, highlighting sales and trends in 13 major Canadian centres and five sub-markets, found that improved economic performance, increased personal wealth, immigration and foreign investment all contributed to a serious upswing in sales. Virtually all areas experienced double and triple digit increases between january and March of this year over 2009 figures for the same period. 9 out of 13 markets examined (69 percent) shattered existing records- setting new all time highs for first quarter activity in the upper end.

"Real estate continues to resonate with purchasers at every price point" says Michael Polzler, Executive Vice President, RE/MAX Ontario-Atlantic Canada. "With the top end of the market shifting into high gear, every segment of the residential real estate sector is now operating in tandem. Depsite the upward momentum, there are still deals to be had - especially at the higher price points- a fact that is motivating buyers to act,"