Tag: house

• London garage to sell for £550,000

  

  The garage shown above (with the pseudo green roof) is located in the Chelsea neighborhood of London. It measures about 11’ x 7’ and it – along with the site it sits on – is about to go up for auction.

  It’s expected to go for more than £550,000 according to the DailyMail UK, which would make it the most expensive garage ever sold in the UK. The site area is 535 square foot – about the size of an average 1 bedroom condo in Toronto.

  Below is an aerial view of the site. It basically looks to be residual land.

  

  But as awkward as this site might appear, the expected value is being driven by the fact that planning permissions were granted to turn it into this:

  

  It’s a 2 bedroom house that feels a lot like a laneway house. It certainly fits the description of “a house behind a house”, which is often how laneway housing gets described here in Toronto.

  I wanted to share it because it supports my belief that, sooner or later, Toronto will come around to laneway housing. As property prices rise and affordability continues to erode, people will – quite justifiably – start looking in all sorts of new places for a decent urban home.

  Many thanks to my friend Adrian for sending me the link.

  2014.10.17

• Pre-delivering new homes

  

  Today was my mother’s PDI for her new condo. For those of you who aren’t in the industry, a PDI is a “pre-delivery inspection” that happens about a week or two before you take occupancy of a new home. It’s basically a time for you to identify all the mistakes that the construction team has made and have them (hopefully) correct them before you actually move in.

  But for someone like my mother who is making the move from a house that she’s lived in for decades, a PDI is actually something much more significant: It’s the first time she saw her new “home.” And a home is something much different than just a house or a condo – it has emotional significance.

  It’s going to be an adjustment for her. One of the first things she did was open up the oven to see if she could fit her Christmas turkey in it. But in the end, I have no doubt that she’s going to love her new home. As I’ve mentioned before, people often overestimate the potential risks of change. But never be afraid to give up the good to go for the great.

  2014.07.26

• Stuck in condoland?

  Toronto Life recently published an interesting article called Stuck in Condoland. A lot of people have mentioned it to me, so there seems to be a lot of interest in the topic. It basically profiles the lives of a few young families who live downtown and are trying to raise young children in relatively small condos (think 700 square feet).

  I thought it was interesting because I like the idea of small and efficient living. The average post-war bungalow in Toronto was probably less than 1,000 square feet. And so this modern notion that you need a big house in order to properly raise a family is a relatively recent phenomenon. Although we’re a richer city today and that’s what happens when people become wealthier: they consume more.

  But the article also makes it seem that developers only want to build small condos and that larger condos and single-family homes just aren’t profitable enough. Thus the reason all these families are being forced to into tiny shoeboxes in the sky. But that’s not really true.

  Look, just like every other for-profit business on the planet, developers are concerned with making money. And so they will always look for ways to increase efficiency, drive down costs, and so on. But there are certain realities of the market that developers don’t have control over.

  First, developers aren’t building new single family homes in the city (at any sort of meaningful scale) because there’s no land to do so. And because the land use policies in place and the current thinking around how we can more sustainably build our cities for the future dictate that we should be building more intensely. In other words, building up. So it’s not a question of developers not wanting to build single family homes; it’s a question of not being able to.

  Second, trust me when I say that if the market wanted large 3 bedroom family units, developers would build them. Mandating them is a useless exercise if people don’t want them or are unable to afford them.

  The challenge we face is that a reinforced concrete condo tower is more expensive to build than a wood-framed single family house. So until land values get to a point where single family homes become the more expensive option (compared to condos), I don’t think we’ll see a huge rush towards 3+ bedroom suites.

  This is my hypothesis at least. Because when you buy house, you’re really buying two things: the house itself and the land. If the house itself (wood) is cheaper to build on a per square foot basis than a condo (concrete), then the variable that will make a difference is the land. And as people like to say: “buy land, they ain’t making any more of it.”

  So what I’m saying is that I just don’t think the situation is as simple as: “developers are bad, all they want to do is build tiny condos and make lots of money.” It’s more complicated than that. But I do believe the question of how families are going to live in the city is an important one.

  2014.06.21

• Could a decentralized sales model work?

  

  Since I started blogging last year, I’ve been getting regular emails from both people I know and from readers I don’t know (but hope to one day meet) asking for advice on buying real estate. Usually somebody sends me the link to a place they’re thinking about buying, and they want to know what I think about the property and the neighborhood.

  I’m more than happy to help when I can and I try to be brutally honest in terms of what I think. What’s interesting about this dynamic though, is that I don’t have a vested interest in any of the outcomes. Whether I tell that person I love the place or that it’s shit, I don’t stand to gain anything. And that means I can be brutally honest. It’s for this same reason that customer reviews on websites can work so well. 

  Because on the flip side, if I make money when you buy, then guess what, I’m going to want you to buy. That’s how it works for any industry–from financial services to real estate to retail. That’s why some stores will promote the fact that their sales people are not on commission. Although you could argue that those sales people are then less motivated to help you.

  In any event, all of this got me wondering if there isn’t some way to take customer reviews to the next level. Could a decentralized sales model work?

  Last year I had a conference call with one of the chief officers of one of the top 3 real estate websites in the US and I was told that they had actually tested a “social buying model.” It ultimately failed, but it strikes me as an interesting concept. Reviews are starting to feel a bit dated now on the social web, but I think the idea of crowdsourced input is here to stay.

  Image: Flickr

  2014.05.25

• Are condos at a tipping point?

  I live in a condominium in the St. Lawrence Market neighborhood of Toronto. And recently, I’ve had a number of “empty nesters” ask me if they could come check out my condo and get a feel for what it’s like to live in a downtown neighborhood like the Market.

  And they’re asking because they’re contemplating something that has become quite common for folks whose kids have left the roost. They’re considering, for a number of reasons, selling their suburban home and right-sizing to a downtown condominium.

  Whether it’s because they want to free themselves of cutting grass and shoveling snow, they don’t like stairs anymore, they want to be able to lock the door and head to Florida for the winter, or they want an amenity rich urban lifestyle, the uptake on condos has been significant both in Toronto and other cities around the world.

  Indeed, the condo market has become great at serving “both ends” of the market: first time buyers/young professionals and empty nesters. But what I wonder is if we might be at a tipping point with respect to the middle segment of the market: families.

  The average new construction low-rise home in the Greater Toronto Area is roughly $650,000 right now. But this would be more for houses in the center of the city. There, you’re probably looking at anywhere from $650,000 to $1 million for a “typical” 3 bedroom Toronto house.

  By comparison, a new condominium might average somewhere between $550 and $600 per square foot in the city. So for a 3 bedroom condo at, say, 1,300 square feet, you’d be looking at somewhere between $715,000 and $780,000. Add in parking and you’re somewhere between the mid $700,000’s and just over $800,000.

  In all cases, we’re talking a lot of money. But the point I’m trying to make is that condominiums and houses are becoming cost competitive. There are obviously differences between both housing types, but if your goal is a 3 bedroom place to raise a family, that utility could be met in both cases.

  There may still be psychological/societal barriers to raising kids in a condo, but I wonder if we might be close to a tipping point now that the economics are starting to line up. What do you all think?

  2014.04.22

• Yale economist Robert Shiller awarded Nobel Prize in Economics

  Yale economist Robert Shiller – who is famous for his work on speculative bubbles and housing markets – was just awarded a Nobel Prize in Economics.

  By way of his Case-Shiller Home Price Indices, he has argued that from 1890 to 2012 home price appreciation in the US (in real terms) has been basically zero. It has been flat:

  

  As a result, he’s been very critical of the notion that homes should even be thought of as an investment. In this interview, he says the following:

  “So, why was it considered an investment? That was a fad. That was an idea that took hold in the early 2000’s. And I don’t expect it to come back. Not with the same force. So people might just decide, “Yeah, I’ll diversify my portfolio. I’ll live in a rental.” That is a very sensible thing for many people to do.”

  He also gives the example of Japan, which saw a massive run up in real estate prices and homeownership rates in the late 80s, only to then see them fall and stagnate for the next 20 years.

  In the US, homeownership rates have gone from about 69% at the peak (2006) to roughly 65% as of 2013. The long term average is probably somewhere in between these two numbers.

  But homeownership is a fundamental and heavily subsidized part of the American dream. Could America ever be a nation of renters?

  2013.10.15
• Copyright are back once again bringing the very best in house music from across the globe. This week they’ll be spinning tunes from the likes of Kevin Over, Jovonn, Dennis Ferrer, Ripperton, Robert Dietz and Larry Heard
  In the Guest Mix this week we have an exclusive mix from Noir………keep it locked!!!

  TRACKLISTING – 8TH JULY

  Forrest – Creep – DFTD
  Wallflower – Say You Wont Ever (Larry Heard Club Remix) – Defected
  Dennis Ferrer feat Janelle Kroll – Mind Ur Step – Defected
  Pet Shop Boys – Vocal (Flashmob Remix) Defected
  Robert Dietz – Common
  MOST RATED TRACK
  G.Logan – How Did we Get Here – Defected
  Route 94 – Tell You Why – Route 94

  ALBUM OF THE WEEK – Use Your Ears – Noir Music
  Kevin Over – Wayou

  Rachel Row – Follow The Step (FCL Remix) – Defected
  Tooth Faeries – Dust and Ashes (Crooked Ashes) – Classic Music Company
  Ripperton – Let’s Hope (Bicep Remix) – Tamed Musiq
  Gorge – Disco Rebeat
  Dinky – Falling Angel – Visionquest

  FOR THE LOVE OF HOUSE
  Ultra Nate – Free (Mood II Swing Extended Vocal Mix) – ITH

  GUEST MIX

  One Track Minds – Find A Way (Original Mix) – Noir Music
  Alex Flatner, MSMS & Cari Golden – Love Ia A Condition (Marc DePulse Remix) – Noir Music
  Oxia & Nicolas Masseyeff – You Know (Original Mix) – Noir Music
  Pitto – You (Original Mix) – DFTD
  Tom Trago – Avenido (Noir Edit) – Rush Hour
  Kevin Over – Jack Back (Original Mix) – Noir Music
  Deep Future – One More Night (Noir Remix) – Noir Music
  Noir & Haze meets Compact Grey & Ron Costa – Around The Bane (Noir Mashup Treatment) – Noir Music
  Actor One – Givin’ U (Original Mix) – Noir Music
  Santiago Deep – Touret (Noir Shortcut) – My Little Dog
  Ross Evans – Resonate (Originial Mix) – Noir Music
  Hot Since 82 – Error 909 (Original Mix) – Noir Music

  FINAL CUT
  Kon – Runaway – Soul Clap Records

  2013.07.09