# Buying a property at 85 Emmett Ave



## alekseyz (May 1, 2009)

Hello everyone,

Decided to create a special website for buying my own condo at 85 Emmett Ave.
Please have a look and say if you think it is a bad or a good idea of purchasing the condo?

http://www.85emmettavenue.com/


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## stephenheath (Apr 3, 2009)

Well, this is just my opinion, but personally I think the website, and your comments to real estate agents, make you look more like a lowballer than a serious buyer, despite your desire to own in that building and your stated intention to bid on all of those units, even though they supposedly are too small for you. Personally, I'd only contact you (assuming I knew about your site) if you spelled out exactly what you were looking for and how much you were willing to pay, otherwise it seems like you are playing games.

On top of that, I would suspect that people won't be aware of your website, I'm thinking you might have more luck just posting a notice of what you are looking for on the building's message board, or delivering flyers to the condos there or something.

Either way, I wish you luck in finding a spot you guys love at a price you're happy with, and if the website works for you, I'll be glad to be wrong.


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## alekseyz (May 1, 2009)

stephenheath said:


> Well, this is just my opinion, but personally I think the website, and your comments to real estate agents, make you look more like a lowballer than a serious buyer, despite your desire to own in that building and your stated intention to bid on all of those units, even though they supposedly are too small for you. Personally, I'd only contact you (assuming I knew about your site) if you spelled out exactly what you were looking for and how much you were willing to pay, otherwise it seems like you are playing games.
> 
> On top of that, I would suspect that people won't be aware of your website, I'm thinking you might have more luck just posting a notice of what you are looking for on the building's message board, or delivering flyers to the condos there or something.
> 
> Either way, I wish you luck in finding a spot you guys love at a price you're happy with, and if the website works for you, I'll be glad to be wrong.


Thanks, I appreciate the comment
I am actually working on a post for what exactly am I looking for but it is the most difficult part for me
I am also getting all of the sales in the last 3 years in that building and putting a post for analyzing what is in my opinion a fair market value for an average condo

It was a wild idea, I have no idea how it will turn out.
Right now I working on another 3 pages and then I will leave it for 2-3 weeks and wait for google to pick in the search engine.

The goal is to have to web site on there. After it is ready, print 200-300 flyers and deliver it to all of the apartments in that building.
This way, the people will know (well, at least it will be saved in the heads that they saw the flyer) and it in the event that they will want to find a buyer quickly - I am there, on the web.

Timeframe of my purchase is 6-9 months. So if it will be a big failure then all I will loose is 50 bucks for hosting and domain registration and 40-50 bucks for flyers. So 100 bucks is not a big expense if I am able to find a proper condo.


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## canabiz (Apr 4, 2009)

Good luck on your endeavors Alex, certainly something that I don't see often.

Just a small point: You may want to spell-check your posts before putting it up on the site. The sentences don't have to be grammatically correct because English is not the first language for some of us but i think it is important to convey your message in a professional manner. It will also help when Google indexes your site and you have the correct terms and terminologies.


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## alekseyz (May 1, 2009)

canabiz said:


> Good luck on your endeavors Alex, certainly something that I don't see often.
> 
> Just a small point: You may want to spell-check your posts before putting it up on the site. The sentences don't have to be grammatically correct because English is not the first language for some of us but i think it is important to convey your message in a professional manner. It will also help when Google indexes your site and you have the correct terms and terminologies.


Thanks, I will work on my spelling
Probably will ask couple of Canadian friends to read all of my post after I am all done with the content and then make sure that my spelling and grammar is at decent level


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## lb71 (Apr 3, 2009)

From what I gathered quickly looking at your site, you are offering to buy a unit net of commissions (around $150k). However, as a seller, why would I sell directly to you net of commissions? What benefit do I derive from this transaction? I cannot think of any. You get all the benefit - Lower cost of purchase, lower land transfer tax, and possibly lower property taxes in the future. 

If you want to purchase a condo this way, I would suspect you would have to meet in the middle. Split the saving of commission in half, so offer $154k.

You may also want to get the square footage of each unit, and calculate a cost per square foot. $150k is the average, but it is based on different size units.

Also, your analysis is missing the 5% GST on the commission, so the WSG would be slightly lower.

A friend of mine did something similar. He targetted an area he wanted to live in, and delivered flyers to each home in the area. Ther flyers said he was interested in purchasing a home in the area and if the owner was interested in selling to contact him. He got a couple of calls and ended up buying a home. He did not set up a website. 

Don't wait for someone to find your site on a google search. Doubtful that will happen. Your best bet will be to deliver flyers to each unit. Do you know the ratio of tenants? If it is a high tenant ratio, your flyers may end up mostly in the trash. You may want to try contacting the property manager to see if they will mail out your flyers directly to the owners (at your cost of course).


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## alekseyz (May 1, 2009)

lb71 said:


> From what I gathered quickly looking at your site, you are offering to buy a unit net of commissions (around $150k). However, as a seller, why would I sell directly to you net of commissions? What benefit do I derive from this transaction? I cannot think of any. You get all the benefit - Lower cost of purchase, lower land transfer tax, and possibly lower property taxes in the future.
> 
> If you want to purchase a condo this way, I would suspect you would have to meet in the middle. Split the saving of commission in half, so offer $154k.
> 
> ...


Thanks for the comment

Now, my comments:
"Don't wait for someone to find your site on a google search. Doubtful that will happen."

I am internet marketer and that is why I decided to do this. I set up the web site 6 days ago. And already on the phrase "85 emmett ave", "85 emmett ave toronto" and "85 Emmett Ave" and "85 Emmett Avenue" is in top 5 positions. Once I finish the optimization I suspect it will in the top 3 and for more phrases.

"Do you know the ratio of tenants? If it is a high tenant ratio, your flyers may end up mostly in the trash. You may want to try contacting the property manager to see if they will mail out your flyers directly to the owners (at your cost of course)."

Yes, I am expecting to make flyers. The rent ratio is around 20%. And I only will be putting 6 flyers on the floor so 25*6=150 flyers in total. I have an account at sendoutcards.com which allows me to send a postcard for $0.44. So 150*0.44=$66 in flyers costs. I don't think it will be worth to go to the management. I am not that crazy about this thing.

"Also, your analysis is missing the 5% GST on the commission, so the WSG would be slightly lower."

Thanks, I missed that one.


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## alekseyz (May 1, 2009)

stephenheath said:


> Well, this is just my opinion, but personally I think the website, and your comments to real estate agents, make you look more like a lowballer than a serious buyer, despite your desire to own in that building and your stated intention to bid on all of those units, even though they supposedly are too small for you. Personally, I'd only contact you (assuming I knew about your site) if you spelled out exactly what you were looking for and how much you were willing to pay, otherwise it seems like you are playing games.


I have added all of the suggested pages and changed couple of phrases in my comments


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## DAvid (Apr 3, 2009)

Were I a prospective vendor, you are giving me no reason to contact you. You want the condo at the lowest possible price, yet you still expect me to do all the work, as I still have to apply MY due diligence in protecting ME through the sale.

It appears that all the advantage falls to you, but none to me. This would also cause me to be even more cautious, as I now wonder how far I should trust you (other than savings on commissions, why else might you wish to avoid the scrutiny of a Realtor?)

For $100 / month, I can spell-check and grammar-check your site.


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## stephenheath (Apr 3, 2009)

I took a look at the new website, and tried to pretend I was seeing it for the first time. I still get the impression that you want it cheaper than market price, but there must be people sometime who need to sell fast, and in that case, your offer of a fast closing should resonate with those people. I definately think your odds are higher than the first version of your website.

Now you just need to wait for someone desperate enough to move fast to not wait for top dollar.


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## alekseyz (May 1, 2009)

stephenheath said:


> I took a look at the new website, and tried to pretend I was seeing it for the first time. I still get the impression that you want it cheaper than market price, but there must be people sometime who need to sell fast, and in that case, your offer of a fast closing should resonate with those people. I definately think your odds are higher than the first version of your website.
> 
> Now you just need to wait for someone desperate enough to move fast to not wait for top dollar.


Thanks for the comment, I will try to emphasize the benefits to the seller more
Concerning on your comment on the cheaper than the market price - I will have to actually leave a web site for a week and then reread it again to correct this problem. I don't really think I want to get cheaper, but again with this recession the average price in Toronto fell something like 5-10% and now on the level of 2005 and 2006 and the number of sales in Dec 08 - Feb 09 were extremely low. See http://www.mississauga4sale.com/TREBprice.htm for details.

Thanks for the comment again, I will redo the web site again and rephrase some things


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## alekseyz (May 1, 2009)

DAvid said:


> Were I a prospective vendor, you are giving me no reason to contact you. You want the condo at the lowest possible price, yet you still expect me to do all the work, as I still have to apply MY due diligence in protecting ME through the sale.
> 
> It appears that all the advantage falls to you, but none to me. This would also cause me to be even more cautious, as I now wonder how far I should trust you (other than savings on commissions, why else might you wish to avoid the scrutiny of a Realtor?)
> 
> For $100 / month, I can spell-check and grammar-check your site.


Thanks for the comment
I will rephrase the reasoning for contacting myself and what are the advantages for the seller

Not sure what you mean by "due diligence" in protecting seller through the sale. A real estate contract is 5 page contract with schedule A on 1-2 pages and sometimes Schedule B on 1 page. I stated in the website if there something that is bothering the seller in the contract - they can take it to anyone they want to review and suggested that they may pay 200-500 if that will be required to feel more secure. See http://www.85emmettavenue.com/85-emmett-avenue-purpose/ at the bottom of the page


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## alekseyz (May 1, 2009)

lb71 said:


> Also, your analysis is missing the 5% GST on the commission, so the WSG would be slightly lower.


Called up a real estate friend. No, this is not true. GST is not payable on resale of the property. GST is payable only when it is a new constructed property.


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## lb71 (Apr 3, 2009)

alekseyz said:


> Called up a real estate friend. No, this is not true. GST is not payable on resale of the property. GST is payable only when it is a new constructed property.


I was talking about the GST payable on the commission, not the sale of the property. GST is payable on the real estate commission, regardless if it is a new home purchases or resale. So if the commission rate is 5%, the after tax commission is actually 5.25%.

For example, house sells for $100. Commission is 5%, or $5. Add GST of 5% or $0.25. Net proceeds are 100 - 5 - 0.25 = $94.75. This is standard wording, unless you negotiate that the GST be included in the commission rate, which is effectively lowering the rate for the agents to around 4.76%, and you would be hard pressed to get that.


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## Four Pillars (Apr 5, 2009)

The website might be a good idea to go along with the flyers but ranking high for an address doesn't mean a whole lot since the only people who might be searching on that address are probably prospective tenants.

Why on earth would a current owner be searching Google for info on their own building?


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## alekseyz (May 1, 2009)

Four Pillars said:


> The website might be a good idea to go along with the flyers but ranking high for an address doesn't mean a whole lot since the only people who might be searching on that address are probably prospective tenants.
> 
> Why on earth would a current owner be searching Google for info on their own building?


Well, the idea was simple. 
a) If seller gets a flyer - then this is how he gets to the web site
b) If the seller wants just to search for what he can sell his place - he will enter his address + some selling words = bingo, my web site is up there

No, as I said it is a shot. There are plenty of ideas out there. This might be a stupid one. Maybe a great one. We will see in couple of months.


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## alekseyz (May 1, 2009)

lb71 said:


> I was talking about the GST payable on the commission, not the sale of the property. GST is payable on the real estate commission, regardless if it is a new home purchases or resale. So if the commission rate is 5%, the after tax commission is actually 5.25%.
> 
> For example, house sells for $100. Commission is 5%, or $5. Add GST of 5% or $0.25. Net proceeds are 100 - 5 - 0.25 = $94.75. This is standard wording, unless you negotiate that the GST be included in the commission rate, which is effectively lowering the rate for the agents to around 4.76%, and you would be hard pressed to get that.


Thanks, I will do some recalculations


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## Taxsaver (Jun 7, 2009)

alekseyz said:


> Thanks for the comment
> I will rephrase the reasoning for contacting myself and what are the advantages for the seller
> 
> Not sure what you mean by "due diligence" in protecting seller through the sale. A real estate contract is 5 page contract with schedule A on 1-2 pages and sometimes Schedule B on 1 page. I stated in the website if there something that is bothering the seller in the contract - they can take it to anyone they want to review and suggested that they may pay 200-500 if that will be required to feel more secure. See http://www.85emmettavenue.com/85-emmett-avenue-purpose/ at the bottom of the page


85 Emmett Avenue???

There seems to be a lot of "action" in that neighborhood. I've seen a lot of crimes lately in the news that happening there.

http://www.citynews.ca/news/news_35393.aspx

Cops Tightlipped About Fatal Stabbing At Scarlett Rd. And Eglinton Condo
Tuesday June 16, 2009
CityNews.ca Staff

Police are being very tightlipped about a fatal stabbing that left one man dead in the Scarlett Rd. and Eglinton area on Tuesday.

Toronto's latest murder was discovered sometime around 11am, but details are being kept under wraps. It appears someone from the Good Shepherd Mission asked police to go to the man's condo at 85 Emmett Ave. and check on the occupant. 

When they arrived, they discovered a 74-year-old had been stabbed to death. But there's no word on how long he may have been there, what the motive may have been.

A tenant tells CityNews she knew the victim, whom she called a nice gentleman, and saw the 19th floor resident walking around the building on Monday night.

No names are being released as the case unfolds, and there are no suspects in custody. But investigators are reviewing video surveillance from the building to see if they can spot anything suspicious. The connection to the shelter is also unclear.


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## alekseyz (May 1, 2009)

Taxsaver said:


> 85 Emmett Avenue???
> 
> There seems to be a lot of "action" in that neighborhood. I've seen a lot of crimes lately in the news that happening there.
> 
> ...


That is true, I saw that report in the news today.

There was another shooting back in April when I started the web site
http://www.citynews.ca/news/news_33941.aspx


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