A business and marketing program I’ve been involved with for many years, who are leaders in the area of real estate trends and data, have armed me with many great little gems over my thirteen years being part of their group. 

Six years ago in Carlsbad California, while attending an exclusive mastermind made of up of an advanced thinking and open minded group of real estate professionals from across North America, something simple yet profound struck me. The leader of our leaders (and us) paced along the small stage, paused, then proclaimed the following statement:

People Are Drowning in Information Yet Starving For Knowledge! 

I won’t go into the next hour or so of the deep dive we went through that day but I think you get the gist of where I’m going with this statement, and how it applies to the buying and selling of real estate in Toronto and the GTA today.

It stuck with me immediately and I quickly related it to what was happening back home in a real estate bull market that at the time was nearing its sixteen year run.

Information is all around us, and most of us have become accustomed to not only getting easy access to it (hello google! Siri, what’s the temperature outside today?) but also receiving this information for free. Well there’s nothing wrong with free, most of us would agree!  

The deepest pessimists and the most enlightened realists would quickly note though that, “nothing in commerce is free” and they would be correct. Sometimes the price to access isn’t obvious at first glance, and stereotypes like the neighbourhood drug dealer who tempt you with the “take it, it’s free” line, is a good sample of where access to apparent free data or information leads.

Even I who publish this monthly newsletter am not operating completely altruistically. Yes, I like to share my market knowledge and experience with clients and those they refer to me. But I also have hopes that you will see value in what I’m producing and consider me when you are thinking about buying, selling or a competent agent to refer your parents or colleagues. 

In my twenty-six year career I have never seen the likes of what is happening currently in many parts of the Toronto real estate market today. Excessively low levels of available houses for sale has pushed what was already a feverishly hot sellers market into some serious danger zones. What do I mean?

In one west end neighbourhood where supply is far outweighed by demand, detached houses similar in lot size and bedroom size (a key component of value) have been increasing $100,000 per month, over the past four months alone. Add this to the already increasing house price creep that has been happening across the GTA. It’s not sustainable and anyone who thinks or says it is, is taking a very micro view. 

Yes, this neighbourhood is nice. But there are a dozen or more like it sprinkled across the city and I know, as I work the entire city and therefore am not married to just one neighbourhood thinking it’s ‘God’s only little piece of heaven.’ 

To bring it back to information verse knowledge. Information is good when it’s used to educate, enhance or enlighten ones thought process and its use is complimentary to the experts you are aligned with. You google skin mole on arm, do some reading on what looks similar to your inquiry, and then make an appointment to see a dermatologist. You take your information with you but you rely on the knowledge and expertise of the Doctor who has seen this a 100 times, this year alone. 

Or you don’t. You take your new found sense of knowledge and apply it to the mole is harmless, and most are from my understanding, so don’t freak out of if you have one. But of course you know what my advice is or would be. Go see a professional who knows moles! And that’s a Doctor to be clear. And even if you have to pay, do it. I don’t have private health coverage being self employed so I happily pay. But I also rest easily knowing that although my many years out toiling in the sun are starting to take their toll on my body with moles (too much information?), I have a trusted and competent Doctor of Dermatology by my side to look out for me. 

ps. Hit me up if you need a good Dermatologist referral 🙂