True False

true false

Here are 10 true false questions. I’m sure you will get all ten correct. (The answers are below).

1) The most important thing to most people when buying a house is the price.

2) Downsizing to a smaller house makes good economic sense.

3) People want finished basements and in-law suites.

4) Monday is the best day to buy a house.

5) The average Ontario homeowner pays $780 for home insurance.

6) Canada’s house price rise is one of the highest in the developed world.

7) Waterloo Region is one of the top places in Canada to invest in real estate.

8) Realtors are good at social media.

9) Canada is ranked as the happiest country in the world.

10) Waterloo and Kitchener are ranked as two of the best places to live in Canada.

Bonus Question

11) The University of Waterloo opened in 1957.

 

true falseHere are the answers

 

1) Important to most people when looking to buy a house is:

Price

Number of bedrooms

School zone

Safe neighbourhood

These things are paramount.

The features of the home as described in the listing is important and good photography impacts a buyer’s decision whether or not to see a home.

The other things that are somewhat important are: curb appeal, roadways, highways, transit and demographics.

 

2) Downsizing to a smaller house makes good economic sense if you save at least 25% of what you currently spend (on mortgage and other expenses). If you are living mortgage free in your current home, will you be able to sell it and buy a smaller house with the proceeds? Maybe. Maybe not. And if you can, will you be happy with what you can get for your money? Will be really be comfortable in 900 square feet if you are used to puttering around in 2500? With the price of new homes 20% higher than existing houses, you have to ask yourself are the tradeoffs worth it.

 

3) Consumers searching on realtor.ca are most looking for finished basement and in-law suites. Also high on the search term list:

Walkout basement

Bungalow

Loft

Pet friendly

 

4) Monday is the best day to close on a purchase of a house according to RealtyTrac who complied data from 32 million single family home and condo sales over the past fifteen years. On Mondays, home buyers enjoy an average discount of 2.3% below full estimated market value at the time of sale. Friday is the next best day at 2%. Thursday is the worst.

 

5) The average Ontario homeowner pays $780 for home insurance. The average home renter pays only $252.

 

6) Canada’s house price rise is one of the highest in the developed world. The year-over-year increase is 8.3%, behind only Ireland 13.3%, Sweden 10.1% and the same as Australia 8.3%.

Low interest rates and a low Canadian dollar are to blame for the sharp rise in prices.

 

7) Waterloo Region is one of the top places in Canada to invest in real estate. The others include Hamilton, Barrie and surprisingly Edmonton.

Waterloo Region is on the list because of our diverse economy, our proximity to Toronto and because our universities bring lots of young people here and when they graduate, they stay.

 

8) Realtors are not good at social media. According to Hubspot’s 2015 Social Media Benchmark Report, despite having the highest frequency of posting, the real estate industry had the lowest engagement rate.

 

9) Canada is not ranked as the happiest country in the world. But we are near the top.

 

10) Waterloo and Kitchener are ranked as two of the best places to live in Canada. Here are the rankings.

 

11) The University of Waterloo opened in 1957. 74 students attended in the first year. Here are the facts.

 

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