The leafs are masters of the crisp "tape-to-skate" pass. Winners

Ben Sage, Sales Representative
Re/MAX a-b Realty LTD
Brokerage: 519.536.7535 ext 487

Court Orders B.C. Home Inspector to pay couple $200,000

Reprinted courtesy of The Globe and Mail

A home inspector has been ordered to pay nearly $200,000 to a North Vancouver couple who were told the house they wanted to buy only needed basic repairs.

A B.C. Supreme Court judge ruled Imre Toth was “negligent” and provided “woefully inadequate” estimates after his inspection of the house in September 2006.

Mr. Toth's report estimated house repairs would only cost about $20,000, when in fact they totalled more than 10 times the amount at $200,000.

The judge found the buyers wouldn't have purchased the $1-million home had they been made aware of the extensive rotting beams and other structural problems.

The judgment says another inspector found water weeping from a wooden beam that he easily sunk his knife into, along with several cases of fungus growing.

Mr. Toth is a member of the Canadian Association of Home and Property Inspectors (BC), a self-regulating association that licenses its members.

The Canadian Press

Ben Sage, Sales Representative. http://www.bensage.com http://www.oxfordcountyhomes.ca Re/Max a-b Realty Ltd., Brokerage. 519-536-7535. 521 Dundas St., Woodstock, ON

Great opportunity for a first time buyer or upgrading! - MLS 63-437 - 41 Canrobert St, - Move in Ready, only $189,900.

*hint* - click the underlined words for more detail!

This is a great 15 year old raised ranch located in a well established family friendly neighbourhood. It is located very close to parks and has quick and easy access to the major highways.

What more could you ask for? This sturdy, fully finished and move in ready home features a concrete foundation, 3 bedrooms (Master, 3rd Bedroom/Office, Nursery). and a full bathroom on the main floor, as well as main floor laundry, a spacious eat-in kitchen, and separate dining room. Plus a comfortable living room!

In the newly finished basement level you will find inside entry to your single car garage (a rarity in this neighbourhood!), extra storage in the utility room and under the staircase, a spacious full bathroom, rec room, family room, and a bonus room.

Enjoy year round convenience and efficiency thanks to the high efficiency forced air gas furnace with central air conditioning, and no-maintenance exterior of brick and vinyl siding.

Let’s not forget the nice two-tierd deck in your fully fenced back yard. This extremely well decorated home has plenty of space for your growing family, and is ready for quick possession! All appliances included. Be sure to check out the Virtual tour!

For Room Sizes and additional details, check out the Realtor.ca info page

Ben Sage, Sales Representative. http://www.bensage.com http://www.oxfordcountyhomes.ca Re/Max a-b Realty Ltd., Brokerage. 519-536-7535. 521 Dundas St., Woodstock, ON

With the Christmas holidays approaching ... Here's a LOL for ya!

see more Epic Fails

Ben Sage, Sales Representative. http://www.bensage.com http://www.oxfordcountyhomes.ca Re/Max a-b Realty Ltd., Brokerage. 519-536-7535. 521 Dundas St., Woodstock, ON

Flu Shot Impatience: Let's try a dose of Reality

Reprinted from The Globe and Mail

Written by Andre Picard

Could we please stop all the bleating and whining about the waits for the H1N1 flu vaccine?

Honestly, how long do people think it takes to develop, test, manufacture and package 50.4 million doses of vaccine?

How long do people think it takes to distribute those doses across a country as massive as Canada?

And how long do they think it takes to administer vaccine to the 34 million people who could potentially get it?

Wading through the letters to the editor, the posts, the political rhetoric and the often self-serving recommendations from interest groups on how to resolve the “crisis” in H1N1 immunization, one cannot but despair at the unrealistic expectations placed on public health, and on science.

Sorry, folks, but real life is not a CSI episode, where scientific Gordian knots are unloosed in one hour flat, with time to spare for romance and a half-dozen commercial breaks.

Swine flu (H1N1) first came to light in March of this year. The new virus was isolated and genetically decoded in record time.

Then, with very little firm information on how the pandemic might evolve, key decisions needed to be made: Was this a real threat? Should a vaccine be developed? If so, how much should we buy?

In the real world, it takes about six months to produce industrial quantities of vaccine. You harvest some seed stock and then you grow the virus in eggs. It takes time.

Canada decided early to err on the side of caution and invoke its pandemic preparedness plan. That includes ordering enough vaccine to immunize 75 per cent of the population with two doses each.

That was a $400-million decision and it was the right decision. To second-guess it now because the H1N1 is not as lethal as it might have been is disingenuous.

Fast forward to the fall. Production of the actual vaccine actually begins. There have been no delays. The vaccine started rolling off the production line at GlaxoSmithKline in Ste-Foy, Que., in October. It had to be tested and then held for a certain time to ensure there is no contamination.

Sensibly, the vaccine went first to the farthest reaches of the country and last to areas closest to the plant. Naturally, all 50.4 million doses were not available at once. Rather, there will be an average of three million doses a week through December.

Then came the hard part: Getting the vaccine into people – the right people. Because stock is limited, there was a need to set priorities. The process for this is laid out in the Canadian Pandemic Influenza Plan whose goals are 1) to minimize serious illness and deaths and 2) to minimize social disruption.

Admittedly, there have been some glitches. But, examined dispassionately, the mass immunization has hardly been a disaster. In fact, at least three million people have already received the vaccine and we're still in the early days of the rollout.

The main difficulty has been the impatience of the public. Underlying the stampede to flu shot clinics has been the illogical notion that everyone can be first in line.

Public-health officials have perhaps not been clear enough in their messaging. From the get-go, they have said there will be vaccine for everyone. They have perhaps not emphasized that this availability would be spread out over a period of 12 weeks, and there would be waits.

The greatest frustration has been the long lines. The question is: Were they avoidable?

In the ideal world, absolutely; everybody and their dog has offered up suggestions on how the immunization clinics could have been better run. Many of these suggestions imply that there is no other health care to deliver in this country but flu shots to healthy people.

In Canada, we have built ourselves a tremendous sickness care system. But, despite the lessons of SARS, we have a pretty clunky, under-funded public-health system. It can do the basics like routine immunization but has no ability to carry out massive short-term projects like a universal pandemic immunization program.

There is no surge capacity, no easy way of shifting resources so there can be well-staffed, around-the-clock flu vaccine clinics. The suggestion that priority patients get bracelets is a good one, but where is the information going to come from in a system without electronic health records? Sending the vaccine to family doctors is great in theory too; but are they going to drop everything to give shots?

There is no ability – meaning time and money – in our current system to plan ahead. If the clinics look like they are being run by the seat of the pants it's because they are.

The Public Health Agency of Canada and provincial health agencies have little or no power, and a laughable amount of resources. Clinic locations and staff were begged and borrowed. Nurses are doing yeoman's work but they can't vaccinate a million people a day.

We have a wonderful pandemic plan but good intentions are not enough.

Today, we are reaping the harvest of decades of under-funding of public health.

As the Scottish poet Robert Burns wrote:

In proving foresight may be vain:

The best laid schemes of mice and men

Go often askew,

And leave us nothing but grief and pain,

For promised joy!

Ben Sage, Sales Representative. http://www.bensage.com http://www.oxfordcountyhomes.ca Re/Max a-b Realty Ltd., Brokerage. 519-536-7535. 521 Dundas St., Woodstock, ON

Luxury housing sales edge higher as purchasers take advantage of buying opportunities in Ontario-Atlantic Canada, says RE/MAX

Mississauga, ON (November 3, 2009) -- Luxury homes sales continue to accelerate as economic
recovery takes hold in major markets in Ontario and Atlantic Canada, according to a report released today by RE/MAX.

The RE/MAX Upper End Report found that momentum is building in St. John’s, Saint John, Halifax-Dartmouth, Ottawa, Kingston, Greater Toronto, Hamilton-Burlington, and London as purchasers realize that the best buying period in recent history is about to come to a close. Sales are already on par or ahead of last year’s levels in 50 per cent of cities surveyed, while the remaining markets are set to reach 2008 figures by year-end.

“Twelve months of healthy home buying activity have clearly been crammed into five short
months,” says Michael Polzler, Executive Vice President, RE/MAX Ontario-Atlantic Canada. “It’s hard to believe that the transition in the market began in May. We’ve seen steady upward
momentum since that time, with solid year-over-year gains posted each and every month.”

Pent-up demand and greater affordability have been the catalyst. Increased selection in all markets—except Greater Toronto—as well as record low interest rates have also helped fuel moveup activity from Ontario to Newfoundland.

Leading in terms of sales appreciation is London, Ontario where the number of homes sold, priced in excess of $500,000, has climbed 11 per cent from January to September 2009, compared to one year ago. Greater Toronto and Ottawa both reported a one per cent increase in the number of homes sold in the top end during the same period. Within the GTA, Richmond Hill/Thornhill is particularly heated, with sales up 24 per cent over 2008 levels, followed by Mississauga— up 10 per cent. St. John’s, Newfoundland is on par with year-ago figures.

Of the six markets reporting a year-over-year decrease in sales, four are off by just a handful of
transactions (10 units or less), including Halifax-Dartmouth (off eight units), Kingston & Area (off three units), Toronto – West End (off 10 units), and Oakville (off five units). Activity in the
remaining two markets—Saint John and Hamilton-Burlington—is on the upswing, with the gap between 2008 and 2009 narrowing each month.

“A considerable shift is underway in the upper end,” explains Polzler. “The price correction that we witnessed earlier in the year is over and prices have since firmed up. Conditions are more balanced across the board or leaning toward seller’s territory once again. The one exception is the Greater Toronto Area -- now largely a seller’s market -- with bidding wars making a comeback amid tight inventory levels. The strength of the luxury segment is evident. This is now a real estate market with all sectors working in tandem.”

Highlights:

• Upper end sales started to move upward as positive indicators of economic recovery began to emerge. The momentum is expected to continue as Canada edges closer to positive periods of GDP growth in Q4 2009 and in 2010.
• Locals are fuelling luxury sales in the majority of markets surveyed. Activity among out of-province and international purchasers has waned from one year ago, although their presence in still evident in some markets.
• Sixty-one properties in Canada are currently priced over $10 million, with 18 of those located in Ontario. The priciest Ontario home is nestled in Toronto’s prestigious Bridle Path area, listed at $23 million.
• Three hundred properties currently listed for sale are priced over $5 million in Canada.
• In Atlantic Canada, there are 22 listings in excess of $2 million—13 in Nova Scotia, five in New Brunswick and two in Prince Edward Island. The most expensive property in Atlantic Canada is a $7.75 million estate on a bluff fronting the Atlantic Ocean on PEI’s north coast.

RE/MAX is Canada’s leading real estate organization with over 17,000 sales associates situated throughout its more than 677 independently-owned and operated offices across the country. The RE/MAX franchise network, now in its 36th year, is a global real estate system operating in more than 70 countries. Over 6,700 independently-owned offices engage nearly 100,000 member sales associates who lead the industry in professional designations, experience and production while providing real estate services in residential, commercial, referral, and asset management. For more information, visit: www.remax.ca.

Ben Sage, Sales Representative. http://www.bensage.com http://www.oxfordcountyhomes.ca Re/Max a-b Realty Ltd., Brokerage. 519-536-7535. 521 Dundas St., Woodstock, ON

The United Way Year End Drive

Hello Everyone!

One of the benchmarks of the health of a community is the ability of the United Way to reach its yearly target. In previous years the real estate sector has not been a strong contributor to the yearly campaign. I plan to change that!!

I am personally pledging to donate $50 per closing until the end of the year, and I have asked all of my fellow real estate agents to do the same!

Every mailbox in Woodstock should have, or will shortly receive, a Re/Max a-b branded United Way donation envelope. You can also make a difference. Make a donation today and support this worthy cause! Alternatively you can drop by the United Way office (Springbank Ave - just north of Zehrs), call them with a credit card number (519-539-3851), or call me and I will happily stop by to pick up your donation!

Ben Sage, Sales Representative. http://www.bensage.com http://www.oxfordcountyhomes.ca Re/Max a-b Realty Ltd., Brokerage. 519-536-7535. 521 Dundas St., Woodstock, ON