_____________________________________________

TIP OF THE MONTH

Choosing a REALTOR® for Buying or the Selling of Real Estate.

• Interview at least three REALTORS®.
• Ask the REALTOR® for references.
• Ask a friend or co-worker for a referral.
• Ask about their experience.
• Ask how many years have they been a REALTOR®?
• Ask about their Production level.
• Ask if they work full time or part time. (Are they restricted with their commitment to you?)
• Work with a REALTOR® you feel very comfortable with and trust.

Tip of the Month

When buying a home the buyer must think of many things but first and foremost, avoid surprises by:

• Choose a Full-Time REALTOR® you feel comfortable with who has good negotiating skills, is very familiar with the market in which you are looking in.

• Shop around for a mortgage. (Your REALTOR® can help you with that process.)

• Shop around for a lawyer. Not all lawyers charge the same amount. (Your REALTOR® can provide names if you don’t know of one who specializes in real estate transactions.)

• Shop around for a home inspector. Not all inspectors carry E & O insurance or are members of the Canadian Home Inspectors Association. (Your REALTOR® can provide a list of names from which you can choose from)

• Ensure you have been pre-approved for a mortgage and stay within the price range suggested by your mortgage officer.

• Ensure that you have available funds to put a deposit in place upon finding a suitable home. (Usually $2,000.00 plus is the trend)

• Ensure you have available funds to conduct an inspection on the home and other components of the home, water testing if applicable, and appraisal if required, within the allotted time frame in the conditions of the offer.

• Have your lawyer review the offer of Purchase and Sale within 5 to 7 days from the acceptance of the offer to ensure that nothing has been overlooked.

• Be prepared for costs, such as deed transfer tax, utility connections, moving, lawnmower and garden tools if you’re moving from an apartment, additional furniture, etc.

• Share as much information about your needs and wants with your REALTOR® as possible, as it will help your REALTOR® find the right home for you and

ABOUT US

Real Estate is our passion!! We welcome you to discover how First Impressions Real Estate brokerage is unlike all others. If you are listing your house for sale, we offer an innovative commission structure.

For home buyers we have access to all MLS® listings and all of our REALTORS® (members of the Canadian Real Estate Association) (CREA) are thoroughly trained to assist you with every step of your real estate transaction.

The process of Buying and Selling a home can be a stressful experience. Let our many years of knowledge and experience work for you when making what may be the single most important investment you will make in a lifetime.

Karen Edwards, our Broker has been a full time REALTOR® since 1994 generating high sales volume.

Our mission is to best serve our clients/customers by remaining well informed in the industry and related issues by continuously upgrading our knowledge through education programs.

Broker Karen Edwards continues to serve on committees at the Nova Scotia Association of Realtors commonly known as NSAR where she has served as Past President, President, Executive Committee, Board Of Directors, the Finance , Government Relations, MLS®, Professional Standards, Selection, and Entertainment committees, as well as on several Task forces.

In 2006 Karen became a Real Estate Broker and opened our company called First Impressions Real Estate Inc. As an independent company it allows us the freedom of offering our clients/customers many levels of services that we were unable to offer before as we were governed by the company policies of the brokerage we represented.

Call us to enquire about our levels of service. We can tailor the commission you pay based on the level of services you require/desire that we provide.

We only get one chance to make a good first impression. Call us today!

Remember-Our SIGN on your Lawn is always a good SIGN!

Helpful Information can be found by clicking on our Links Button at the top of our page.