Recently, I had a productive conversation with clients who were planning their retirement. We discussed timelines and strategies to secure their future, including selling their current home and weighing the benefits of continuing homeownership versus stepping away from the housing market.

Their current home is valued at around $1.2 million, with no mortgage. They also have savings and RRSPs, but most of our focus was on how to optimize their real estate assets for retirement. If they sold their home, they’d have around $1.14 million in equity to invest, so the key question was how to best use that money to achieve their goals, including frequent travel.

Here’s a look at the options we explored based on their real estate and assets. A scenario like this could apply to many of your clients and come in handy when discussing their options.

Option 1: Sell and invest locally

One possibility was selling their home and purchasing a property in Oshawa with a legal accessory apartment for around $800,000. After covering purchase and closing costs, they would have $300,000 left to invest.

At a 4.0 per cent return, this would generate approximately $12,000 in annual income. In addition, the accessory apartment could be rented for about $1,800 per month, bringing in an additional $21,600 annually.

This would give them a total of $33,600 per year in combined income, which would be taxable but with minimal tax implications given their lower retirement income. Plus, some home expenses could be written off as rental deductions.

Option 2: Buy a seasonal or vacation home

Another appealing option was using the $300,000 to purchase a winter home in Florida instead of investing it in the stock market. After converting the funds to American dollars, they would have about $225,000 to buy a property in “The Villages” northwest of Orlando.

The carrying costs would be about $300 per month. Although this option wouldn’t generate investment income, they would still earn $21,600 annually from renting out their Oshawa property. Additionally, they could rent out their Florida home when not using it, potentially generating $3,000 to $4,000 per month in U.S. dollars.

Helping your clients explore equity-shifting opportunities

This conversation highlighted how many homeowners, particularly those who have lived in their homes for decades, overlook the financial potential of downsizing or shifting their equity into different types of properties. Even if they opted to rent rather than purchase a vacation home, the income from investments or property rentals could still comfortably cover their travel and living expenses.

For homeowners in the Durham Region and many other areas, selling and reinvesting home equity offers a range of benefits, from financial freedom to increased quality of life. I’ve spoken to many who regret holding onto their homes for too long, only to find that rising maintenance costs strained their budget and limited their ability to enjoy retirement luxuries like travel.

At a certain point, it’s important to reassess whether homeownership continues to make sense or if downsizing is the smarter financial move. For my clients, their next step was to consult their accountant about the tax implications of owning rental properties both locally and in Florida.

It’s a good problem to have as they enter this exciting new phase of life. Your clients might be in a very similar position.

The sayings “You get what you pay for” and “Penny wise, pound foolish” are tales as old as time.

I’ve seen these messages play out in the real estate industry throughout my career, and they apply to everything, including choosing a lawyer. It’s tough to ignore price, but this should not be your clients’ focal point. What should be foremost in their minds is getting value for their money.

‘Cheaper’ law firms

When I recommend lawyers to my clients, I don’t tell them “this is the cheapest lawyer” or “this lawyer won’t charge you as much as the others.” Instead, my lawyer recommendations are based on personal experience, ability, eye for detail and their upfront honesty and work ethic.

I have heard and witnessed horror stories of clients who don’t listen to my advice. They make up their mind that “cheap is best.” But nothing could be further from the truth.

For example, one of my clients chose a lawyer that purposely advertised their fees as being X amount of dollars flat rate and everything done with no hidden fees. Well, you guessed it, the hidden fees are what absolutely caused a transaction to not close. This law firm did not provide them with the correct land transfer tax figure or the correct cost of title insurance, they charged “hidden fees,” and they then tried to blame the client for the reasons the amounts were different (higher) than previously advised.

Unrealistic amount of 4-5 star reviews

There have been issues with law firms, from what I hear from other firms, blatantly “buying” reviews. If a law firm is offering a discount for a review, those are indeed “bought” as people want money back or a “discount” on their costs to buy or sell a home.

These reviews could be, and lots of the time are, disingenuous or inaccurately reflective of the law firm, its staff and its services. When you look at the 1-2 star reviews, you might hear a tone that doesn’t match the “cookie cutter” positive reviews but does match one other about problems, lack of services and post-closing issues that cost clients more than what they saved.

What a quote should indicate

When you request a quote from a law firm, you want to see the following, with an amount, next to each item:

Legal fees

• Purchase/sale – $X.XX
• Mortgage/discharge of mortgage – $X.XX
• First-time home buyer documents – $X.XX
• Land transfer tax compliance – $X.XX
• Applications/notice of assignment of rents, etc. – $X.XX

Disbursements

• Title search – $X.XX
• Office disbursements – $X.XX
• Tax certificate – $X.XX
• Water certificate – $X.XX
• Software – $X.XX
• Bank charges – $X.XX
• Other fees/charges
• Title insurance – $X.XX
• Registration – $X.XX
• Land transfer tax – $X.XX

This is a quote you can trust.

One of the best quotes that I have seen, advised who exactly was receiving the money. This law firm’s quote specifically stated the amount of money that was being paid to Service Ontario, the amount that was being paid to the Minister of Finance, the amount paid to the title insurance company, which title insurance company the law firm was using, etc.

This gave the clients a comprehensive breakdown of not only the amount of money owed but who was benefiting from that money, and they could also do a bit of research into the title insurance company and have some ease knowing what protection they were getting from that specific company. When you look at the amounts on a quote, it can seem very overwhelming, and quite frankly expensive — but the point is, you see it!

There should be no hidden costs, no surprises, no scrambling last second to come up with money. Your client is well prepared when they see a full, upfront and honest quote.

Purchasing a new build

The costs associated with purchasing a new build always catch my clients off-guard. To account for this, law firms with experience in purchasing new builds will advise clients that they need to prepare for a significant amount of money to be provided. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, the material costs, development costs and, depending on the nature of the purchase i.e. a condominium, townhouse, single-family house, etc., other associated costs are not a simple mathematical equation done by an agent or mortgage broker.

We usually tell clients on resales to anticipate anywhere from 1-3 per cent of the purchase price, but with new builds, this can be an extremely low estimate. An amazing law firm will, after reviewing the Agreement of Purchase and Sale (APS), provide a ballpark of the amount but with the warning that it could be a lot more. The biggest hitter on these charges is development fees, which are paid to cities/municipalities, provinces, government ministries, etc. to cover and accommodate the new influx of people moving into the area. This includes, for example, adding more public transportation, new roadways that will need to be maintained each season (e.g. snow plowing), schools, parks and more.

On a basic 1-2 bedroom condominium, these fees can be $6,000-$7,000, and on an average semi-detached or detached home (depending on location) they can be $12,500-$25,000. And this is only one charge. Hydro and water connections range from $350-$1,500 each, driveway paving ranges from $650-$1,250 and tree planting can be around $500-$1,000. Since these are not normal costs on a resale property, the 1-3 per cent estimate doesn’t work. 

Conversations with buyers about these charges should not only start with me as a real estate agent but should also be reiterated by the law firm. This is why the most important thing to do with new build purchases is to have a clause that allows for solicitor review, as law firms can write a letter asking that these costs be “capped” to a certain amount and can then negotiate on your client’s behalf. Depending on the property being purchased, a great law firm will get these additional costs, including development fees, capped at $5,500-$15,000. This will give your clients an idea of how much “extra” money they need at closing.* 

Title insurance

Buyers should never close a transaction without the protection of title insurance, especially with the amount of fraud that’s so prevalent these days. Title insurance is their sword and shield — it steps in to sort out issues. Nonetheless, this insurance is always a sore spot with my clients. They don’t understand why their $1.5 million home purchase has title insurance in the amount of $1,300-$1,500, even when lawyers advise that after $500,000 premiums are paid in increments as the purchase price gets higher. 

This one-time payment protects homeowners for as long as they own the home, for example, from mortgage or total title fraud. It also covers outstanding bills, like water or property taxes, that the seller didn’t pay, along with undisclosed orders on the property and more.

I had a client buy a (commercial) property with TSSA (Technical Standards and Safety Authority) orders that would have cost him around $150,000 out of pocket, but title insurance paid the value of the whole policy plus the 10 per cent increase after one year, making the damage minimal to his pocket.

An amazing lawyer will ensure buyers have Deal Protection Endorsement and Market Value Endorsement (MVE). MVE will protect the value and equity in the home. If an issue pops up, say, 10 years from closing and the home has exponentially increased in value, if they’re to be paid out anything, MVE ensures it’s for the current market value, not the original value shown on the policy.

The bottom line: if a law firm doesn’t explain this to their clients, it’s not a law firm that you should be recommending or using, ever.

The law clerk/legal assistant

Your client’s main point of contact will be the law clerk and/or legal assistant assigned to their file. One telltale sign of a disorganized law firm, or a law firm that won’t take a client’s best interest to heart, is if the transaction has been “bounced” around to multiple parties at the office. Now, if there has been an emergency and the clerk/assistant is not in the office, that’s a reasonable explanation for a file to be moved to a new person. These situations happen and they don’t mean the law office is less than par, but if they’ve been given to more than four different people, this should be worrisome.

It’s one thing if they mostly talk to the assistant and then the clerk calls to clarify something (as the clerk has the better legal knowledge and does most of the legal work on the file), but if they’ve spoken to multiple clerks/assistants and are constantly getting asked the same questions over and over again, this is a “cause for pause” and a conversation they need to demand they have with a lawyer.

My favourite law firm has the law clerk talking to everyone, she makes notes in every file and the front of every file has a checklist to indicate what happened/is happening, when and why, what’s outstanding and still needs to be addressed, etc. Your clients need to be comfortable with the clerks and assistants.

My rule has always been if they’re not forthcoming with what to anticipate or if they find out but don’t divulge information clients most definitely should know, that’s a sign for concern. A prime example here is if the law firm finds out your client is in a “train transaction,” meaning they’re selling to buy and the people they’re buying from are also selling to buy: the parties are reliant on the very first transaction. In this case, a good firm would tell them to try and get a same-day bridge loan. This will stop them from incurring costs on the purchase in the event that the seller doesn’t get their mortgage funds, funds don’t come in time, etc.

No law firm wants to deal with extremely costly extensions due to subsequent train transactions. These are law firms that know what potential situations can incur and the costs they might involve, and they’ll do everything to ensure clients aren’t getting “screwed” financially.

Above all, the law firm your clients go with will make or break their experience, finances and sanity. Help them make the best choice.

* I’ve heard of cases where builders set water/hydro connections at $70,000 to “get around” the capping agreement, as these charges aren’t included in capping (also not included in capping are property tax, common expenses, grading/performance deposit, etc.). Lawsuits have come out of this and possibly still are.

A lot can go wrong in a home that can be costly to repair. When showing a home or viewing it with clients, there are some common issues realtors can make buyers aware of when it comes to plumbing.

Every homeowner should at least have a basic understanding of problems that could arise as well as the appropriate professional to remedy the situation. It’s helpful for your clients to have a trusted plumber to call when there’s a problem — sometimes even with small issues because things can quickly escalate.

Following are some plumbing problems your clients may come across. It’s important to have an expert on hand to pinpoint and fix any issues before water damage occurs. On top of dealing with that, they could even end up paying more in water bills thanks to deficiencies.

7 plumbing issues that may require a plumber’s expertise

1. Dripping faucets. Faucets and fixtures in sinks, bathtubs, showers and dishwashers should not drip when turned off. Dripping is often due to worn seals and can lead to higher water bills over time. Addressing these drips promptly can save money and prevent further wear.

2. Leaky pipes. Leaks can occur in both visible and hidden pipes, leading to water damage, mould growth and increased utility costs. A plumber is needed to locate the source of leaks, especially those hidden behind walls or under floors, and to repair or replace the affected pipes.

3. Running toilets. Toilets should not continue to run after flushing. A running toilet indicates an internal leak, which wastes water and increases bills. If jiggling the handle is necessary, components like the flapper valve, float or fill tube may need adjustment or replacement.

4. Clogged or slow-draining sinks. Kitchen sinks often clog due to food debris and bathroom sinks frequently become clogged with hair. While some clogs can be cleared with over-the-counter solutions, persistent issues require professional attention. Using strainers can help prevent clogs by keeping debris out of drains.

5. Sewer line backups. A clogged sewer line can cause significant damage by backing up raw sewage into the home. This issue is often due to tree roots or broken pipes and requires specialized equipment and expertise to diagnose and resolve.

6. Water heater issues. Leaks, sediment buildup or faulty thermostats can lead to inefficient heating or complete failure. A plumber can assess the water heater’s condition and perform necessary repairs or replacements to ensure it operates safely and efficiently.

7. Outdated or banned piping. In older homes, you may find galvanized or polybutylene pipes, which are prone to corrosion and can lead to lead contamination or system failure. Replacing these pipes with modern materials is a complex task that requires a plumber’s expertise.

Other issues

Additional common plumbing issues our inspectors often come across include: 

• No water shut-offs — essential for quickly stopping water flow in emergencies
• No backflow valve — prevents contaminated water from entering the clean water supply
• Improper fittings — can lead to leaks or inefficient water flow
• Incorrect dishwasher connections — improperly installed drain lines can cause leaks
• Loose toilets — can lead to leaks and water damage
• Poor water pressure — may be a sign of underlying plumbing issues

Encouraging your clients to schedule annual home maintenance inspections can help identify these issues early. Home inspectors can spot problems and may recommend local plumbing experts to address any concerns.

An annual inspection is also a great time for homeowners to bring up any issues they’ve noticed throughout the year that weren’t remedied right away. Preventative maintenance not only provides peace of mind, but it can also save money by addressing potential problems before they become major issues.