Courtesy of Rick Simioni

LOCAL REAL ESTATE PROFESSIONAL SINCE 2008 REALTOR ® RICK SIMIONI

NRC Realty Brokerage; Independently Owned & Operated

e 3

ricksimioni@royallepage.ca www.RickSimioni.com

905.380.5957

Volume 15 | Number 11

THE ETERNAL QUESTION: SHOULD YOU RENT OR BUY? It ’s a question everyone seems to have an

opinion on – should you rent, or should you buy real estate? When you’re a homeowner, the big advantage is that the property is yours. As long as you make your mortgage payments you’re not going to be asked to move. The same of course can’t be said for renters. If the owner of the rental property decides they want to sell it or move in themselves or use the property for some other purpose, you as a tenant have little recourse but to move. In a market where rental vacancy rates are low, simply finding a new place to rent could prove problematic. But there are also advantages to being a renter. With rising home sale prices many, especially young couples just starting out, lack the means to purchase a home. As a renter, parts of your income can be set aside to build a nest egg that in time can be used as a down payment once you are ready to enter the housing market. Other benefits renters have include not having to worry about household maintenance, defective appliances, paying property tax and dealing with structural problems. So, is it better to rent or to buy? It all depends on your personal situation, your long-range plans and your eventual needs. While homeowners will typically be building equity over the years, renters will live minus the commitment home ownership demands. In any philosophic argument there is no one right answer – only what works for the individual involved.

LEFTOVER DELIGHT: TURKEY POTATO CHOWDER

Courtesy of www.aheadofthyme.com

INGREDIENTS : 2 tablespoons butter ½ small onion, diced 1 clove garlic, minced 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 3 cups chicken stock 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning

3 cups leftover mashed potatoes 2-3 cups cooked turkey 1 cup half and half cream ½ cup corn, frozen salt and pepper (to taste) cheddar cheese (optional topping) parsley, chopped (optional topping)

DIRECTIONS: 1. In a pot, melt butter over medium-high heat, until it bubbles. Add onion and garlic and sauté until tender and starting to brown, about 3-4 minutes. 2. Add flour and mix well until combined. Cook for 1 minute. Pour in stock and Italian seasoning and mix well. Bring the mixture to a simmer, about 3-4 minutes. Add in mashed potatoes, stir until potatoes have broken up. Let the soup simmer for 8-10 minutes until thickened, stirring occasionally. Add turkey and half and half cream. Cook until heated through, about 3-5 minutes. Stir in corn and season with salt and pepper to taste. 3. Ladle into bowls and top with cheese and green onions, if desired.

" IT IS DIFFICULT TO SAY WHAT IS IMPOSSIBLE, FOR THE DREAM OF YESTERDAY IS THE HOPE OF TODAY AND THE REALITY OF TOMORROW. -Robert H. Goddard

Considered by many to be the father of American rocketry, Robert Hutchings Goddard was an engineer, professor, physicist and inventor who is credited with creating and building the world’s first liquid fueled rocket. He successfully launched his rocket on March 16, 1926, which ushered in an era of space flight and innovation that continues to the modern day. A visionary, he imagined what was possible, and then through work and study turned that vision into a reality.

THINGS TO CONSIDER BEFORE ANY HOME RENOVATION Spending money on upgrades with hopes that the investment will generate profit is a common practice for sellers. Aside from simple upgrades, such as adding a fresh coat of paint, practical improvements that improve the livability of the home have the best proven return on investment. Examples include: Altering the layout or functionality of a home will typically improve its value more than a large construction effort that adds structure but not form. An upgraded kitchen or eating area will probably have more value than a swimming pool or backyard water feature for example. Improving a plumbing or heating system, such as incorporating modern energy-saving technology is another upgrade that has proven value. Any upgrades that reduce operating costs or reduce its environmental footprint are also popular. Switching to energy-efficient lighting, sealing off heat loss areas and upgrading a home’s insulation are relatively simple choices. Builders know that certain upgrades pay off when it comes time to sell. Remodelled bathrooms, the installation of new windows and others have historically added to a home’s value.

Before you begin, create a budget and try to calculate what your efforts will add to the home’s value. Talking with a REALTOR ® , a home builder or staff at your local home improvement store might provide ideas as well. Then, once you’re ready, get to work.

EMERGING TECHNOLOGIES

HAVE CHANGED

REAL ESTATE

the client ever leaving their home, with the contracted on-site REALTOR ® looking after the physical details of the transaction. One of the industry’s key technologies is the MLS ® System, the industry standard database that provides sales professionals anywhere instant access to a vast trove of information regarding specific listings, neighbourhoods and more. Originally presented as a paper catalog, a document that was quickly out of date and increasingly expensive to produce, today’s MLS ® Systems are constantly updated and accessible around the clock. As new technologies emerge the real estate sector will be finding new and imaginative ways to turn those breakthroughs into ways of doing their jobs quicker, easier and to a larger audience. Real estate sales in the 21st century are eagerly riding the crest of this new technological wave.

Finding a way to make technology work for the betterment of any industry has helped change our modern world in ways unimagined by earlier generations. Time and again it ’s been proven that imagination is the catalyst that leads to innovation and that ’s never been truer than with the profession of real estate sales. Today’s real estate can cross the globe at the speed of light, serving an audience that could number in the thousands. A REALTOR ® at their computer keyboard can manage dozens of properties without leaving the comfort or convenience of their office. Thanks to websites, digital photography, simple-to-use video production software, Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality experiences, 3D renderings, interactive maps and other technologies, customers can visit a property virtually from the comfort of their home, on the other side of the world in some cases. Increasingly property purchases are made remotely, without

BRAIN TEASERS Courtesy of www riddles.com 1. What 8 letter word can have a letter taken away and it still makes a word. Take another letter away and it still makes a word. Keep on doing that until you have one letter left. What is the word?

1. The word is starting! starting, staring, string, sting, sing, sin, in, I. 2. Fire. 3. Your name.

2. I am not alive, but I grow; I don’t have

EASY SUDOKU #1 lungs, but I need air; I don’t have a mouth, but water kills me. What am I? 3. What belongs to you, but other people use it more than you?

Answers:

SUDOKU PUZZLE Creative puzzles are an excellent way to keep the mind sharp, while being fun and entertaining at the same time. Sudoku is a great example of a puzzle that benefits the grey cells, while being an exciting challenge. Enjoy this one! All rights reserved.

Copyright © 2014 puzzles-to-print.com.

Find more: Easy Sudoku Puzzles

Courtesy of www.puzzles-to-print.com

SOLUTION

EASY SUDOKU #1

MARKET UPDATE

Page

MARKET ACTIVITY in Selected Niagara Areas October Residential Activity Market Report: October Residential Overview – Year vs Year

Number of New Listings 2021 2022

Number of Sales

HPI Benchmark Price

Average Days on Market

Areas

2021

2022

2021

2022

2021

2022

Fonthill/Pelham

27

47

23 83 46

20 37 27 62 26 30

$ 891,700 $ 557,600 $ 810,700 $ 666,300 $ 1,133,700 $ 555,300 $ 617,000 $ 646,700 $ 559,300 $ 820,700 $ 680,600

$ 851,400 $ 545,500 $ 780,700 $ 640,000 $ 1,076,700 $ 539,600 $ 582,100 $ 634,500 $ 547,900 $ 803,300 $ 653,500

21 20 20 18 27 27 12 18 13 15 19

43 42 42 37 58 57 30 35 38 53

Fort Erie Lincoln

103

122

52

65

Niagara Falls

199

214

163

Niagara-on-the-lake

46 39

52 67

39 38

Port Colborne/Wainfleet

St. Catharines

243

263

221

124

Thorold Welland

36

51

37

9

100

126

108

62 13

West Lincoln Niagara Totals

20

31

16

865 44 Note: Numbers of sales represents sales reported for the month of October on or before November 2 th , 2022. 1038 774 410

Note: Numbers of sales represents sales reported on properties listed on the Multiple Listings Serves (MLS ® ) of the Niagara Association of REALTORS ® (NAR).

REALTOR ® RICK SIMIONI

2017

The greatest compliment my clients can give me is the referral of family and friends.

2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019, 2020

2012, 2013

905.380.5957 | ricksimioni@royallepage.ca

2018

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