In a press release issued Thursday afternoon, Greater Toronto REALTORS® reported 10,350 transactions through the TorontoMLS System in April 2012. This level of sales was 18 per cent higher than the 8,778 firm deals reported in April 2011.  The strongest sales growth was reported in the single-detached market segment, with transactions of this home type up by 22 per cent compared to a year ago.

“Interest in single-detached homes has been very high, both in the City of Toronto and surrounding regions.  Growth in single-detached listings has not kept up with demand, which means competition between buyers in this market segment increased.  With this in mind, it was no surprise that the strongest annual price increase was also experienced in the single-detached segment,” said Toronto Real Estate Board President, Richard Silver.

Summer is a great time to make improvements to your home. One of the least costly ways to increase your property value is to make changes to the front and backyard. Unless the surroundings of your home are already landscaped, this is the area where you can proceed at your own pace, and within your own budget.

The simplest way to do it is by planting attractive perennials and shrubs. But it is important to choose plants that are appropriate not only for the climate zone, but also for the type of soil and exposure. Finest plants will look miserable unless they can thrive in the location in which they are planted.

Larger nurseries typically can provide advice in this regard, and they also provide reasonably priced services ranging from in-store sketch design, at home design consultation, to planting. Sheridan Nurseries offer free pre-drawn landscape plans. And well planted and attractive garden and front yard give an impression of a well maintained home - something a prospective buyer will appreciate.

If your budget allows, building a deck or a patio is a great way to go. Not only will it increase your property value, but it will also provide you with an extra living and entertaining space in the summer months.

While making improvements in the garden, you may consider installing a watering system. Although it can be more costly, depending on the size of your property, it will save you water and time, and protect your plants from drying out when you travel. Automatic sprinklers, whether underground or low pressure above ground, can be set up to start watering early in the morning, when all moisture can soak into the soil instead of evaporating in the heat of the day. Above ground low pressure systems are particularly suitable for smaller gardens. They do have to be winterized by blowing the water out, but that is only once a year effort.

TREB released its mid-month resale housing market figures report for the month of March. During the first 14 days of March, Greater Toronto REALTORS® reported 4,215 transactions through the TorontoMLS system, representing a seven per cent increase compared to the same period in 2011. The number of new listings was down by two per cent year-over-year to 6,970.

“Home buyers continue to benefit from the affordable housing situation in the GTA. Immigration to Toronto and surrounding areas adds to the pool of home buyers every year. The economic and ethnic diversity found in the GTA consistently attracts newcomers and foreign investment,” said Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) President Richard Silver.

The Globe and Mail reports on the Queen's University finance professor Louis Gagnon urging the federal government to tighten the mortgage financing rules to prevent a real estate bubble and make it more difficult for marginal buyers to enter Canadian housing market.

Professor Gagnon would like the government to lower the maximum ammortization period from the current 30-years to 25, and increase minimum down payment from 5 to 10 percent. He worries that once the mortgage rates start to rise, buyers who barely qualified for financing with the current historically low rates will be in danger of not being able to carry their debt load.

CREA released its national resale housing activity for the month of February. According to the report, sales activity recorded through the MLS^® Systems of Canadian real estate Boards and Associations edged up 1.4 per cent from January to February 2012, recouping one-third of the monthly decline in activity between December 2011 and January 2012.

“The national rise in both sales activity and the number of newly listed homes beyond the normal seasonal increase provides clear evidence that Canadians are confident in housing market prospects,” said Gary Morse, CREA’s President. “Confidence varies by region, as do prospects for housing demand. For that reason, buyers and sellers should talk to their local REALTOR^® to understand current and prospective trends in their local housing market.”

Bank of Canada is holding the interest rates steady for now, which is a good news for the real estate market. It is anticipated that the rates will remain low as long as the crisis in the Euro countries lasts.

The recession in Europe is deeper than what was forecast in October, and economic conditions in Canada are not as good as they appeared to be a few months ago. But inflation in Canada is moderating with the cost of food and fuel decreasing slowly. Bank of Canada has adopted a "wait and see" policy, and would not rule out more stimulus if necessary.

Real estate sales in Toronto have been busy in July and August, quite unlike last summer, when sales in August in the central districts were particularly sluggish.

Typically real estate sales are expected to speed up in September, and the media are quick to point out that this year's September sales are not as good as everyone has hoped. The following table shows the sales of freehold homes in Toronto in July, August and first half of September, compared to new listings taken in the same periods.

Comparatively speaking, real estate sales slowed down somewhat instead of speeding up, while the number of new listings increased substantially.

But if we look at the same statistics from 2010, we can see that the home sales in September were similar in numbers to those recorded this year. Tha main difference lies in the levels of home sales in July and August 2010, and in a larger number of new listings coming for sale this September.

The largest difference between these two periods lies in the number of sales in August in central districts (2011 saw 46% more sales in August) and west districts (31% more sales in August 2011), and in the number of new listings in September in the central districts (26.7% more) and in the east districts (10.1% more). In the west districts the number of new freehold listings this September is actually lower than in the same period last year.

It should be noted that, although the number of sold homes is not at the level of sales from July and August, the number of properties sold above the listing price increased - see the table below, taking into account that September results cover only half the month.

Mayor Ford promised, if elected, to end the Toronto Land Transfer Tax. That tax targets home buyers in Toronto, almost doubling the amount of tax levied on property purchase.

Unfortunately, some of our newly elected councillors would prefer to maintain the status quo and keep the tax.

Please take action. Visit the website created to oppose the tax, send an e-mail to Mayor and City Council, and encourage your contacts to do the same.

When purchasing a home, it is important to be sure that it can be insured. Without insurance, mortgage lenders will not release the funds to close the purchase.

While many new homes are being built, city core contains a large proportion of older homes, and many of them are not updated. Insurance companies are concerned about rising costs, and cautious about home safety.

Over the last years more and more home buyers had to cover unexpected costs to upgrade their homes to be able to obtain home insurance. Typical upgrades include electrical wiring, removal of old oil tanks, replacement of old furnace, or a new roof. Sometimes the time period allowed for such upgrades is as short as 30 days.

Home insurance is generally intended to help owners cope with financial consequences of unpredictable events. Predictable or preventable events, like freezing of indoor pipes if the heat has not been turned on, are not covered. It is often necessary to obtain insurance for an older home from insurance company specializing in such properties, at higher premiums.

When making an offer on an older home with potential insurance issues, it is wise to make an offer conditional on being able to secure home insurance.

When considering buying a condominium unit, it is important to check the common areas and ask questions. Knowing answers to the following questions will help you decide how good is the building.

• How well kept are the common areas?
• Is the concierge polite, friendly and helpful? The concierge usually has a lot of useful information - what type of people live in the building, whether many of them are tenents and not owners, if there are any problems, and they may even know how many units are in the building and how old it is.
• What is the ratio of resident owners to tenants? Resident owners care about the building and are more likely to ensure that it is well kept, well maintained, and renovated. Tenants live there only temporarily, and have no financial interest in the state of the condominium. Residents owners tend to be more active in condo affairs.
• What view does the condominium unit have, and is it likely to change? If there is a vacant lot or a parking lot near the building it is likely that at some point in the future a building might be erected there.
• What types of noise problems exist? It might be a highway, airport, or a busy street, or the unit might be located next to a garbage chute. Air conditioning units and other machinery are typically located on the roof - some penthouses might experience noise problems.