Friday, October 31, 2008

An interesting thing happened...

Today, I received a prospect telephone inquiry from my website. Great !

A prospect phone call! We engaged in a meaning full conversation about the First Time Buyers Grant of $10,000 that's available from the Federal government. This program is individually administered by the cities.

Toronto's application of the funds is available only for Buyers who choose Regent Park and may not be suitable to those in the west end of Toronto. The Region of Peel has left the choice open for any house in either Mississauga or Brampton resale or new, freehold or condo ownership.

There are funds available from the First Time Buyers rebate of Land Transfer Tax both from the Ontario and Toronto Governments based on declarations of being a first time buyer and some income / budget restrictions.

In addition, there are still First Time Buyers tax adjustments available from the Federal Government for the withdrawl of funds from your RRSP.

During the October election, as an economic stimulus package, the Progressive Conservative government pledged a $5,000 tax credit towards closing costs and inspection fees, to help the housing industry avoid a slump. Lets make sure this happens to benefit the construction industry and employment.

This person thanked me for the information and advised me that my website contained the most detailed and comprehensive information that they had found on the internet. THEIR CLIENTS sure could use the information.

I was stopped cold. I was educating another agent. If they had called and identified themselves, I would have dispatched the call with greater detail as to where the specific program details could have been found rather than a lengthy detailed explanation of the process and requirements of each program. I would have refered them directly to the source material for them to download or read.

New agents have mentors and managers to assist their learning curve. In a time where experience doesn't seem to matter in the eyes of the consuming public, I cannot emphasize enough the value an experienced agent brings to your home Buying and Selling event, with the briefcase of experience and toolbox of knowledge. They truly are your guide to buying and selling in Toronto.

1 comment:

bettyb said...

Isn't it a shame that agents will not tell their clients that they are going to get information for them. We are human. We do make mistakes and if we have any consciousness, we will be honest with our clients and tell them where we get our information. It's great that we have different levels of knowledge in our business, but we should be honest enough with our own colleagues to ask for assistance when we need it. Of course, we shouldn't expect to have someone else do the work for us, but let's be real here, if you look up your own information you will learn more about the topic that you are researching. David, you have a wonderful web site and provide so much information that agents shouldn't be asking for extra.
Thank you for sharing that experience. When the general public reads the article I'm sure they will realize your qualifications and knowledge.
Betty