You know that the weather is starting to get halfway decent when the heavy equipment starts coming out and the easiest way to get to work is blocked off with pilons.

At the Century 21 office we currently have the pleasure of having to contend with a road crew right in front of our driveway. They started last week and they will be there until September. I'm already annoyed.

I'm usually the first one at work, so I'm the guy that has to get out of my car every day and remind the fellows to leave a space so that cars can pull in and out of the entranceway. They are nice enough about it, but I shouldn't have to remind them every day, you'd think they would remember by now. No big deal really.

The roads in Trenton are in pretty decent shape, but I have noticed that the volume in traffic has increased tremendously in the last ten years or so. Last week I had to wait for 3 traffic light cycles before I could get across the bridge. Part of the allure of small town living is not having to contend with traffic, and in this respect Trenton is less alluring than it was a few years ago. With the planned expansion to the airforce base and the new 388 slip marina that will be built in downtown Trenton, traffic is bound to get worse. Hopefully  someone at city hall is already working on a solution to this potential problem.

I won't worry about it too much for now, I'm just happy that the weather is starting to get better.

Une des meilleures choses au sujet d'être un agent immobilier dans la région de Quinte est d'apprendre à conduire autour de la zone présentant des propriétés. Nous avons quelques zones très belles et certaines propriétés très sympas qui sont une aubaine comparativement à d'autres domaines de la province.

J'ai développé un petit faible pour les chalets riverains et les propriétés de loisirs. Il n'y a rien de mieux que de montrer ces endroits pour les gens des grandes villes comme Ottawa ou Toronto. Beaucoup d'entre eux ont déjà cherché des propriétés similaires dans la région de Muskoka, et sont très heureux quand ils constatent que leur dollar peut étirer un tas plus loin dans le comté Prince Edward ou le long de la rivière Trent et c'est beaucoup de lacs et de leurs affluents.

Mon affaire bord de l'eau début de l'année ont confirmé la semaine dernière, et il était d'une beauté. Ce chalet de 2 chambres a été répertoriée 185,000 $, et mon acheteur a réussi à obtenir pour un peu en dessous du prix de liste. Il a tout ce qu'un propriétaire de chalet qui veulent, ce n'est pas une cabane branlante vieux, c'est un chalet entièrement mis à niveau année ronde, à seulement 5 minutes du village tranquille de Glen Ross.

La région de Quinte et comté de Prince Edward ont beaucoup de lacs, de ruisseaux et de rivières, et je passe beaucoup de mon temps à les montrer à des gens qui sont intéressés à acheter une place que leur famille ne peut bénéficier pour les années à venir. C'est beaucoup de plaisir à trouver ces personnes au bon endroit au bon prix. C'est en fait beaucoup plus amusant quand nous avons cherché à quelques endroits et ont calculé qu'ils peuvent acheter une maison de beaucoup plus que ce qu'ils avaient pensé qu'ils pouvaient se permettre.

Les pêcheurs, en particulier, l'amour de la rivière Trent. Il a une partie de la pêche en eau douce dans les meilleures de tout le Canada. Il ya beaucoup de natation et la navigation de plaisance aussi, mais c'est généralement le folklore de la pêche qui ont cette lueur dans leurs yeux quand ils sont à regarder l'eau.

Si vous êtes à la recherche pour les chalets dans le sud de l'Ontario cet été, pourquoi ne pas envisager la Quinte-Prince-Édouard ou les comtés, nous avons un grand coup de listes bord de l'eau, beaucoup d'entre eux sont encore sous la barre des 200.000 $.

Il suffit de choisir le téléphone, appelez-moi et je serai très heureux de vous faire visiter. Je parie que vous ne serez pas en mesure de partir sans acheter quelque chose.

One of the best things about being a real estate agent in the Quinte area is getting to drive around the area showing properties. We have some really nice areas and some really nice properties that are a bargain compared to other areas of the province.

I have developed a soft spot for waterfront cottages and recreational properties. There's nothing better than showing these places to people from the bigger cities like Ottawa or Toronto. Many of them have already looked for similar properties in the Muskokas, and are very pleased when they find that their dollar can stretch a whole lot further in Prince Edward County or along the Trent river and it's many lakes and tributaries.

My first waterfront deal of the year firmed up last week, and it was a beauty. This 2 bedroom cottage was listed for $185,000, and my buyer managed to get it for a little bit under list price. It has everything that a cottage owner would want, it's not a rickety old shack, it's a fully upgraded year round cottage, just 5 minutes away from the quiet village of Glen Ross.

The Quinte area and Prince Edward County have a lot of lakes, streams and rivers, and I spend a lot of my time showing them off to people who are interested in buying a place that their family can enjoy for years to come. It's a lot of fun finding these people the right place at the right price. It's actually a lot more fun when we have looked at a few places and have calculated that they can purchase a lot more cottage than they originally thought they could afford.

Fishermen, especially, love the Trent river. It has some of the best fresh water fishing in all of Canada. There's lots of swimming and boating also, but it's usually the fishing folk who have that gleam in their eye when they are staring at the water.

If you are looking for cottages in Southern Ontario this summer, why not consider the Quinte or Prince Edward County areas, we have a whack of waterfront listings, a lot of them are still under the $200,000 mark.

Just pick up the phone, give me a call and I will be very happy to show you around. I bet you won't be able to leave without buying something.

I have recieved quite a few emails from people who are trying to sell their own homes lately. Some are from people who are truly trying to sell their homes on their own (or with the aid of one of those "For Sale By Owner" companies) and some are from people who have their homes listed with one of those flat fee minimum commission agencies in Toronto, Ottawa, or Hamilton.

These emails are pretty similar and I suspect that the people who are emailing me have been told to do so (and even told what to say) by the people who they have paid to help sell their home. I believe that contacting local real estate agents is a part of their strategy.

The gist of these emails (about five or six a week) is that they admire my web presence and would like me to promote their homes. Of course they insist that I "will be treated fairly", and some go so far as to offer me the 2.5% buyer's commission if I can promote their house and put together a deal with the buyer.

I know why I get these emails, it's my web presence. It's virtually impossible to google anything having to do with real estate in Trenton Ontario and not stumble across one of my many websites, blogs or articles. It's also pretty easy to figure out that my web presence is designed to attract buyers - and guess what, I do attract buyers, lots of them. I'm in the business of attracting buyers.

 I don't reply to these emails, they are of no more interest to me than the ones trying to interest me in buying Viagra online. These emails, while technically are not spam, are quite annoying. Someone seems to have a template for these unsolicited emails.  

I will make something clear. I am not opposed to people trying to sell their own homes in whatever manner they see fit. If someone can sell their own home and keep more money in their pockets, kudos to them. I have sold cars privately and I wouldn't expect people who own car lots to be mad at me for doing so. There are also dozens of real estate deals that take place on a weekly basis in the Quinte board that don't involve me, so a few more or less that don't involve me won't make me lose any sleep. If people want to sell their own homes or pay $199 to have it listed on the MLS by the dollar-store equivalent of a real estate brokerage, that's all well and good - more power to them. Truthfully, they are getting what they paid for, a coroplast sign and a few inches of space on a website that is on page 32 of Google.

I just don't understand why these people think that I would be interested in promoting the sale of their homes. It makes absolutely no sense to me. I have invested tens of thousands of hours and dollars building my web presence (and also the presence that the locals have come to know and love in all the print media outlets). I have built this presence to benefit my clients, the people who's homes I DO have listed. It would be very short sighted of me to offer this platform to any Tom Dick or Harry who wants to promote their own home on my websites for the sake of an odd commission cheque here and there. Why would I want to do that? Why would the clients who are willing to pay me 5% commission (and you would have trouble finding anybody who would tell you that I wasn't worth that) continue to be willing to use my services if I offered them to the next fellow for free?   I might earn a cheque every once in a while, but I'd be cutting my own legs out from under me (and the clients who have agreed to pay me what I'm worth) in the long run. Seems silly, doesn't it?

So, if you are one of those people selling your own home (or trying to with the aid of a bargain basement brokerage), here's the deal - stop bothering me with your emails and I will promise not to bother you with mine. Fair enough? If you're looking for someone to promote your property, why not start with the people who you have paid to do so in the first place. Give them a call, maybe they will come around and make you a nice virtual tour or host an open house or two.

Come and join me at the Quinte West Home and Leisure show at the Community Gardens in Trenton tomorrow afternoon. I will be there from noon until 1.30 p.m. on Sunday (I was supposed to be there until 2, but I have an open house, so I'm rushing off a little early). I will be manning the Century 21 booth, so if you feel like dropping by and saying hello (or anything else), just come by. There are lots of prizes and give-aways, so chances are pretty good that you might win something.

I quite enjoy the Home and Leisure show every year, it gives me a chance to see all the latest innovations and ideas that all the different companies have come out with in the last year. If you're looking for ideas and inspiration on how to jazz up your home, this would be the place to be this weekend.

You know that spring has arrived in the quinte area when it's home show time. See you all tomorrow.

This handy visual guide should make it a bit easier to confirm your suspicions if you think you may have run across a meth lab. Despite people's best efforts to keep them a secret, there are some obvious tell-tale signs that you have to keep your eyes open for.