Better yet, what do you expect of yourself? Well, here’s the defining truth of the new year; we are all being held to a higher standard. The age of indulgence ended on Sept. 11. it’s now the age of accountability.
10 of the Best New Year’s Resolutions for 2012:
1. Resolve to stay brutally optimistic. See the opportunity in every difficulty and anticipate the most favourable outcome out of every situation. Whatever you look for, that’s what you’ll find. We can get better or we can get bitter; it all depends on the lessons we draw from each experience. Optimism is like electricity – very little happens without it. Know this truth: you have all the resources you’ll ever need to handle all the challenges you’ll ever have. It’s in the true emergencies that the true you emerges.
2. Resolve to identify the most powerful benefit you offer to the people around you and then deliver it. “The purpose of life.” Said George Bernard Shaw, “is a life of purpose.” What’s yours? Where are you investing your personal energy; self-preservation or adding value to others? Here’s the well-being paradox: if you’re only concerned about yourself, you cannot take care of yourself. Only by helping others can you succeed.
3. Resolve to pump up your personal vitality. In the game of life it’s not about whose right, it’s about whose left. Over 60% of us are more than 36 years old. The real currency of the new century is not cash, it’s about vitality. It’s the ability to keep going every day of every week of every month of the year with vigour and verve. All you are to the people around you is a source of energy and you cannot give what you don’t have. Ninety per cent of all adults do no physical exercise at all. More than half of us are overweight. A third of us still smoke. So, this year, resolve to enhance your physical, emotional and mental vitality. Take just a small step. First you’ll amaze yourself and then you’ll amaze everybody else.
4. Resolve to be habitually generous. Success is not something you pursue; it’s something you attract by what you become. The more you give of yourself, the more favours you attract from others. People have a deep-rooted drive to give back. So resolve to search for ways to contribute to others. Here’s an interesting aphorism: live above the line. If the line represents other’s expectations of you, consistently surpass those expectations. You’ll develop what the business author Ken Blanchard calls “raving fans,” people who become walking billboards for you.
5. Resolve to go on a mental diet. Sticks and stones can break your bones, but words can scar you for life. It’s humans, not elephants, who never forget. So resolve to use the language of conciliation, not the language of confrontation. Avoid the temptation to vent your negativity on others. Instead, use words that express your joie de vivre and connection with others.
6. Resolve to be a global citizen, fully open to the cultures and influences of others. There is a direct correlation between personal well-being and openness to other peoples’ ideas and cultures. If someone has a different point of view, they’re probably right as well. There are no absolutes anymore, so welcome different opinions. Become a one-person champion of plurality. Not only will you make lots of new friends, but you’ll also gather multiple reference points to help you resolve personal challenges.
7. Resolve to take control of your destiny. Don’t be so busy trying to make a living that you forget to make a life. Decide who you want to be and what you want to achieve and then stride boldly towards your vision. The most precious human commodity today is confidence.
8. Resolve to increase your human connectedness. The person with the best connections wins. The wider your network, the more opportunities you generate. It’s all about trust. And it’s all about profile – your presence in the minds of the people who matter. So invest at least 10 per cent of your time broadening your sphere of influence. Connect with other people to opportunities within your network: cross-pollinate their potential. When you are with others, make every encounter a pleasurable one. When you listen, truly listen. And burn your fear of rejection.
9. Resolve to increase your creativity by letting go of the familiar. Nothing is as far away as yesterday. Try to see the world through fresh eyes every day. As Salman Rushdie writes, every year is the stone age to the year that follows it. Listen to your intuition and follow your instincts, they’ll tell you what to do before your head has had a chance to figure it out. You are a Picasso or Einstein at something. Discover what it is and then develop it to the maximum.
10. Resolve to be you because others are already taken. You and I are at our best when we’re being authentic. We’re at our best when we’re being positively spontaneous because that’s when all our energy is being invested in the person in front of us or the task at hand. In a hyper-competitive world, we cannot afford to second-guess ourselves. Success in the new, new age is all about speed. So act now, because if not now, when?
So there you have it, 10 New Year’s Resolutions to help improve your life in 2012. So decide. And act”
Lindsay: we are considering selling our home and have interviewed a couple of local agents. My sister who lives out of town has recommended that we interview the agent who sold her home. The agents office is about a hour drive from our property. What are the differences in choosing a local agent as opposed to one from another town such as Toronto or Mississauga?
Ask to see proof that the company has WSIB (Workplace Safety and Insurance Board of Ontario)
Durham Region Real Estate Update For May 2012
Durham Region Real Estate Update
Oshawa, Whitby, Clarington Real Estate
Are we in a Sellers or Buyers Market?
Recently we have had a buyer buy a home that was on the market for over 2 months and negotiated a really low selling price. We have also had a property that was just listed above a recent sale of a similar property sell for $31,000 over asking price with 4 offers in competition.
How do you make sense of it?
The real estate market is easy to understand: supply and demand. When the demand is greater than the supply prices go up, homes sell for more than asking and do so in record time. In the past 7 days, in the communities of Oshawa, Whitby and Clarington, we have seen 212 homes sell. Of these sales 58 were at full asking price or sold for more than asking price. That is a staggering 27%. This is the best example of a Seller’s market I have seen in years. If you are planning on selling, this is the time to sell.
Here are 3 examples from April:
In Oshawa, between $325,000 – $350,000 there are only 17 homes for sale and last month there were 24 total sales.
In Whitby, between $325,000 – $350,000 there are only 26 homes for sale and last month there were 31 homes sold.
In Clarington, between $225,000 – $250,000 there were only 19 homes for sale and last month there were 30 homes in this range sell.
One thing I have seen in a market like this is … well markets like this do not last. Typically buyers change direction overnight and the market cools like someone turned the switch off.
If you are considering selling, call me while the “heat” is still turned on. I would be happy to work with you or any of your family or friends.
All it takes is a call or an email to get things started.
Absorption Rates For Whitby
Absorption Rate is the time it would take to sell the current supply of homes for sale – in months
Price Range
April Sales
Active Listings
Months of Supply
150,000 – 175,000
0
1
N/A
175,000 – 200,000
0
1
N/A
200,000 – 225,000
2
0
N/A
225,000 – 250,000
6
7
1.1 months
250,000 – 275,000
14
15
1.07 months
275,000 – 300,000
33
21
.63 month
300,000 – 325,000
21
15
.71 month
325,000 – 350,000
31
26
.83 month
350,000 – 375,000
24
23
.95 month
375,000 – 400,000
17
16
.94 month
400,000 – 425,000
9
20
2.2 months
425,000 – 450,000
20
17
.85 month
450,000 – 500,000
15
16
1.06 months
500,000 +
22
99
4.5 months
Absorption Rates For Oshawa
Price Range
April Sales
Active Listings
Months of Supply
150,000 – 175,000
16
21
1.3 months
175,000 – 200,000
28
42
1.5 months
200,000 – 225,000
33
29
.87 month
225,000 – 250,000
33
47
1.42 months
250,000 – 275,000
27
37
1.37 months
275,000 – 300,000
36
40
1.1 months
300,000 – 325,000
13
19
1.46 months
325,000 – 350,000
24
17
.70 month
350,000 – 375,000
10
10
1 month
375,000 – 400,000
12
16
1.3 months
400,000 – 425,000
3
15
5 months
425,000 – 450,000
4
11
2.75 months
450,000 – 500,000
8
23
2.8 months
500,000 +
6
43
7.1 months
Absorption Rates For Bowmanville/Courtice
Price Range
April Sales
Active Listings
Months of Supply
150,000 – 175,000
2
2
1 month
175,000 – 200,000
8
13
1.6 months
200,000 – 225,000
8
16
2 months
225,000 – 250,000
30
19
.63 months
250,000 – 275,000
30
26
.86 month
275,000 – 300,000
14
22
1.5 months
300,000 – 325,000
12
19
1.58 months
325,000 – 350,000
12
18
1.5 months
350,000 – 375,000
6
16
2.6 months
375,000 – 400,000
5
13
2.6 months
400,000 – 425,000
1
7
7 months
425,000 – 450,000
6
12
2 months
450,000 – 500,000
7
8
1.14 months
500,000 +
4
32
8 months
Absorption Rates For Whitby/Oshawa/Bowmanville/Courtice
Price Range
April Sales
Active Listings
Months of Supply
150,000 – 175,000
18
24
1.3 months
175,000 – 200,000
36
56
1.5 months
200,000 – 225,000
43
45
1.04 months
225,000 – 250,000
69
73
1.05 months
250,000 – 275,000
71
78
1.09 months
275,000 – 300,000
83
83
1 month
300,000 – 325,000
46
53
1.15 months
325,000 – 350,000
67
61
.91 month
350,000 – 375,000
44
42
.95 month
375,000 – 400,000
34
49
1.44 months
400,000 – 425,000
13
47
3.6 months
425,000 – 450,000
30
40
1.3 months
450,000 – 500,000
30
47
1.5 months
500,000 +
32
174
5.4 months
lindsay@soldbylindsay.com
Keller Williams Energy Real Estate
905-430-2320 or 1-888-430-2320