Buyers Guide
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About Treehouse Treehouse Real Estate was founded by Jessey Touchette and Jeffrey Cox with the intention of bringing Calgary a real estate experience that they felt was missing. They saw room to elevate the standard of what it means to be a high-level real estate team. With a strong emphasis on client care, constant communication and creative marketing strategies, Treehouse has demonstrated what the modern day real estate team looks like. Inspired by their favorite companies within the real estate and creative industries, Jefferey and Jessey have honed in on the fine details of the real estate experience ensuring a more efficient and successful transaction. Treehouse is devoted to serving Calgary’s inner city communities and luxury markets. This extends beyond selling real estate and into serving and connecting with the communities that Jessey and Jeffrey work, sell, and live in.
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As your real estate professionals, we are dedicated to fully guiding you through the process of buying or selling your home. We highly value every customer, keeping your best interests at heart while providing an unparalleled personal level of service to suit your needs. Please don’t hesitate to call us so we can discuss your new home! Realizing your home is one of the largest investments you will ever make, we believe keeping you informed about current market trends and values is one of the greatest services we can provide.
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Treehouse’ Guarantee
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Step 1: Mortgage Pre Approval First we need to get you pre-approved for a mortgage! A pre-approval will allow you to understand how much home you can afford. It will also show you what the monthly payments would look like with other costs associated with buying a home such as property taxes, condominium fees, etc. We have a trusted network of mortgage brokers we can refer you to, however, you’re more than welcome to choose your own or use your bank. Determine Your Priceline - The best place to start when buying a home is to find out what your budget is. Make a List and Prioritize - Imagine your ideal home in the ideal community. Now make a list of everything else you can imagine. Tour Homes in Person and Online - Thanks to the Internet, you can stream-line your search process significantly by checking out homes for sale online.
What’s Important to You By determining buyers expectations, needs and wants, this will help us find the ideal home for you. Some important questions to ask yourself when searching for a home would include: • • • • •
What is your motivation for buying a home? What is your timeline and when are you looking to move into your home? How many bedrooms do you require? How many bathrooms would be suitable? What are your must haves?
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Lifestyle A crucial factor to consider in your home purchase is the type of lifestyle you are looking for. By answering these questions, it will allow us to categorize your search and get a better understanding of what type of neighbourhood would suit you best. • • • • •
What are some areas you enjoy currently and why? Ideal commute time to work? Are there specific school boards you would like your home to be within? Are you active and like being able to go from your home on a bike ride or walk to a local coffee shop? Do you need yard space?
Make a Checklist It is important that you use this checklist in order to be well-prepared when buying a home. The last thing you would want to happen is to move into a home without the necessities in life. These include electricity, gas, water, or work/school related services such as Internet/phone, etc. Be sure everything is in order to keep things running smoothly during the buying process. If you need assistance, we are always here to lend a helping hand. Things to consider for your checklist: • • • • •
Utility Providers - Electricity, Telephone, Water & Sewage, Cable, Gas Government Institutions - CRA, Post Office, Schools, Provincial License, Library Insurance Companies - Accident Insurance, Health Insurance, Home Insurance, Auto Insurance, Benefits Provider Clubs & Miscellaneous - Gym Memberships, Country Club, Recreational Club, Book Club, Other Clubs/Memberships Professional Services - Broker, Accountant, Doctor, Dentist
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Writing the Offer Now that we have found the perfect home for you, be prepared to write an offer. While much of the agreement is standard, there are some areas we can negotiate: Price: Prior to writing any offer we will do a market analysis for you. We will take into account other similar homes within the area to determine an offer price. Possession Date: When do you receive keys after closing? This is important for you to know because it allows you to organize your transition. Do you have a home to sell or do you need to give notice to your current landlord? We will help you navigate this area and make it a win-win for you and the seller.
Writing the Offer continued... Initial Deposit: The importance of this item is often overlooked, this shows commitment and will secure the property for you. This deposit is due in certified funds within 24-48 hours of acceptance. Included Chattels and Excluded Items: We will write in the contract any and all inclusions that you want included with the purchase of the home. This includes all appliances and anything extra you may want. This is also the time to write in the contract if there’s anything you would like removed from the property.
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Looking for Luxury? When your needs are beyond the standard and when you demand more than the status quo, look no further than the RE/MAX Collection. RE/MAX Collection is an international selection of luxury properties offered by real estate’s most prolific global network.
Sophistication. Elegance. Class. The RE/MAX Collection offers all this and much more to affluent homebuyers and sellers around the world. This RE/MAX luxury home marketing program provides exclusive advertising incentives, specialized training and distinctive marketing tools to better serve discerning clients like you.
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Conditions & Closing Congratulations, you have an accepted offer! However we have a few conditions we need to remove before the house is officially yours. Standard conditions include: Home Inspection, obtaining financing and condo document review if you are buying a condo. Condo Document Review: It is important to have all of the condo documents reviewed by a professional. They will be able to determine if the condominium corporation is in good standing.
Conditions & Closing continued... Home Inspections: We have reputable and trusted home inspectors who can assist with this process. We often have 7-10 days to get this inspection completed. Once we have received the inspection back from the inspector there may need to be some further negotiations on our end to decide what items need to be attended to or if compensation is the best route. Closing: Although you have had a pre -pproval, we will send all the necessary paperwork to your mortgage broker or bank so they can get you a firm approval on financing.
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FAQ’S How will you tell me about the newest homes available? We will have you set up on a customized home search on our MLSŽ system which will automatically send you homes as they become available to the market. Will you inform me of homes from all real estate companies or only RE/MAX? We will keep you posted on all homes available regardless of what company they are listed with. Can you help me find new construction homes? Yes we can work with any builder, we will get you all necessary information.
FAQ’S How does for sale by owner (FSBO) work? Homeowners trying to sell their home without agent representation are usually doing so in the hopes of saving the commission. If you see a FSBO and want the advantages of our services, let us contact the owner for you and make an appointment. Most times the homeowner will work with us even though their home is not listed, since we are introducing a potential buyer to their property. Can we go back through our property again once an offer is made but before possession? Typically we visit the home upon an accepted offer with a home inspector for an inspection, then we will perform another walkthrough 48 hours prior to closing. Once my offer is accepted, what should I do? Your first step will be getting a deposit for the property which is generally due within 24-48 hrs after acceptance. From there we will begin working on removing any conditions you may have on the home.
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RE/MAX Dominates An independent, unbiased third party has recognized RE/MAX as the commanding presence in Canadian Real Estate. Real Trends, the leader in performance ranking for residential brokerages, has identified 159 RE/MAX Brokerages in this year’s Top 250 report. It’s more undeniable proof that RE/MAX has the most productive agents in Canada.
200 159 150
100 50 0
Royal LePage
Coldwell Banker
Keller Williams
Century 21
RE/MAX Brand Recognition The most well known brand in the Real Estate industry for over 40 years. Combine that with Treehouse and their progressive, innovative marketing strategies and you have a recipe for success!
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36.8%
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20 11.3% 10 0
Royal LePage
9.8%
Caldwell Banker
7.1%
Keller Williams
6.0%
Century 21
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Treehouse Testimonials We were referred to Treehouse when we were looking to relocate from Fort McMurray. We are very appreciative for their help in finding us the perfect home for our busy family! Treehouse is extremely professional, they helped us through some stressful moments, staying calm, collected and encouraging throughout our whole experience. Treehouse has so much patience, they addressed all of our questions, concerns and needs quickly and professionally. I really feel that they went above and beyond for our family and genuinely was invested in helping us find the right house. It was especially appreciated that they understood that traveling with a baby meant unexpected stops to change a diaper or snack times and never rushed us and even took their turn to entertain our baby daughter when she started to tire out. I highly recommend Jeffrey & Jessey if you are looking for a Real Estate Team in Calgary that is knowledgeable, will work hard for you, and is genuine in character and eagerness to help your family find the best home on the market. Thank-you so much Treehouse - it was such a pleasure to meet you guys and we will definitely use your services again if we ever relocate within Calgary! - Bernice McAusland
Treehouse Testimonials Treehouse was recommended as a selling agent to my wife and I. Despite a strong referral, I am skeptical of working with individuals whom I don’t know personally. Shortly after speaking with them over the phone, they arranged a marketing package, with professional photographs, and a visit of our home. Their personable demeanor and professional appearance quickly assuaged any preconceptions and worries I’d had. They were firm on his strategy for the open houses and marketing. Treehouse landed us a firm offer within 20 days of listing. They then navigated us through the closing process with confidence; not once did my wife or I wonder what the next steps were. For young REALTORS®, they exhibit the professionalism of seasoned pros. They understand Calgary’s market dynamics, which them and I discussed at length during the selling process, and they are well-versed in Calgary’s neighbourhoods and communities. I strongly recommend Treehouse as a listing company, though I am sure they would be equally as suited to helping you find a new home. P.S. They are also a ardent lover of Village Ice Cream, so be sure to buy them a cone or salted caramel iced cream sandwich after they seal the deal on your property! - The Harmers Treehouse comes highly recommended by two very satisfied sellers in West Hillhurst. The seller of our property had to believe that there was one specific buyer for our beautifully fully renovated duplex. They really listened to us as we described the fine details of our quality upgrades and went directly to the buyers, finding a purchaser at a fair price and in an incredibly short time. Treehouse was immediately responsive to our needs and communications every single time. They are respectful, and hard working team. They are fun and highly competent in the advanced technological environment. They use all technologies to expedite every phase of the buying & selling process. We are very pleased and will definitely engage Treehouse in all our future transactions. 19 - Glenn Wolfe
Jeffrey Cox
Jessey Touchette
587.581.6900 jeffrey@treehouseyyc.com treehouseyyc.com
403.870.7355 jessey@treehouseyyc.com treehouseyyc.com