Done!

Papers are signed, I have more keys than I know what to do with, and I am, as of today, legally responsible for a really nice duplex in NDG. Woot! I can't wait to move in. Now if I can just get all the paperwork from the Vancouver sale and the all the money transactions to be completed, I will be one happy and blessed woman. Can't say this transaction was difficult or complicated, especially when I was surrounded by very competent folks. My real estate agents rock, my notary rocks, and even my banker rocks!

Now I just have to invest in a filing cabinet to store all the paperwork I've been accumulating for the past few months.

One piece of paper that I am not looking forward to receiving is the invoice from the city of Montreal for the privilege of buying a property. Montreal charges a "welcome tax" to home owners, and apparently not just first-time buyers. Every time you buy a property in town you pay this tax. My bills will be around $4,275, not cheap. I was curious to find out how this tax was used by the city, because honestly, Montreal also charges you also quite a bit of money every year for municipal taxes. A quick search of the city's web site returned nothing. I then turned to my trusted Google. And I found this really interesting description on the web site for the city of Hampstead:

The phrase "welcome tax" has a history which came about for reasons other than a "greeting" tax for new residents. In short, in 1976 a new method of municipal financing was proposed by a judge named Jean Bienvenue and, when adopted, became known as "la taxe de Bienvenue". Because "bienvenue" translates to "welcome" in English, the tax became known as the "welcome tax".

Interesting. But what exactly does this new method of financing finance? That I could not find, only that this tax will need to be paid within the next 60 days.

Welcome!

Barely enough energy to come up with a post

Here it is anyways. You've been warned.

I am so happy tomorrow is Friday (and Brendan's birthday). My life since last Thursday has been a roller coaster of events and I can wait to get off the ride. Fortunately, it all happened so quickly that I didn't have time to think about it and get too discouraged.

First things first. Last Thursday, I checked my Hotmail in the morning and saw that I had received the link for a new listing. My agent, also the brother of my good friend James, set me up with an account in his version of MLS, the same system that agents use. I receive the new listings at the same time he gets them. I get to look through them and if something interests me, I just let him know. I really like the concept. Well, that morning, there was a nice duplex in NDG and I immediately e-mailed my agent to ask him to set up an appointment.

We got an appointment for 6, the same evening that three lines of the metro were shut down because of a bomb scare at Berri station. The orange line was still running, but very, very slowly and at Bonaventure station, which is where I get on from work, the metro going West was on the opposite side of the tracks from where it normally is. Add confusion about the situation and voilà, massive delays to be had. Fortunately, I was only 15 minutes late.

The visit itself did not last very long, I knew right from the beginning that I really liked the place. Standing in the front of the building, I asked my agent to make an offer. Brendan and I hung out in NDG and had dinner at La Louisiane (Cajun cooking, the etouffee sauce was NOT my favourite) and met Alex at his office on Monkland to sign the contract. We offered $10,000 less than asking price, a reasonable offer but also an amount close enough to show that we were serious. Now we simply had to wait for the reply from the seller.

When I arrived home, I had a message on my cell phone (no service in the metro, I had missed the call). It was my realtor in Vancouver letting me know that I had an offer on the condo. What an amazing coincidence!! The offer was $10,000 less than asking price (I sense a pattern here) and we countered at $5,000 less than asking. Not only was I waiting for the seller of the duplex in NDG to get back to me, now I was also waiting to hear back from the buyer in Vancouver.

Friday was when everything happened. My offer was countered at $5,000 less than asking, and my counteroffer in Vancouver was accepted. Same day. Obviously, pending the usual conditions, but you have to admit that the timing was perfect.

This week was about going through the motions to get both contracts finalized and closed. Alex recommended a wonderful inspector for the duplex. He did an amazing job, spent over two hours inspecting everything and really taking the time to explain everything to me. We even climbed on the roof, inspected every corner of the basement and got a crash course on electrical boxes and oil furnaces. Now I'm waiting for his final report, which should show up in my Inbox any time now. The condo in Vancouver was inspected this morning, and I am hoping to hear back from my realtor soon. Today was also the day I sent all the paperwork to my bank so they could clear all the mortgage details.

By June 8 or 9, everything should be finalized. Fingers crossed.

The duplex is really nice, it has two 5 1/2 apartments, the ground floor kitchen and bathroom were recently renovated, new windows were installed about 8 or 9 years ago, the place has a very large backyard (well, by Montreal standards) and according to the inspector, it's in a good shape. It's located below Sherbrooke, only a few minutes walk from Vendôme metro and steps from a large park, Esposito, Rocky Mountain fruit & veggies and lots of little restaurants and shops.

While all this real estate business was going on, I was also preparing for my PMP exam on Wednesday. I had been studying for the exam on and off for about two months and was not entirely sure I was ready. Well, I did pass the exam and can now add this credential to my resume. I'm happy it's over and that now, I have my evenings and weekends back.

Only a few more days, and then I can stop worrying about real estate and start worrying about moving ;)

Spring means new beginnings

I love spring. The days are longer, some brave flowers are colouring the brown lawns with hints of green, people are out walking, and I feel that I have more energy. Now, I do miss spring in Vancouver, at this time of the year, lots of trees and shrubs are already blooming, especially around the area where I used to live.

This week, I'm heading to Vancouver, ready to turn the page on that chapter of my life. Not that I won't go back to keep in touch with friends, but I really feel like I'm ready to embed myself in Montreal again. I am selling the condo, my trip back West is mainly to finish preparing the place to be sold and have a frank discussion with my realtor about pricing. It's a big step, because I love that condo, but I am sure that I can find a place I'll love just as much in Montreal. I can't wait to go for long walks around various neighbourhoods to check out places. I find that's the best way to discover whether or not you'd like to live somewhere. You listen to the noise, check out the businesses in the area (especially important if you have no car), get a feel for the type of people living on the street.

At this point, because of the economy, I don't know how quickly I will be able to sell, but a few hours after changing my status in Facebook to let people know that I'm selling, I already have a few questions. It could happen really fast. Now, I just need to get the tiles finished in the bathroom and kitchen, install the handles on the kitchen cabinets, clean the windows, plant some flowers outside to give a bit of spring cheer to the balcony and hope that someone falls in love with the place, just like I did six years ago.