Kristi Mercier, Real Estate Broker
131 Geddes St N0B 1S0 Elora, ON, Canada

Out in Calgary for a couple of days...and it is warmer than back home, who'da thought!

Do you like cycling? Here's a great way to share that love with someone else.

This is an amazing opportunity! A home with good bones that needs a facelift...is it right for you?

A great way to spend a Saturday afternoon! Come as say hi!

Centre Wellington Town Hall at the Belwood Lions Hall...great turnout!

What a beautiful display at this ladies wear shop in Hamilton!

Last night I got to hang out with some awesome Realtor volunteers at the Guelph Storm game. Wesley and I got to do the puck drop and help pick the winning Puck Toss puck...all proceeds going to Habitat for Humanity! #gdar #realtorsgivingback #guelphstorm #habitatwellington #dogguidepuppy #habitatforhumanity @ Sleeman Centre

Stopped for a jaunt in #benhamforest on the way home. A great spot to let the dogs run! #lookatthoseears #forestlabs #lovecentrewellington

Be careful out there everyone!

After working hard a the mall today, trying not to be distracted by puppies, people, toys, construction guys...sometimes a guy just needs to chew on his toes. #sillylab #dogguidepuppy#poodletail to @ Burlington Centre

For my clients looking for new appliances! What's old is new again...right?

The Lakelands Association has some great advice! Those of us who live and work in rural areas are the best source of information on what you need to know.

Hot New Hometown Listing! A beautiful 1 bedroom plus den condo in Pierpoint...enjoy low maintenance living in an upgraded unit with a beautiful view to enjoy on summer evenings. Call now to book a private showing!

This was a great opportunity for local REALTORS(r) to learn more about the goings on in our industry.

Do you have any of this stuff hanging around? Let me know and I can pick it up and pass it along!

You can’t always stop the waves, but you can learn how to surf!

Today I was very happy to welcome the CEO and head of government relations for the Ontario Real Estate Association to Guelph to inform a great group of local Realtors about the many issues facing our industry. Thanks so much to everyone who came and participated!

Happy St Patrick’s Day from all of us at Your Hometown Realty! Cheers! And if your house does get too small, call us!

A great day of learning at the OREA Reality Conference! My industry is changing and it is so important to stay on top of things. Thanks so much to OREA President David Reid and CEO Tim Hudak for launching this great day!

Only one more course to finish my journey to becoming a Real Estate Broker! I can’t wait to learn more and grow as a professional! My exam is March 31st...lots of studying and in class work to complete first.

Pretty scary...and a great example of the government having to weigh the impact on the cost and reasonableness in the constructing/updating of a home against the potential risk that residents will face without a change in the building code.

Want a picture with Santa without the hustle and bustle of the mall? AND to support a great group of volunteers and local kids sport? Look no further!

Come to Elora this Saturday for some yummy treats!

Being the President Elect of the Guelph and District Association of REALTORS means doing my part for organized real estate by being knowledgeable and dedicated to being involved at all levels to ensure our industry looks out for the best interests of REALTORS across our municipalities, province and country.

Do you or someone you know have rental properties? There are some important changes to the Residential Tenancies Act...particularly dealing with evicting tenants so that you or a family member can move in. Feel free to share this post!

Take your time and everyone will be safer for it!

While I think that they are being a tad dramatic saying that it "could also be the last gasp for the resale market", this will affect all borrowers. In a nutshell, the precaution of making high ratio borrowers qualify at a higher rate than they would be paying is being extended to those needing low ratio mortgages. What will this mean for home buyers in the new year? You may have to lower your max budget. What will this mean for sellers? Maybe it will decrease what you can ge...t for your home...but maybe not. If many buyers have to decrease their budget, people who had been looking at homes in you price range will have to look at less expensive homes, but those who had been looking at higher priced homes this year, will be looking at homes like yours! So never fear, the market isn't going anywhere! Individual circumstances may just have to be tweaked.

Go Highland! I have been a proud sponsor of the Highland Rugby mini program and today got to walk onto the field with the kids for the big tournament in Fergus...72 teams from across the province and over 700 kids! Now back to the Scottish Festival!

Had a great time in the parade last night for the Fergus Scottish Festival!

Ok, I'm really sorry...but I couldn't help it! It is International Cat Day!

For those of you on Belwood Lake, or if you know someone there, you probably noticed that the water level dropped pretty dramatically just before and over the weekend. Here is a great graph from the GRCA that shows what's happening...just click on the pictures below to see it! Also, if you look at the top right hand of the page, you will see a neat visual for keeping tabs on flood and low water warnings.

Later in the article, he recommends visiting the neighbourhood at different times of the day and days of the week to see what the noise levels are like. I recommend this often to my clients....also a great way to see how the neighbourhood functions. Do people go out for walks in the evening after work? Are they out puttering in their gardens on the weekend? Do the local kids play games in the street? You don't have to wait to find out a house first before doing this leg work...it's a great way to narrow down where you would like to live too!

They are an amazing couple...proud to call them friends!

The Bank of Canada has raised their overnight rate for the first time in 7 years! What does this mean for home owners? It will primarily affect those with variable rate mortgages and home equity loans (as these are tied to the lenders Prime rate). So far the big 5 banks have simply matched the .25% increase. If you have questions, never hesitate to contact your lender or broker to find out if you should change how your borrowing is organized.

Local cottagers aren't going to take this lying down...good for them!

Amen! There has been a lot of talk about this lately and I am happy to say that I continue to meet people in leadership roles in our industry who agree with this...we need everyone to standup and keep our Associations on point to make sure changes happen!

This property is stunning! Tell your friends!

What do I like to do when I'm not being a REALTOR? I raise alpacas and foster future dog guide puppies for the Lions Foundation of Canada Dog Guides. This weekend I will be sharing all this with you! We will be shearing our alpacas, and everyone is welcome to visit to check it out...we've had babies born on the farm already this spring and they are super cute There is also going to be a charity BBQ to raise money for Dog Guides featuring lots of local food...and there will be many puppies for you to visit as well! Come on out and tell your friends

Well, the government has released their plans...they still have to be passed before they would take effect. What do you think? Will it cool our hot market? My opinion is that the measures are very specific for certain segments of the real estate landscape and are not likely to make any dramatic impact on your average transaction and more importantly to our corner of the world or to the overall "heat" of our market. Speaking to knowledgeable people in the industry from across the country (not just listening to the media) I know that any "corrections" in the Vancouver market over the last year have been attributed to their new tax in an unbalanced way. More info and thoughts will be coming over the next while, that's for sure!

Have you seen this ad on tv yet? I saw it for the first time last month at the AGM for the Canadian Real Estate market! Love it! Confirming the data on listings (lot sizes, zoning, etc) is just a small part of what a great REALTOR will do for you! ...though I do have some clients who might not mind MetalFest as a neighbour

This is a wonderful article and echos topics of many conversations I have had recently with local colleagues as well as with others in leadership roles at the recent conferences for the Ontario and Canadian Real Estate Associations. While it was gratifying at these conferences for everyone in the room to clap and cheer when someone on stage would talk about "raising the bar" and getting rid of "crappy agents", what we really need as an industry is for enough of us to stand up... and actually do something about it! Organized real estate in Canada has an amazing Code of Ethics, but the actual structure of our industry is focused on more butts-in-seats so to speak. As one national franchise VP said, "my job is to recruit and retain"...period. The more REALTORS under his banner, then the more money in his pocket, right? We need our industry to focus on quality, not quantity...that is the only way the public will change its opinion of us. I have always considered myself more of a consultant than a "sales person"...to give my clients the information and advice that they need to make an informed decision, and as Hank says in the article "to make [the transaction] look boring" It's not flashy or gimmicky, just hard work and dedication to doing a great job for you, the right way. I am always interested in your thoughts, so feel free to drop me a line any time!

We've been doing this coat drive for a while now and it is incredible how many coats have gone to those in need! I can pick up in Guelph, Fergus, Elora or surrounding areas...you can also drop off at our office downtown Elora or at the address in the ad!

A lot of this applies to much of Wellington County...definitely my favourite corner of the world

Hoppy Easter everyone!

Our new website! Awesome! I am very proud to belong to a brokerage who's focus is YOU...let me know what you think and if there is any information you would like info on. Our blog will grow steadily, and the best way is to talk about what you want to know more about!

Across the province, farmland pricing has more than doubled since 2010!

Happy St Patrick's Day everyone!

http://snip.ly/xjdgw You had me at bacon! When you are on a septic system, it is strongly advised to limit the amount of fat (and other stuff) that you put down the drain. But it can have a massive impact on municipal systems too!

Want a great app for searching for properties? Just open http://t.ikenex.com/?k=U8jc on your Apple or Android device and download it. Search for properties near you, save searches or properties to keep an eye on, find open houses and ask questions for a quick reply from me...right from within the app!

Not even 2 months old yet...gotta start them young!

My foster puppies enjoy hanging out at the office...even if they do find real estate rather boring!

This will affect new insured mortgages with less than 10% down...not a large increase in your monthly payment, but still more money out of your pocket!

Last year there were changes that will affect you whenever you sell a property...historically, you did not have to let the CRA know if you sold your principal residence (i.e. no capital gains tax), but now you have to declare whenever you sell your property...no matter what! http://snip.ly/8ntt4

An article about one of our wonderful towns! snip.ly/hsipd

2016 was quite the year in the region. Low inventory (fewer listings than usual) combined with strong demand (driven by low mortgage rates and increased immigration into the area) has resulted in higher than usual price increases. We've also seen an unprecedented number of homes being sold in multiple offer situations with few, if any conditions. The forecast for 2017 is for more of the same..so what does this mean for you if you are thinking of buying or selling this year? Give me a shout and we can chat about your options.