Glenn Gould Foundation Hosts Leonard Cohen

Are you a Leonard Cohen Fan?  Starting May 7th to May 19th the Glenn Gould Foundation is hosting several Free Events  celebrating the artistry and songwriting of Leonard Cohen.

I starts with a visual exhibition of Leonard Cohen’s art and continues with musical events including one specifically for youth.

The culmination takes place at Massey Hall on May 14th with Leonard Cohen present to receive an award.

You can find the list of events at this link.

Glenn Gould Foundation

The Culmination of the Glenn Gould Foundation Hosting Leonard Cohen Events

These celebrations culminate with The Glenn Gould Prize Gala Concert in Honour of Leonard Cohen at Massey Hall on Monday, May 14, 2012 at 8:30 p.m.  This star-studded evening hosted by Colm Feore includes musical performances by Cowboy Junkies, Adam Cohen, Serena Ryder, Anjani Thomas, folk singer Basia Bulat, award-winning country singer/songwritersJohn Prine, James McMurtry, Jimmie Dale Gilmore; and poetry readings by Alan Rickman,Michael Ondaatje, and Gordon Pinsent with Blue Rodeo’s Greg Keelor and Travis Good.  Former Governor General and long-time friend, The Right Honourable Adrienne Clarkson will also deliver a spoken tribute. Mr. Cohen will be present to receive his award at this ceremony.

Read more here:  

Glenn Gould Foundation

 

Feel Free To Review the Leonard Cohen Events held by the Glenn Gould Founcation by making comments on our site below here.

 The Mayor has just announced that he won’t attend Gay Pride this year.

I am very curious how important Torontonians feel this really is.

Of course the papers are blasting it as a major disaster on the Mayor’s part and of course the Pride Community cares.

However, I am wondering how this affects his performance as the Mayor. 

It’s only mid April and Gay Pride has already issued Mayor Ford an invitation to this year  Gay Pride Parade.

Krystyn Wong Tam was instrumental in sending invites to the Mayor.

You can read about it here in Todays’ Toronto Star.

http://www.thestar.com/news/cityhallpolitics/article/1162122–pride-toronto-issues-invitation-to-rob-ford

I would be very interested to hear your opinions on how Mayor Ford handles things, not just the Gay Pride issue but in general.

Let me know your opinion of Mayor Ford  in the comments section.

Tell Mayor Ford“  Dinner At The Mayor’s House”

Would You Buy A House Built By Ikea

Would You Buy A House Built By Ikea?

Do you love IKEA? You can now buy a whole house from them for $86,500.

The 745 sq. ft., 1BR/1BA is stocked with all things IKEA from the kitchen appliances, to cabinets and counters. The bathroom has IKEA sinks and storage, and the bedroom closets are all built around the retailer’s closet system.  Check it out here.

Don’t worry, you won’t need a plastic baggie of wood dowels and pressed metal wrenches to put the house together. It is delivered in a couple of pieces and assembled on the spot.

What do you think?

 Would you buy a house from IKEA?

Ikea Toronto      Torontoshome

Toronto Real Estae Market Quicky Update

 Toronto Real Estate Market March 2012 Quicky Update:

Has shown a 7% increase in unit sales ( Number of houses or condos sold) in Toronto Real Estate over the same time period last year.

The number of new listings for sale is down by 2%, and the number of transactions is expected to hit 8000-9000. This means of course that with only 12-13000 listings on the Toronto Real Estate market about 75% of all properties will sell within the month.

The average sales price is approx of $502,000, which represents a 9% increase year over year for the past 3 years. Mortgage Rates Rates are on the way up, which may cause some leveling of price. It’s so important to get your clients pre approved. This will not only lock your rate in, but ensure you are properly qualified to buy the home you are after and enable you to make your offer stronger.

Work with a Toronto mortgage broker who gives you a detailed pre qualification certificate, not just a rate hold. Feel free to give us a call and we can get this in place for you within a short time.

Toronto Real Estate   Toronto Real Estate Market Updates

Worlds Smallest Condo

Do you know where it is?  They have no bathrooms and no kitchens.

One Toronto  builder is now starting to sell safety deposit boxes as condos. What’s next?

They come with the dreaded maintenance fees and property taxes as well.

I found the article in the Toronto Star and thought this would bring you a chuckle.

Sold by the cubic inches and not by square feet.

The World’s Smallest Condo

Toronto Star Worlds smallest condo

The worlds smallest condo comes with parking and the first location will be in Markham later this year.

Worlds Smallest Condo                         Torontoshome

Toronto Real Estate Board & Toronto Realtors contribute to Habitat for Humanity

Toronto prices have gone to all time highs.  But Toronto realtors get involved with helping people realize their dream of home ownership even when there are no commissions involved.  Toronto realtors are big supporters of Habitat For Humanity.  Due to the high cost of land in Toronto it is not possible to build a large volume of homes but currently Habitat is marking the fifth title sponsorship of eight Habitat for Humanity builds to which the Toronto Real Estate Board has contributed in recent years

Toronto Realtors Believe in the Dream of Home Ownership

Located in the Danforth Avenue and Victoria Park area, the home that Greater Toronto REALTORS(R) will have a hand in constructing, marks the fifth title sponsorship of eight Habitat for Humanity builds to which the Toronto Real Estate Board has contributed in recent years.

“We’re very excited to be playing a key role in improving the quality of life for another local family, not just through sponsorship but by volunteering to take part in their home’s construction, and the fact that Councillor Berardinetti is joining us will make this build all the more memorable,” said TREB President Richard Silver.

The Habitat for Humanity community Greater Toronto REALTORS(R) are helping to build includes eight homes, two of which have been completed as fully accessible bungalow style homes, specifically designated to families with members who have physically disabilities. The six that remain under construction are semi-detached units scheduled to reach completion this summer.

At that time they will become homes for low-income families currently living in substandard housing. For their part, the families will be required to contribute 500 volunteer hours to Habitat for Humanity Toronto and repay a zero-down payment, interest free mortgage over an average of 25 years.

In recent years TREB also sponsored Habitat for Humanity homes in the Kingston Road and Morningside Avenue area, Scarborough’s McLevin Woods and Etobicoke’s Lakeshore Village. Habitat for Humanity Toronto has constructed more than 225 simple, decent and affordable homes with partner families throughout the city and has set a goal to build 50 new homes each year by 2015.

To read more about this click on Toronto Realtors and Habitat For Humanity

Toronto Realtors are extrememly passionate about housing and home ownership. They are often found on a Habitat build site. Consider joining up with Habitat as  a volunteer builder. You can share your skills and learn some new ones.  Here is the link for their website.     Habitat for Humanity

Toronto Realtors

Buying an income property in Toronto  is one of the best ways to build your portfolio and the article points out that it is a similar process to evaluating a stock market purchase. The timelinemay just be longer, depending on your stock picking style .

It points out the core difference between an investor and a speculator who simply flips property as quickly as possible often not making much in the process.

I hope you find it valuable.

Buying An Income Property In Toronto

For those adventurous enough to get into real estate investing, Don Campbell, president of the Real Estate Investment Network, says it is possible to get a yield that either equals or exceeds many dividend-paying stocks, not counting the price appreciation on the property. He explains the key to being a successful real estate investor is to approach it the same way as you would a stock. In other words, look at the fundamentals, invest for the long-term and own something that pays decent dividends.

That’s the difference between an investor and a speculator, he says. An investor analyzes markets, looks at economic indicators and doesn’t care that much about whether housing prices rise or fall. A speculator buys a house with the expectation that its price will increase and then sells it to make a quick buck.

As an investor, finding the right property takes work; it’s not a good idea to buy another house on your street just because you like the area. Campbell says that investors have to look at a plethora of economic data, including an area’s job market, GDP growth and infrastructure developments. He adds it’s also important to consider for any new developments in a neighbourhood that could make it more popular, like a hospital or subway.

to read more of this article you can go to How To Buy An Income Property.

The article further points out the value of buying in a high demand area which commands higher rents.  If no one wants to live in that city or neighbourhood you may have high vacancy rates.

That’s why Buying an Income Property in Toronto is so valuable.  Although prices are higher rents are also much higher and vacancy is almost nil assuring you much greater success with your real estate venture when Buying An Income Property in Toronto.

My Toronto Home  Buying An Income Property In Toronto

Buying An Income Property

So it is all about how we value things in our lives and that has certainly shifted not just here in Toronto but worldwide. So What truly is Freedom?
Something to think about.