RE/MAX Hallmark Blog

I Love Toronto

I love Toronto. Ok- before you all go ballistic on me pointing out all of the problems this city has - I know. I know we have an absolute goof as a mayor - but it's not forever. I know we have many problems in our city, but when don't we?

My point is this. Toronto has exploded in the past 5 years or so. Immigration is strong, new construction, world class events and we have a definite buzz which is energizing.

I love the confidence this city has for the future. Toronto is world class, drawing attention from all around the world as the place to be. 

I am so excited to be living in Toronto - and who wouldn't? My imagination for this city 30 years from now takes me to a city which is still the envy of the world. We have the brilliance of our residents, the strength of our economy and the abundance of our resources.

9:13

When I look back at the last three months or so it all seems so confusing and amazing to me. I don't really know what compelled me to want to take a hard look at my health. I wasn't necessarily feeling unusual, or stressed out about any health issues. For many years I had done what I think most of us do, I got a yearly check up with my GP. The usual stuff, some blood work, check for prostate problems, etc. Every year I just continued on with a clean bill of health - pretty routine.

One day I was with a friend of mine who told me his story. He is younger than me and decided to have someone take a serious look at his health. He did and found out he had the beginning of prostate cancer, and because of his proactive stance, he was able to solve his health problem before it got out of hand He told me his medical team saved his life. That was enough for me.

I got in touch with Doctor Elaine Chin of Scienta Medical here in Toronto. Dr. Chin of Scienta specializes in proactive health care - not waiting for something to happen to take action. From the very beginning I was treated professionally and thoroughly. The Scienta staff must of taken a pint of blood out of my system to be analysed in four different labs. I had a stress test (emotionally and physically) nutritional assessment, colonoscopy. I spent a night in the sleep disorder clinic. Than I had an ultra sound on my abdomen. 

After the ultra sound, Dr. Chin called me up to tell me they found a tumour on my kidney. She told me not to worry, but for the life of me I found it difficult to comprehend myself having a tumour on any part of my body. Didn't tumours mean cancer, and didn't cancer mean big big problems? Didn't my blood work indicate I was fine? Yes - she said - but very often this type of tumour doesn't show up with blood work. Ok - now what? I was told the chances of having cancer were 50-50 and that they wanted and needed to do a CT right away. Within days I had an appointment at Sunnybrook for the CT, which confirmed the tumour. A couple of weeks later I met with Dr. Nam, urology surgeon and genius at the Odette Cancer Clinic at Sunnybrook. Dr. Nam sat me down, told me I had basically two choices. He could do a biopsy on the tumour which he didn't recommend since the readings are often false and tend to stir up the tumour if it is cancerous or I could get it taken care of through surgery. I chose the surgery.

Within 45 days I was laying on a stretcher outside of operating room 6 at Sunnybrook. It all seemed surreal to me. I was calm, and prepared and certainly in good hands. I remember being wheeled into the operating room and thinking how complex it was. So many lights, people and instruments.

I was told they were going to put me to sleep now, I happened to glance around the room one more time, taking it all in. I noticed the clock on the wall - exactly 9:13.

When Dr. Nam came to visit me in recovery I asked him how the surgery went. Spectacular he said. Spectacular - what an odd word I thought. But it made sense to me coming from Dr. Nam. I asked him if the tumour was cancer - he said it didn't matter. He went in assuming it was and got everything. I was extremely sore, drugged up but relieved.

Three weeks later, on my follow-up visit with Dr. Nam he told me that the tumour was in fact cancerous. Being proactive saved my life or at least saved me from serious health problems in the years to come. The type of tumour I had doesn't really show up as a problem until it is too late. I was very lucky says Dr. Nam.

So - why do I share all of this? I think it is important to tell my story - one person may take action which could help their life - just as I did because of the words of my friend.

I am back now full time at work just four short weeks from major surgery. Last night I actually slept for the first time on the side of my incision without any pain whatsoever. That is big!! My followup with Dr Nam only includes ultrasound every 6 months. Dr. Nam tells me the chance of my type of cancer recurring is less than 5%. I will take those odds any day.

 

 

 

Watch out - I'm connected......

Growing up, I would joke with my friends, "they better watch out - I was connected." As a young man,  I was filled with stories about my Sicilian family - life and times in Hamilton many many years ago. My mother - who is now in her 80's recently sent me a narrative of what her life was like as a young child. She and her family lived next door to the notorious mobster Johnny "Pops" Papalia., on Railway Street in Hamilton. 

 

My Mothers Words:

My parents both came from the same small village in Sicily, yet never met until they immigrated to Hamilton Ontario Canada. My father was a gregarious man, greeting visitors at the door with warmth and in the winter, a shot to take the chill from your bones.  My mother, staunch and practical, running her household with a firm and loving hand.  My father worked for the Canadian national Railroad for as far back as I can recall.  My mother, while a full time housewife when her 5 children were born, worked in the cotton mill when she met my father.  I was the youngest, with two sisters and two brothers whom I idolized and looked to for advice and protection.  My mother spoke only Italian but insisted the children speak English in order to help her assimilate into the culture.  She was a proud woman, not embarrassed by her heritage but wanting a better life for her children. My mother’s job as homemaker was long and arduous,  she spent the days chopping wood for the furnace, cooking meals and sewing clothes for her children. Every week one of us girls would accompany her to the market to buy a wagon full of vegetables and a chicken for the week.  I remember an occasion, when I was 9, the chicken jumped out the wagon and my mother frantically beckoning me to catch it!  I ran feverishly after it unaware of the school children who watched in amusement.  I lived with the title “chicken girl” for many weeks after.  My father would wake in the early hours and melt into the early dawn of Railway Street.  He was a railroad man, and in the winter would spend 3 or 4 days at a time making sure the trains and tracks were functional.  My sisters and I were responsible for taking lunch to him and his fellow workers, and when the weather was biting and frost mingled with my father’s mustache my mother would include a shot of John De Kruyer gin for warmth.

Life on Railway St was never dull; the neighborhood was peppered with bootleggers, mafia and racketeers. I remember it through child’s eyes as being exciting, but looking back I can understand why my mother wanted nothing more than to move us to a better neighborhood.  Her fear for us was not our safety but, as any parent she wanted a better life for us than she had and worried my brothers would fall prey to a less than reputable lifestyle.  Many times I would wander down the street and the bootleggers would beckon me, holding out a shiny dime, or quarter to alert them to approaching detectives. Often, in the evening I would be sitting on my stoop and would see the same menacing detectives sitting on the stoops of the bootleggers, laughing and raising a glass of gin in good cheer. Our families were close and my cousins lived directly across the street.  Many winter evenings were spent lying behind the wood burning stove with my cousins, as our parents reminisced about the old country and the warm breezes of the evening air.

Our neighbor, Johnny was one of the more intimidating mafia men.  He used his car repair shop as a front for less reputable business.  Johnny’s mother was a bootlegger with a long skirt and heavy apron to keep her bootleg money concealed. I spent many afternoons on her Veranda, visiting and when my confirmation came around my mother asked her to stand up for me.  I remember with delight the beautiful doll she gave me as a gift.  I had never seen anything so precious, money was tight, and we went without frivolous things in order to keep food on the table. Later I realized that my mother’s need was so great to get us out of the neighborhood that she was secretly saving money in order to buy a new house. Years later Johnny was gunned down in the neighborhood over what could only have been a mafia family dispute. 

My mother’s fear of the mafia were superseded by her need to protect her family and one afternoon, long after we had moved from the neighborhood she once again ventured onto Railroad Street to see our neighbor Johnny.  My father had received a very chilling Sicilian black hand symbol in the mail.  Johnny squelched my mother’s fears, telling her not to worry, he would handle it.  It was this lifestyle that fueled her to save and eventually buy us a new home in, what she concerned a better neighborhood.  We were then exposed to unfamiliar cultures; Scottish, English and Irish families who starred as I walked down the street in my red bloomers and hoop earrings.  My mother yelling my name, Concetta caused embarrassment and I later begged them to address me as Connie, so I could fit in.

My memories of Railway Street are still fresh in my mind and now, when I happen to visit I still can see the Mafia woman, sitting on their stoops with little bells in their laps to alert their husband of impending trouble.  I recall Rocco Parry, a prominent Mafioso dressed in finery walking down the street, later to be found on the bottom of Hamilton Bay with a block of cement attached to his shoes.  I envision my mother and father lovingly, always teaching us right from wrong regardless of our surroundings.  Railway Street is no longer peppered with racketeers, Mafia or bootleggers, it is now a friendly inviting neighborhood where children ride their bikes and families sit on their Verandas visiting their neighbors…but in my mind it’s not much different from what I remember.

 

New York North

Maybe it's just my outlook, but I feel a new sense of energy in Toronto. In the past couple of years, things have changed for this great city. A tipping point was reached.

Everywhere I go there is a vibe which is evident. An energy of a once great city emerging into a greater, more vibrant city. 

Last night at a concert featuring Burton Cummings from Guess Who fame, people were up on their feet before Burton came on stage, and didn't sit down for three hours later. The energy was amazing for an incredible artist - but my point is - I have been to concerts to see great artists before - and never have I seen the outpouring of audience involvement. Toronto residents are known to sit on their hands at events, not anymore or at least not last night. 

Burton summed it up, "Welcome to New York North."

I love the new energy of this city.

 

Reference Notes from My Talk from our Company Meeting

I love that song by Fleetwood Mac, “Don’t Stop thinking about tomorrow…” Always puts me in a great mood.

Before we look to the future, we must also take a look at the past and the present.

Past:

·       Been an interesting ride since we last gathered here in this room 12 months ago

·        HST,  continual backlash from international market meltdown caused by debt and mortgage crisis south of the border, and it isn’t over yet down there

·        Competition bureau fight with organized real estate – where will it end and what will it mean?

·       We experienced an overheated market, brought on by a backlash of pent up demand and an overemphasized anticipation of the launch of HST

·        Although the past does form part of who and what we are, it is simply the past and we need to move on

Present:

·       From the beginning of our incredible summer, some in this room (not all) will say the market has disappeared – it hasn’t. The expectations associated with the market of the past months and years are unfairly looked upon as “normal.” What we experienced in the past several years is from far from normal. In fact – the market was terrible for our industry. Multiple offers were the norm, greed from home sellers and agents came into play. An industry which in fact acted as an easy game – opened itself up to lower, cheaper and less realtor friendly competition.

·        We, more or less are in an adjustment stage for most of our markets. Sellers with a strong need or desire to sell will soon come to the market realization and listen to the coaching from their realtors and adjust their prices to the current markets. The current and future markets need a professional, full time realtor more than ever.

·    ·        Our fall market will be business as usual, but not the business as we know it. If you read the press, written by people not in our industry – you would think the sky is falling – look at some recent headlines from local news outlets commenting on our industry.

·        Take two minutes, at each table compile a total of buyers and sellers that each realtor expects to buy or sell with them before Christmas, people they already know about.

·        That is the real market, not what some outsiders say – want to know what the present market is and what the future market looks like – Ask a Realtor. I once called Tony Wong a writer from the Toronto Star after an article he wrote about our industry. In my opinion, the article was completely offside – not based on what the real market was saying – I asked Tony why he didn’t ever bother to connect with me for info on the real market – since we were and are the leading real estate company in the market – he didn’t have an answer – but I know the answer – my comments don’t sell newspapers. Don’t be afraid of standing up for our industry and our market.

Future:

·        The challenge from within our industry and outside our industry will continue to mount and gain momentum

·        CREA and our real estate boards will continue to represent us but they will do it from a position of reaction rather than becoming the leadership position they are saddled with. We cannot rely on CREA and TREB to set the agenda for our futures.

·        I can see industry leaders getting together and forming their own database of listings, best positioned to serve our clients. Internet sites put together by industry giants from outside our industry will continue to make an impact, but the time to sit back and allow that to happen unchallenged has passed. We need to set the tone for our industry and for the quality of the people in our industry. What we do best is to serve our clients, help them make decisions, not simply provide them in the info. Buying a house is not the same as booking a cruise out of Miami and it’s time we took our industry back.

·        In the past, we have freely given our listing data to companies owned by Rogers, The Star and The National Post. These owners aggregate the info (our listings) and package them in such a way to drive hits to their sites so they can sell advertising. What we propose to do as a company is to discontinue supplying our listings to these and other sites and strictly control our data so our agents and clients can be best impacted.

·      The next 5 years are crucial for our industry. We must continue to add value for our consumers and clients. If you as an agent do not have a strong value proposition, you will forever have to sell based on commission. And if you position yourself to sell based strongly on commission, you will be soon out of business. (watch video of Sharp)

·         

·        One thing is clear – the time to grow your business is now – the time to add value to what you do as a realtor has never been more important as it is now.

Company:

·        Help you run your business as a business.

·        Work through our classes and coaching to help implement of a philosophy of defining a purpose of personal wealth development through real estate ownership

·        RE/MAX Hallmark, the number one company through sales transactions and the number one real estate brand in Canada will continue to lead the way in: community involvement, training, personal growth, and we will strive to help create opportunities for all of you to grow your business as a business.

 

Last year in this room, we listened while Mr. Sharpe talked with us about his memories of Terry Fox, and the impact Terry made on his life. Just last weekend, the Terry Fox Run took place in Toronto and around the world, with once again the sponsorship of Mr Sharp and Four Seasons Hotels.

Terry kept a journal, and wrote about his journey across Canada and his goal of raising Cancer awareness. Steve Nash, another great Canadian and an outstanding Basketball player co directed a movie on the life of Terry Fox and had this to say about Terry and his influence on his life:

“I can really relate to Terry. To me, he’s an athlete full stop. He woke up everyday with a passion and went out and fought for it everyday. And to read his journals, he had that self-talk of an athlete, the doubt, the fear and insecurity. ‘Will I let people down, will I make it, can I keep going?’ Those are the things that I think athletes go through everyday,” Nash said.

The Common Thread running through happy, engaged and successful people is passion. The excitement of being engaged is infectious to you and everyone around you  – everything turns out better done passionately.

Jump out of your comfort zone and watch your business and life grow.

Have a great day and year and thank you for being part of today.

Do you have "Plastic on your sofa?"

Is it possible to be too focused on a specific goal ? So much so, that the journey of life is forgotten?

When I was growing up in Hamilton, I was raised by a strong and influential family of Italian decent. Traditions were embedded in me from an early age. Family was important than and remains so to this day. I was influenced by particular behaviours which have stayed with me to this day.

I remember clearly at a young age the realization that we as a family had a habit of saving things for good. Certain rooms were essentially off limits. Plastic coverings (direct from the factory) were still on prized sofa's and remained so forever I suppose. The furniture, like our lives, were always in anticipation for something else to happen. I recall being told, the protected furniture, like the off limits room it was in, was kept pristine "for when the pope arrived for a visit."

I recall this with fondness. Fondness for the way of life, and fondness for the memories that life brings to me. The thought I had at that very early stage of my life was strong. What a waste of a perfectly good sofa and room. I developed the belief that the journey of life had to be good, not just the getting there. I vowed not to go through life with the "plastic on the sofa" waiting for something to happen.

Living life to the fullest with a strong focus on the future seems to me to be the best way to go through life. I will always be able to buy a new sofa, but won't be able to turn back the hands of time.

Hole in One - 4th time golfing!

Just doesn't seem right ! I have been "golfing" for close to 40 years - although many of the years consist and consisting of chasing a ball around or trying to find a ball in the deep hazard - wouldn't really call it golf as such. But it is a popular spot with more and more people taking it up and enjoying it. Might be the Tiger the Golfer factor.

In any case, I have never had a hole in one - not even close. Well maybe close once. I hit the flag pole with my tee shot and the ball settled 4 feet from the hole. If only the bounces would of been with me that day. I went on to 3 putt from 4 feet - and there you have the story of my game.

Nancy Wilson from our Beach office took up the game this year, I think Nancy has been out 4 times in this her first year. But being a natural athletic, Nancy is picking up the game fast and enjoying it. She even looks the part, which we all know is important to us golfers!

Last weekend Nancy was out with her group, enjoying the game and the beautiful weather, when presto - her tee shot on a par three hole when smack into the cup! Just to recap - Nancy has played 4 games of golf - and has a hole in one. Ken has played thousands of games of golf and not even a sniff of a hole in one. I think golf is Nancy's game while I will continue to pretend it is my game.

Congrats Nancy - drinks all around.

Spring Cottage Show

 

Spent a few hours today at the annual Spring Cottage Show, held at the International Centre on Airport Road in Mississauga. Each year, this show marks the start of Cottage season for realtors and cottagers. If the attendance level is any indication, cottage country sales will be brisk this year. 

Our realtors take turns working the show, and have many listings to talk about. The information these realtors have on every lake is invaluable. As in the city, prices vary from area to area, and Hallmark realtors know their stuff. If you have a chance, catch the show - going on all weekend. Not only will you get some great information on property values, but every supplier or contractor with something to sell related to cottage country has a booth and great deals.

 

Blogging about my Baby - Rick DeClute

I love this use of Social Media. 10 days and counting. Rick and Kelly DeClute now have a baby daughter - Taylor - their first child. Of course Taylor is the most amazing baby ever. Incredibly beautiful, smart and charming to boot. All the stuff we all feel about our kids. 

Rick, never one been to be accused of staying in his comfort zone, started this blog on the incredible experience of being a new dad and is posting on line. It really is worth checking out. Click here. 

In the top right hand corner, you will see a time line on the hours, minutes and seconds since Taylor truly enriched the lives of Kelly and Rick.

Being Ordinary is more difficult than the day to day grind..

The week between Christmas and New Year day has always been a peculiar week for me. Peculiar in a couple of ways. It really is a time to slow down, sleep in later, find things to do outside of the ordinary. Not being "engaged" in the ordinary is sometimes more difficult than the day to day grind. Of course, it is also a time to be with friends and family, put work aside and catch up on what is important.

Now that my kids are all older and out of the house, it is certainly a different season for me. When my guys were growing up, Christmas  was frantic. Things to do and things to be amazed with. Memories were made. My guys today reminisce about Christmas's gone - nice memories. Today, Christmas is more about getting together if only for a day or so. They all have different lives, agenda's and relationships. It's all good. When they were younger, the time between Christmas and New Years day would be spent keeping them busy - going to the Science Centre, movies, playing hockey and looking forward to school starting again after the break.

I am thankful for those memories. I like the time between Christmas and New Years day now because of the time it allows me to refocus, connect and get in touch with myself. A forced breather so to speak. I would much rather spend this time of year in some warm climate, particularly on a extremely cold morning like today BUT it is not to be this year. Maybe next year.