I sat for a while trying to come up with a witty title for this entry, and finally decided…why? I’ll just call it exactly what it is, and what it is is fresh, fun, and a welcome addition to the beautiful town of Waterford. (more…)
Posts Tagged ‘community’
Waterford’s own Farmers Market
Posted: July 17, 2016 in Norfolk County Rocks!Tags: business, community, Farmers market, food, fresh, market, Matt Johnston, Norfolk County, venues, Waterford
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What to Do When You Lose
Posted: April 9, 2016 in Let's buy a Home... (or sell one...)Tags: business, buying, Come on just let me win!, community, competition, For Sale, losing, Matt Johnston, re/max, Real Estate, selling, winning
This probably isn’t news to most people at this point right now, but the real estate market is hot! Especially in certain places…Hamilton has been called the best place to invest in Canada by some, and a properly priced and listed home can often times sell in one day (I can attest to this from personal experience). Brantford is another where the demand is so high, and the supply is so low, that properly priced and listed homes are not only selling in record short times, but also in competition…sometimes grabbing over $25,000 OVER the list price! (note the key phrase: properly priced and listed!) How sweet it is to be a Seller in a market like that! But what about the other end of things? What about the Buyers? Buying a home is already a very stressful and sometimes overwhelming process, but now you have to do it in a rushed manner with the odds stacked against you. So what do you do? Let me give you some personal insight here and some tips and strategies. I’m not going to tell you I can make it easy, but just maybe I can help to make it less frustrating and stressful. (more…)
New Year, New Home (?)
Posted: January 8, 2016 in Let's buy a Home... (or sell one...)Tags: 2016, business, community, homes, Matt Johnston, new year, Norfolk County, planning, Property, re/max
Lots happened in 2015, whether you’re discussing world news, domestic politics, economy, and personal movement from a lot of people. It was a fantastic year for some, a slow year for others, and a painful year for a few. But 2015 is behind us now, and it’s time to look towards 2016! Part of my job is to speculate things to come in the market and advise people when it’s a good time to make their move. Guess what I’m about to say? (more…)
Christmas Hope
Posted: December 21, 2015 in Norfolk County Rocks!Tags: 2015, caring, charity, Christmas, Christmas spirit, community, dinner, food, holidays, hope, love, Norfolk County, pharmacy, Simcoe
Ok, so it’s raining and not snowing, and the weather is milder than we’re used to. But what is it that really makes the holiday feel like Christmas? A lot of people come to Simcoe to witness the lights (even without snow, they’re a sight to be held). Scents are a huge thing…the smell of baking and roasting turkey or ham, for us it was putting up the very large Christmas tree and having the scent of pine fill our home. But more than all of that, it’s the actions that we do. The heartfelt charity that reminds us that we’re all in this game together. So when I went in to pick up a few things at my local pharmacy, I was overwhelmed by what they were doing. (more…)
New Site, New Branding!
Posted: June 18, 2015 in Let's buy a Home... (or sell one...)Tags: community, local business, Matt Johnston, MLS, MLS listings, Norfolk County, Norfolk County Homes, re/max, Real Estate, website
I am super excited to launch my new website here! Hopefully you’ve all been reading my blog here, and you’ll recognize the format and appearance of the new site. If you follow my blog, you can still get to it through the old url (mjohnston2.com), but it’s now the second page of the whole site Norfolk County Homes! Or NorfolkCountyHomes…I’m still not sure if I should refer to it with the spaces or not.
Having control of my own site allows me to do a few things that I wanted to do before, but I couldn’t. One of which was bring both the website and blog together into one place. Now, if you’re reading my stuff, you can also swing over and check out my new listings, or link right up to MLS, Re/Max, or my office website! I’ve also embedded some forms to make it easier for you to search for the perfect home, or to get a market evaluation for your current home. My goal is to make things as easy a possible for you when it comes to your real estate needs, and help provide all the tools necessary. (more…)
How to Hire a REALTOR
Posted: June 1, 2015 in Let's buy a Home... (or sell one...)Tags: business, community, how to, Matt Johnston, ontario, re/max, Real Estate, REALTOR, Simcoe, WI
We all know this is an important decision. And we all know that your home is most likely your single most valuable possession. So why do so many people just go with the first agent they meet? Or only ever call the listing agent? (bad idea, btw).
There are a few simple things you can do to make sure that you’re making the right decision, and instead of going over it myself, I’m going to refer to the video that really inspired me to post this. It’s short, sweet, to the point, and it’s spot on.
MyTube
Posted: April 18, 2015 in Let's buy a Home... (or sell one...)Tags: business, community, entertainment, fun, Matt Johnston, Norfolk, Norfolk County, re/max, Real Estate, REALTOR, video, youtube
YouTube really has become an incredible repository for information. It used to be a place for people who owned a camcorder and a cat to upload really cute (read stupid) things, with the occasional just as irrelevant/sometimes entertaining short clip. Oh, and music.
But it’s grown and morphed into something completely different now… (more…)
New Year, Bright Future
Posted: April 7, 2015 in Let's buy a Home... (or sell one...)Tags: 2015, blog, business, canada, community, expert, Lake Erie, Matt Johnston, Norfolk County, re/max, Simcoe
Geez, it’s been a while since I’ve hammered on the keyboard for my blog. Too long, apparently, because I’ve had a number of people ask me where I’ve gone…both with my blog and my newsletter! So I’m here to say, I’m back to writing and Imma gonna do my best to keep on top of it!
I figure I’m going to do a few changes though, and work to implement some projects I’ve been dying to do. We all know video is where it’s at, and if you’ve been following my business (real estate), you will have noticed that I’ve been doing full video virtual tours for the homes I sell…and the response has been incredible! So I want to take it to the next level and do a showcase series for my county. It’s actually something I’ve been pondering for quite a while now (over a year!), but…well…life kind of gets in the way sometimes.
See, I live in one of the most beautiful areas in Southern Ontario, and I want to show it off. Yes, I know I’m a bit biased, but I think after I show you all what I’m talking about, it will be hard to argue the fact. I’ll continue to write the way I always have, but these will be some…added pieces.
So be patient with me, and we’ll make this year a year of exploration! Thanks for riding along 🙂
Born to Ride!
Posted: June 15, 2014 in Norfolk County Rocks!Tags: biker rally, bikers, community, crowds, Friday 13, full moon, fun, Holiday, Lake Erie, Matt Johnston, motorcycle, Port Dover, re/max, Real Estate, Spring, Summer
I’ve been doing a lot more video editing with my virtual tours for homes that I list, so I thought instead of taking pictures this year at the Biker rally in Port Dover, I’d get video instead. Here are the results of what I captured. If you like what you see, hit that like button, and share it all over the place!
Whenever I have someone that is looking to buy a home in Port Dover, I always mention to them the rally that happens every Friday the 13th. Where most understand after I explain it to them, there are still ones that give me a bit of a vacant acknowledgement, and I can tell that the pictures and my explanation just don’t convey what really goes down in our little fishing town. So I made this video instead. And I think it really captures the heart of the event! Enjoy 🙂
Port Dover, Ontario. Friday the 13, 2014.
Fences make Great Neighbours
Posted: June 13, 2014 in Let's buy a Home... (or sell one...)Tags: backyard, business, community, Curb appeal, fences, For Sale, home, homes, Lake Erie, Matt Johnston, Norfolk County, Port Dover, privacy, Property, re/max, Real Estate, Simcoe, Waterford
We’ve all heard that statement, right? And lets face it, there’s a lot of truth to it. Fences offer privacy, let you keep a dog in the yard without worries, sometimes even adds a level of security to your property. If you don’t already have a fence around your backyard though, what do you need before you put one up? (more…)
