RE/MAX Archives - Thurston Olsen Real Estate Group

9 Simple Ways to Start Living a More Minimal Lifestyle

A minimalist lifestyle is not for everyone. But in this hectic world, many of us are feeling that call — the yearning to have less, to spend less, to do less, to need less.

You read about those folks who make huge, dramatic leaps into extreme minimalist lifestyles, giving away everything they own, moving to an all-white room with just a mattress and a notepad. You can certainly get on the path to minimalism with a similarly grand gesture, or you can work on seeking simplicity more gradually.

We’ve got the beginner’s road map for getting on a path to living a more simple, minimal lifestyle at home (and in life). No one single thing will magically make you into a minimalist tomorrow, but these ideas are a good place to start you on your journey.

150 East Liberty Street Suite 1013 Liberty Village Toronto - Master bedroom detail

1. Give yourself a clear, personal goal (and a timeline)

What is your personal definition of a more minimal home and life? Is it to have only the bare minimum of objects? Is it to declutter a whole room of stuff you haven’t looked at in months? Is it to learn to live with less or stop buying things you don’t need? There’s no “right” way to be a minimalist; we can all have our own definitions of simple and stress-free. Just take the time to define it for yourself. Not sure where to start defining what you don’t want in your life? Focus on what you do want — what makes you feel alive, what you’re passionate about — and then begin to strip away the things (physical and otherwise) that are getting in the way of you doing more of what you really want to be doing.

Give yourself a clear goal, with broken-down steps to attain (and remember to write down the things you need to complete those steps). And then give yourself a time frame to achieve each step (not just the final goal). Consider making alerts on your calendar so you are held accountable. And don’t just write down what the goal is — write down why you want to live more minimally (less stress, more money, less stuff to haul on your next move — it can be anything that means something to you).

2. Decide how your home can help you live a more minimalist lifestyle

Your quest for a more minimal lifestyle might point you in the direction of a smaller or simplified home. This is a big step for folks who own or rent homes, but not impossible. Again, start with a goal of what you want — be specific. Not sure what you want? Do some traveling — and look to stay in homes in the size range you’re thinking about. You’ll be able to visualize your future life easier if it’s a size you can downsize to. Or perhaps the size and type of your home is okay but it’s what’s in it…

3. Declutter

This seems pretty obvious, but it can be the most painful step for folks who have a real attachment to many of their items. Start slow and intentionally. Throw out or donate everything you obviously don’t need first. Then take and hide everything you think you could do without for a few months, to give yourself distance to be able to give them away. Then use that motivation to gather the courage to take decluttering as extreme as works for your dream, minimal lifestyle. Keep reminding yourself that stripping away as much stuff from your life will make it easier to achieve a more simple life and allow you to have more freedom. You don’t have to only live with a bed and a laptop; again, you get to decide what living more minimally means to you.

4. Train yourself to live with less

If you’ve been used to creature comforts for a long time, you might not be ready to take a minimal plunge all at once. Consider having comfort-free weekends or months, slowly eliminating comforts and luxuries (even as simple as pricey haircuts or weekly movie dates) and seeing what feels okay to lose, and what things are too valuable to your happiness to give up.

5. Ask yourself “do I really need this?” all the time

Before you swipe your credit card, ask yourself “Do I really need this?” And ask yourself all the time. At first you may easily justify purchases out of habit, but as the question sinks in, you might find yourself realizing you don’t need many of the items you impulsively buy.

6. Be a re-user

Another great habit to explore on the path to a more minimal way of living is learning to be a great re-user. Save packaging to reuse for other things. Learn to repair and fix things rather than replace. Use old clothing for scrap fabric for DIY projects. Be open to being creative to find ways you can reuse something you already have rather than buy something new.

7. Invest in high-quality items

When you do have (or want) to buy something new, splurge on high-quality items that are meaningful for you. Remember that it might be nicer to have a sparse home filled with dreamy designs you adore versus full of things you just sort of like. But also remember that, again, you define what minimal means.

8. Be clear about why you want to be more minimal (and remind yourself often)

Go back to the first step above regularly, especially when things get tough, so you can remember why you’re trying to live more minimally in the first place.

9. Forgive yourself and keep trying

As someone who has given away everything they owned one and a half times now, I can assure you, we manage to acquire stuff at impressive speeds. And also sign up for a lot of work obligations, too. This is just human nature. But don’t give up on your quest to simplicity if you wake up one day and notice you’ve let a lot of unneeded stuff clutter up your home or schedule. Just start over at the top, breathe in, and keep trying.

Source: ApartmentTherapy.com

Condo fees in Toronto rose only 2.5 per cent in 2017

It’s big and it’s real — condo buyers’ and residents’ fear of escalating monthly maintenance fees.

But a study by Condos.ca shows condo fees in Toronto rose only 2.5 per cent last year over 2016. The average maintenance cost on a 594 sq. ft., one-bedroom apartment was $386.60.

That compares to an annual increase in both 2016 and 2015 of about 4 per cent.

Toronto Condo

Condos.ca found that the average fee among 984 buildings last year was 65 cents per sq. ft. That equates to $628.02 a month on a 956 sq. ft. two-bedroom unit and $881.20 a month on a 1,354 sq. ft., three-bedroom apartment.

Those averages don’t include parking or storage lockers, which would up the monthly cost by $46.22 and $15.15 a month, respectively, says the study.

Buildings that included water, heat, hydro and air conditioning in their fees averaged 69 cents per sq. ft. Those without the utilities had a 37 cents per sq. ft. average fee.

“If you’re paying for these elements separately, the total monthly costs could be much higher than if they were included in the maintenance fees,” says the report.

Last year’s lower increase is probably due to the number of new condos on the market. Newer buildings tend to have lower fees, says Andrew Harrild, company co-founder. (Pre-construction condos were not included in the study.)

It doesn’t reduce the dread he hears every day from buyers who don’t want to pay that monthly fee.

“After your mortgage, it’s typically your next biggest expense. It’s a big issue,” he said.

But it doesn’t need to be scary.

“When done right (the fees) are definitely an important part of a healthy condo building. They’re an important part of ensuring your asset is going to grow in value in time,” said Harrild.

“There are some great buildings out there that have been around for 20 or 30 years and still have maintenance fees under control,” he said.

The maintenance costs should rise annually at about the rate of inflation, but they should also reflect the true cost of operating and maintaining a building.

A lot of buyers look for lower maintenance fees so they can allocate more of their budget to their mortgage. But in some cases the cost of a unit may be discounted because the maintenance fees are higher.

“Buildings with higher maintenance fees don’t often sell for the same price per square foot. You have to do the math,” said Harrild.

The average price of a new construction condo in the Toronto area last year rose 42.6 per cent to $702,992, from $493,137 at the end of 2016, according to the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD).

The province also introduced new rules last year that require condo board members to take online training in areas such as avoiding conflicts of interest in purchasing decisions. Ontario also launched a new online tribunal to deal with condo disputes and new rules around mandatory meeting notices, voting and disclosures.

Those changes were expected to add $12 a year to the fees per condo unit, the government said in July.

Harrild advises buyers to always bear in mind the true cost of operating the building.

Good condo managers will make sure the reserve is healthy enough to fund major repairs so that residents aren’t hit with expensive special assessments down the line.

Sometimes condo boards will opt for higher fees for the first few years of a building’s life to build up a healthy reserve fund and then they will be able to reduce the costs for unit owners. The Toy Factory Lofts decreased fees 30 per cent between 2011 and 2012. Success Tower, reduced its fees 13 per cent from 2015 to 2016 and Minto 775 saw a drop of 19 per cent between 2015 and 2017.

At the Toy Factory, the board went through every line of the budget and cut costs wherever possible, right down to more energy efficient lighting and lowering the thermostat a couple of degrees in common areas where possible, said Harrild.

Size of building can matter too, when it comes to condo fees. If two buildings have a similar footprint, repairing the roof will likely cost about the same whether one has 40 or 14 storeys.

But the cost of repairing and maintaining common elements indoors can be distributed among more residents if there are more units. At the same time, those common features are probably going to experience more wear and tear in a bigger building simply because more people are using them.

source: toronto condo maintenance fees