Ready to go Big Bag of Soil vs. Loose Yard(s) of Triple Mix?

I was just wondering if I am in the minority in thinking that, although convenient, these bags of soil are way too expensive - especially if you need more than one.

This weekend we hope to get out and do our spring clean up. The garden beds need to be refilled. A vegetable garden needs to be topped up. Some areas of the lawn were weak so we are putting down some seed and fertilizer in triple mix. All in all we will probably need about 1.5 to 2 yards of soil.

Driving around the neighbourhood today I could not help to notice how many Ready to go Bags of Soil are on my neighbours driveways. Sometimes there are 2! They seem to be the popular thing to do.

I did some shopping around...

Typically a one yard bag of soil delivered to your door is on average $135-$140(tax included).  If you need 1.5 yards, you are out of luck. Each extra bag is $135-$140. This bugs me because the delivery truck is already at your home, so shouldn't the cost of delivery be subtracted from the total?

I may be stating the obvious, however I was wondering if everyone knew that with loose soil delivery the cost of one yard can be substantially less then the ready to go bags?

For instance, some of the bigger brand name Garden Centres were $89- $99/yard delivered - not a huge savings here.  Others were as low as $59, less than half price! (you have to go beyond the first page of google to find them). However I cannot not vouch for the quality of their soil.

Where the big difference comes in is if you need more than 1 yard. Typically there is only one delivery charge for loose soil as long as it is in the same truck on the same run. In fact most Garden Centres will divide your order into different products and still only charge one fee. For example 1 yard of garden soil and 1 yard of mulch.

Even at the most popular and most expensive Garden Centres the cost is $140 for 2 yards, but could be as low as $79 if you shop around. They will also deliver half yards as long as one yard is ordered.

What about the mess? 

If you have ever ordered a bag of soil you may remember that the bag is yours to keep. If you return it they credit you $5. If you want to actually purchase one of those bags new - $5!  Whatever you don't use you can shovel back into the bag!

Any cheap tarp will protect your driveway, and if you have a large tarp you can wrap up the soil and protect it from the elements.


If you have a hitch on your vehicle...


You can rent an open trailer from your local Uhaul for $18 +tx. per day. The garden centres will fill it up for u and level it off. You save the delivery charge which can be be as much as $50. However that may offset by the cost of the trailer if you decide to keep it for a few days. The great thing is that if you are doing a spring clean up you can use the trailer to make a trip to the Recycling/Refuse Depot and drop off old soil, sod, and whatever other junk you may accumulate from the clean up.

*** Trailers typically can hold up to 2000lbs or one yard so you may have to make a couple of trips. ***

Verdict:

If you need more than one bag it is simply not worth spending $140 per bag for the convenience. If you  have a hitch and need 2 yards or more you can do it all yourself and literally spend less than 1/3 that of ordering two bags.

The Ready to Go bags serve their purpose and are very convenient, however are not very cost effective. Savings of $150- 200 buys a good deal of flowers and plants, or an outing at a restaurant with the family after a weekend of yard work! To me this is worth  more than the convenience of the ready to go bags. Agree?

Ontario Moves to protect consumers: Phantom offers: Not sure if you knew this....

Article Summation:

 1. If you have been in multiple offer, you know how stressful it can be. When presenting in person in most cases  it is evident that there is competition. However sometimes the multiple offers are done over fax! Phantom Offers. There is simply no way of knowing if it is a complete sham. We can ask for the name of the brokerages we are competing against, however it is not mandatory for this information to be disclosed.

2. Currently we (Licensed Realtors) in Ontario must either charge a flat fee OR a percentage. Many experienced  Realtors provide a-la-cart service, this legislation would allow the process to be more transparent.

3. Statistic Check:  Consumers currently pay between  5-6%? Source? This statistic needs to be qualified. In what jurisdiction and at what price range? These days typical real world commissions in the GTA and 905 are between 4% to 5% and could be less if it is a package deal, repeat client etc. Source? Speaking to fellow Realtors.

If everything goes according to plan...Offers,Mortgages,Home Inspections - 3 quick behind the scenes insights - have a look - give your 2 cents!

If everything goes according to plan this video is pretty accurate. However some aspects never do. Here are 3 scenario's often experienced that would put some of the above stickies on video loop.

• Negotiate offers multiplied by 1,2,3,4? Often on both sides of the transaction. Multiple offers are common place. This is great when selling, not so great when buying. For each home lost in a multiple offer, the house hunt starts again. Also, not every offer for a sellers home is suitable, but most offers are worth trying to negotiate even if in the end they go nowhere: Stickie Looping. 

• Lately pre-approvals are proving to be only worth the paper they are usually not even written on.   Mortgage rules have gotten much tighter these days. More than ever stories are circulating about conditional offers going sideways because the buyer is being stalled by their lender. A fine balance is required between allowing the buyer more time and/or putting the listing back on the market. The behind the scenes negotiation become quite complex if a large swath of time is required to resolve matters. More stickies.

• The Home Inspection. Home inspectors are coming under incredible scrutiny lately. This is great for the consumer. The politics behind home inspections is what makes the process interesting. On the one hand Inspectors are often blamed by Realtors for 'killing the deal'; and if they get labelled as a deal killer, it could put their careers in jeopardy. On the other hand, if they gloss over the small stuff, this could cause issues for the new home owner and they could possibly get sued for it. If there are issues reported from Home Inspection, a new set of negotiation begins between the buying and selling parties. Often other experts on the matter must be brought in (contractors, electricians, HVAC people etc.) facilitating this adds on many more 'sticky notes'.

Have you run into any of the above scenarios? Would love to hear your 'add on stickies' stories! If you have any question please feel free to post or message me.

DS

How many References before hiring a Contractor...Small Business owner? What does Mike Holmes say?

I like Mike Holmes. I thought his Holmes on Holmes television show was an absolute hit: funny, informative, and sometimes inspiring. Of course I did not always agree with all of what he professed on the show, however for the most part I was on board with him. He is like the Don Cherry of the non-hockey world to me – awesome.

I had not seen him for a while. His home inspection show (Holmes Inspection) and new show, Holmes Makes it Right, is in some special bundle package which Bell requires that I subscribe to even though I just want the one channel. Of course with several books, and his ads everywhere, most people see him in some way or another, on a regular basis.

Today while banging away at the keyboard I heard a voice coming from the living room and low and behold there was Mike being interviewed on the Steven and Chris show. Apparently he is a regular.

They were conducting one of those obvious audience participation question and answer sessions, so I parked myself to catch it for a few minutes while sipping on my morning Tim’s.

All was going in the typical Mike Homes fashion until the hosts ask:

True or False?: A contractor should provide at least 10 references?

(Steven says  ’10 seems like a lot’)

Mike Homes:  Ok I’ve done thousands of jobs; you want somebody to come in with 10 references? They should be giving you at least 20. (Chris: Oh wow more!)

Chris:  Not his sister, his mom, his aunt Susie (ha-ha-ha)

Mike Holmes: His cousin, his neighbour… Three is the magic number I don’t understand this. Three and people are ok with that…. ’Ok I will phone all 3.’  I will give you hundreds, but you should see at least 20.

Really 20!!! Now lets all think about this for a moment. Twenty references or don’t hire someone?

I see…. Well then how exactly is someone supposed to start in the contracting and renovation business (or any business!) if they should not be hired if they do not have a minimum of 20 references? Does one magically leap to 20 without being hired? Or is it like hatching Turtles on the beach, thousands go out and only a few make it to the magical 20?

A seasoned small contractor usually does part of the work themselves with their core group and then brings in trades for the expertise they are lacking (electricians, plumbers, engineers, etc.). They probably have 1-2 small jobs running concurrently with a couple of larger jobs.  I may be a little off but depending on how big the jobs were during the year, a busy contractor will finish 30-40 projects. 

Based on the larger jobs Mike Holmes was doing on his show, that number may be less then 20 per year.

The point being, that to gain that experience you have to get jobs.  I am putting this out here today because perhaps someone can chime in and tell the world what Mr. Holmes neglected to do; How does a talented, honest, small business owner get off the ground, when they have zero references and cannot use the work they did for the people most likely to hire them – their family and friends – as referral sources? What about those great contractors who are simply bad at asking for referrals and recommendations?

I believe (hope) that the point he was trying to make was that your contractor should come by relationship rather than opening up the yellow pages.  However it did not come across like that at all.

Mike Holmes is a sort of de facto voice for contractors and renovators. His opinions carry a lot of weight.  A blanket statement of that nature, without qualifying his position seems a little too self-serving for my tastes.

I like Mike Holmes. Perhaps his next book/show/speaking engagement should be on how to succeed in business – starting from scratch.

Oh and by the way Mike: (video)http://www.cbc.ca/player/Shows/Shows/Steven+and+Chris/Web+Exclusives/ID/2197107440/  …Hope you didn’t use that as a reference? (ha ha har)

DS

Another positive TREB Market Watch: 2002-2013 Eleven years + of doom and gloom.

If you happen to go to you tube and read the first comment you will see it is someone proclaiming that house prices are out of whack with incomes. This very same argument has been put forth now for nearly 10 + years. The first rumblings of it came in 2002 but it reached its peak in 2007. It always ends with a prediction such as 'get ready for the bubble to burst', or 'its going to crash'.  I have this vision of the person on the other end devilishly laughing as finally the plan has been executed! (que audio clip)


 


The odd thing about it is that if you actually took the advice of pundits like Garth Turner back 10 years ago (The Little Book of Real Estate Wisdom) and decided to rent. The scenario would be something along these lines:

An average family home for rent in the 905 -  $1800 x 12 = $21 600 x 10 years  = $216,000

The price increase of the home you would buy now 40% more  = $250,000

Less the taxes you paid on that home  $3200 x 10 years* = -$32 000

Less maintenance that does not add to value $1000/ year*= - $10 000

Cost of not being in control of the roof over your head? =  Priceless

How about all that interest paid in 10 years? Well the rates have been the lowest in history. Anyone care to do a 25 year amortization table for $200 000 loan at 4/% principle and interest? If you did I would agree that there was a lot of interest paid. However, home loans are stacked interest heavy up front, and the principle to interest scale at 10 years would be starting to balance. As a bonus you would probably renewing at a rate of 3% or less.

But most importantly,  for the last 10 years you have lived in your own home and were the master of your own destiny: Nothing like getting settled in while your house sells 3 times in 10 years and each new landlord has a differing idea of property maintenance, or how many inspections are needed (quarterly, monthly?)

Hmmmmm, so your shower is coming apart and you want a nice spa master bathroom with tumble marble tiles?  Sorry no can do, but here is your 99 cent glazed tile and we are going to fix only the bottom half of the shower because the mold did not make it beyond the three foot mark.

I realize this is a simplistic analogy. Heck there have been entire books written about why you should rent and not own. However myself, for one, would not feel so great about spending over $200,000 to pay for my landlords mortgage and not be in control of what I want to do with my home, irregardless of  the theoretical chance that 30-40 years down the road I would have been just as well to rent. 

Well I guess if the market is going to crash and burn may as well wait a few more years, after all you have waited 10 already...

DS


* Costs that would be paid by your landlord

TREB Market Watch - March 2013

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