Andre Ferris

Andre Ferris of http://www.ferrisbrothers.ca/ was referred to me by my sister who had previously worked with him, and is again dealing with Andre on another current sale as I type this. Words simply cannot describe how GREAT of a job Andre did in landing me my first home purchase... a Condo! EVERY parameter was met in finding the perfect Condo for my needs... and I HAD quite a few needs! such as... Pets... Cost... Time(finding something quick)... Distance from work... Condo Size... and so on. And as I said, Andre nailed every single need, and easily exceeded any expectations I might have had! I'll check off the sections above with a comment for each... EXPERIENCE: Andre easily guided me through my first home-buying experience, and made the process very easy to understand. Key words being "my first home buying experience". Not only did I NOT have a clue how it all worked, but I had serious doubts I/we would be able to pull it off! Andre completely alleviated any concerns and was nothing but positive the entire time that we would find the "right place", and honestly, Andre made my first time home-buying experience very simple to understand, and we had a fun time doing it! Sure there were some setbacks, like when I had my eye on one place, only for Andre to find out we just missed out on it and it was already sold, and while I was disappointed in that news, Andre was right there assuring me not to worry, and that we'll get that "right place". And now that our search is over(I get the keys this Friday), and we found that "right place", I can tell you that Andre was absolutely correct! and not only did I get a BETTER place(bought a 2bdrm vs 1bdrm), but I got it for a bit cheaper than the one we had just missed out on that had me disappointed!... (that was a 1bdrm one) PROFESSIONALISM: The question asks how did the "real estate agent present themselves" and of course the answer in my mind was VERY professional and top notch all the way. We visited my Condo on 2 occasions(original viewing, and a second time to get some measurements, as I want to install some carpeting) and both times, every aspect was punctual, keys presented and ready, and Andre also took care to let me know what I can, and cannot do, as a prospective buyer, while viewing the place, showing equal respect for the sellers rights and expectations, as well, as the still-owner of the property. NEGOTIATION SKILLS: Were the Ferris Brothers... although I dealt only with Andre, they are a team of course, and I just want to acknowledge that aspect... but as the question asks "were they able to negotiate successfully on your behalf?" Well YES!... I would say so! :) I won't go into specifics in numbers, but Andre suggested the original "Offer" price to send, and explained to me how the process could/would play out, with the Seller likely sending back a counter-offer, and sure enough a counter-offer came back, and the counter-offer was far better than I was expecting!... So much so, that I... happily I might add... signed right then and there... Certainly no need to haggle it out some more! PROPERTY KNOWLEDGE: Excellent "Property Knowledge"! ... We looked at quite a few places in a short amount of time, and Andre did some excellent due diligence in determining potential flaws, problems and so forth... and did likewise when we found the Condo I purchased... meaning the one I bought came with none of the "flaws" or potential problems as he had previously discovered... an example being "special assessment fees", which are extra monthly fees, ON TOP of your regular Maintenance Fees!, which Andre had discovered were attached to some of the Condos we were first looking at. Again top marks!!! COMMUNICATION SKILLS: The question here is... "Did your real estate professional keep you up to date on your transaction?" Andre communicated everything with me, every step of the way, in real time, as it all happened. Whether it was in person, on the phone, email, or text messages, as soon as something transpired, or a question needed answering(by me, OR me asking Andre), Andre was right there for me, immediately. And just another blurb about "Professionalism" as it applies here... During the daytime, while I was at work, and when Andre would need me to do something like email a document, or answer a question, he would send a text saying "Is it OK to call you right now?" ... He would never just call out of the blue, knowing I am at work. Though my work is good for me taking such calls, I found that to be a very courteous thing. There's a lot of exemplary things as such, I could point out in my experiences working with Andre. CONTACT EXPECTATIONS: Far exceeded any "expectations" I had. Contact by whichever means, as mentioned above, was 150% perfection. So... With all that in mind, here's a little more "info" on my experience in buying my first home. As I mentioned, I had very real doubts I would even be able to own a Condo. I "lived off the grid" so to speak, for almost 2 decades, pretty much filing my taxes only every 5 years, and paying everything cash. I was originally bad with credit cards many many years ago, but ended up using a Visa and Master Card "responsibly" for the last couple of years, which has given me an excellent AAA+ credit rating, which I was surprised to learn about only when going through the mortgage approval process. I've been at my company for 18 years, and I make a decent wage, so that's good, and I had enough of a down-payment to offset what the difference was in the mortgage approval. So my point here really, is that I'm obviously not a "higher-end" home buyer by any means. I've read some of the other reviews and for the most part, the numbers-game involved, is at a level above what my dealings and budgets are/were. And I can tell you that... "higher end"/"lower end", home-buyer... whatever you want to call it... is irrelevant, as I felt completely treated FIRST CLASS by Andre the entire time! Here's a fact... I don't drive. So you know what? Andre was there to pick me up and drive me to the Condo viewings, and back, each time! How's that for going "beyond the call of duty"? I'm in Scarborough... buying in Scarborough as well(which is also where I work)... and I could have taken the bus and met him there each time. But Andre would have none of that, and was there to pick me up, right on time too! See what I mean by FIRST CLASS treatment!? Another aspect I must mention, is that this being my first home-purchase, I had no ideas about a Mortgage Agent/Broker, Lawyer, and so on. And this of course proved to be no problem as well, as Andre explained to me that I can use/search for my own people, or, he could arrange to connect me with the people he knows and deals with. So as a result, Andre connected me with a Mortgage Agent(Bill Mitchell) and Lawyer(Scott Pushman), and they are equally as professional and easy to work with as Andre is, and I must THANK them here for their excellent work as well! I'll close this out by saying that with all the time I've spent, in person/talking/emailing/texting, with Andre over this searching and buying process, we discovered we have similar tastes in music, as well as humour, and I can honestly say that I've not gained a Real Estate Agent... I've gained a FRIEND! Andre... I THANK YOU VERY MUCH for all your efforts and diligent work!, and I salute you sir! A nice "new-home" dinner party for you and your family(wife, brother, etc) is forthcoming. Cheers Andre!