How to Sell Your Condo and Buy a House: STARBUCKS FACTOR

Just by looking at this cup in my hand you probably know exactly where I’m sitting right now. If you live in a downtown condo, you are probably surrounded by Starbucks coffee shops, however, when you are looking for your first house you may want to pay special attention to where the closest Starbucks is located.

This is one of several videos in my series about “How to Sell Your Condo and Buy a House“. Check out my Youtube Channel for the entire series.

The Starbucks Factor is a qualitative factor that is remarkably accurate in predicting which neighbourhoods will be the next hot area. Where Starbucks goes, that’s where real estate values are on their way up. The story goes that Starbucks invests massive amounts of money into researching an area before ever opening a store there. Perhaps more than any other retailer, having a Starbucks in your neighbourhood is usually a very good sign.

The key to getting the most out of the Starbucks Factor is to look for neighbourhoods where there is not a Starbucks yet, but where there will likely be one soon. Not an easy task but understanding neighbourhood trends and having a Realtor who can pinpoint the areas where prices are rising more rapidly than the average will help you find these up and coming pockets.

Probably the most famous example of the Starbucks factor was in the West Queen West neighbourhood in 2005 when a Starbucks opened there near the Drake Hotel. For better or worse, the opening of the Starbucks started a gentrification process that has completely transformed the once derelict area. Now if you go to this stretch of Queen West between Ossington and Dufferin you’ll notice several new condo developments under construction representing an influx of thousands of high income home owners into the area.

If you are thinking about selling your condo and buying a house this year, I’d love to help. For more information contact me.

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