December is a wonderful month, the snow is falling and the ski hill is open. It provides a great time to look back and reflect on 2010 and look ahead to 2011. Some of the highlights for me this year have been:
1) Great Referrals from Great Realtors – in the past year I am proud to say that we have doubled our market share for real estate conveyancing. However, we did not do this alone. We only do this with the support of the first class professional realtors in OMREB who use and recommend our services everyday. Thank you all very much for you support in 2010.
2) HST – You’re probably thinking, seriously Peter? This is a highlight? From a lawyer’s point of view, Yes it is. The HST gave me a great opportunity to help out many realtors and clients through a difficult transition in the law. As lawyers, we don’t make the law but our job is to assist clients in working with it. So HST is something that 2010 will be remembered for. It will be interesting to see if the transition out of HST (and back to PST?) is something 2011 will be remembered for.
3) JUNE 30- We closed a record number of deals that day. The combination of pent up demand and the tax changes made for a very busy day. The economy looks to be aligning again for a similar June 2011 as buyers are putting off purchases as the prognosticators forecast the eventual demise of HST.
4) The Hard Deals – 2010 was the year of the hard deal. IRD penalties were rampant, Vendor’s were having trouble closing, and the economic uncertainty has lead to many properties being “underwater”. I am very proud to say that our firm did a great job of keeping these deals together. Having the litigation strength we do, we have been able to go to court and get the job done for a number of clients who have been on the innocent end of a deal gone wrong.
2011 is shaping up to be a very exciting time for us at Pihl Law Corporation. Some of the things “coming down the pipe” for us include:
1) Expanding our office space – we have taken over the first floor of our building and we are completing a state of the art “client centre”. I really look forward to inviting all of you to our “office warming” reception early in the New Year.
2) Expanding our staff – we are pleased to welcome Jody Serviss to our staff. She brings with her 6 years of conveyancing experience at a top tier law firm. New time you are in the office, please feel free to say hi to Jody.
3) Expanding our support of Realtors – we are constantly looking for a new and novel ways to assist Realtors to be “dealmakers”. Coinciding with the launch of our new office space, we are planning to launch a new toolbox to further assist local Realtors with their legal matters.
So, thank you all for a GREAT 2010, and I am looking forward to what is shaping up to be a Busier and Brighter 2011.
