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The home at 144 Morse St., Leslieville, Toronto. The detached house sold for $932,000, $133,000 more than the asking price of $799,000.Ford Thurston

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Despite market turbulence, the real estate agent was confident that this renovated house would attract multiple bids.Ford Thurston

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“We knew we wanted it. We were prepared to be aggressive,” says buyer Maggie McAdory, who purchased the house with her husband Steve Barbier.Ford Thurston

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For Ms. McAdory, the most nerve- w racking aspect of the evening was the fact that the couple’s real estate agent had gone to New York for the weekend and remained stranded by Hurricane Sandy.Ford Thurston

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The sellers had been feeling some apprehension about the softening fall real estate market. The couple had already bought a house outside of the city in September. Just as they prepared their existing house for sale, the Toronto Real Estate Board was reporting a drop in sales compared with the same time last year.Ford Thurston

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“Leslieville has really blossomed,” the seller says, recalling that the Hells Angels had a club house just up the street when the family first moved in. Within six months of their arrival, he says, the police closed down the motorcycle club and Starbucks announced its first cafe in the area.Ford Thurston

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Ms. McAdory and her family are pleased because they think the asking price was far too low. A detached house up the street sold for more than $900,000 in the summer, she says, so they made their offer based on that precedent.Ford Thurston

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The buyers already live in the neighbourhood. They love the 25-foot-wide lot and the proximity to the local school.Ford Thurston

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The buyer says she and her husband hope to keep their existing house as an investment property and rent it out, just as they still own the condo unit that launched them into the market. “We believe that it’s always going to be a good investment to have real estate in the downtown area in Toronto.”Ford Thurston

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