Summer, the weather is light and we share with you some real estate facts that have crossed time.

Fact number 1:

The Humble Abode of William Buffet.
Billionaire Warren Buffett has lived in the same house for 61 years!
It is surprising to note, knowing the usual real estate eccentricities of billionaires, that one of the richest men on the planet is a modest man in terms of housing.
He lives in this pretty English cottage in Omaha, Nebraska, which he paid $31,000 and 1958 and is now worth about $700,000.
Mr. Buffet’s fortune is approximately $73 billion.
An octogenarian who has always had rather frugal personal values.

Fact number 2:

Did you know this? There is a meaning behind every door.
Nathalie Clément knows this, because if she doesn’t attach a particular affection to handbags, or pairs of shoes, our branch manager has a real passion for doors. Whether they are old, new or coloured.

So why are some front doors sometimes red?

A red door in the Anglo-Saxon world symbolizes that homeowners have finished paying their mortgages. Previously in the United States, a red door was a sign of welcome for travellers, a safe place where globe-trotters could rest in peace. In China, the colour red brings good luck and illustrates the entry through which Chi, a fundamental principle that shapes and animates the universe and life, can enter the house.

The lion statues that can be seen in various places in and around Montreal also have their traditional stories. In Vietnam, it protects and enriches its inhabitants. In China, it protects the house against accidents and theft. For Buddhists, statues of lions bring peace and prosperity and in Italy, the lion is a symbol of power and prestige. In Quebec, the tradition is that Quebecers place one or two lions in front of their property when the mortgage is paid. Whether in front of a door or by the stairs, the lion in real estate traditions remains true to itself, venerable, respectable and powerful, as seen on some popular buildings in Paris or New York.

Fact number 3:

Did you know this? There exists a mortgage superhero.

Pretty Boy Floyd whose real name was Charles Arthur Floyd was a thief in the days of the depression in the midwestern United States. He was a bandit loved for his desire to help the people, because when he robbed banks, he threw money out the windows when he left to help people in trouble. During this period of depression there were many repossessions of land and farmers who could no longer afford to pay off their mortgages. When he robbed a bank, he took the time to destroy the mortgage deeds at his fingertips, hoping that they would not be registered and that the bank would lose all tangible evidence of its customers’ mortgage debts. Thanks to his actions, he became a very popular bandit among the citizens!

However, in 1934 he was the #1 public enemy of Edgar J. Hoover’s FBI.

Are you also familiar with some funny real estate facts?

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