Is Renting Expensive in Toronto?

Toronto Rents Are Reasonable?

There are various reports and research ranking the best cities in the world. And one thing you’ll commonly see is that Toronto always ranks high, usually staying in the top ten, regardless of which ranking you look at. Mercer Quality of Living Survey, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) Cities of Opportunity report, and the Economist Intelligence Unit are just a few to name.

However, the striking difference between Toronto and other top class cities are what you pay to rent there. Another recent report published by RentCafe mentions that Toronto is 13th out of the 30 top financial centres in the world, but it only has the 26th highest rent among the top 30 cities.

If you live within an hour commuting distance from downtown Toronto, in Etobicoke for example, renting a one bedroom apartment can cost $900 and a 2 bedroom for $1,200. Rent in Midtown, which is about a half an hour commute from downtown, you will be paying $1,400 for a one bedroom and $2,000 for a two bedroom. In downtown, a one bedroom apartment can go for $2,000 and a two bedroom can go for $3,000.

Keep in mind that these examples are not to be taken as a sure thing. There are price fluctuations in the same area or even in the same building, as various factors such as location, floor, view, square footage, and many others elements play in determining rent price.

I have made a video on this and you can watch it by clicking here (Is It Expensive to Rent in Toronto?) or on the top left picture. After watching, it is up to you to determine whether the world’s best place to live (Toronto) is expensive to rent or not.

No One Cares About Your Money

Care About Your Money

No one cares about your money but you. Only you know how hard it is to earn a dollar, and even harder to save a dollar - that’s why self-interest is the best interest. The funny thing about money is that everyone can give advice about your money, but they are not nearly so casual with their own money. You are the one who earned it, and only you know the value of each dollar. Why give your money someone else to invest? Do you think that someone else will treat your money the same way as you do - of course not. That someone else will not act his/her best to protect your interests. He/she will act best to protect his/her own interests. You will not do frequent trading to earn commissions. However, that someone else might. That’s why I believe you should be your own money manager. I don’t believe you need to hire a financial advisor to start investing. But if you never invested before, how you can start on your own?

My first book Invest Now assumes you never invested before and teaches you how to start investing for the first time. It is written in simple and plain English, and you will never need a financial dictionary. You don’t have to be a financial guru to develop a consistent saving plan and accumulate wealth. Invest Now offers all the tools and motivation you need to start building a safe and secure financial future now for you and your family.

Award-winning book Invest Now is jam-packed with timely information and timeless advice for the beginning Canadian investor. To purchase a copy, visit Chapters Indigo or buy online - Invest Now: A Canadian's Guide to Investing

First Published: ADawnJournal.com Apr 15, 2008

How To Come Up With Great Domain Names

Domain Name Ideas and Tips

One thing I am constantly doing and never fall short of is my relentless pursuit for great domain ideas or domain names. Today, I will share a few things on how to come up with great domain names out of thin air.

Creativity is your number one asset – if you want to be a proud owner of some world-class, high-end domain names. Whenever I don’t need to be attentive and can free up my mind, I put my mind to work questing for domain names. Most people will let their mind wander when on the subway, standing in line, or just wandering around and wasting time; however, I see these moments as an opportunity and concentrate on finding great domain names. Here are a few tips I can share with you. These tips have worked for me and if you use them, they will work for you too.

- Always keep your eye and mind open. Pay attention to details when you are watching TV, reading signboards or store names while walking, reading a newspaper, and so on. Why? Because you may bump into some words or variations of words that can be used as domain names. For example, I came up with Dotcomdiary.com, Earthroadmap.com, and Globalboundaries.com just doing what I just mentioned.

- Keep a notebook and pen handy on your table, next to your bed, in your bag, etc. This happens to me a lot – I wake up in the middle of the night with a domain name burning in my head. Because of keeping a pen and notebook handy everywhere, I am able to write down the domain idea that woke me up in the middle of night and research it later when I get a chance. I came up with domains like beyondyourimaginations.com, greenlivingjourney.com and many others because I was able to write down right away.

- If you are waiting in line or riding the subway and can’t find anything to do, play around with some words and variations domain ideas. For example, one day the word “Roadmap” somehow struck my mind and I got infatuated with this word. Since then, I have been building one after another great domain names with this word “Roadmap.” Some of my Roadmap related domains are: Earthroadmap.com, Roadmaptosaving.com, Roadmaptosaving.com, RoadmaptoChina.com and much more.

- Use domain tools such as Domainbots.com to help you create domains with those words you are enthusiastic about. If you enter a word in Domain Bots search and hit enter, it will give you many variations with that word and also will tell you which are available. For example, I found many domains tied with “Green” and “Travel” from my search results on Domain Bot.

- Many domain names are dropping out of someone’s portfolio because the owner forgot to renew, gave up Internet Entrepreneurship, or simply can’t afford to hold them anymore. There are many sites that list those domain names that are about to expire or have recently expired. Go through these lists and who knows, you may be able to pick up your gem from these dropped-out domains. I found domains like 1timecash.com, 1tourtravel.com, and Realestateexpedition.com because someone else forgot or decided not to renew these domains.

There are many other ways to come up with great domain names. I can think of the above I mentioned right now off the top of my head. If you are into domains, you will come up with your own ways. If you can’t think of something right away, never give up and keep trying. It will all come to you slowly.
First Published: EntrepreneurJourney.com Apr 18, 2010

Portable Selfie LED Ring Light for Video or Smartphone

SOGOCOOL Selfie LED USB Light Review

Today, I will do a short review of a rechargeable selfie light that you can use for your lighting needs to take pictures or video. I have a video review of this product as well, which you can watch by clicking the picture on the top left. To clarify, like my other reviews, this is not a paid review and opinions are unbiased and honest. However, Canadian visitors can buy this by visiting my Amazon link mentioned here (SOGOCOOL LED Selfie Ring Light) and I will collect a small commission if you do so.

This LED ring light is very lightweight, portable, and made of 36 white LED lights. It’s very easy to carry and would fit in a small bag or carry-on luggage. My purpose for buying this was not for selfie pictures, but for video recording for my YouTube channel.

I have done several test clips of this LED ring light (see the video) and it works best when you need a light source in complete darkness. However, if you are outdoors and need a light source for your video or pictures or even when you are in indoors and need to brighten up your face, it does not seem to make any significant difference.

However, considering the low price of the SOGOCOOL Led Ring Light, you can’t go wrong buying it. When you need a light source for video or pictures in complete or semi-darkness, it really works and your face will be clearly visible when it otherwise wouldn’t. If you watch my video review, you will see how it’s performing in the dark and it’s easy to conclude that it works.

It can easily fit on top of any smartphone, laptop edge, or camera’s LCD flip screen and will provide the light when you need it. However, don’t expect it to provide heavy bright light like on a movie shooting because that’s not what it is.

You don’t have to be a financial guru anymore to invest - INVEST NOW has been published

Invest Now: A Canadian's Guide to Investing ,by Dawn, A. ( 2008 ) Paperback

Invest Now: Ahmed Dawn

First Published: ADawnJournal.com Mar 8, 2008

I am writing this post to let you all know that Invest Now has been published and available at all major online stores.  Invest Now delivers a convincing case for avoiding daily spending temptations and then shows you the secrets to smart investing. With as little as $25, you can become a successful investor by following three simple and practical steps.

The must-have guide for Canadian investors, Invest Now delivers three surprisingly simple steps to safeguard your financial future.

You don’t have to be a financial guru to develop a consistent savings plan and accumulate wealth. Invest Now offers all the tools and motivation you need to start building a safe and secure financial future now for you and your family. Invest Now has won prestigious Editor’s Choice and highly prestigious Publisher’s Choice award for its editorial integrity and outstanding design quality.

I will issue a pres s release shortly stating the publication of Invest Now. Invest Now is not available at bookstores yet. Invest Now will take another two to three weeks to hit Chapters shelves. I will let you know once that happens and also will issue another press release.