About Jonathan Wiseman
Real estate, explained.
I'm Jonathan Wiseman, a REALTOR® with Royal LePage® Triland Realty, Brokerage in London, Ontario.
I've been a REALTOR® since 2012, but my experience with homes started well before I began working in real estate. Before becoming a REALTOR®, I was already buying, renovating and owning properties myself—and I've continued doing that throughout my real estate career.
That combination of working with clients while continuing to own and work on properties has shaped the way I approach real estate.
I learned about homes from the inside out
Over the years, I've owned both student and family rental properties and completed several full-home renovations, along with numerous kitchen, bathroom and other renovation projects. I continue to work on properties today.
That hands-on experience keeps me connected to what renovation work actually involves—the materials and choices available, what different projects can cost, and how those costs change over time.
Doing that work has given me a different perspective on a house. Something looking dated doesn't necessarily make it a problem. A relatively simple project can sometimes make a significant difference, while something that appears minor can lead to a much bigger job once you start taking things apart.
And every improvement has a cost.
That's part of the perspective I bring when I'm walking through a home with a buyer. I want to understand what we're actually looking at, what may deserve another question, what could potentially be changed and what might affect the bigger financial picture.
I'm not a home inspector or a contractor, and I don't pretend to be one. But years of owning and renovating property give me practical experience I can bring to the conversation—and I know when something needs to be looked at by the appropriate professional.
A practical approach to real estate
I don't think there's a perfect house. But a house doesn't have to be perfect to be the perfect home for you.
A home can have things you love, things you'd change and things you need to understand better before making a decision. The goal isn't to eliminate every imperfection. It's to understand what you're buying and decide whether the whole picture makes sense for you.
The same thinking applies when selling.
Not everything needs to be renovated before a home goes on the market. Some work may be worthwhile. Some may not return what it costs. Sometimes the best decision is simply to understand what buyers are likely to notice and make an informed choice about what to do—and what to leave alone.
That's the approach I try to bring to real estate generally: understand the property, understand the numbers, ask the right questions and then make the decision that works for you.
Giving back through every sale
A portion of the proceeds from every home I sell is donated to the Royal LePage® Shelter Foundation, which supports women's shelters and programs working to help women and children escape domestic violence.
Why I built HomeWiseman.com
After years of working with buyers, sellers and homeowners, I've found that many of the best questions come up long before someone is ready to make a move.
- What will buying actually cost?
- How does the process work?
- Should I fix something before I sell?
- How much would I actually have left after selling?
- What do the latest London market numbers really mean?
Those are reasonable questions, and I don't think someone should have to become a client just to start getting useful answers.
That's why I built HomeWiseman.com.
I wanted to create a place where people could learn about buying, selling and owning a home at their own pace, work through some of the numbers themselves and better understand the decisions they may eventually face.
The guides and tools on this site aren't intended to make those decisions for you. They're here to help you become better informed before you make them.
And when the general information isn't enough—because your house, your finances or your circumstances are different—