ABOUT STEVE
BIOGRAPHY
For 15 years now, Steve has brought a wide variety of experiences and education to serve his clients. He attended Ontario College of Art, studying design. His sense for design is an asset when advising clients whether selling or buying. After art school, he got some “real world” experience letting his love for automobiles lead him to work as an apprentice mechanic. In 1989, he returned to school and received a B.A. from Redeemer University College in philosophy, history and classical studies. He then continued his education, doing post-graduate work in Michigan at Calvin Theological Seminary, earning an M.Div. Following school, he led churches in Bowmanville, Chatham, and Simcoe, Ontario. After almost 10 years as an ordained pastor, a change was needed and Steve has taken all of his skills and experience into his real estate career at Royal LePage Triland Realty.
Steve is happily married to his wife, Nicole, and has six children, and two grandchildren. They are active in their church community and have a real heart for the work of battling child poverty in South America and Africa, sponsoring a number of children through World Vision. He has had the privilege to give back to his alma mater by serving on the Board of Governors of Redeemer University College for nine years. He has been politically active, working on the election campaigns of former Chatham-Kent-Essex MP Dave VanKesteren and former London West MP Ed Holder. Steve is also a former member of the Rotary Club of London. He coached youth soccer through NorWest Optimist Soccer and the East London Soccer clubs for five years. He chairs the Transportation Committee at London Christian Elementary School. He was actively involved in the London Aquatic Club for almost 10 years, becoming certified as a Level III official during that time. Steve enjoys the outdoors, is an avid runner who has completed five marathons and is an hiker, canoeist, fisherman and backwoods adventurer.
Together with his broad education and experience, Steve puts this strong passion for service to work for his clients. He is committed to a client-centred approach focused on helping each client make the right move for them and their needs. Three watch words define his approach:
SERVICE | KNOWLEDGE | RESULTS
WHY WORK WITH STEVE?
My Commitment to You…
…is to provide you with a positive real estate experience focused on your needs as a client, using my knowledge and skills to help you meet your real estate goals, whether selling, buying or investing.
With that in mind, you, the client, are at the centre of everything I do in my real estate practice. My approach intentionally values customer service as the foundation of the client – realtor relationship. I will take the time to understand your real estate needs and will stay with the process until those needs have been met. We will work at your pace and within your time frames — whether they are hurry up and immediate, requiring us to move quickly or a slower, long term, “lets be patient” approach. I will use my knowledge and experience backed by solid research to answer your questions and give you good advice.
It is always my goal to reduce the anxiety of the process by providing you with the tools you need to help you make great real estate decisions. I am in your corner through the entire process, making sure that at each step of the process, your interests are being looked out for. I strive to be more than a professional, a consultant or a sales person. My hope is that you will see me as a trusted friend in the process. In the end, it is about achieving the results that are most important to you: getting your home sold in a timely manner for the best price possible with minimal interruption to your life; and finding the home that best meets your needs, at a price that meets your budget.
SERVICE | KNOWLEDGE | RESULTS
PRIVACY POLICY
Steve Baarda is committed to protecting the personal information of our customers, employees and other individuals. When you conduct business with Steve Baarda you can be assured that your privacy is protected. We respect your right to control the collection and use and disclosure of your personal information.
Steve Baarda is committed to protecting your privacy and safeguarding your personal information. Steve Baarda has implemented the below “Privacy Code” to comply with the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) which came into effect January 1, 2004. Steve Baarda respects the privacy of our clients and we are committed to keeping your personal information private, secure, accurate, and confidential.
What Is Personal Information?
Personal information includes any factual or subjective information, recorded or not, about an identifiable individual. This includes information in any form, such as:
age, name, ID numbers, income, ethnic origin, or blood type
opinions, evaluations, comments, social status, or disciplinary actions
employee files, credit records, loan records, medical records, existence of a dispute between a consumer and a merchant, intentions (for example, to acquire goods or services, or change jobs)
Personal information does not include the name, title, business address or telephone number of an employee of an organization.
Information We May Collect And What We Do With Such Information
We collect and use information about you and your use of our website and our products and services (herein called “Information”) to:
(i) initiate and maintain a business relationship with you as our customer in connection with our products and services.
(ii) Provide you with personalized services and product offerings by use of direct marketing to our current customer base, as well as new potential customers.
(iii) Comply with any legal requirements or requests due to a legal proceeding.
The Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act utilizes the model code from the Canadian Standards Association(CSA). The code was developed by business, consumers, academics and government under the auspices of the Canadian Standards Association. It lists 10 principles of fair information practices, which form ground rules for the collection, use and disclosure of personal information. These principles give individuals control over how their personal information is handled in the private sector. An organization is responsible for the protection of personal information and the fair handling of it at all times, throughout the organization and in dealings with third parties. Care in collecting, using and disclosing personal information is essential to continued consumer confidence and good will.
To view the Personal Information and Electronic Document Act, click here now.
Steve Baarda takes our Privacy code seriously, which is based on the below 10 principles:
1. Accountability
Steve Baarda is responsible for information under our control. We have assigned an individual who is accountable for our organization’s compliance to the Privacy Principles set out by the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act.
2. Identifying purposes
Whenever we collect information from a customer or potential customer we identify the purpose for which the information will be used.
3. Consent
Consent and knowledge of the individual is required before we collect or disclose any personal information, except in cases where it is inappropriate.
4. Limiting collection
We only collect information that is necessary for the purpose identified by our organization.
5. Limiting use, disclosure, and retention
Just as Steve Baarda takes steps to limit the types of information we collect from you, we carefully regulate how we handle your personal information. We do not use your information for purposes other than those to which you have consented, or as required by law (for example in a legal investigation).
Should Steve Baarda require the services of third parties to handle your information, we will require them to adhere to privacy procedures that will keep your information confidential. These third parties will be given only the information necessary for performing their information-handling services.
Steve Baarda does not sell or trade personal information for commercial purposes.
Steve Baarda is committed to retaining your personal information only as long as is necessary for the purposes for which it was collected. Steve Baarda is also committed to deleting or destroying the records containing that information when they are no longer required; this will be done in ways that will ensure your continued privacy.
6. Accuracy
We are committed to ensuring that our records of your personal information are accurate, complete, and up-to-date. Although it is your responsibility to inform Steve Baarda of any relevant changes in your personal information, we will take steps to ensure that you are able from time to time to verify the information in your file.
7. Safeguards
Steve Baarda uses appropriate safeguards to protect the privacy of your personal information. These safeguards are designed to prevent unauthorized access, disclosure, copying, use, or modification. Your records are accessible only to staff who have been given the authority to access them and only as is necessary to provide services to you.
8. Openness
So that you can be confident that Steve Baarda is handling your personal information appropriately, Steve Baarda will make information about its policies and practices concerning management of personal information readily available to you. As such, Steve Baarda lists our policies on our website for viewing 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for reading by all.
9. Individual access
If at any time you have a question about our records containing your personal information, we will do our best to answer it. You have the right to be told about the kind of personal information Steve Baarda maintains, how it is used, and with whom it is shared. You are entitled to challenge the factual accuracy as well as the completeness and relevance of our records. Incorrect information will be promptly corrected or, if necessary, deleted.
In special circumstances, Steve Baarda may need to refuse or limit an access request, for example when disclosure of the information will reveal personal information about another person or interfere with a legal investigation.
Most inquiries about our records containing your personal information will be answered at no cost to you. In special circumstances, however, it may be necessary to charge a fee, for example when a lot of staff time is required to gather requested information. If a fee is necessary, you will be told in advance.
10. Challenging compliance
An important measure of Steve Baarda’s compliance with the ten privacy principles is your perception of our practices and procedures. We welcome your comments and suggestions concerning this privacy statement and will respond to any concerns you may have about its application.
You can request a copy of the CSA Model code for the protection of personal information directly from the Canadian Standards Association.
An individual is able to address a challenge concerning compliance with these principles to Steve Baarda’s compliance officer:
Steve Baarda