Monthly Archives September 2015

Home Buyers: Working with a REALTOR®

Home Buyers: Working with a REALTOR®

September 28, 2015 | Comments Off on Home Buyers: Working with a REALTOR®

Real estate has undoubtedly become one of the biggest industries in the world.  Buying and selling of real estate property are obviously major financial undertakings for anyone and these transactions need to be executed in a professional way. With this in mind, working with a REALTOR® is crucial in selling or buying deal of real estate property. In Ottawa, REALTORS® have their own professional association known as the Ottawa Real Estate Board. From this association, our fully trained REALTORS® have insider access to MLS statistics about real estate activity, sales of property, the median price and market conditions. Since the interpretation of these statistics is
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How Google Sunroof is Changing Homeowners’ Costs

How Google Sunroof is Changing Homeowners’ Costs

September 28, 2015 | Comments Off on How Google Sunroof is Changing Homeowners’ Costs

How Google Sunroof Works Employing the high-resolution aerial mapping used by Google Earth, Project Sunroof calculates the amount of sunlight reaching your roof to assess its potential for solar power.  It takes a variety of factors into account including local weather conditions, shade from nearby trees and buildings and sun positions throughout the year.  The tool combines this information with data from your household’s monthly electricity bill, factors in panel orientation and tilt to the roof surface to calculate average monthly and annual solar radiation, recommends the size of solar installation needed and estimates the cost to purchase or lease
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The Inside Scoop on the Best Season to Sell Your Home

The Inside Scoop on the Best Season to Sell Your Home

September 15, 2015 | Comments Off on The Inside Scoop on the Best Season to Sell Your Home

Think you need to wait until Spring to sell your home? You may want to think again if you’re ready to sell now.   In this HGTV.com post, Gavin Chen challenges conventional wisdom that the best time to sell is spring and the best time to buy is fall.  Statistically, spring has the most competing sellers in the market, so you might have to stage your home to get an advantage. Chen suggests it is important to highlight the sellable features of your home in any season.  Although there are fewer buyers in the December – January period (holidays, travel),
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Your Annual Home Maintenance Schedule

Your Annual Home Maintenance Schedule

September 9, 2015 | Comments Off on Your Annual Home Maintenance Schedule

Following an annual maintenance schedule is an essential step in protecting the value of what will probably be the largest investment of your life – your home.  First time home owners, or those lacking experience may struggle with this task and overlook important elements.  Here are some guidelines to help you create a maintenance program that suits your needs. Benefits of Home Maintenance Regular preventive maintenance identifies minor repairs before they become expensive, major repairs.  It also preserves your home’s market value.  One study found that “greater than $5 return for every $1 spent on preventive maintenance is not unusual”. 
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Strong summer performance for Ottawa’s resale market

Strong summer performance for Ottawa’s resale market

September 3, 2015 | Comments Off on Strong summer performance for Ottawa’s resale market

Check out the latest Ottawa Real Estate Statistics from the Ottawa Real Estate Board The summer real estate market has been strong in the Ottawa area, as we head into fall we’ll keep you updated on the latest Ottawa Real Estate market news!  Are you interested in a specific neighbourhood?  Please contact us! We have the latest Ottawa neighbourhood statistics available. _____________________________________________________ Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 1,279 residential properties in August through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service® System, compared with 1,200 in August 2014, an increase of 6.6 per cent. The five-year average for August sales
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CMHC announces new rules to make it easier for homeowners to rent out property

CMHC announces new rules to make it easier for homeowners to rent out property

September 2, 2015 | Comments Off on CMHC announces new rules to make it easier for homeowners to rent out property

In this Financial Post article, Garry Marr discusses the impact of upcoming changes from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp (CMHC) that will permit homeowners to count 100% of the income from their secondary units when qualifying for a loan.  Currently, homeowners with legal units can only count 50% of the income from legal rentals.  By making it easier to borrow money, Marr suggests CMHC will be bringing more people into the market, and that is expected to boost affordable housing, especially in hot markets like Vancouver where secondary units make up almost 20% of the city’s rental stock.  To read
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