The Edmonton Real Estate Blog

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Wednesday, March 29, 2006

Neighbourhood Report: North Glenora, Edmonton

The graph to the left compares the list price and sale price of 10 homes that sold in North Glenora in 2006. North Glenora is a popular community in West Central Edmonton. The graph is an excellent example of how pricing your property can affect the sale price...

As you can see, the first property sold significantly below list price (about $10,000 below, and $30,000 below the original list price) after sitting on the market for over three months. Compare that to the 7th property that sold after only two days for $17,000 over list price.

It is likely that the 7th property attracted multiple offers because it was priced smartly, thereby probably getting more money in the end than if they'd listed $20,000 higher.

At Coldwell Banker Johnston we provide our sellers with a comprehensive market analysis to help them price their property smartly. Remember, listing price is always the home owner's choice, making an informed decision on who represents you and how is your first step to a successful sale.

Get a free online home evaluation at www.edmonton-homes.ca.

Tuesday, March 28, 2006

Neighbourhood Report: Wild Rose & Larkspur

We recently sold a half duplex for over $8600 more than the average selling price for 2006 half duplexes in this area! Larkspur and Wildrose are seeing extremely quick sales; the average number of days on market for half duplexes in this area is 6.6 days, while the Edmonton market as a whole is 34 days.



If you are thinking of selling contact Coldwell Banker Johnston for Ultimate Service.

Neighbourhood Report: Jasper Park, Edmonton

Coldwell Banker Johnston Real Estate now offers neighbourhood reports to our web site visitors. Just go to www.edmonton-homes.ca and click on neighbourhood reports, indicate the neighbourhood you are interested in and we will send a report of recent sales in the area including number of days on market and sale prices. As reports are requested we will also post some of the information from the reports here, on our Edmonton Real Estate blog.

Jasper Park: there is a very large demand for homes in this area. The chart below shows the sales of single family homes in the area in 2006. As you can see, sale prices are very close to list prices and, with the exception of one property, are selling very quickly.

Contact us today for more information.

Monday, March 20, 2006

New Snowfall Record for March - Still a Few Days Before Streets Cleared

According to CBC news, it will be 4 days before all the streets in Edmonton are plowed...

City officials in Edmonton are working as quickly as they can to clear snow after Saturday's late winter thumping that set a new snowfall record for March.

Most buses were on schedule by Monday but about 20 buses were caught up on unplowed residential routes in the north and south ends of the city. The LRT was running fine.

City officials relaxed the parking ban along designated snow-routes. Usually, parking is prohibited along major roadways so crews can clear the street right to the curb.

Cleaning crews are more concerned with getting traffic lanes cleared as soon as possible, said Barry Belcourt, of the City Transportation Department. The total cost of cleaning up could reach $2.5 million.

Broke 1967 record

The blizzard easily broke a 1967 record for the snow in March. That record had been a meagre 9 cm.

The snow clearing started off slowly. When the city put out a call for more equipment and operators, less than half the usual number showed up. They were already working elsewhere.

It could be four days before all residential routes are cleared, Belcourt said.

"If I was to take equipment and put it into residential, then there is no equipment to deal with the bus runs. So you would get out of the residential and you wouldn't be able to get out the bus runs to get to the main road," he said.

Snow brought out community

Not everyone was put out by winter's final desperate act to leave its mark.

On a CBC radio phone-in line, people reported all sorts of neighbourly moments brought out by having to shovel 22 inches of snow to get anywhere.

"I played in the snow all weekend. And I made some tunnels, and I went tobogganing. I made a fort. I love the snow!" said an exuberant girl named Alicia.

Another caller described an impromptu group effort to clean the streets the old fashioned way.

"In our neighbourhood, something surprising and encouraging happened sort of spontaneously. All of our neighbours that lived up and down our block helped each other in shovelling out the snow in front of street so that we could all have places to park and not get stuck."

Yet another female caller told how members of her co-op pulled together to shovel out. Many cars were pushed, laughs were had, while children played all around.

"I quite enjoyed the snowfall, and I think it was about time that we had one. Now if it will just go away so we'll have a good spring, that would be great."

Sunday, March 19, 2006

What A Furnace Filter Can Do For You

Traditionally, furnace filters were designed to protect the furnace and fans. With increased air quality awareness, some filters are now being installed to reduce exposure to particles which can affect your health.

There is a wide variety of furnace filters available. However, you may find it confusing to select one which is suitable. This document from CMHC provides you with guidance when selecting your furnace filter.


How to Choose a Contractor

At some time, most homeowners will hire someone for repairs or renovations. Even a homeowner experienced in home repairs may have to hire a contractor or renovator because of the size or level of difficulty of the job. This fact sheet from CMHC will help you choose a contractor and work effectively and fairly with the contractor to achieve the results you desire.

Tuesday, March 14, 2006

Western Canada leads the world in hiring intentions

Exceprts from an article from the Edmonton Sun below show that the West is Best for those that want to work. Over half of western Canadian employers plan to hire this spring, leading not only Canada, but the whole world:

"Things are probably a little stronger than people anticipated in our last survey," Manpower vice-president Dan Luft said on Monday. "The challenge is to fill vacant positions."

The outlooks are plus 47 per cent in Edmonton, 67 per cent in Red Deer, 60 per cent in Calgary, 45 per cent in Vancouver, 53 per cent in Saskatoon, 50 per cent in Regina and 37 per cent in Winnipeg.

"Heavy-duty mechanics, pipefitters and welders are the three biggest-demand skills for now," Luft said of the local market.

Engineers are needed. So are accountants, "even for higher positions, such as chief financial officers and controllers," he said.

To serve clients in Western Canada, "we're working with our 54 offices across the country," Luft said. "We had to fly to Toronto and make a presentation on the oilsands before it hit home."

As easterners and central Canadians become more aware of western activities, more will consider careers here, he hopes.

But job markets are strong across the country, and Western Canada also must recruit workers from abroad, Luft said.

The Canadian employment outlook is plus 29 per cent.

Worldwide, Canada trails only Japan, at 43 per cent, and India, at 40 per cent -- all below the western Canadian outlook. The European outlook ranges from minus one in Italy to plus 17 in Spain.

Of the 10 industry sectors surveyed, the most brisk results were in mining, followed by public administration, then finance, insurance and real estate, and wholesale and retail trade.

Friday, March 10, 2006

Edmonton and Calgary Lead Commercial Development Boom


The Globe and Mail published an article today about a development wave in the commercial real estate market in Canada. Experts are predicting big increases in this sector of the Canadian real estate market. ROI on real estate investment in Canada was up 18.7% in '05, lead by Edmonton and Calgary at 23.4% and 26.5% respectively. Here are some exerpts:

TORONTO -- A "mini development wave" is taking hold in the commercial real estate market as high prices and an abundance of capital are turning investors into builders and private owners into sellers, says a leading executive in the industry.

As prices continue to rise across the country and the competition for existing buildings becomes more fierce, an increasing number of institutional investors are teaming up with private partners on construction projects, said Blake Hutcheson, Canadian president of CB Richard Ellis. At the same time, many private owners are taking advantage of the rising market to sell at least some of their holdings, he said.

"We are at the point that it may not be a bad time to take some money off the table," Mr. Hutcheson said yesterday at the RealCapital conference in Toronto, which focuses on investment in the industry. The coming year will likely see an increase in privately held portfolios coming on to the market, he predicted during his firm's annual forecast presentation.

He also predicted increased merger and acquisition activity this year and said he anticipates some institutional investors will sell parts of their holdings in order to reinvest their gains in areas where they can get a higher return, perhaps in foreign markets. They also may put some of those gains into new construction.

"Watch for a mini development wave across all sectors," Mr. Hutcheson said, noting that higher downtown office rents in markets such as Calgary and Toronto have made new construction in this sector a real option for the first time in several years.

Even with new supply, Mr. Hutcheson expects rents to rise in most sectors and prices to continue to climb. These favourable conditions also will lead to an increase in the value of properties trading hands, he said.

A string of blockbuster deals, such as the sale of the O&Y portfolio, pushed the value of commercial real estate transactions up to almost $20-billion in 2005 from $16.8-billion in 2004. That activity should rise even further this year, Mr. Hutcheson said. "We are going to see some major deals."

That kind of activity would be welcome by many speakers at yesterday's conference who identified the lack of available product as a major issue in the Canadian market.

"There is a perception that the highest-quality real estate in Canada is locked up for good by Canadian institutions," said Amy Erixon, who runs the North American operations of industrial developer Giffels Management Ltd. and is based in the United States

The head of North American investment for a major German fund agreed. "The industry is very centralized," said Christian Strauch of KGAL Group. "It does not take long to know everybody because there are just a handful of people."

Despite rising prices, the Canadian real estate market continues to offer investors attractive returns. New figures released this week by the Canadian Institute of Canadian Real Estate Investment Managers show that total return on real estate in 2005 was 18.7 per cent, up from 13 per cent in 2004.

Returns on office properties showed the biggest gains, almost doubling to 18 per cent. The hottest markets were Calgary with a 26.5-per-cent return and Edmonton with 23.4 per cent.

Monday, March 06, 2006

Interest Rate Alert

The Bank of Canada website shows there is an announcement expected tomorrow (Tuesday, March 7, 2006) on interest rates. It is expected there will be an increase so secure a mortgage rate asap before the banks follow suit and increase mortgage rates. Contact us with questions.

Rising rates not to affect Alberta housing market

Royal Bank conducts a survey every year (or at least has for the last bunch of years) asking people across Canada what they think about the housing market, and whether or not they plan on buying real estate in the next few years.

This year's survey predicts that much of Canada will start to see a slow down in the housing market over the next while, except for Alberta and Atlantic Canada.

Some exerpts:

The share of those people saying they were very likely to buy had dropped to 10 per cent - down from 13 per cent last year and at the lowest point in more than five years. The percentage of those who plan to buy a home in the next six months also fell - to eight per cent, down from 10 per cent last year.

Yet overall intentions to buy a home within two years remained the same as in 2005 at 29 per cent, with 90 per cent of current homeowners saying they thought their home was a great investment.

The decline, she said, appears to be the result of higher interest rates, rising home prices and the fulfilment of much of the pent-up demand that has been driving the market for the last few years.

Royal LePage Real Estate Services Ltd. agrees that home sales are forecast to slow between three and five per cent in 2006, but the year would still be the second-best on record, the firm said.

Alberta held steady at 18 per cent, but the numbers decreased in other regions.

Interest rates have been rising gradually over the last few months on the back of a strong economy, and while RBC is forecasting a slight rise, it is not yet known how much they may climb.

But the Bank of Canada, on a rate-hiking trend in recent months, is widely expected to boost interest rates by another one-quarter of a percentage point with a scheduled announcement Tuesday morning.


Full article.

Saturday, March 04, 2006

Historic Home Renovation Seminars


I just found this on the City of Edmonton web site. There is currently a series of seminars going on at Fort Edmonton called "This Old Edmonton House." Here's a description from the site:

Are you the owner of a historic home, full of character, charm and outdated electrical systems? If so, you’ll be interested in this series of public seminars about owning, maintaining and restoring a historic home. An expert will lead each seminar. Come prepared with your questions and problems; leave with some solutions and answers.

Click here for more information.

#1 Mistake Home Sellers Make


A recent e-mail survey by House Hunt Inc. asked home sellers what mistakes they made when they sold their home. The number 1 answer, was over pricing their home. Second, by a nearly three to one ratio, was working with the same agent who represented the buyer. Third was failure to disclose know defects, with underpricing and not using the Internet to market following closely behind.

At Coldwell Banker Johnston, we provide detailed market evaluations and compare your property to numerous others that have sold recently, expired and are for sale. We also try to avoid representing both the buyer and seller (dual agency) if at all possible.

Contact us for a free online comparative market evaluation today.

Wednesday, March 01, 2006

Understand Your Market Before You Sell

In today’s very active and competitive real estate market in Edmonton, it’s surprising how many home sellers get caught up in the excitement of rapidly-rising prices and just arbitrarily decide what their home is worth. While you may have quickly browsed a web site or two, or even toured some Open Houses in your town, such casual investigations can’t properly evaluate what price the changing market will bear and what your house can command against its competition.

Some home sellers even make the potentially serious mistake of buying a new home before they have a clear understanding of what their current home may sell for. They enter into a commitment to buy their next home at a certain price and then ‘work backwards’ trying to sell their home for the amount they’ll need to bridge the distance between the two properties. Sometimes this flawed logic can end in disaster. The home seller may be left with a home that sits on the market for months longer than they anticipated. They may even end up reducing the list price, if their target price doesn’t fit the reality of current market conditions.

If you’re thinking of selling, an important first step is getting a comparative market analysis to give you a reasonable expectation of your home’s value. You need hard information and proven facts to really understand the market, so ask for a market evaluation of your property before you set the list price. Don’t choose a number off the top of your head, just because it suits your needs. We can prepare a comprehensive report for you that will provide you with statistics on recent sales and current listings of comparable properties. Recent sales show you what prices the market has already accepted, so that’s a good benchmark for a realistic starting point. Current listings show you the competition that you are up against now, so you can be sure your home will be competitively priced. Just as important, we can also provide you with detailed information on comparable listings that have expired. By reviewing similar houses in your area that did not sell, you know what price range the market will not bear.

In Edmonton's active market, home sellers are frequently approached by salespeople from different companies. While it may be a temptation to choose a salesperson simply because they propose the highest list price, this is usually not the best tactic. If your listing is overpriced, it will discourage potential buyers, extend the time period you have to carry expenses and waste your time. A better strategy is to choose a real estate professional who has taken the time to review your market and your competition and is prepared to support their recommendations with solid market research. Why not contact us and take advantage of our advice? There’s no cost or obligation to you and it might just turn out to be the best call you’ll ever make.

Get a free online comparative market evaluation.

Canadian resale real estate smashes records - thanks to Alberta

According to CREA, national sales of existing homes via the Multiple Listing Service rose to their 5th highest monthly level on record in January, fueled by record activity in Alberta and Newfoundland.
According to CREA's statistics, a seasonally adjusted total of 41,347 units were sold through MLS in January, up 2.7 percent from the 40,265 sales recorded during the previous month.

Sales activity reached its highest monthly level on record in Alberta and Newfoundland, CREA reported. Activity also set records for the month of January nationally, and in British Columbia and New Brunswick. Seasonally adjusted activity in January was also just 3.3 percent lower than the highest monthly level on record, which was reached in August 2005.

The national MLS residential average price hit $258,274 in January to reach its highest level on record. Average price was up 12.6 percent compared to January 2005, marking the largest year-over-year increase in residential average price since May 2004. MLS residential average price reached its highest monthly levels on record in British Columbia, Alberta and Manitoba, and set new records for the month of January in every province except Newfoundland.

"Price increases are expected to become more modest in 2006, as rising interest rates and mortgage carrying costs gradually cool resale-housing demand and result in a more balanced market condition," said CREA Chief Economist Gregory Klump.

Seasonally adjusted new MLS residential listings totaled 64,582 units in January, according to CREA. This is an increase of 6.2 percent from December, and the largest month-over-month increase in new listings since August 2005. Seasonally adjusted new listings reached their highest monthly levels on record in New Brunswick and Newfoundland.

The monthly increase in new listings was larger than the increase in sales, which caused the national market for existing homes to become slightly more balanced in January compared to the previous month.

Seasonally adjusted dollar volume reached $11.1 billion in January, its highest level on record. Dollar volume set new monthly records in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario and Newfoundland, and reached its highest levels ever for the month of January in every province except Prince Edward Island.