Calgary Real Estate News
Browse current Calgary Real Estate information and news to discover information on the latest Calgary Real Estate market information, mortgage rates, loan refinancing, home sales and housing market in Calgary, AB.
Calgary Real Estate Market Update
For the month of April 2012, year-over-year sales activity improved across all sectors in the city. Calgary residential sales total 2,200 for the month, a 26 per cent increase over levels recorded last year. From Jan to April, the condominium apartment sales totaled 1,133, a 2.2 per cent increase over the same period last year. Monthly mortgage payments remain affordable for home buyers in Calgary and borrowing costs are expected to remain a positive factor influencing home sales through 2012.
Calgary Real Estate Statistics April 2012
Calgary Real Estate for April 2012, year-overyear sales activity improved across all sectors in the city. Calgary residential sales total 2,200 for the month, a 26 per cent increase over 2011 levels. During April, according to CREB in the single-family home category, sales of 1,582 were up 30.64 per cent from 2011 and the average sale price rose by 0.88 per cent to $483,519. In the condo apartment category, there were 351 listings sold, up 13.23 per cent from last year. And also in the condo townhouse secction, sales rose by 19.20 per cent to 267 with the average sale price increasing by 8.31 per cent to $320,912.
Water damages in Calgary Properties
The many different types of weather events in Calgary, can lead to water damage in homes and other properties, it's a good idea to show everyone in your family where to find the shut off valves that control the water supply to the different areas of your home. In case of an emergency, they should know how to shut off the water main, water heater, washing machine, dishwasher, sinks and toilets. And before you go on vacation this summer, remember to turn off your water to prevent any kind of unexpected water damage that may occur in your absence. http://www.myfriendfernando.ca/water-damage.php
Canada Housing Market 2012 Forecast
Strong market fundamentals will help the Calgary housing market in the period ahead, says the 2012 Housing Trends & Affordability Document released today by RBC Economics Research. Canada’s housing market posted moderate gains in 2011 The home resales statistics by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) showed that Canada’s housing market continued to advance at a healty pace at the start of 2012. Home resales rose for the fourth consecutive month in December, climbing 1.8% from November to a healthy tally of 476,900 units (seasonally adjusted and annualized). With the further reversal of part of the hefty property appreciation registered late in 2010 and early in 2011 in the Vancouver and, to a lesser extent, Toronto markets, the average price of homes sold on the MLS® system in Canada fell for sixth time in eight months. The national average price (seasonally adjusted) eased 0.9% in December on a month-to-month basis. The year-over-year increase moderated to just 0.9% (using unadjusted figures), thereby representing the smallest such gain since October 2010. Excluding Vancouver and Toronto, the national average home price rose by 0.8% from November to December and 3.7% from December 2010. http://www.myfriendfernando.ca/calgary-housing-market-2012.php
Alberta MLS® Sales
Alberta MLS sales activity is forecast to show the largest year-over-year gains in the country in the next years, according to the Canadian Real Estate Association.
In a document released Monday, CREA said MLS Alberta sales would grow by 6.8 per-cent this year to 57,400 & by another one.7 per-cent in 2013 to 58,400.
The average sale cost in Alberta is forecast to grow by one.4 per-cent in each of the next years to $358,300 in 2012 & to $363,200 in 2013. http://www.myfriendfernando.ca/lberta-mls.php
MORE ROUTES FROM CALGARY TO MEXICO
Good news if you have Calgary real estate and a property in Mexico. The Canadian airline WestJet plans to open five new routes this year, including a direct flight between Calgary and Mexico City, reported the Ministry of Tourism.
As part of a working trip to Canada, the head of the agency, Gloria Guevara, met with President of the company, GreggSaretsky, who said the Canadian tourism is especially interested in tourism offers cultural and adventure has the country during winter and summer. http://www.myfriendfernando.ca/canada-mexico.php
CALGARY RENTAL PROPERTIES
If you rent or you decide to rent an apartment or a house in Calgary and is owner or tenant, you must be governed by the rules and obligations of the "Residential Tenancies Act" of Alberta, Canada. Among the types of leases for houses the most common room in Calgary Alberta are:
Alberta Major Economic Proyects 2012:
In December 2011 the value of the Inventory of Major Alberta Projects was $208.8 billion, up from $182.5 billion in December 2010. The current inventory is comprised of 920 projects. The sector with the largest number of projects is infrastructure with 323, valued at $19.9 billion. The second largest sector is institutional at 128 projects valued at just under $8.6 billion.
View Alberta Major Economic Proyects for 2012
Calgary Properties Maintenance Tips for Winter:
If you're like most Canadians, your home is probably your most important investment. The best way to protect that investment is by taking a few minutes each month to inspect your home, and carry out a regular schedule of maintenance and repairs. With a little simple seasonal maintenance, you can prolong the life of your home, and put a stop to some of the most common - and costly - problems, before they occur. To help you make sure your home stays healthy, safe and comfortable in every season, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) offers a number of practical tips, tools and resources, such as the About Your House series of fact sheets covering a wide range of topics related to owning and maintaining a home. To prepare your home for the fall and winter, for example, clean leaves, nests and other obstructions from your eavestroughs, roof and chimney, and test the downspouts to ensure there is adequate drainage away from your home. Make sure the ground around your home slopes away from the foundation. This will helpkeep water and melting snow away from your house, and out of your basement. Also, make sure all your windows and skylights close tightly, and test your plumbing shut-off valves to be sure they're working properly.
Clean or replace your furnace air filters every month, and have your furnace serviced by a qualified technician every two years if you use gas, or once a year if you have an oil furnace. During the winter months, monitor your home for condensation on the windows or other signs of excessive moisture. Too much moisture indoors can cause damage over time, and may even pose a health risk to you and your family. Check your attic regularly for frost accumulation, and inspect your roof for ice dams or icicles. If you find excessive frost inside, or icicles and ice dams on the roof surface, consult CMHC's About Your House fact sheet: Attic Venting, Attic Moisture and Ice Dams for advice. Through regular home maintenance, you can often prevent larger and more costly home repair expenses in the future. It's also a good idea to put aside a little in your budget each month for an "emergency fund" for your home. An emergency fund allows you to handle any repairs or maintenance issues that might come up, without sacrificing your financial well-being or peace of mind. For more tips, get a free copy of CMHC's About Your House fact sheets or sign up for a free monthly home maintenance newsletter atwww.cmhc.ca/enewsletters. For more than 65 years, CMHC has shared a wealth of knowledge and housing expertise, as well as useful tools and guidance, to help Canadians enjoy an informed and assured housing experience. To consult or download copies of any of CMHC's tools and resources, visit www.cmhc.ca. November is the first ever Financial Literacy Month. This is the final article in a series of four, focusing on creating awareness of the various tools and resources that are available to help Canadians make informed and responsible housing decisions.
After travelling through 33 states and visiting more than 50 cities across the country, the National Association of Realtors® Home Ownership Matters Bus arrives in Anaheim, Calif., today for the Realtors® Conference & Expo here this week. The bus will be parked on the floor of the Anaheim Convention Center throughout the conference. The bus's final stop in Anaheim wraps up a successful eight-month trek that kicked off in Chicago, Ill., this past March. The multi-city bus tour was launched as part of NAR's Home Ownership Matters campaign to engage Realtors® and consumers across a number of public policy proposals, government programs and incentives that could dramatically impact homeownership in this country. "As Realtors® gather this week for NAR's annual conference, we're well aware of the need to keep housing first on the nation's public policy agenda, because housing and home ownership issues affect all Americans," said NAR President Ron Phipps, broker-president of Phipps Realty in Warwick, R.I. "The Home Ownership Matters Bus Tour has helped us do that this past year, giving Realtors® and consumers the opportunity and resources to make their voices heard." Some of the issues that were and continue to be front-and-center during the bus tour included the future of the mortgage interest deduction as an important tax benefit for current and aspiring homeowners; the availability and accessibility of mortgage financing -- whether the issue is how much buyers can borrow through conforming loan limits, if creditworthy borrowers can qualify for a loan, or the amount of downpayment future buyers must make -- and the ability of homeowners to obtain affordable flood insurance. Realtors® will be meeting with elected officials, public policymakers and other industry experts throughout this week's conference to address these and other issues confronting today's real estate market.
Calgary Association of Self Help would like to extend an invitation to all the people looking to buy a house to attend our Huge Annual Fall Garage Sale on November 18 and 19, 2011 at 1019 7 Avenue SW. The sale features 1000’s of household items to make your house a home. You will find other treasures such as books, CD’s, DVD’s, collectables, fine china, Christmas decorations, hundreds of dishes, cups, glasses and much more. The sale will be held Friday, November 18 from 11:00 am to 5:00 pm and Saturday, November 19 from 10:00 am to 3:00 pm. Proceeds will support Calgary Association of Self Help’s skill development, counselling, social/leisure mental health services for adults living with severe and persistent mental illness. We have free parking behind the building and direct C-Train access by taking the City Center train to 10th Street Staten. Come down and take advantage of the bargains at Calgary Association of self Help’s Annual Fall Garage Sale.
The Annual City-Wide Food Drive is one of the largest and most successful food drives in the world, breaking a Guinness World Record in 2008(1) when over 7,000 volunteers collected 230,945kg (509,147lbs) of food. Over the past six years, the City-Wide Food Drive has collected over 2.2 million pounds of canned and dry goods for donation to the Calgary Food Bank. In the days leading up to the Annual City-Wide Food Drive (set for September 24th), more than 350,000 Calgary homes will be canvassed, inviting Calgarians to place food donations on their front porch for pick-up by one of the thousands of volunteers who will be on duty between 10:00 A.M. and 12:00 noon on September 24th.
For the residents of the Calgary Communities of Midnapore and Sundance. Beginning the week of NOV-14,2011, everyone in these communities will have THURSDAY collection of blue and black carts. The city of Calgary is redesigning home collection routes to increase efficiency. This means schedules are changing in some Calgary neighbourhoods. For more information visit: calgary.ca/waste.
If you're moving to Calgary, and you need a driver's licence, now you can book your road test without leaving your home! Book your test online at www.southreg.ca. "Southland Registrations LTD"
The resiliency of Canada's housing market represents a positive surprise among 2011's negative economic surprises, according to Douglas Porter, Deputy Chief Economist, BMO Financial Group. Mr. Porter was commenting on today's release of the Canadian existing home sales numbers, which rose 12.3 per cent from year-ago levels in July and held steady from the prior month. "Canadian housing remains surprisingly robust, thanks to still-low interest rates and solid job growth," said Mr. Porter. "While the strong year-over-year growth is flattered by a weak year-ago comparison – when the HST was introduced in B.C. and Ontario – sales are certainly faring better than what we expected earlier this year. While new listings have also risen recently, the backlog of unsold homes just nudged up last month, almost bang on the long-run average. "The recent financial market turmoil may temporarily weigh on activity, but sales should ultimately find support from continued exceptionally low borrowing costs." "Today's data release is yet another sign that Canada's real estate market has great resiliency," said Laura Parsons, Mortgage Specialist, BMO Bank of Montreal. "As long as consumers continue to push demand, which remains the case, we see ongoing strength in the housing market across the country." Ms. Parsons counseled Canadians to consider a shorter amortization period in order to become mortgage free faster. For instance, BMO offers a low 5 year-fixed rate mortgage with a maximum 25-year amortization at 3.79 per cent. She also noted that stress testing your budget using a mortgage payment based on a higher rate can help avoid nasty surprises in the future should interest rates rise.
ATCO Gas has partnered with Avalon Master Builder and Ener-West Geo-Energy Services Inc. to install renewable energy technology in 40 homes. Located in Carma Developers' McKenzie Towne in South East Calgary, the homes, built by Avalon, will have all of their space heating and cooling requirements - and a portion of their hot water needs - supplied by geothermal and solar technology. The project was officially launched today at a "Green-Breaking" ceremony at the building site. Each home will be equipped with a geothermal loop (which utilizes heat from the ground) and a heat pump to deliver space heating and cooling needs designed and installed by EnerWest Geo-Energy Services Inc. In addition, a solar hot water heating system will be installed to provide a portion of the home's hot water needs and natural gas will be used to satisfy the balance. Natural gas will also be available for home appliances such as fireplaces, barbecues and gas ranges.
RONA inc, the largest Canadian distributor and retailer of hardware, renovation and gardening products, officially unveiled its new Calgary store in the community of Sherwood Park. The opening of the 52,000-square-foot store, located at 301 Wye Road, represents a $16 million investment in Sherwood Park and provides 72 local jobs, 40 of which are new positions.