Our Blog - Calgary, Property and Much More

This blog will be about anything that pops into our heads that is related to Calgary homes or the real estate market in some way.  Once in a while we might just go off on a tangent and write about something we heard that day.  But we hope it will be entertaining and informative.  If you’d like to comment on any of these postings, please feel free to either phone us directly on (403) 619-6864 or send us an e-mail at realtors@showmeproperty.net.

Thursday, January 19, 2012 – December Was A Great Month For Calgary Property, What Does It Mean?

So Calgary homes for sale did very well in December. The housing month to month change was a 2.78% increase. Condos did not fair as well with a 1.03% drop. That is still good though as condos have been hammered by the market for many months. A small drop like that in the Calgary market is a good sign. Inventory has dropped a tonne but sales just a bit. So those to numbers are getting closer.

What dose this mean for sellers and buyers in Spring? For sellers this is all good news. If inventory is not very high, people are still buying and prices are going up…that means quick sales for more money. Anyone listing should start to list their Calgary home at the end of February.

For Buyers this means paying slightly more for their home but that usually means an influx of inventory once all those sellers decide it is a good time to buy. So more out there but you will pay more for it. Now we do not mean tens of thousands more, in most cases.

How about you investors out there? Well for anyone thinking of investing or have investments spring is a great time for you. Increase in price means more equity. That will happen. Anyone thinking of investing has a very short schedule to get things done. If you are a flipper or want to sell a rental then you have little time to get the home looking its best before the end of February. That would be the prime time to sell your investment to get the most money.

Whether you are buying, selling or investing this is all around good news. Home sales are a big indicator on how well Calgary, Alberta and the country are doing. If Calgary property sells well then we know people have money, they are confident and the economy is doing well. Lets all hope for a busy spring in real estate to get our economy back on track and make Calgary an Alberta a leader in our country again.
 

Thursday, January 12, 2012 – What will 2012 look like for Calgary in real estate and beyond?

This is a dangerous question that we get asked enough that we wanted to blog about it. We read a lot of economic papers and indexes. Read and watch a lot of news, local and world. This is done daily. We especially look and have alerts setup for Calgary. So what has been coming up over and over about Calgary and the property in Calgary?

Firstly the economy will do well in 2012. There are far more positive articles then negative ones about a great year in Calgary. The stated reasons for a great 2012 are… oil will stay roughly where it is, the stampede will have a huge year with its 100th anniversary and housing is still fairly priced with low interest rates. All these reasons will bring about 15,000-25,000 new people to Calgary. There are few if any indicators of a bad economy in Calgary.

For Calgary housing this has a huge impact. Spring is just around the coroner and we will see if that is true. Everyone is predicting a great real estate year in 2012. Maybe even a mini housing boom. The reason is those tens of thousands of people that will migrate to Calgary in 2012. Rates should stay low and housing will increase in price as more buyers get confidence.

So be ready Calgarians. 2012 will be a great year for your career, business or charity. Calgary property will go up in price and the market will stabilize. Let’s see in a years time when we look over these blogs if we got this right.

Tuesday, January 19, 2012 – Conditional Sales of Calgary Properties Changes

Just this week the Calgary Real Estate Board announced that sellers do not have to change the status of their home from active to conditional on the MLS® system. Let us explain what this means and what it means for Calgary sellers/buyers.

Currently when your home is on the market you have a status of active. This means your home is for sale. When an offer comes in for the purchase of your house most have conditions on them. The two most typical being a property inspection or financing. The time it takes for the buyer to fulfill these conditions is called a conditional sale. The house status would change to sold once all conditions are waived.

As of this week the rules in Calgary have changed. Now you do not have to change the status of your home to conditionally sold. Is this a good thing or a bad thing? That depends. As a seller of your home if you do not tell the potential buyers that your home is sold with conditions then you will continue to get people looking at your home. This is good to get a backup offer or just to have the property for sale while conditions are being worked on. The only real downside is having even more showings then you already did.

As a buyer it is not as good of a thing. The potential to be looking at houses that might technically be sold already is much greater. Also the potential for multiple offers/bids is also higher. If you do not know the house is conditionally sold then you would write an offer thinking you are the only one. Now a good Realtor® should always ask if there are other offers on the table BEFORE submitting yours.

As you can tell not changing the status on the Calgary MLS® system is good for sellers but not that great for buyers. Since most condition days are 5 business days at most it is not a lot of time to put your home as conditionally sold. Either way you as a seller tell your Realtor® to change the status or not as least now you have the freedom to do so.
 

Monday, November 21, 2011 - Where are we at Calgary?...property wise.

Speaking to our clients and friends we notice that most people are really unsure of wherethe market is and what it's doing.  We wanted to give a very quick summary of what is happening as of November 2011 in the Calgary housing market.  

The Calgary MLS® is showing us that invetory is steady and sales are steady.  Good sign for both considering we are about to enter one of the slowest months of any real estate year.  The days on market ar

e around 50 for both condos and single family homes.  Again that is good conisdering it is November.  The market is still on the buyers side but it is very close to being balanced.  House prices have dipped a bit but that is typical of this time of year.

Now you know that the Calgary housing market is not terrible.  Things are not bad at all.  Homes are selling and if the price is right and it is a nice home, they sell quickly.  Buyers are a little pickier but it is still a slightly buyers market so they have the right.  Next time someones says the market is horrible for real estate in Calgary.  You can now tell them, actually it is doing quit well. 

Monday, October 3, 2011 - Why buy property in Calgary? Why not the states?

Many people ask me why they should buy property in Calgary for an investment. They go on about the United States and how cheap things are. How you can get amazing deals in the states and you would be foolish to buy a home in Calgary instead. I always smile and start asking questions to help them see that buying in the states and making a fortune is not easy at all.

Do you know of a great property management company? That is questions one. There are a few good ones in Calgary. I know, I have used them or have clients that have. The other option is to just manage it yourself.  A quick drive and you are at your investment.  Always keep a close eye on your investments.  When you buy away from home you are at the mercy of the property management company. And from experience most are not very good. So it is a shot in the dark to get someone to manage your property well. Google or ask someone and they can tell you many horror stories.

Do you have the cash? Most Canadians cannot get a mortgage in another country. So that means cash. So a $200,000 dollar property is gonna cost you $200,000. In Calgary you can use leverage. And leverage is what makes a home investment worthwhile. That same $200,000  home in Calgary, because you can get a mortgage, costs you $40,000. How many more homes can you buy?

Finally, why look for oil in your neighbors backyard when you struck oil in your own? Google Calgary and Canada for a bit. Read about the economy and how we are poised for the future and you will see we are very well positioned. Canada is a great, stable country with a tonne of resources. Calgary, in my opinion is a epicenter of that with the energy, livestock(Chinese are buying) and much more. As long as a barrel of oil is above $40 dollars we are sitting pretty. Why bother with the states? There economy is a mystery. Who knows when and if they get out of their slump. Calgary is more expensive for a reason. The shrewd investors knows where to put his cash.

As you can see.  Buying in the states is not all roses and money.  It is a lot of work and could be a lot of headache.  One thing for sure it is a lot of money.  Can you sleep at night not knowing if you chose the right management company?  And in the end, why look elsewhere when the place you live has so many amazing opportunity.  Calgary and property in Calgary is a wise choice for any investor.

Friday, July 15, 2011 - Calgary Stampede and Property

Does the Calgary stampede and real estate mix?  From experience no.  And there are a couple reasons for that.  One of which has nothing to do with stampede except what time of year it is held.  Summer is a slow time for real estate transactions. Whether you are selling or buying summer is a slow time.  Now add 10 days of cowboys, free breakfasts, everyone having a good time and real estate takes a back seat.  Things get even slower for the stampede then usual.  What to do about it? Nothing at all. Enjoy the 10 days of fun, relax and once it is over things will pick up.  Right after that it is only a month or so until the end of summer so real estate will pick back up.  Your Calgary home will sell in the summer....it just takes time.

Wednesday, June 8, 2011 - Condos and There Woes

We thought we would write about condos this week.  What is happening with the Calgary condo market? Well it is slow.  The sales for condos are down and so are the prices.  Year to date condo sales are 11 percent lower then last year.

What does this mean? Well to sellers this is obvious. It will take much longer to sell your condo then a singel detached home. Sellers must be more patient and be willing to accept lower offers on their condos. If not then again they must wait it out or jsut take the home off the market.

To buyers this is the exact opposite as you would have guessed.  Not all Calgary properties are a deal, but for buyers condos are, especially the ones outside Calgary downtown/core area.  Buyers should swoop in and get some good deals. Lower offers with strong deposits showing cash and strength to purchase.  This is the time for a condo buyer to buy. So if anyone has been on the fence about buying a condo in Calgary, time to jump off and run to your Realtor®.

Will this last? No.  Inventory will level out and condos will come back in price. Thye always do. How long this will take is another article all together.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011 - Spring Comes Late to the Calgary Real Estate Market

It looks like with the late snowfall and horrible weather spring has come late. And by that I mean the real estate market is taking time to pickup. Sales were down last month but the average price of a home went up. Usually spring time is a frenzy of buying and selling. After a long winter and heavy Holiday dinners the people are hungry for Calgary real estate.

Because of the late spring that means the spring buying season might be pushed into the beginnings of summer. That is good for anyone selling their home or buying. Once the slow summer season starts it can be hard to find good properties and even harder to sell a property. Calgary real estate like most cities has a seasonal boom and bust. Spring and fall are the boom, winter and summer are the bust.

What does any of this mean to you the consumer? Well is shows that people really follow the weather when it comes to real estate in Calgary. But more importantly that means if you are selling your home and cannot get an offer, hold out. Wait. If you are buying and cannot find that great property. Again keep looking. The slow season is coming but it might be another month or 2 away.

You can't quote me on this but it seems spring is pushed back so we should see good sales into the early summer. 

Friday, April 29, 2011 - Nexen Inc Looking At British Columbia for Natural Gas

Calgary based Nexen Inc is planning on entering the liquefied natural gas market, but not for a few years. It has a massive amount of shale gas assets in the province of British Columbia, but it will take time and lots of money to extract what is there and do it in an environmentally friendly manner. There is already an eager market for the gas in the Asian community. North American markets have enough domestic product so are not seeking outside sources, at least for the foreseeable future. Right now the firm is looking for joint venture partners to provide needed cash and to help develop the product.

Nexen Inc is having a good year with its traditional oil production. The first quarter of 2011 saw a 43 percent increase in profit. In the first three months of 2010, the firm saw $141 million in profit. Operating earnings per diluted share were 49 cents, which is higher than the 42 cents predicted by the CIBC. But the amount was lower than the generally expect per share price of 52 cents.

Production volumes in the company’s Canadian operations were down some nine percent from the first quarter of 2010, some 232,000 compared to 252,000. This is due to unexpected maintenance in the North Sea and other sites. The Golden Eagle project, set to start in the North Sea, is expected to start production in 2014. That site should bring in some 25,000 barrels per day. Nexen owns 35 percent of that project.

Tuesday, April 19, 2011 - Calgary Public Schools to Lose Almost Five Percent of Teachers and Staff

Calgary’s public schools are going to be coming back to the classroom in September, only to find even larger class sizes, thanks to the anticipated laying off of 324 teachers and their support staff. The reason given is the lack of money in the budget. While it is true that the budget allotted the district this year did see a drastic decrease in funds, what is not so clear is why there is not similar cutting back in the administration department.

The trustees were asked to approve the staff cuts, which would reduce the budget by $24.8 million, by the Calgary Board of Education. But the request is coming at a time when parents and some trustees are questioning the spending of $39 million, or 3.7 percent of its budget on administration and top officials. That is more than the average for Alberta school districts, which is 3.4 percent of budgets.

If the administration costs could be cut down to that 3.4 percent figure, then the district could save $10.5 million and not have to lay off as many teachers. Some teachers and staff have already been let go, 172 in total, and of those 130 are teachers. And this is just the beginning. A full five percent of the teaching staff is expected to lose their jobs.

Still at issue is the lack of information about how much money is actually being cut in administration, including departments such as human resources, operations and the office of the chief superintendant. Pat Cochrane, who is chairman, advised they were doing their best and that the judgement of their process should be based on the results seen in the classroom. Bigger class sizes certainly will not help that, not at all.

Thursday, April 7, 2011 - Few Commuter Headaches Reported Along Barlow Trail Detour Routes

The closing on April 4 of 4.5 kilometres of Barlow Trail did not result in significant commuting problems in Calgary. Although traffic was heavier on Deerfoot Trail and McKnight Boulevard, no major problems were reported in spite of the blockage of an important artery to the region’s airport.

One reason that there was an avoidance of chaos was the fact that drivers had been informed for the past year about the road closure. Transportation department spokesman Conrad Hild said that the city posted multiple signs regarding the closure, and that the signs had been up for months.

Roadblocks placed on Barlow were manned by police cars as well as vehicles from the airport authority. Only a few drivers claimed to be unaware of Barlow’s closure.

Some 36,000 vehicles that traveled on Barlow are now using a detour involving Stoney Trail, Deerfoot and 36th Street N.E. Later this summer, drivers will be able to use a new extension of Metis Trail, allowing them to travel to Country Hills Boulevard.

The airport continues to be accessible by way of the Airport Trail, as well as on the portion of Barlow that is south of Country Hills Boulevard. Calgary Airport Authority spokesperson Jody Moseley said that traffic seems to be moving smoothly on the detours. She noted that drivers have done their homework in terms of finding other routes to get to and from the airport.

In related news, information may be forthcoming about the proposed Airport Trail tunnel. The tunnel would be constructed under the airport’s new main runway.

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