Posts Tagged ‘canada’

5 Simple Things To Consider When Buying A Condominium

Tuesday, September 23rd, 2014

Today, I received a great email from Serge in regards to an Alberta Real Estate Association article entitled “Condo Commentary: Do You Own That Window?

Basically, it was answering the question on how to tell if the exterior of the windows (and doors) are part of the condominium unit or not.

Going to the point, the article informs the readers that “Before September 1, 2000, exterior doors and windows were considered to be part of the unit.  After that date, exterior doors and windows became part of the common property.  However, a corporation registered prior to September 1, 2000 had until September 1, 2002, to register a special resolution to amend the plan so that these became part of the individual units again.  This can mean that some condominiums may have windows and doors that are part of the unit and not the common area.”

This got my train of thought going. Since Alberta’s economy is poised to be one of the best in Canada this year and in 2015 as reported by RBC, and that Edmonton’s local government have reported an increase in growth population by 7.4%, the probability of people buying condominiums, either as a home or an investment would increase.

With this in mind, I believe it is apt to share with you this 5 simple things to consider when buying a condominium. Take this to heart and you’ll be at the right side of things. Please feel free to add or share your thoughts in our comment section below.

Homes for sale in edmonton

  1. LOCATION, LOCATION, YES-LOCATION: This is the golden rule of real estate and this rings true wherever you are in the world. The neighborhood and location of the condominium hinges on this simple fact. Remember that the location is one of the main contributing factors in successfully renting out or reselling the property in the future-unless you prefer to live out your life in there, which I would highly doubt.edmonton mls
  2. RULES, RULES, RULES: It holds so much importance that I need to repeat it thrice. A thorough review of the rights and restrictions in the condominium bylaws is very much needed. Read and understand the rules as some or most of it might affect you or your future rental business. Here’s a good example. My condominium doesn’t allow pets and I handle several units for rent here so when I got two inquiries from potential tenants, I was painfully disappointed (in the business side) that they have trained house dogs. Trained or not, pets aren’t allowed so that situation basically ruined my business-at least for those two.edmonton properties
  3. FEES, PAYMENTS, DUES: Those three synonyms mean the same thing, monthly bill. No matter where you go, condominiums always charge a certain fee for the maintenance of the common areas and the overall building.
    It’s important to know what the condominium fee is. Something that should ring your bells and alarms is the low condominium fee. It’s not always good. You may want to find out why the fee is low, assuming you followed what I wrote in number one.condo homes for sale in edmonton
  4. PLAN OUT: Like everything we do in life, buying a condominium should be planned out. Would you use it as a home or will it be a rental property? If it’s the latter, would you manage it yourself or will you hire a property manager? It’s all about risk management. If you have things well planned out, the probability of losing money would be minimal or even non-existent.investment condo in edmonton
  5. RENTAL PROPERTY: I just want to include this in here. If you plan to live in the condominium, then the first four steps would cover you. But if you’re planning to make this a serious investment, read on. Keep in mind that it is important to be strict in yourself when conducting due diligence for your potential condominium. Inquire about the experiences of the present tenants as most of the time, this would give you a good glimpse of what it’s really like living in the building-the things that the paperwork won’t reveal. And speaking of paperwork, you may need a real estate lawyer to pore over the condominium association’s rental lease.Lastly, a simple way to see if the condominium is good for rental is to check if there are a good number of owners renting out their units. This is because the bylaws could be amended to prohibit renting in the future-if there are a good number of owners renting out their units, then the chances of that happening would be slim-again, part of your risk-management.

Stick with this 5 simple things and you’ll be on your way to having a great condominium property.

To make sure you don’t make any mistakes in the process, it is truly advisable to seek the help of professional Realtors. Team Leading Edge is an experienced team that have sold condominiums in Edmonton. Recently awarded as one of the Top 30 RE/MAX Real Estate Teams in Western Canada, the team is made up of competent Realtors that could and would help you in every step of the buying process.

Check out all the available condominiums for sale in Edmonton through our MLS real estate listings. It is updated daily so you will get superb listings to choose from and don’t hesitate to call Team Leading Edge anytime to get you started on that future property of yours.

5 Places to go in Edmonton

Wednesday, September 10th, 2014

Winter is coming-or so they say in the famous HBO TV Series Game of Thrones. Fall starts in mid-September which ultimately rings the bell that winter is coming in Edmonton and depending on your profession it could either be a sign of dread or glee. For Realtors it’s a sign in the annual market cycle that activities will slow down as more and more people would tend to shy away from moving or purchasing homes in those cold winter months.

Winter is coming in Edmonton

While I was having a conversation with one of friends based in London, she mentioned that she wanted to go to Canada to try the snowboarding spots, so that got me thinking, where are the best places to go and have fun when in Edmonton? In a recent report, the city government of Edmonton said that “Edmonton has grown by 7.4% or more than 60,000 people. That’s 82 people moving to Edmonton every day. To put that in perspective, effectively from 2012, we have grown almost the size of a city like St. Albert.”

With that volume of people moving in Edmonton, I think this would be a fun article to show the best places to visit once they’re in the city, especially now that snow would be falling. Below is a list of places that I have compiled throughout the internet that you should utterly include in your bucket list of places to go in Edmonton. Let us know in the comment section if you know more great places to visit.

My research led me to 3 ski / snowboarding spots and I added some bonus must-go locations.

1. Snow Valley Ski Club: This is the first on the list as it is one of the best reviewed spots online garnering 3.5 stars on Yelp.com. The place is great for beginners and experts alike, it offers “a very standard and flat slope without much contours” as one reviewer wrote. Family and friends would surely have a great time here as it is located within city limits.

Edmonton Snow Valley Ski Resort

Photo courtesy of Yelp.com

See who’s learning how to Ski!

 

2. Sunridge Ski Area: Based from their website they are located four blocks south of the Yellowhead Trail on 17 Street. It is just across the river from Rundle Park in the Strathcona Science Park. Judging from the trail guide, the place offer a very decent slope for newbie skiers and snowboarders-think of it as a great place to practice your skills after your Snow Valley lessons.

Ski / Snowboard spot in Edmonton

Photo courtesy of skiresort.info

3. Edmonton Ski Club: With 25 acres (10 hectares) of pure skiable area and 200 ft (61 m) of vertical drop, this place offers an alternative venue when you’re done with Snow Valley and Sunridge. Established in 1911 (as evidenced by the grayscale photo), this place might have seen more ski and snowboarder failures than you’ll see in your lifetime so don’t feel embarrassed if and when you bite the dust at this course. An ad from their website reads “the Terrain Park is serviced by two lifts Twin Birch and T Bar. Again this area has a variety of pitches, jumps, rails, bars and tubes. For skiers and boarders that are at a more advanced level of freestyle.” Better start preparing for your next epic jump!

Ski Snowboarding Spot in Edmonton

Photo courtesy of albertaskiresorts.com

Here’s the bonus must-go locations once you’re in Edmonton:

4. West Edmonton Mall: Considered to be the largest shopping center in North America-yes, LARGEST in North America. This mall has plenty of shops to satisfy your shopping desires! The mall also features an indoor amusement park considered to be the biggest in the world which your kids would undoubtedly love. If you’re more like a coffee lover like me, the cafes would be another home away from home. (Of course don’t forget to buy your permanent Edmonton home from us).

Biggest mall in North America

Photo courtesy of kitshop.ppcli.com

5. Edmonton Golf Courses: And this… of course is a must try, even once in your lifetime. It’s still September so there’s still plenty of sunshine to do this activity. Edmonton offers a good list of golf courses ranging from public, semi-private to exclusive ones. They say golf relaxes your mind-swing away your worries in one of these golf courses.

Golf courses in Edmonton Alberta

Photo courtesy of flickr.com

So there you have it, once you step inside the beautiful city of Edmonton, the list above should be on your bucket list of places to visit. There are plenty of other amazing places to go to but you’ll have to start somewhere.

#HappyClients: Ramelo and Irma

Sunday, August 24th, 2014

Adding to our growing list of #HappyClients are the family of Ramelo and Irma, seen here with their kids holding the keys to their new home in Edmonton.

The team is composed of the most reliable Realtors servicing houses for sale in Edmonton.

home for sale in edmonton

#HappyClients = #HappyRealtors

Our dedicated team of Realtors are available to meet all the demands of each and every client.

Get to know more about our team here.

To find out the latest available houses for sale in Edmonton, view our dynamic Edmonton Listing Search here. 

 

homes for sale in edmonton

#HappyClients = #HappyRealtors

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Open House at 48 Coachman Way, Sherwood Park on 24 Aug-Sunday!

Thursday, August 21st, 2014
48 Coachman Way, Sherwood Park

Open House at 48 Coachman Way

 

RE/MAX Elite Team Leading Edge, fresh from bagging the Top 30 RE/MAX Real Estate Teams for Western Canada for the month of July is once again conducting an OPEN HOUSE on 24 August 2014, Sunday at 48 Coachman Way, Sherwood Park, from 1:00 pm to 4:00 pm.

To have a full scope of the house details, click here. 

For a full list of houses for sale in Edmonton, don’t forget to check featured listings on the home page.

See you on the 24th!

Just listed for sale in Warwick Rd for $369,000

Friday, August 15th, 2014

688 Warwick Rd, Edmonton – Beautiful. One word that sums up this newly listed home in Dunluce. With its 4-level split design, this property features 4 spacious bedrooms, 3 full bathrooms and a double detached garage. This home eagerly awaits its new owner, and by that, we mean YOU!

homes for sale at edmonton

Dunluce 4 Level Split

Its splendid south facing backyard (complete with irrigation system) is ideal for providing substantial amounts of natural lighting. Accented by mature trees and low-maintenance landscaping, this is the perfect place to have barbecues all weekend long while watching the kids play.

perfect landscape

Excellent Backyard

If the cover of a book is worth judging, then why stop there? Take a look at what’s inside that really makes this beauty stand out above the others.

home sweet home

House Interior

A smart combination of classic meets modern, this 1184 sq. ft. home features all the appliances you’d expect from a house of this caliber, but one thing you might not see coming is the generous amount of cabinet space!

refinished hardwoods

Spacious Rooms

The refinished hardwood floors create that classic feel perfect for those romantic evenings while still creating a calm environment for the busy mornings that follow.
If value for your money is at the top of your list, then this work of art located at 688 Warwick Rd is the one you’ve been searching for!

Find out how this could be yours by clicking here.

More listings will follow this week so please don’t forget to subscribe!

Canadian inflation rate jumps to 1.2 per cent

Wednesday, March 27th, 2013
OTTAWA – Statistics Canada says February had the biggest monthly increase in consumer prices in more than over 20 years, as the cost of consumer goods jumped from January.

The annual inflation rate jumped 0.7 percentage points to 1.2 per cent in February, a bigger increase than economists had expected.

February’s price increases reversed a recent trend that had taken the consumer price index to the lowest level in three years in January.

Gasoline was the biggest inflation driver, with a month-over-month increase of 8.4 per cent.

But most items saw increases, helping lift the Bank of Canada core inflation index to 1.4 per cent, closer to the central bank’s desired setting of two per cent.

Regionally, Statistics Canada says inflation rose at a faster pace in February in all provinces, with Newfoundland and Labrador topping the list at 2.3 per cent.

In a separate release, the agency said average weekly earnings of non-farm payroll employees edged up 0.1 per cent in January and were 2.7 per cent higher than in the same month last year.

Source: MSN Money

The data included on this website is deemed to be reliable, but is not guaranteed to be accurate by the REALTORS® Association of Edmonton. The trademarks REALTOR®, REALTORS® and the REALTOR® logo are controlled by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) and identify real estate professionals who are members of CREA. Used under license.