Edmonton Real Estate Blog

Do you know how great investors are distinguished against average people?

They are the ones who grab an opportunity fast whenever it presents itself.
Okay, wait, let me rephrase that. They’re the ones who POUNCE to every bit of opportunity that life presents!
That’s much better.

To elaborate further, great investors are the kind of people who make their own luck. They don’t wish for luck. One of the best books I’ve ever read is “The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason”. There were four quotes mentioned in that book relating to luck that I would like to share with you. First, “Good luck waits to come to that man who accepts opportunity”, second, “To attract good luck to oneself, it is necessary to take advantage of opportunities” third, “Good luck can be enticed by accepting opportunity” and lastly, “Men of action are favored by the Goddess of Good Luck”.

Although the book was written ages ago, the quotes still apply to this day and as I see it, it will persist for as long as there are human existence that strive to achieve a greater sense of being. I’m striving to achieve a good life and if you do as well, then its best that you too take the quotes to heart as it may guide you in your own journey.

A great opportunity is in front of you right now. Take the Canora Experience. This 4 bedroom half duplex bungalow is currently in the market. Given the economic rise of Alberta this year, this kind of real estate property would come ever so rare.

At $274, 900, this 969 sq ft piece of opportunity can and should be your next home or investment. Analyze the data, crunch the numbers, do your due diligence, I assure you all of it would point to same conclusion. To put it simple terms; this will bring the best bang for your buck.

Check out the photos below and see for yourself how this opportunity could change your life.

View the complete details of the property here.

Opportunity awaits! Act now before its too late.

Selling a home is no easy task that is why there are Realtors such as our team, but don’t think of it as a deterrent. The point that you are reading this article suggest that you would like to do something on your end to make the selling process as fast and efficient as possible, which is great! Below are 5 incredibly easy ways for you to help your Realtor market your home and create more value for your priced possession. Follow it and you’re going to be smiling your way to the bank.

Ceramic Wall Tiles

1. CHOOSE NATURAL: Materials such as granite, ceramic tiles and even hardwood create more value than synthetic materials such as acrylics. When renovating kitchen floors, chose wood over linoleum as it will look classier to home buyers than the latter.
   Laminated products offer additional value for wall-to-wall renos. Keep the carpets well maintained as it is one of the very first things home buyers see. You wouldn’t want potential buyers to think they’ll spend tons of money just to replace the carpet, wouldn’t you?
2. KEEP THE PAINT FRESH: Keeping a fresh coat of paint in the master bedroom, kitchen and other parts of the house will go a long way. It is the most cost effective way to add that buzz to your home.Stay clean and neutral with taupe, brown and off-white colors. Neutral shades is key as bright colors would tend to do more harm in the selling process than good. Lastly, stay off dark colors as it tends to create an effect which makes a room smaller than it really is.
3. BE ENERGY EFFICIENT: Nothing beats having low electrical bills. You experience it yourself every time the bill comes. An energy efficient house is a very marketable piece of real estate especially now that almost everybody is budget conscious. There are low cost solar panels and rain catchment systems now out in the market that you could take advantage off. You may even ask your local utility company to show how to truly maximize home energy efficiency. Majority of the energy providers do it for free.
4. STORAGE GALORE: The more storage you have in your home, the better. Home buyers nowadays prefer a generous amount of attic and closet space. Having space is very important, especially if the potential buyer/s have a lot of equipment’s, i.e. snow blower, bicycles, lawn mower. In this kind of scenario, an over sized garage would really come in handy. His and hers walk-in closet in the master suite would be synonymous to additional dollars in your pocket.

   

5. LAST BUT NOT LEAST, MAINTENANCE: Hold off the lavish home upgrades and focus on the basics first. Fixing the small things such as leaks, leaky windows, insulating the attic, inspecting the septic system and weeding the flower beds go very long way towards creating value. These small repairs could cost you a hundred dollars but it may create additional zeros to your selling price.

After a hardcore Monday work, time for you to catch some breath and recoup before blazing again through the rest of the week. If you have already subscribed to our blog (great for you!), you might have already noticed that we here at Team Leading Edge always mix up our articles and this time we wanted to feature something funny. I figured nothing is funnier than seeing a home that have failed in some engineering or architectural way-or basically a photo that sums up loss of common sense. I don’t want to be mean but being in the real estate industry myself, I have seen a fair share of failed home designs and it always cracks me up. Too bad I wasn’t able to take photos of the failed home designs that I saw when I was doing site visits!

Now lucky for you I have done the leg work and filtered the worst, funny and crazy home designs around. Check out the list below to see Failed Home Designs.

Remember to view our list of amazing homes for sale in Edmonton through our MLS real estate listing after. You would not be disappointed.

1. WRONG ERECTION. I don’t know if the owners are one of those “fertility” believers but, really, this is just wrong.But, Austin Powers like it.
   

   Time to get your mojo

2. SUICIDE DOOR. They took it literally. Judging from this photo, I can safely assume that if the 3^rd floor is for rent, they would have extremely low tenancy rate due to this fatal flaws in the floor design.  
3. LEANING COUSIN OF PISA. Get it? No? Shame on you.
4. DRA-WHERE? A big facepalm right here. Complete waste of storage space.
5. BACKDOOR. In some weird way, this isn’t really that much of a failure. Looking at the positive side, if you ever really really needed to use the toilet when you arrive home, you wouldn’t need to go inside the house, you can dash straight at the backdoor!
6. [             ]. I will just leave this one for you to think of a caption.
7. WRONG SIDE. Seriously. You had one job!
8. ECO-FRIENDLY GARAGE. They didn’t want to cut down the tree for environmental purposes. Should’ve moved the garage though. See amazing garage designs here. 

   

9. MAKE ROOM FOR THE FRIDGE. Yup! Squeeze it right there. Perfect!
   

   I know how Patrick feels

10. SOME MEN WOULD RELATE.
11. OKAY, THESE TWO DESERVE THE LAST SPOT.
    Plumber was just making sure that if there would be a leak, he already had it covered.Bro, just no.
    
    Here’s hoping you won’t do the same mistakes seen here or your work may just end up in our future list! That’s about it, don’t forget to subscribe.

    See beautiful homes with great working designs for sale in Edmonton here.

I love cars, Lexus LFA type of cars to be exact. The only game on my iPhone is Asphalt 8, a kickass car racing game. Cars today aren’t just simple mechanical tools used to travel from point A to point B, no, they have evolved to become an extension of one’s self. The brand, color and interior all provides subtle clues into who or what the owner is. As for me, I’m always in awe with the aesthetics of it, the status-symbol and the toys-for-the-big-boys bragging rights that it brings to the table.

This is love.

With that in mind, I wanted to know what the best garage designs look like and what I found brought tears into my eye-yes, I stared so long on the computer screen that my eyes got watery-probably you would too. Be warned, some of the images might be disturbing, as one user pointed out “some of these cars spend the night in a better room than I do!”. Couldn’t agree more [Insert sobbing emoticon here].

Okay, enough with the introduction and let’s get down to business. Below is a gallery I made of what I believe is the most epic, amazing, outrageously expensive and very creative garage designs. Also, don’t forget to check out our list of amazing Edmonton houses for sale (with garages, of course) in our supreme Edmonton MLS real estate listing. Enjoy!

Here’s the mother lode of amazing garages I hand picked from luxury4play.com:

Elegant garage from Houzz.com:

Condo living to the max! This sky garage is the future:

I don’t know about you but it may take sometime for me to afford one of these garage designs but hey, if there’s a will (or wheel for that matter) there’s a way, right?! Share with us your own garage design in the comment section below.

6 September-Today on our For Sale list we feature this 4+1 bedroom home in Rundle Heights, Edmonton. The house includes hardwood flooring in the living room, dining room, and bedrooms, newer stainless steel appliances in the kitchen, and renovated bathrooms just to name a few.  The spacious master bedroom also features a walk-in closet and half bath. Enjoy the album below and remember to call Team Leading Edge at 780-634-8151 to view your next home!

Call Team Leading Edge now 780-634-8151

View details here

Sneak Preview of new listing coming up next week in Rutherford.

• 3 bdr. 2 storey home with hardwood floors.

• Just under 2,000 sq.ft. above grade.

• Upgrades include central air conditioning.

Asking Price: $519,900Call us today before it goes on MLS

780-634-8151

This past few months, I’ve been contemplating on whether or not to convert the spare bedroom into my very own home office. It seem I’m always either too busy or too lazy to do it (sometimes both). I finally came around today and decided to do it already. Just like any young ordinary men in their 20’s, I have little or no clue as to the design of a home office. I knew I needed to throw in tables and chairs but wondering as to what kind exactly? This burning question led me to ask the almighty Google for answers-and I was not disappointed.

With my work function managing the online marketing campaign of the team, my job entails that I work 90% of the time in front of the computer, this could get a bit tiring and dull when done in a not-so-engaging environment a.k.a the living room. The only time my work environment change is when I go to my favorite coffee shop. Well, now it will all change because I would finally have my own little nook of an office!

With this excitement I chose to share with you the best of things I found on Google. Unsurprisingly enough, majority of the great ideas came from Pinterest where there’s a truck load of different designs ranging from the beautiful to the weird. Luckily for you I filtered it out to what I subjectively see as awesome and simply doable ones. I arranged it from simple to elegant.

1. The small but workable: We start off with this light hearted design. The simple materials used such as vintage table and chair (with a very cool pattern) makes it seem doable. The moss green wall background blends perfectly with the setup. The little add-ons too makes it more creative.
The only con that I see is that there isn’t a lot of table space or cabinets to put materials in.

Photo courtesy of McKelden Creative

2. The maximized: One thing that immediately stand out when I saw this design is the print on the floor, it creates the illusion that the room is bigger than what it really is. The deciding factor that landed this on the number 2 spot is its great use of dead space-the table barely fits! A few file holders, some motivational photos on the wall (the dollar) and plant furniture make it affordable.
The only downside that I see in this photo is the overhead light fixture, being 5’9’’ I see myself bumping my head into it 95% of the time when I stand up-it’s clever, I have to give them that.

Photo courtesy of Pink Ronnie

3. The ideal kind: As the title says, this is one of the most ideal designs in the list. Overhanging cabinets for storage, front window for natural lighting, multiple drawers for more storage and the hand painted leather desktop just makes it so sleek!

Photo courtesy of Alan Design Studio via houzz.com

4. Storage Galore: I always tried to be organized… keyword = tried. With this design, I might just be able to succeed in the endeavor. Plenty of overhead storage, side by side drawers and a generous desktop real estate all provide an environment of success, especially in my side of the business. The diamond-shaped cross laces also looks aesthetically good and utterly functional-you can pin pictures in it! I can populate it with notes in a week! Though small, the flower creates serenity, it would specially be useful in relaxing the eyes after starring long hours at the computer screen. Based on a Time Magazine article (http://time.com/3257927/you-asked-can-computers-ruin-eyes/) starring for long hours at the computer screen could ruin your eye sight so it is best to have something to look at elsewhere every few hours.

Photo courtesy of Samantha Hackradt

5. The 1%: I added this last one just for fun. I was looking for a Don Draper kind of office design but unfortunately Don Draper doesn’t work at home so this would do. This is the design I would most probably have in my late 30’s. It’s classic, elegant and most of all functional. Everything is within reach and the ladder shelves are just ingenious. The taker in this photo is the front view of what I assume is a beautiful landscape. Huge windows provide natural lighting which complements the nature-inspired theme of the room. See, even the dog like it. There are a lot of people who are working at home now but only a very few would most probably have this kind of home office design.

Photo courtesy of Rey

Here’s a bonus. Wouldn’t it look good on any kind of office? It’s functional too, aesthetically and metabolically.

Photo courtesy of Chris Carmody

So there you have it, a dose of inspiration for what would I hope to be a successful project. I wish you luck in your next home office!

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*About the author: Jake Nasol Loria is the Internet & Social Media Marketing Director of Team Leading Edge.

Selling for $202,000, this 875 sq. ft. home is ideal for all those would-be home owners who want to have easy access to Victoria Trail, Yellowhead Trail, Walking Paths, and Hermitage Park.

Check the video to learn more about your future home!

Click here to play

Click the snapshot below to learn more about the property.

Snapshot!

When it comes to the best list of homes for sale in Edmonton, trust no less than Team Leading Edge.

It’s a common issue — your room doesn’t feel terrible, just flat or not quite pulled together, and you’re not sure how to fix it. If this sounds familiar, your room is probably due for a refresh. Rather than replacing everything (too costly), focus on polishing up what you have and making smart choices about spending on new things. Check out this five-step solution of removing, refurbishing, painting, shifting and shopping your way to an improved room.

1. Remove

Before you add anything new (including paint), your first step should be to take away anything that is detracting from your room. Remove any furniture that’s dated or really far gone, decorative items that have lost their appeal and items that belong in other rooms and are cluttering up this one. Now is also the time to remove dust bunnies from under the couch and grime from the windows. Pare back and make what’s left as decent looking as possible.

2. Refurbish

Once you have edited the pieces in your room, it’s time to look at what’s left anew. It can help to invite a design-savvy friend over to help at this stage, but even taking photos of the space and looking at them yourself somewhere else (at a café, over a cup of coffee) can give you perspective. The goal in this step is to find at least one piece with good bones to refurbish.

A few refurbishing ideas:

• Have a chair or bench reupholstered.
• Paint a mirror frame.
• Shorten the legs of a desk to turn it into a coffee table.
• Add casters to a table.
• Paint the legs of a chair or table.
• Paint the drawer fronts of a chest.
• Change out cabinet knobs.
• Add decorative trim to an ottoman, a lampshade or curtains.

Refurbishing can also mean having something made, like slipcovers, to cover your current furniture and make it feel like new. When you are having slipcovers made, consider increasing the length slightly to cover the feet of your sofa or chair — sometimes this subtle shift can make a big difference in how a room feels.

3. Paint

Even if you just painted last year, you can bet there are already a few spots worth touching up. Fill small nail holes and dings before covering them with a dab of leftover paint.

If it has been a while since the last time you painted, giving your room a fresh coat of color could be just what the house doctor ordered. The trend now is leaning away from colored accent walls in favor of rich color throughout the room. You could even try painting the trim and ceiling to match for a luxurious look in a small space.

Another fun painting project that can make a huge difference in a room is to give paint-grade built-ins a nice, rich hue. You still really can’t go wrong with a warm gray; it looks sophisticated and inviting, and works with any style.

4. Shift

After you paint is a natural time to try a new furniture arrangement, because you will be moving your furniture around anyway; use it as an opportunity to think outside the box. Try shifting the focal point of your room away from the TV to a fireplace or a window with a view.

If you have always had your couch pushed against the wall, try pulling it closer to the center of the room, or add a sofa table with lamps behind it. Move your bed to a different wall, swap the position of your chairs, move houseplants to different positions — challenge yourself to arrange things in a completely new way. And if you don’t like the new location of a piece, you can always change it back.

Right after repainting is also a great time to try something new on the walls. With all of your artwork and photos down, try shuffling them into different groupings on the floor and see if something sparks your imagination. Look around for a few found objects you could add to your gallery wall, like postcards or beaded necklaces; or dig out the childhood albums and make a family photo wall.

5. Shop

It’s important to hold off on shopping until you have gone through the first four steps. By this point you should have a good feel for what your room could use — so buy something new, but make it count! Go for something high impact, like a statement light fixture, bold artwork or a patterned coverlet for the bed.

Source: Houzz.com

When Listing your home, are you leaving money on the table? Do you know where you are losing equity that should be kept?

Factors that leave money on the table are undone repairs, decorated personal choice paint colors, outdated flooring and fixtures, or unappealing curb appeal that needs work.

When you were a buyer, do you remember how you approached other people’s outdated homes or ones that were in disrepair? You walked away, unless you got a SUPER low price.

So now that the tables have turned, the buyers are using their critical eye to determine if they agree with your price based on the amount of work they feel your home requires to make it move in ready.

The buyer will deduct a higher price than it actually would cost to do these repairs or updates. They do this because of the unknown factor and also the stress and time it will take to fix your homes issues.  You basically will pay them for their time and labor to do something that you could have done, or contracted and controlled the costs on.

So, you leave money on the table.

By doing your own updates and controlling costs through management of your contractors, you can KEEP money in your pocket. Your costs to update or paint, will be far less when you are in control. This will initially be an expense but in the long run your asking price will be at market value and  your price will not likely be reduced, plus the carrying costs will be much less due to having a move in ready sale able home.

Don’t leave money on the table!

Keep in mind that as a home owner you should be investing 1-3% of your market value every year to do updates on the home. This will ensure that when you go to sell, you are more likely able to list for market value and not have to do major updates to become a GOOD listing.

Today’s buyers are way too educated to pay market value for a house that need 10k or 40k or more worth of work. Gone are the days when a buyer bought a house and saved up to fix it over the years. Today people want what they see on TV and they will get it. It’s either going to be your house, or your competitors. You can decide.

Source: simply irresistible interiors inc. newsletter