How to Renovate Your Home - Step-by-Step

How to Renovate Your Home - Step-by-Step

What makes someone want to renovate?

The most common reason for renovation is the house’s location. When a home is in a place that works well, you stay there and improve it.

You identify something that bothers you about the house, like the layout, functionality, or natural light. There are a lot of different factors that can prompt a renovation.

When you buy or build a new house, you have high hopes that everything will be great. But then once you live in it, you’ll start to notice things that don’t work well.

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People usually renovate mudrooms, bathrooms, and en suites to make them more efficient and aesthetically pleasing. Some even remodel showers to achieve a nicer,…

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6 Critical Things to Look at When Viewing Homes

6 Critical Things to Look at When Viewing Homes

When you are looking at homes, there are a few things that you want to pay attention to.

We know from our own experience that it can be exciting when looking at your next home for you and your family. Sometimes the focus can be on the size of rooms, the flow of the spaces, what the colours of cabinets look like and so on.

These are important; however, there are 6 things that you need to look at if you are in a home and think that this home could be the next one.

We invited Matt and Laura from Braemyn Homes to talk about the six things you should check when looking for new homes and the costs associated with fixing or upgrading them.

1. Furnaces

The first thing that you need to check is the…

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33 Most Expensive Houses in Calgary

33 Most Expensive Houses in Calgary

Take a look at the 33 most expensive houses in Calgary below and since you're at it continue on this journey and see all the most luxurious homes that are over $2,000,000 that are currently for sale below.

Calgary can be a very affordable city to live in when compared to other major cities across Canada, but rest assured there are some incredible houses that you need to see. These houses have some incredible features and floorplans that are sure to wow anyone! The attention to detail and the architectural designs you will find in the images below are sure to blow you away. We not may all be able to live in homes like this, but you can always look, dream and take ideas to incorporate into your own home and space.

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How to Fund Your Dream Home when MOVING UP!

How to Fund Your Dream Home when MOVING UP!

Have you been thinking of making a move up and trying to figure out your financing?

Lindsay from Spire Mortgages, talks about the process of funding your dream home.

When making a move up, funding your mortgage is super-easy. It doesn't have to be overwhelming.

Smooth, seamless financing is the goal of Spire Mortgage. To take all of the factors into consideration, they make sure that all documents are lined up perfectly.

Documentation

The most important thing to have is pre-approvals with actual documents. Computer-generated records are only suitable for rate hold, but mortgage brokers need to see what's going on behind the scenes to ensure that the income is right.

Step one is putting together…

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Empowering Clients with Information - Alex Weston

Empowering Clients with Information - Alex Weston

Alex Weston is the perfect combination of relaxed and driven. His clients appreciate his smart, thoughtful, and often witty way of presenting information.

If you speak with him for even a few minutes, you can get a sense of the fantastic amount of knowledge he has about the real estate industry and the Calgary market.

His favourite part about being a Realtor is versatility. He works with people from all walks of life, which makes every day enjoyable.

He credits his wife’s patience for a lot of his success as they raise two little ones together. Moreover, he loves that she still lets him think he’s funny.

After the last few whirlwind months, we wanted to find out how society's current…

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How to Buy Your First Condo in Calgary

How to Buy Your First Condo in Calgary

We invited a fantastic, young couple to talk about their recent condo purchase. This couple shared how they did it, why they did it and much more.

Zendalee works at a school, and Davey is a freelance photographer & videographer. They have been married for two years now.

Their perception of real estate people is from the movies. They think agents are just out to make a dollar and get crazy commissions.

Education is Key

Before the purchase of their condo, the couple had some fears. Primarily, they were unsure about what they were looking for.

They don’t know a lot of real estate terminology, which gave them the feeling of not being educated enough to make the right decision.

Their mindset shifted…

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Is Moving Inner City Considered Moving Up?

Is Moving Inner City Considered Moving Up?

Is living in the inner-city with a family a good idea? Should you do it?

We've had lots of clients who have talked about moving to the inner-city in Calgary. One of them is Jeremy Duncan; he made that change and moved to the inner city with his family. He lives at Crescent Heights on the west side of Center Street.

From Suburbs to Inner City

Their first place was a condo in Toronto, Scarborough. They moved to Calgary in 2004 and immediately started looking for a condo downtown.

Their agent pushed them to buy a starter home in the suburbs. Looking back, it was great for them financially.

His family ended up buying a starter home in Tuscany. They stayed there for about nine years. But it wasn't quite…

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What is Driving Calgary Real Estate Market Now?

What is Driving Calgary Real Estate Market Now?

We reviewed the October 2020 market update, and here are the numbers for all condos and houses.

The benchmark selling price now is $ 422,000, which is up a half percent compared to last year. The total sales number is at 1,764, which is up 22% compared to the previous year.

New buyers come into the market to take advantage of the massive swing in interest rates. Last year’s interest rates at this time were as high as 3.5%, and now it’s down 1.5 to 1.6%. That’s about a 2% difference.

The actual number of new listings went up 3.8%. This is good because there is a momentum in supply and demand. But inventory is not there. We only have 5,800 homes on the market; that's down 12% compared to last…

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Not Sure If You Should BUY or SELL First?

Not Sure If You Should BUY or SELL First?

Should you Buy or Sell First?

Everybody has their idea of a Dream House. They have this clear picture in their head of how it looks – from the lot area, theme, interior design, down to the tiniest details.

So, what happens when one day, while you’re going on with your daily activities, then, all of a sudden, you catch wind of a house that just came on the market?

You might realize you are now staring at your dream house.

Should you jump on ahead and start packing your stuff and get ready to move up to your dream house? Or should you take a moment to prepare your current place to be put on sale?

This whole thing of buying and selling first comes a lot when someone has a home that they need to sell,…

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Moving Up When The Economy is Wavering

Moving Up When The Economy is Wavering

We invited a former client, Chandra, to talk about her recent move. She is married and has two kids. Her family is always busy. Both of her kids play hockey.

She is a part-time nurse, but luckily, she has an office type job. She’s a transplant coordinator.

Moving Up

It was hard to predict what was going to happen at the beginning of the pandemic. Chandra wanted to move but unsure if their house is going to sell. She wondered if people will see the value of her home and what the area has to offer.

They have stayed in their house for six years, so they were hesitant to leave the neighbourhood that has been so dear to them.

She had developed a great relationship with her neighbours in Tuscany. Her kids…

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