As December came to a steady close, we thought to share the residential and condo total sales in Edmonton and Area (St Albert, Sherwood Park, and Spruce Grove). These statistics will include the average sale price and the average days on market. We also find it important to compare each month to the same month of the year prior. We plan to share these statistics with you at the close of each month in 2012.
|
Updating your house to make it more energy-efficient and environmentally-friendly can be costly. Installing a solar electrical system or replacing your hot water tank with an on-demand system can set you back thousands or even tens of thousands of dollars. You may not save enough money on these types of upgrades to cover your investment for decades. However, there are several quick and inexpensive green upgrades you can make to your house that will start paying off quickly.
1. Install Faucet Aerators – $10
An aerator is a device that fits on or into the end of a faucet. It forces water through tiny holes, restricting water flow but making the flow feel stronger. It can be used on either kitchen or bathroom sinks and can be found in water-saving shower heads. An aerator can cost as little as $10 and can lower water use by up to 50%. Using less water also means less energy to heat the water, resulting in further savings. You can install a faucet aerator on your own and start saving water and money right away.
2. Replace an Old Dishwasher – $300
According to Energy Star, if you replace a dishwasher built before 1994 with a new Energy Star model, you will save 10 gallons of water per cycle. At one cycle a day, that’s 3,650 gallons of water per year. New energy-efficient dishwashers start at around $300. Between the cost of the water and of heating it for the dishwasher, payback on this upgrade can be achieved in about three to four years. As an added bonus, newer dishwashers are gentler and more effective at cleaning dishes.
3. Install Ceiling Fans – $50
Ceiling fans are popular in the south but not as common in cooler climates. However, they can make both your air conditioner and heat unit operate more efficiently. Ceiling fans circulate the air in the house, drawing the cool air from the air conditioner and distributing it around the house. They also push warm air from the heat pump down from the ceiling back into the living space to reduce the amount of time the furnace has to run. Most ceiling fans have a switch that reverses the direction the fan turns for the winter setting. You can buy ceiling fans starting at around $50 and they can help to lower your winter heating and summer cooling bills.
4. Swap out Older Toilets – $150
Older toilets can use up to 3.5 gallons of water for every flush, which can add up to over 7,100 gallons per year- per person. New efficient toilets use as little as one gallon per flush or just over 1,900 gallons per year. The more people in the house, the more savings are generated by replacing your old toilets. Low-flush toilets start at about $150 each and can be installed by a homeowner with moderate handyman skills.
5. Buy Compact Florescent Light Bulbs - $3 Each
Changing your light bulbs from incandescent to compact florescent is the easiest green switch of all. Compact Florescent Lightbulbs (CFLs) cost $2 to $3 each but can save up to $40 over the course of their lifetime. They last 10 times longer than incandescent and use much less electricity. According to Energy Star, CFLs use up to 75% less energy than normal incandescent bulbs. Replacing all old light bulbs immediately with CFLs saves the most, but, if you cannot afford the investment to do them all at once, simply replace the old light bulbs gradually as they burn out.
Source: Financial Edge
Over the years, many studies have been conducted to define and rank which typical life experiences cause the greatest amount of stress for the average adult. For anyone who has had to make a move, it probably comes as no surprise that moving ranks within the top 10 of the most stressful events. We have compiled the following tips to help parents prepare their young children for a move, and to also help them adjust to their new home and community once the move is made.
Above all, keep the communication lines open – before, during and after the move. Depending on the child, it can take anywhere from a few days to many months to adjust to their new surroundings.
Not all real estate agents are the same. If you decide to seek the help of an agent when selling or buying your home, you need some good information before you make any moves. Picking an agent is one of those critical issues that can cost or save you thousands of dollars. There are very specific questions you should be asking to ensure that you get the best representation for your needs. Some agents may prefer that you don’t ask these questions, because the knowledge you’ll gain from their honest answers will give you a very good idea about what outcome you can expect from using this agent. And let’s face it – in real estate, as in life – not all things are created equal. Hiring a real estate agent is just like any hiring process – with you on the boss’s side of the desk. It’s critical that you make the right decision about who will handle what is probably the single largest financial investment you will ever make.
What makes you different? Why should I list my home with you? It’s a much tougher real estate market than it was a decade ago. What unique marketing plans and programs does this agent have in place to make sure that your home stands out favourably versus other competing homes? What things does this agent offer you that others don’t to help you sell your home in the least amount of time with the least amount of hassle and for the most amount of money?
What is your company’s track record and reputation in the market place? It may seem like everywhere you look, real estate agents are boasting about being #1 for this or that, or quoting you the number of homes they’ve sold. If you’re like many homeowners, you’ve probably become immune to much of this information. Afterall, you ask, “Why should I care about how many homes one agent sold over another. The only thing I care about is whether they can sell my home quickly for the most amount of money.”
Well, because you want your home sold fast and for top dollar, you should be asking the agents you interview how many homes they have sold. I’m sure you will agree that success in real estate is selling homes. If one agent is selling a lot of homes where another is selling only a handful, ask yourself why this might be? What things are these two agents doing differently? You may be surprised to know that many agents sell fewer than 10 homes a year. This volume makes it difficult for them to do full impact marketing on your home, because they can’t raise the money it takes to afford the advertising and special programs to give your home a high profile. Also, at this low level, they probably can’t afford to hire an assistant, which means that they’re running around trying to do all the components of the job themselves, which means service may suffer.
What are your marketing plans for my home? How much money does this agent spend in advertising the homes s/he lists versus the other agents you are interviewing? In what media (newspaper, magazine, TV etc.) does this agent advertise? What does s/he know about the effectiveness of one medium over the other?
What has your company sold in my area? Agents should bring you a complete listing of both their own, and other comparable sales in your area.
Does your Broker control your advertising or do you? If your agent is not in control of their own advertising, then your home will be competing for advertising space not only with this agent’s other listings, but also with the listings of every other agent in the brokerage.
On average, when your listings sell, how close is the selling price to the asking price? This information is available from the Real Estate Board. Is this agent’s performance higher or lower than the board average? Their performance on this measurement will help you predict how high a price you will get for the sale of your home.
On average, how long does it take for your listings to sell? This information is also available from the Real Estate Board. Does this agent tend to sell faster or slower than the board average? Their performance on this measurement will help you predict how long your home will be on the market before it sells.
How many Buyers are you currently working with? Obviously, the more buyers your agent is working with, the better your chances are of selling your home quickly. It will also impact price because an agent with many buyers can set up an auction-like atmosphere where many buyers bid on your home at the same time. Ask them to describe the system they have for attracting buyers.\
Do you have a reference list of clients I could contact? Ask to see this list, and then proceed to spot check some of the names.
What happens if I’m not happy with the job you are doing to get my home sold? Can I cancel my listing contract? Be wary of agents that lock you into a lengthy listing contract which they can get out of (by ceasing to effectively market your home) but you can’t. There are usually penalties and broker protection periods which safeguard the agent’s interests, but not yours. How confident is your agent in the service s/he will provide you? Will s/he allow you to cancel your contract without penalty if you’re not satisfied with the service provided?
Evaluate each agent’s responses to these 10 questions carefully and objectively. Who will do the best job for you? These questions will help you decide