We recently did a presentation to our BNI group about what kinds of criteria one would need in order to purchase a home in  Steveston, BC, under $500,000.  We presented a few different scenarios, including a high ratio mortgage, a regular mortgage and a mortgage plus improvements.  We wanted to share the results.

Here are some stats to start out with:

Listing - Steveston, BC

Purchase price $488,000

2 beds, 2 baths

In suite laundry

Pool + exercise room

Parking spot

Check out our presentation.  What do you think?

Being in Vancouver, we have access to so many great sporting events, and are home to three major professional sports teams.  Want to get close to the action?  We've found 3 listings that are perfect for moving right into the neighborhood of sports central.

#1.  102 Regiment Square  $799,000

This 2 bed, 2 bath townhome is ready for the hockey, football or soccer fan alike.  Featuring entertaining space and the very best part...a rooftop patio ready for watching the game with friends.  You can actually see Roger's Arena and BC Place right from the deck! 

https://www.realtor.ca/Residential/Single-Family/16576791/102-REGIMENT-SQUARE-Vancouver-British-Columbia-V6B1W1

#2  3502 689 Abbott Street $1,199,000

Subpenthouse looking over the top of Vancouver.  Literally steps away from Roger's Arena!  Two beds, two baths, a den and solarium round out this 1320 square foot home.  

https://www.realtor.ca/Residential/Single-Family/16556293/3502-689-ABBOTT-STREET-Vancouver-British-Columbia-V6B0J2

#3 1307 950 Cambie Street  $788,000

Just a short walk from BC Place and Roger's Arena, this apartment features 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms and stunning views.  Perfect for entertaining friends for the big game on your big screen!  

https://www.realtor.ca/Residential/Single-Family/16528430/1307-950-CAMBIE-STREET-Vancouver-British-Columbia-V6B5Y1

In the hot market here in Vancouver, homes that are priced to sell are literally flying off of MLS in record breaking speed.  Homes that were put up for sale have gone into multiple offers hours after being posted.  Subjects are being waived and closing dates are quickly looming.  This scenario isn't uncommon these days, and can be quite intimidating if you're not sure what your next move is.  Here are some ideas to make it a little bit easier to handle if you've sold your house rather quickly and are looking for your next home. 

1. Rent back from the new owners

This is a good option if you know your home is slated for demolition or is an income property to the new buyers.  Generally you can work it out in your contract of sale that you have an interest in staying after the closing date and what that will look like.

2. Get a great realtor

Having someone on your side that's dedicated to finding you your next perfect home within your parameters is paramount to your situation.  They'll be able to tailor their search, call the right contacts and get you into the place you need to be.

3. Consider renting for a while

Your dream home is out there - but it might take a little longer to secure!  Consider a short term rental to give yourself a bit more time to decide where you want to end up.  This might be beneficial as well - you could pick a different neighborhood and give it a test drive! 

Wondering if these might work for you?  Give us a shout and we can advise you on what's best for your next move! 

You may or may not know this exciting tidbit of information about realtors, but just recently, we switched over to a new system called Paragon.  If you're a realtor, you'll know that switching over definitely had its headaches, but since we've had a few months to ease into the new system, we've been learning lots of new tricks and exciting things that we can present to our clients!

One of these awesome features is called Client Connect.  When you're looking to purchase a home, we set up a search for you with all of your parameters and wish lists.  Once we have this search set up, we send you a log in to Client Connect, which lets you receive this search in real time.  Once you're logged into your Client Connect profile, you are able to choose your favourite listings, deny listings that you don't have any interest in and also add your own comments about a listing.  

Not only is this a really fun way to organize all of the listings in your search, it also gives us a really good idea as to the specific kinds of homes you are looking for once you start to filter through.  

This allows us to find things that are really new to the market or that might be a great fit for you outside of your list.  It also helps us tweak the search if we need to to suit your needs!

If you're looking at starting your home search, give us a shout today and we'll set you up with a search and your very own Client Connect profile.  We look forward to hearing from you!  

Welcome to 2016!  We hope you enjoyed your holidays and hope that you are looking forward to everything that 2016 will be bringing you.

As you might guess, we love Pinterest - and they've just released their top 100 trend projections for 2016.  Can't say we aren't loving a lot of these picks!  

Here is a great article that showcases all of the home pins that were featured in the list (the main 100 covers anything from haircuts to children's crafts) for you to enjoy:

http://www.popsugar.com/home/Pinterest-Predicts-Top-Home-Trends-2016-39401597?stream_view=1#photo-39401607

Here's the link to the whole list:

https://www.pinterest.com/pinterest/pinterest-100-for-2016/

Some of the highlights we're loving are: 

Graphic pillows (love these!)

Scandanavian designs (yes!)

Greys (still here from last year)

Artisian goods (so many local finds, right here in Vancouver)

Geometric accents

Here are a few of our favourite picks, made up of our favourites from above.  We look forward to seeing more of these in 2016!

Making the decision to sell your home is a time full of changes, activity and unknowns.  Whether you're selling your home to move to a new location, upgrade, or for a change, the very first steps of the selling process often remains a mystery for some. We've put together this handy guide to take the guess work out of what comes next!

Making the decision to sell: Exciting!  The first step is contacting a realtor (like us!) to come in and give you a comprehensive market analysis.  What this does is it lets you know what comparables in the area are selling for, what home prices in your neighbourhood are trending at, and a suggested list price for your home.  The analysis gives you actual listings you can look over and other information that you can keep to read at a later date as well. 

During this time, your realtor will do a walk through with you to point out ways that you can improve showcasing your home in order for it to be shown in its best light. This walk through includes indoor and outdoor attention.  

Deciding to list: Once you have decided on a price and a realtor, you will sign the listing documents.  Once the documents are signed, they're submitted to MLS, where you'll be able to see your home listed on the public real estate listings site.  We always provide our clients with the following once they decide to list with us:

-High quality professional photos

-High quality virtual tour

-Measurements (if required)

-Staging consulting

-Updates on our marketing efforts

Sold!  When your house has an accepted offer, your realtor will take care of handling the details. From guiding you into the right direction in terms of legal assistance to being present for the home inspection, collecting the deposit cheque and discussing deliverables with the purchaser’s realtor.  Now you can start looking for your next home!

If you have any questions regarding listing, selling or buying, please get in touch!  We'd be happy to present a complimentary, no obligation market analysis.  

Women Build is a project put on by Habitat for Humanity.  Women from our community will be coming together to give their time, expertise and their hands to build a 12 unit housing complex, located in Richmond, BC.  The housing project will provide homes to vulnerable families right here in our community.

This project wouldn’t be able to get off the ground without the outstanding generosity and support of my family, friends and colleagues.  Thank you so much for your continued support.  To donate to this excellent cause, please click the button below.  It will take you directly to the Habitat for Humanity’s page.

DONATE NOW

In the spring of 2016, I will be donning my pink hard hat to help build this amazing project!  Thank you for your support!

Each year, teams of volunteers paint the windows of the Auto Mall in Richmond with festive holiday paintings with all of the proceeds going to the Richmond Christmas Bureau.  Last year, the amount raised was just over $30,000! 

Together with members of the Richmond Sunrise Rotary, we painted windows at the Auto Mall.  Go and check out our work on display until December 31st!