READ THESE IMPORTANT STEPS BEFORE SELLING YOUR HOME

First and Foremost…Get a Real Estate Professional’s help.

Even though the Internet gives buyers unprecedented access to home listings, most new buyers (and many more experienced ones) are better off using a Real Estate Professional who has in-depth knowledge regarding the area you are interested in living and who will have your negotiating interests at heart and can help you with strategies during the bidding process.

Important Steps

Once you have decided on your Real Estate Professional, you will need to get your financial house in order. You need to determine how much house you can really afford. The rule of thumb here is to aim for a home that costs about 2 ½ times your gross annual salary. If you have significant credit card debt or other financial obligations or even an expensive hobby, then you may need to set your sights lower.

Step 1- Get pre-approved.

Getting pre-approved will you save yourself the grief of looking at houses you can't afford and put you in a better position to make a serious offer when you do find the right house. Not to be confused with pre-qualification, which is based on a cursory review of your finances, pre-approval from a lender is based on your actual income, debt and credit history.

Since you most likely will need to get a mortgage to buy a house, you must make sure your credit history is as clean as possible. A few months before you start house hunting, get copies of your credit report. Make sure the facts are correct, and fix any problems you discover.

Step 2- Decide What is Important to you in a Home

Your Current and Future Needs

Before you start searching for a home, you need to think about your needs both now and in the future. Here are some things to consider:

·        Size requirements. Do you need several bedrooms, more than one bathroom, space for a home office, a two-car garage?

·        Special features. Do you want air conditioning, storage or hobby space, a fireplace, a swimming pool? Do you have family members with special needs? Do you want special features to save energy, enhance indoor air quality and reduce environmental impact?

·        Lifestyles and stages. Do you plan to have children? Do you have teenagers who will be moving away soon? Are you close to retirement? Will you need a home that can accommodate different stages of life?

Try to buy a home that meets most of your needs for the next 5 to 10 years, or find a home that can grow and change with your needs

NEXT BLOG.... The Home Search

What are the Benefits of working with a Real Estate Professional?

1. You’ll have an expert to guide you through the process. Buying or selling a home usually requires disclosure forms, inspection reports, mortgage documents, insurance policies, deeds, and multi-page settlement statements. A knowledgeable expert will help you prepare the best deal, and avoid delays or costly mistakes.

2. Get objective information and opinions. A realtor can provide local community information on utilities, zoning, schools, and more. They’ll also be able to provide objective information about each property. A professional will be able to help you answer these two important questions: Will the property provide the environment I want for a home or investment? Second, will the property have resale value when I am ready to sell?

3. Find the best property out there. Sometimes the property you are seeking is available but not actively advertised in the market, and it will take some investigation to find all available properties.

4. Benefit from their negotiating experience. There are many negotiating factors, including but not limited to price, financing, terms, date of possession, and inclusion or exclusion of repairs, furnishings, or equipment. In addition, the purchase agreement should provide a period of time for you to complete appropriate inspections and investigations of the property before you are bound to complete the purchase. Your agent can advise you as to which investigations and inspections are recommended or required.

5. Property marketing power. Real estate doesn’t sell due to advertising alone. In fact, a large share of real estate sales comes as the result of a practitioner’s contacts through previous clients, referrals, friends, and family. When a property is marketed with the help of a realtor you do not have to allow strangers into your home. A professional real estate agent will generally prescreen and accompany qualified prospects through your property.

6. Realtors have done it before. Most people buy and sell only a few homes in a lifetime, usually with quite a few years in between each purchase. And even if you’ve done it before, laws and regulations change. Realtors on the other hand, handle hundreds of real estate transactions over the course of their career. Having an expert on your side is critical.

8. Buying and selling is emotional. A home often symbolizes family, rest, and security — it’s not just four walls and a roof. Because of this, home buying and selling can be an emotional undertaking. And for most people, a home is the biggest purchase they’ll ever make. Having a concerned, but objective, third party helps you stay focused on both the emotional and financial issues most important to you.

Tighter mortgage rules may impact housing

Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty’s move to tighten up the mortgage market may cause Canadian house prices to slip by an additional 1 per cent in 2011, says TD Bank.

The bank is already calling for home sales to drop by about 8 per cent this year compared with 2010.

But mortgage restrictions introduced Monday will mean about 20,000 fewer sales this year, with the average price possibly weakening by 1 percentage point, said senior economist Pascal Gauthier.
The mortgage changes have met with general acclaim from bankers and real estate industry executives.
Though they say the tighter regulations may prompt some Canadians to purchase homes before March 18 when the new rules go into effect, most in the industry feel they are prudent measures that will help create long-term stability.
Key points include:

• A reduction to the maximum amortization period to 30 years from 35 years for new government-backed insured mortgages with loan-to-value ratios of more than 80 per cent.
• Lowered the maximum amount Canadians can borrow in refinancing their mortgages to 85 per cent from 90 per cent of the value of their homes.
• While this move will help to cool the housing market, it also allows government to leave interest rates where they are,
• The Bank of Canada is expected to stay put on its key overnight rate when it meets on Tuesday.

Real estate insiders had been worried the government would also raise down payment requirements. Currently, buyers can purchase a home with 5 per cent down. Some analysts had worried that the minimum would be raised to 10 per cent.
“That would have had a dramatic effect on the market,” said Jim Murphy, president of the Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals. “It’s really a fine balance between addressing debt levels and not affecting the overall economic contributions made by the housing market.”
A report last year by the association said about 22 per cent of Canada’s trillion-dollar mortgage market consists of amortization periods longer than 25 years. Longer amortizations have been popular with consumers because of the lower monthly payments.

December's Full Eclipse of The Moon at Solstice!

Remember Dec 21, 2010

The last time we had a full eclipse of the Moon was February 20, 2008. The next time the moon with occur in totality for Northern Americans will not be until April 15, 2014. This years total lunar eclipse will be in totallity from 2:40 a.m until 3:53 a.m. Winter offically begins the same day at 6:38 p.m. The event technically begins at 12:29 a.m. and ends at 5:01 a.m.

An eclipse of the moon happens when the Sun, Earth and Moon align perfectly enough that the Moon passes through the earth's shadow.

The 5 degree tilt of the Moon's orbit prevents an eclipse from occurring every month.

The Earth's atmosphere filters and refracts sunlight into the shadow, hence the varying amount of red and brightness for each ocurrence. With all the volcanic activity this year the moon may have a dull brown to grey
appearance instead of bright red.

The Moon is safe to look at with the unaided eye and perfect for those department store inexpensive scopes and any pair of binoculars or telephoto lens that you may have.

I really enjoy seeing a full moon bright evening sky turn dark allowing all the deep sky objects to become visible through a telescope.

These shots I took during the -26 degree temperatures during the full eclipse in January 2001.

Jupiter still dominates the night sky!

Enjoy!

October Night Sky and Comet Hartley

The beginning of autumn in the Northern Hemisphere brings more time to observe under a canopy of darkness. Unfortunately, the solar system's major planets don't participate fully in the added viewing hours. Only Jupiter shines brightly nearly all night. With a large disk, an active atmosphere, and four bright moons, giant Jupiter provides endless fascination for those who view it through a backyard telescope.

Uranus lies along nearly the same line of sight as Jupiter. The more distant planet remains an easy binocular object all month. Neptune glows fainter than Uranus and lies significantly farther west, so it shows up best during the evening hours.

The other planets put in only brief appearances this month. Venus and Mars shine in evening twilight but disappear from view less than an hour after sunset. And Saturn reappears shortly before dawn after mid-October.

But a naked-eye comet could make up for the lack of planet views. Comet 103P/Hartley should peak near 5th magnitude in October, when it will look like a silver sword hanging beneath the majestic W of Cassiopeia the Queen. This region lies high in the northeast these October evenings.

The October Sky and Comet Hartley!

The beginning of autumn in the Northern Hemisphere brings more time to observe under a canopy of darkness. Unfortunately, the solar system's major planets don't participate fully in the added viewing hours. Only Jupiter shines brightly nearly all night. With a large disk, an active atmosphere, and four bright moons, giant Jupiter provides endless fascination for those who view it through a backyard telescope.

Uranus lies along nearly the same line of sight as Jupiter. The more distant planet remains an easy binocular object all month. Neptune glows fainter than Uranus and lies significantly farther west, so it shows up best during the evening hours.

The other planets put in only brief appearances this month. Venus and Mars shine in evening twilight but disappear from view less than an hour after sunset. And Saturn reappears shortly before dawn after mid-October.

But a naked-eye comet could make up for the lack of planet views. Comet 103P/Hartley should peak near 5th magnitude in October, when it will look like a silver sword hanging beneath the majestic W of Cassiopeia the Queen. This region lies high in the northeast these October evenings.

Bank of Canada Maintains Overnight Rate Target At 1 Per Cent

Bank of Canada Maintains Overnight Rate Target At 1 Per Cent

Sometimes it feels good to be surprised, but Tuesday’s anticipated announcement by the Bank of Canada that it is maintaining its target for the overnight rate at 1 percent was a relief.  The global economic recovery is entering a new phase, and the Bank of Canada is now expecting weaker-than-projected recovery across the board, especially in the United States.  Canada is not an exception in this shift in projections since July’s Monetary Policy Report, as the Bank continues to expect the economic recovery here will also be more gradual. Corresponding to the overnight right maintaining at 1 percent, the Bank Rate is set at 1 ¼ percent and the deposit rate is set at ¾ percent.  Growth rates in Canada are expected to be 3.0 percent in 2010, 2.3 percent in 2011, and 2.6 percent in 2012.  Although a portion of this more subdued profile is a result of the more gradual global recovery, it also takes into account a more subdued expectation for Canadian household spending.  The projections around household spending come from the decline in housing activity, and as a result, the increased focus on household debt considerations.