Congrats, we did it Vancouver! But really, did you ever doubt that we are living in the best city on Earth?

Vancouver topped the Economist Intelligence Unit's list for the fifth year running with a score of 98 (out of a possible 100). The EIU ranks 140 cities around the world using 30 indicators including healthcare, stability, culture and environment, education and infrastructure. No doubt that the successful hosting of the Winter Olympics and Paralympics provided an extra boost to our overall score.

Australia marginally outranked Canada, holding the majority of top ten positions with 4; Melbourne came in at number 2, Sydney at 7, Perth at 8, and Adelaide at 9. But Canadians can feel a bit of pride too having filled 3 of those positions; Toronto…

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You may have heard but the deadline is fast approaching. The government is reducing the maximum mortgage amortization period to 30 years, from 35, as well as the the maximum amount of a home's value that can be refinanced.

These changes come into effect on March 18, 2011; exceptions will only be made where there is a binding home purchase/sale contract in place and the financing condition must be satisfied. Exceptions will also be made when it comes to financing and refinancing your current home, but you must also have an exsiting agreement in place (with your institution or mortgage broker).

For more details and to understand how this may effect you, feel free to view GVREB Mortgage Rules or visit www.fin.gc.ca.

Attention Google Chrome users:…

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Just a quick heads-up to those who were looking forward to a break in the weather to enjoy the Oceanside Skate at Ambleside Park in West Vancouver; due to the former long-range forecast of rain and high winds, unfortunately the event has been shut down early. It looks like we'll have to find another way to take advantage of this fabulous sunshine on such a beautiful Friday afternoon!

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The study results are in! The Real Estate Staging Association has released some interesting data collected from real estate markets across Canada and the US in 2010. SO, is it worth it to stage your Vancouver home? You be the judge! The study includes the following:

Stale Properties

  • 87 vacant homes (not staged) at an average of 277 days on the market, unsold. Those homeowners decided to take their properties off the market to stage them. Those same homes sold in 63 days on average. This is 78% less time than a non-staged home.
  • 39 occupied homes (not staged) previously on the market at an average of 233 days, unsold. Those same staged homes sold in 53 days on average after staging. This is also 78% less time than a non-staged home.

New Listings…

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Resulting from lower listing levels, housing values in Vancouver and much of Canada are expected to continue to climb; a supporting factor being the many instances of multiple offers in certian Greater Vancouver sub-areas this year. We believe Vancouver can anticipate a strong spring market even though sales figures will likely be off 2010's active pace due to mortgage changes and rising interest rates.

Feel free to view the entire REMAX New Release.

Attention to Google Chome users: right click on the link to open PDF files while Google and Adobe work things out ;)  

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Vancouver had a huge increase of real estate passing the million dollar mark, in fact, 7996 more homes this year are worth more than 1 million dollars compared to 2010. There is a total of 37,131 homes in Vancouver that are worth over a million, 550 homes worth over 5 million and a staggering 75 homes worth over 10 million.

North Vancouver City and District has 5,736 properties over a million dollars, with an increase of 2,553 homes added to that list compared to 2010. There are 9 homes in North Vancouver worth over 5 million dollars.

West Vancouver has a whopping 10,826 properties worth over a million, 2,053 of those passing the million mark this year. There are 258 homes in West Van worth over 5 million dollars and 28 homes that are worth more than…

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The concept of REALTORS® asking Vancouver homeowners to tidy up when they sell their homes is not new but the days of REALTORS® asking sellers to 'simply' bake cookies and light candles are a thing of the past. Or at least they should be…

What started out as common-sense practices when selling a home has turned into what we now know as 'real estate staging'.

When home staging first started it involved cleaning, de-cluttering and packing away personal items and photos. Sometimes it even consisted of rearranging furniture and pictures. The concept of appealing to the majority rather than figuring out the potential home buyer’s demographics was paired with beige and more beige.  Today, real estate staging has grown into a legitimate profession and is an…

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