Real Estate Blog - Ken Richter

Getting A Mortgage With a Student Loan

University is over for students across the globe. Some will be resting over the summer break before hitting the books again in the fall while others have graduated and get to move on to new and exciting pursuits. Either way, students everywhere are desperate for a job.

Tuition is very expensive, averaging approximately $10,000 per year for classes alone. This number does not include living expenses, textbooks or transportation. This is why during the summer months, students work hard to save enough money to pay for their upcoming school year.

Despite this, even if a person works 40+ hours a week in the four months leading up to the new school year, many still do not have enough to cover tuition. This is why students turn to student loans. The…

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April Statistics

At the start of every month we go over what happened in the world of the Calgary real estate market in the previous month. This enables you as a buyer, seller, investor, renter, leaser, etc. to stay up to date on exactly what is happening.

Market conditions are constantly shifting and evolving. They provide crucial information regarding a sector that involves major financial decisions. Keep yourself informed so you can be educated and informed!

So, what did the market look like in April? We’re turning to the Calgary Real Estate Board (CREB®) to find out.

The market is finally starting to shift. Inventory remains high, but prices are starting to decline as sellers become more realistic about the market they are in. Prices have been slowly falling…

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2 Tips for Landlords

The Calgary real estate market has been suffering ever since the fall of oil last January. While the economy has been slowly regaining its footing, the housing market continues to be seriously affected. With so many job loses, people are leaving the city, leading to high inventory levels. These inventory levels have not significantly affected pricing of homes as stubborn sellers hold onto hope that the market will turn back in their favour. This leads to high prices and high vacancy rates.

These market conditions put landlords in a tough situation, as many are left with great properties that are going unrented. So, what can be done when vacancy rates continue to rise? There are two major things you need to do: you need to be tough on yourself and you…

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New Inner-City Businesses

With today’s economy many people are shying away from brand new start-ups and business endeavours. However, that hasn’t stopped some from putting it all on the line to bring Calgary a new business. Luckily, their courage has paid off and now Calgary has a great new establishment to enjoy. In today’s post, we will be outlining some of the fantastic new businesses that have come to inner-city YYC. With the weather so nice, now is the perfect time to check out some new favourite spots.

The Beltliner: If you like breakfast and brunch, this is the perfect place for you. They have a wide variety of food and cafe options, from your classic eggs and bacon to new and exciting dishes. Located in the heart of downtown, they are quickly becoming a Calgary hot…

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Hosting A Good Open House

Spring is here and with the budding trees comes the start of a busy open house season. With the weather so gorgeous it is the perfect opportunity for taking a lazy Saturday, getting a coffee and browsing through some of the beautiful properties on the market.

When you’re preparing to host your own open house, there is a lot you can do to make a good first impression. Today we go through how you can captivate each sense of potential buyers. Hosting an open house is more than having a property to offer, after all,

Sight: Captivate people’s sight by making a good first impression. Your front yard should be trimmed and taken care off, the sidewalk clean and the entryway free of clutter. The indoors should be just was well kept. Check out our past blog…

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March 2016 Statistics

April is here, much to the delight and surprise of many. It seems as though March flew by with the help of the beautiful weather and so many special events.

With the beginning of April comes the ability to see what happened in March as a whole. This is what CREB (the Calgary Real Estate Board) does: they look back on everything that happened in March, then summarize it and record the data so overall trends can be discovered. Every month we take the CREB summary and give you the highlights. If you want more detailed information, go to their website HERE. They are a fantastic resources for buyers, sellers, investors and anyone else wondering what is going on in the real estate market.

Without further ado, here are the CREB March housing summary…

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Home Staging: Stairways

Stairways are one of the most neglected parts of a home, particularly when staging for an open house. But who cares, it’s just stairs, right? Wrong.

Stairways are important transportation devices that carry potential buyers into and out of and up through and back down your home. In some homes, stairways are a major focal point. Most people can remember a particularly grand, beautiful set of stairs they have walked at some point. How can you make them remember your stairs?

Let’s start with the outdoors. How can you make the stairs leading up to your front door as effective as they can be? First off, stay away from extremes. Your staircase should not be so covered in decorative items that its a James Bond worthy obstacle course to get from the bottom…

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Preparing For Tax Season

Cue the scary music: it's tax season. For most people this is the most dreaded time of the year. Taxes seem like a dark hole of confusion and money flying out of your bank account. What can you do to make it out of this season alive? Read on to find out.

There are many reasons we pay taxes, the foremost being that taxes allow the government to run expensive programs that benefit citizens, such as the military and healthcare. Think of taxes as a way the government forces you to save for upcoming expenses: pay your taxes now, little by little, and a trip to the clinic is covered. Not only are taxes important to pay, but you have to pay them or else you will be seriously penalized.

Filing your taxes does not have to be a painful experience. There are a…

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Fraud Prevention Tips

Fraud is no longer as simple and easy as putting on a costume and making a fake ID. Fraud is complex and affects more people than we realize. Fraud is carried out by highly skilled individuals who know exactly what to do to steal identity, money, property, etc. very quickly, seamlessly and quietly. Most individuals don’t know they are about to become a victim of fraud until it is too late.

There are ways to protect yourself from fraud. The biggest way to do this is by refraining from releasing your personal information into the world. This means not posting your address on social media, never giving out your social security number unless required for a job and making sure that no personal documents get stolen.

Something as simple as your cell phone…

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Home Staging

Home Staging || Def. || The act of preparing a private residence for sale in the real estate marketplace. The goal of staging is to make a home appealing to the highest number of potential buyers, thereby selling a property more swiftly and for more money.

The goal of staging a home is to curate a space that draws people in. The space needs to feel warm, inviting and open for opportunity. There must be a delicate balance between providing visual stimulation to pull people in while at the same time leaving room for people to envision their own things in the space. So, how can you stage your home so that it is a space people will fall in love with?

The first thing you want to do is remove all clutter so that the space feels open. It does not matter…

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