Real Estate Blog - Investing

House Hotel: Renting Your Home to Travellers

With the advent of the digital age comes a series of tech innovations aimed at making life more efficient. From searching for the best pizza place in town to messaging thousands of friends and family at once, the golden era of the internet is here. Love it or hate it, it is not going away anytime soon. 

For homeowners, the advancement of technology has helped them better find service providers for their property, secure their property, keep tabs on their property and easily access important property guidelines and documents. Most agree that these advancements are generally positive, but there is one new app that people are split on: Airbnb.

Airbnb and services like it are designed to enable homeowners to rent out their property, either a single room…

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Are You Looking For a Vacation Home?

The weather in Calgary, Alberta has been absolutely gorgeous as summer solstice draws near. With temperatures rising above twenty degrees Celsius, people are feeling even more anxious to leave the office and go on vacation. The sunshine and heat has people looking forward to summer holidays, whether they be in the city or elsewhere. A time to soak in some Vitamin D, have a cold drink and just relax.

Our favorite place to spend summers is beachside in the Shuswap, spending time with our family at our vacation home. Like many Calgarians, we have found our vacation home is the perfect getaway from busy city life. It is our little slice of heaven. If you are in the market for a vacation home, Team Ken Richter can help! Let us find you your own slice of…

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How To Spot A Real Estate Scam

Here at Team Ken Richter we conduct our business with integrity. This quality has always been a pillar in our philosophy and mission. We pride ourselves on providing clients with top tier service that has their best interests at heart. We are committed to you and would love the chance to show you just how important your goals are to us.

Unfortunately, not everyone conducts their business with integrity. 

Real estate scams that prey on both present and future homeowners are commonplace. With the economy the way it is right now, more cases of people being scammed are beginning to arise across the city. In order to help prevent you from falling victim to these scams, in todays post we will be going through the most popular scams out there and how to…

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The Value of A Secondary Suite

A great way to make money out of an investment property or a recreational property is to rent it out. The rental market is big in Calgary, because many people seek temporary residence here before buying. Calgary also has a massive student population, many of which need spaces to rent for the school year and summertime. This means that if you have a nice property, you can easily make money that will help you repay what you spent on the space.

Secondary suites will add tremendous value to your property should you sell one day, and are a fantastic way to help pay off your mortgage faster. There are many rules and regulations you need to be aware of if you want to rent out a legal suite, so make sure you do some research!

It is easy enough to find…

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Finding The Perfect Roommate

Can you believe that summer is almost over? In two weeks classes will be starting and schedules will go back to normal. While here at Team Ken Richter we are determined to soak in every stray ray of summer available, we’re gearing up to help prepare you for the fall. After all, it will be here before you know it.

One thing that happens at the end of summer is students move back into the city. As students begin pouring back into Calgary to begin a new semester, the rental market spikes. Not only must renters find a new property, but in many cases people need to find new roommates. While there are some single occupancy properties in Calgary, the majority of suites for rent are designed for two or more individuals. Picking a roommate is a crucial…

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Value Of Infills

Infills are becoming increasingly popular for homeowners across the world. An infill is a home that is built on an existing property lot, often following the destruction of an older structure. Infills are new homes in old neighbourhoods. As the subarbs sprawl further and further away from city centres, infills are becoming an increasingly attractive option for homeowners looking to remain central.

Here at Team Ken Richter we serve homeowners all across the city, but specialize in the communities of Bowness and Montgomery. These two communities are rich in history and thus filled with old structures. Therefore, infills have become very popular for people wanting to own property in the area but who are seeking more modern structures. If you’re thinking…

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New Tenants Rights

Last night "approximately 125 people were forced out of a building in Kensington ... after it was determined it was at risk of collapsing... Residents at Kensington Manor had only 15 minutes to gather their belongings before leaving" (Global News Calgary). As the tenants and landlord of this building grapple with this potentially devastating situation, we are all reminded that renting is not always picture-perfect. 

Many people pursue investment properties that they can rent as a form of supplementary income. Real estate is a wonderful place to invest your money and (potentially) see a massive return. However, renting a property is not as simple as finding a tenant and signing a lease. 

Others turn to rental properties as a place to live before they…

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Entering The Market In Spring

Spring has arrived in Calgary! The grass is green and the flowers are in bloom. People are beginning to venture outside and play again as Calgary warms up for the summertime. Another thing that is warming up is the housing market.

Spring is always the most popular time in real estate. While other times of the year experience peaks in the market, spring is consistently active in the selling, buying, investing and renting sectors. There are a number of reasons why spring is the most popular time to enter the market.

Read on to find out why and how you can reap the rewards of such an active time in real estate.

First and foremost, the timing is ideal. Spring is a time of change and transition. University students are moving for the summer or…

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Renegotiating Your Lease

Many leases on suites across the city end this month, prompting listings to rise for rental units. This is a great time for this to be happening because Calgary is currently in a buyer’s market. This means that buyers (or renters, in this case) can be more selective since there is a lot on the market but not a lot of demand.

In this buyer’s market, renters have the upper hand. If you are renting and your lease ends soon, it is time to take a look at your lease and evaluate if you are happy with it remaining unchanged for another length of time. For those of you unhappy with the current agreement, now is your time to negotiate.

The first thing to consider before attempting a negotiation is that even though the market favours renters right now, there…

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Vacation Homes

The economy is slowly but surely beginning to recover. While some people have had to cut back on extra expenses, such as a home away from home for summer (and winter) vacations, others have been able to take advantage of the market conditions. With rent and housing prices dropping significantly to adjust to this high-inventory, low-purchase market, there are some great deals out there.

Whether you are looking to sign a long-term lease or buy, these beautiful areas of Canada are a great place to start looking for your dream vacation home. These destinations are full of things to do all year round, so choose today and secure a great getaway for this summer.

Whistler, British Columbia: If you’re looking for somewhere that serves as a year-rount tourist…

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