Saskatchewan

If you’re like most people, when it comes to getting decorating ideas for your Regina home, you probably turn to magazine pictures or furniture catalogues for inspiration. While these well decorated rooms are beautiful, they are also very safe. Try breaking out of your decorating rut to achieve the unexpected with a few rules, all of which were made to be broken!

Symmetry isn’t always best. While wall art and mirrors should stay balanced, when you balance accessories, it looks boring. Try using the same items mixed up, or find a unique way to group several items. Keeping in mind that less is more, you may even want to take a few things out of your room and bring the remaining pieces together in a new way.

On your dining table, place settings don’t have to match. As the holidays approach, you may be looking for a fun new way to present your entertaining table. Try choosing one unifying element in your table decor (like one color, a texture, or a theme) and mix it up. The informality a mixed table setting creates can make time with family and friends more comfortable.

All of your furniture doesn’t necessarily need to match the scale of your room. While it may be true that large furniture can crowd a small room, one oversized piece, like a sofa, can add substance to a room - just make sure you don’t go overboard (all the rest of the pieces should be in scale with the room). And, if you have smaller rooms, you can immediately make them appear bigger by eliminating clutter.
You don’t have to keep all your decor within one style. Contemporary and traditional furnishings can go nicely together and create a layered look, if they are mixed well. Make sure you choose one look that will dominate the space, and use eclectic pieces as accents.

For more decorating tips, read this online article. And if you’re ready to find a home to house all your decor, give me, Clair Whittington, a call! In the meantime, visit my website for more tips on home buying. I look forward to working with you to find your perfect home!

Back by popular demand, Kids Help Phone’s Homes for the Holidays event is being held in Regina this year on November 20 – November 22.

Kids Help Phone volunteers have been working with local designers and florists to decorate five homes throughout Regina and turn each of the homes into a Christmas Fantasy.

Nov 20th 11am to 6pm

Nov 21st 11am to 5pm

Nov 22nd 11am to 4pm

Exit Realty Fusion Agents will be at 4519 Cudmore Cres (Lakeridge) providing tours of the beautiful home.

Our home theme is "The weather outside is frightful but inside it's so delightful!"

Come visit us & Happy Holidays!

Boxing had Muhammad Ali vs Joe Frazier. Hockey had Wayne Gretzky vs Mario Lemieux. The Second World War had the Nazis against the rest of the world. Regina has Fiacco against all those don’t want their hair to look like strands of melted tire. Albert Street and Saskatchewan Drive have drivers in a hurry against the red light. Southern Saskatchewan has Exit Realty Fusion vs all the rest. Great rivalries, every one of them, and the good guys always won. The ones with the most brains, most drive, most skills, most endurance and, above all the biggest dreams, and the tenacity to chase after them are the ones who take it all.

And now you’ve got the Saskatchewan Roughriders vs the Calgary Stampeders. It’s become the biggest rivalry in the Canadian Football League. There are those who rub their chins and figure that the Labour Day Classic between Winnipeg and Saskatchewan is the biggest rivalry. That’s not a rivalry, that’s an event.

But, Saskatchewan vs Calgary? That’s a rivalry. It became one, for the ages, this season. Events are like weddings. Everybody shows up, parties, and goes home happy. Rivalries are wars. Rivalries are fuelled by a genuine dislike for each other. And after playing each four times this season, once in the pre-season and three times in league games, the Stampeders and the Roughriders genuinely dislike each other.

It figures, After all, every one of those games has been a war. And, the Riders have yet to lose. Henry Burris has thrown everything he has at the Riders, and the Riders have thrown it right back at him. The rivalry boiled over when Saskatchewan went into Calgary and escaped with an electrifying 44-44 overtime tie that really was more of a win for Saskatchewan and a loss for Calgary. It got downright nasty when the Riders-out-gunned the Stampeders a few weeks later in a first-place showdown in Taylor Field. It was Saskatchewan’s first first-place finish since 1976, and half an hour after the game you could still hear the cheering of the crowd from backyards as far away as the Crescents area of Regina. It seemed almost a bigger win, in some ways, than Saskatchewan’s Grey Cup victories in 1989 and 2007. Because, you suppose, this win came at home. The fans, most of whom weren’t around 1976, weren’t sure how to act so they acted up.

“We’ll be back here in two weeks,” promised Henry Burris. Burris had once played for Saskatchewan, leaving the Riders to go play for Calgary. Both teams have won Grey Cups since that happened, but the fans never forgave Burris. Heck, it wasn’t Burris’ fault he left. It was stubborn stance taken by general manager Roy Shivers that forced Burris to go to Calgary. But, the fans in Saskatchewan take more delight than getting on Burris than they do any other player, or coach, in the Canadian Football League.

Rivalries have to have a lot of ingredients before they become special. Off the top, the games have to be close and they have to be last-minute deals before they’re decided. The teams have to have exceptional talent across the board. The coaches have to figure out ways to make them play as a team. John Hufnagel and Ken Miller have done that, and it hasn’t been easy for either one of those head coaches.

Burris had developed into one of the most complete quarterbacks in the league. It’s around his athletic ability that the Stampeders’ offence feeds off of. Darian Durant has more than proven that Ken Miller was right that Durant could become the next great Rider quarterback. He is like Ron Lancaster in many ways, the most obvious being that he seems to be at his best when the pressure is at its highest level of intensity.

But beyond all of that is these two teams just plain don’t like each other. Their games are played at a high level with little give and take on either side. The Riders haven’t really out-played the Stampeders this season as much as they have out-gutted and out-lasted them.

They will meet in the Western final for the first time since 1971 when Calgary swept the best-of-three series. But, now it’s sudden-death, a one-game shot that will in all reality tell who really won the rivalry in 2009.

As the doctor said when the fourth Dionne baby was born, “Don’t go away, this thing ain’t over with yet.”

With the state of the current economy, the days of rubber stamped mortgages offered by banks with little proof of income are over. Looking to buy a Regina home and don’t have the money to simply write a cheque? You’ll need a mortgage, and keeping some key things in mind will help you find success in this new era of tightened lending.

Be ready to verify your income. While banks used to be content with a job letter before offering a loan, now they are also requiring a pay stub (or even two), and a T-4 or a notice of assessment. If you work over time, be sure to check with your lender to see if that income can be counted toward your mortgage qualification - it doesn’t always, since it isn’t guaranteed or as common anymore.

Work to maintain or raise your credit score. If you have very poor credit, getting a mortgage will be more difficult than it has been in the past. Those who have less than excellent credit will likely qualify for a mortgage, but will pay a little more in interest rates. If you have poor credit, or little down payment (you’ll need at least 5%), it might be a good opportunity to use the upcoming months to save more and pay down debt. When you re-enter the real estate market, you’ll be in a much better position to secure a mortgage.

Self-employed? Be ready to provide ample documentation to prove your income is within reasonable bounds for the size and type of business you do. If there are disparities between taxable and real income, lenders can refuse to provide a mortgage. Make sure the income you state is within those reasonable bounds if you’re stating your own income.

Educate yourself on the variety of mortgage options. If you do your homework, you’ll have a much better chance to choose the right mortgage for you, and give yourself the best opportunity to have everything the lender needs to make your approval process quick and easy.

If you’re not sure how much you can afford, visit this website to calculate a reasonable mortgage for your situation. And if you’re ready to begin your home search, give me, Clair Whittington, a call! I’d love to help you find the right home for you and your budget. Visit my website to learn more about how to choose the best home for you!

So, you've just become a new homeowner, or you're thinking of becoming one..... now, what is it going to cost to maintain it?

First, there's the one per cent rule, which claims that normal maintenance on a home is about one per cent of the value of the home per year. This means that a $250,000 home would cost about $2,500 per year to maintain. This would cover normal replacement of worn out components such as a failed water tank one year, roof repair another year, and the furnace the next.

Then there's the three per cent rule; some experts say that home buyers should plan on spending three per cent of the value of the home in the first year. This is because new homeowners will likely purchase blinds and/or drapes, change some or all of the decor and maybe buy some appliances.

A Home Inspection (before you buy) will give you an idea of what is wearing out and what will last for a while. For example, because the high efficiency furnace was installed a just a year ago, you likely won't be buying a new furnace for at least 15 years, since they last, on average, 15-20 years. Or you know the shingles have never been replaced, they're looking a little rough and the house is 18 years old; count on getting up on the roof (or hiring someone) in the next year or so. Asphalt shingles last approximately 12 -20 years. This is not a reason to not buy the house, not a defect, just a something to be aware of.

Here are the typical life cycles of the most common home components:

• Furnace > 15-20 years
• Air conditioning system > 12-15 years
• Water tank > 12 years
• Sink garbage disposal > 10 years
• Appliances > 12-20 years (varies substantially)
• Asphalt shingles > 12 - 20 years
• High-end asphalt shingles > 20-30 years
• Cedar shingles > 20-35 years
• Garage door opener > 10-15 years

Care and maintenance is the key. Generally anything will last longer if it is not abused, kept clean and dry, and used only for the purpose it was intended.