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Victoria, BC

Victoria-Oak Bay-Real Estate-South Oak Bay Real Estate Review

Victoria Oak Bay Realtor Fred Carver  250-598-2963 for Victoria Oak Bay Homes : Real Estate Agent in Victoria, BC

Victoria-Oak Bay-Real Estate-South Oak Bay Real Estate Review

South Oak BayReal Estate Year in Review

As 2009 draws to a close....... I thought I would review the Real Estate activities of Victoria's Municipality of Oak Bay, an area know by the locals as South Oak Bay, an area bordered by Oak Bay Ave to the North, Beach Drive to the East and South and Foul Bay Road to the West.
South Oak Bay Real Estate Review
Single Family Sales since January in South Oak Bay Total 88 with an 2009 year to date Average Selling Price of $852,391 with an average of 59 days on the market.

Single Family Pending Sales Total 10
with an average selling price of $ 873,700 with an average of 78 days on the market.

It would appear South Oak Bay Single Family Real Estate sale prices are up slightly, however the days on the market have increased.

South Oak Bay Real Estate Fred Carver
Currently there are 31 Single Family South Oak Bay Homes For Sale with an Average asking price of $ 1,499, 846 ranging in price from $499,900 for a home on Mitchel Street and up to $12 Million for a home on Beach Drive.

I recently drove through South Oak Bay on Oliver Street and took a Video of the homes to give you an idea of the Quaintness and Character of South Oak Bay Real Estate.




History of Oak Bay, Oak Bay was once part of the Hudson Bay Trading Company's Pacific Northwest Holdings and 1st settled by the Songhees First Nation.

VICTORIA CHRISTMAS SHOPPING-AT THE BAY CENTER

Victoria Oak Bay Realtor Fred Carver  250-598-2963 for Victoria Oak Bay Homes : Real Estate Agent in Victoria, BC

VICTORIA CHRISTMAS SHOPPING-AT THE BAY CENTER
Merry Christmas To all
This Morning I went to Victoria's Premier Bay Shopping Center to catch their Christmas Decor before many of the Victoria Saturday Christmas Shoppers Arrived.

Christmas Display Fred Carver

I took several photos and a video of the inside, so you can see Victoria's Premier Shopping Mall-The Bay Center.

Do you Still need to do some Christmas Shopping, be sure to Check out the Bay Center in Victoria BC.


It takes up a large City Block(originally two city blocks) and it has has a mix of over 90 street front and interior shops, Built In 1990 replacing an old T.Eatons Store on 2 city blocks.

Google Map To Fred's Oak Bay Office


Cheers

Fred Carver
Re/Max Camosun-Oak Bay

Google Map of Fairfield and Rockland

2239 Oak Bay Ave, Victoria, BC V8R 1G4
Victoria, BC
250-598-2963

Victoria Homes and Properties For Sale

Copyright © 2009 By Fred Carver All Rights Reserved "Victoria Christmas shopping at the bay Center ?"

Victoria Homes and Properties Web Site

FRIDAY'S FOTOS--SAANICH FALL FAIR ICE CREAM

Victoria Oak Bay Realtor Fred Carver  250-598-2963 for Victoria Oak Bay Homes : Real Estate Agent in Victoria, BC

FRIDAY'S FOTOS--SAANICH FALL FAIR

SAANICH FALL FAIR Ice Cream Eating Contest..I know these People Enjoyed this even if they Never Won!

Ice Cream Winner Saanich Fall Fair 2008 Fred Carver

Google Map To Fred's Oak Bay Office


Cheers

Fred Carver
Re/Max Camosun-Oak Bay

Google Map of Fairfield and Rockland

2239 Oak Bay Ave, Victoria, BC V8R 1G4
Victoria, BC
250-598-2963

Victoria Homes and Properties For Sale

Copyright © 2009 By Fred Carver All Rights Reserved "Friday's Fotos..Saanich Fall Fair Ice Cream "

Victoria Homes and Properties Web Site

Please Mr. Victoria Banker..Pre-Approve our Mortgage Properly

Victoria Oak Bay Realtor Fred Carver  250-598-2963 for Victoria Oak Bay Homes : Real Estate Agent in Victoria, BC

Please Mr. Victoria Banker..Pre-Approve our Mortgage Properly

Just this Week..I was referred to a New Home Buyer by her Parents. She had been to see her Mr. Victoria Banker and they told her she was good to borrow up $220,000, and she qualified to get cash back which she can use for her down payment.
Victoria Mortgage Banker
This Lady was excited with the thought of owning her 1st home... she is a retail store area manager and has a another business she manges that is her own.. Good income and stable person.

I called her parents right away and thanked them for referring me their Daughter to help her Buy her first home.

Wow..I like helping first time home buyers as they appreciate your advice and listen..After our first meeting I recommended she get her mortgage approval in writing and explained why. She agreed to call and we set a date to view homes For Sale on her day off.

Fast forward.....we met and found two Condo's she liked and we discussed her Dad viewing them. I asked her if she has talked to her Victoria bank about getting her mortgage pre-approval....she said she called them for an appointment and went in to see about getting a pre approval in writing...

Get this...... they told her she Did Not need a pre approval and to just make an offer on a home Subject to being approved for a mortgage..The Hair went up on the back of my neck, I knew they had not taken a proper mortgage application.

Knowing her mortgage may not really been pre-approved by Mr. Victoria Banker, I recommended she talk to a mortgage broker, and I gave her a phone number to call. I did not want my new home buyer to go through negotiations and be turned down,and I felt a few more days would be good business..

You guessed it the mortgage broker called me and said my Buyer does Not qualify, but she will by the Spring time.

I was Happy and Disappointed.... I knew my client would be disappointed, but better knowing now, not after trying to buy a home and losing out because we acted on a verbal approval by her Mr. Victoria Banker.

Please Mr Victoria Banker..Pre-approve our mortgage properly, so our clients do not get disappointed and lose out and be discouraged with the home Buying Process in Victoria.

Mortgage Pre approval

I spoke with my Client today.....she is okay with waiting and very glad she found out before making an offer to buy a home.

Here is a short list from my Mortgage Broker why home Buyers should get pre-approved for a mortgage:

  1. to hold an interest rate for up to 120 days.
  2. to ensure that the client qualifies for a mortgage based on income.
  3. to ensure the client’s credit score is sufficient to meet lender guidelines.
  4. to speed up the approval process at the time of offer. If a pre-approval has already been done including a credit check and income verification, then when an offer is accepted it just has to be added to the already reviewed details.
  5. to ensure the client isn’t looking at properties they can’t afford based on qualification.
  6. to confirm if the client could be looking at properties in a higher price range, which may open up more listings to view
  7. to confirm not only the maximum monthly payment that the person can afford, but to ensure that this payment is comfortable for the client.


Google Map To Fred's Oak Bay Office


Cheers

Fred Carver
Re/Max Camosun-Oak Bay

Google Map of Fairfield and Rockland

2239 Oak Bay Ave, Victoria, BC V8R 1G4
Victoria, BC
250-598-2963

Victoria Homes and Properties For Sale

Copyright © 2009 By Fred Carver All Rights Reserved "Please Mr Victoria Banker..Pre Approve our Mortgage properly?"

P

Victoria Homes and Properties Web Site

Mrs Field) Neiman-Marcus Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe..Urban Legend or Hoax...They Sure Taste Good.

Victoria Oak Bay Realtor Fred Carver  250-598-2963 for Victoria Oak Bay Homes : Real Estate Agent in Victoria, BC

(Mrs Field) Neiman-Marcus Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe..Urban Legend or Hoax...They Sure Taste Good.


My wife joined a Cookie exchange group .... Each person needs to cook 6 Dozen Cookies and then trade,...so everyone with end up with 6 dozen different cookies.

My wife has had a chocolate chip cookie recipe she got from her girlfriend  three years ago by email.
Cookie Monster Fred Carver
Tonight I helped here mix this Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe and put them on the cookie sheets...then of course try a few :O)).
Below my photos you'll find the recipe.

The Infamous Neiman Marcus $250 Cookie Recipe Hoax.

The story below is one of the most famous urban legends in history. The story has been going around for over 50 years and it is completely untrue. Every few weeks it comes up again in some newsgroup or listserve.

IT IS UNTRUE BUT IF YOU WISH TO TRY THE COOKIES GO AHEAD.

**********************************************************

"THIS IS TRUE----PLEASE TAKE THE TIME TO READ IT AND PLEASE SEND THIS TO EVERY PERSON YOU KNOW WHO HAS AN E-MAIL ADDRESS....THIS IS REALLY TERRIFIC."

My daughter & I had just finished a salad at Neiman-Marcus Cafe in Dallas & decided to have a small dessert. Because both of us are such cookie lovers, we decided to try the "Neiman-Marcus Cookie". {EDITORIAL COMMENT: Neiman's is a VERY EXPENSIVE department store in the United States a.k.a. Needless Markup}.

It was so excellent that I asked if they would give me the recipe and the waitress said with a small frown, "I'm afraid not." "Well", I said, would you let me buy the recipe?"

With a cute smile, she said, "Yes." I asked how much, and she responded, "only two fifty, it's a great deal!" I said with approval, "just add it to my tab."

Thirty days later, I received my VISA statement from Neiman-Marcus and it was $285.00. I looked again and I remembered I had only spent $9.95 for two salads and about $20.00 for a scarf. As I glanced at the bottom of the statement, it said, "Cookie Recipe $250.00."

That's outrageous!! I called Neiman's Accounting Dept. and told them the waitress said it was "two-fifty," which clearly does not mean "two hundred and fifty dollars" by any *POSSIBLE* interpretation of the phrase. Neiman-Marcus refused to budge. They would not refund my money, because according to them, "What the waitress told you is not our problem. You have already seen the recipe - we absolutely will not refund your money at this point."

I explained to her the criminal statutes which govern fraud in Texas, I threatened to refer them to the Better Business Bureau and the State's Attorney General for engaging in fraud. I was basically told, "Do what you want, we don't give a crap, and we're not refunding your money."

I waited, thinking of how I could get even, or even try and get any of my money back. I just said, "Okay, you folks got my $250, and now I'm going to have $250.00 worth of fun."

I told her that I was going to see to it that every cookie lover in the United States with an e-mail account has a $250.00 cookie recipe from Neiman-Marcus for free. She replied," I wish you wouldn't do this." I said, "Well, you should have thought of that before you ripped me off", and slammed down the phone on her. So, here it is!!!

Please, please, please pass it on to everyone you can possibly think of. I paid $250 dollars for this... I don't want Neiman-Marcus to *EVER* get another penny off of this recipe....

Neiman Marcus Cookie Recipe

(Recipe may be halved):
2 cups butter
4 cups flour
2 tsp. soda
2 cups sugar
5 cups blended oatmeal**
24 oz. chocolate chips
2 cups brown sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 8 oz. Hershey Bar (grated)
4 eggs
2 tsp. baking powder
2 tsp. vanilla
3 cups chopped nuts (your choice)

** Measure oatmeal and blend in a blender to a fine powder. Cream the butter and both sugars. Add eggs and vanilla; mix together with flour, oatmeal, salt, baking powder, and soda. Add chocolate chips, Hershey Bar and nuts. Roll into balls and place two inches apart on a cookie sheet.

Bake for 10 minutes at 375 degrees. Makes 112 cookies.

Have fun!!! This is *NOT* a joke --- this is a true story..
Ride free, citizens!

********************************************************

REMEMBER, PLEASE, PLEASE, THAT THIS STORY IS AN URBAN LEGEND!

IT IS _NOT_ TRUE.

Neiman Marcus Responds

Alongside sewer-dwelling bands of alligators, bugs in bottles of soda, and other urban myths resides the Neiman Marcus $250 cookie fabrication.
NM has never charged anyone anything for a recipe, but the story still persists. Help stamp out untrue gossip by forwarding our free chocolate-chip cookie recipe to any naysayers out there!
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
1 cup brown sugar
3 tsp. granulated sugar
1 egg
2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1 3/4 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp. instant espresso powder, slightly crushed
8 ounces semisweet chocolate chips

Cream the butter with the sugars until fluffy. Beat in the egg and the vanilla extract. Combine the dry ingredients and beat into the butter mixture. Stir in the chocolate chips. Drop by large spoonfuls onto a greased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes, or 10-12 minutes for a crispier cookie. Makes 15 large cookies.
*******************************

Collected by Bert Christensen
Toronto, Ontario

Google Map To Fred's Oak Bay Office


 

Cheers

Fred Carver
Re/Max Camosun-Oak Bay

Google Map of Fairfield and Rockland

2239 Oak Bay Ave, Victoria, BC V8R 1G4
Victoria, BC
250-598-2963

Victoria Homes and Properties For Sale

 Copyright © 2009 By Fred Carver All Rights Reserved "(Mrs.Field) Neiman-Marcus Chocolate Chip Cookie Recipe..urban legend or Hoax.. they sure taste good?" 

 

Victoria Homes and Properties Web Site