Bill Jones - Realtor® Airdrie & Calgary Area Homes and Condos

City of Airdrie Amnesty Program Quickly Defeated

A one-time program proposed by city staff to forego penalty fees for unpermitted home renovation work was quickly shot down at city council Monday night.

The proposed bylaw, dubbed the Amnesty Program for Un-Permitted Work, would have opened up a three month window starting in April for homeowners to retroactively receive permits for work that has already been completed and not inspected. The fee for projects completed without a permit is currently double the permit fee for that specific project. A property search fee of $25 would have also been waived.

City of Airdrie staff cited the safety benefit for both those inside the home, as well as neighbours as the reasons for the proposal. The idea was originally brought forth during a meeting with Realtors after changes by the Real Estate Board of Alberta that required permit checks in order to list a property.

Alderman Shawn Howard was the first to step forth against the bylaw and it was subsequently defeated at second reading after a 3-2 vote against it. “I appreciate the intent behind this and I know that staff’s intentions on this is good,” he said during council. “The more I think about this, the angrier I get. “It’s illegal work; let’s call it what it is.”

The program would have been offered from April 1 to June 30, 2009.

Bill

The city of Airdrie is one of the fastest growing communities in Canada. Capitalizing on the growth of the Calgary region, Airdrie is focused on the expansion of commercial and industrial development. Currently, there are new commercial/industrial developments underway, providing excellent opportunities for new regional commercial, light industrial and mixed use projects adjacent to the Calgary-Edmonton Corridor (Queen Elizabeth II Highway - Provincial Highway #2). Airdrie also provides an excellent opportunity for small business development, with a population of 34,116, an estimated primary trading area of 60,000 and easy access to over 1,000,000 people living in Calgary, it is the perfect environment for storefront, home-based and manufacturing businesses. Quick Facts about Airdrie Population - 34,116 (2008 Civic Census) Location - Calgary-Edmonton Corridor (Queen Elizabeth II Highway-Provincial Highway #2) 6 kilometres north of the city of Calgary and 32 kilometres north of Calgary's downtown Lifestyle - Young, family oriented community with a focus on a high standard of living and building a sustainable city Local Economy - Local and regional retail, construction, manufacturing and professional services Easy access to local, regional, national and international markets (20 minutes north of the Calgary International Airport)

Bill

Residents gave Airdrie a 97 per cent rating for quality of life and the overall Citizen Satisfaction Index came out at 3.81, which is second highest in the survey's history to last year's 3.86 rating. Also, 97 per cent of respondents considered Airdrie a safe place to live, which was the highest score in the municipal comparison group. The results were put together from 400 telephone interviews between Jan. 5-9, 2009 by Bannister Research and Consulting Inc.

Two areas dropping considerably were Efficiency of City Services - from 85 per cent to 79 per cent - and the happiness with city recycling programs, which went from 77 per cent to 61 per cent.

One of the reasons for the drop in Efficiency of City Services rating and the Satisfaction with Public Works from 66 per cent to 42 per cent is suspected to be the timing of the survey as it occurred during a time when roads were slushy and tough to navigate after the December snow thawed.

Bill

Blue not green is the color originally associated with St Patrick. “St Patrick’s Blue” is used on Ireland's Presidential Standard or flag, while the Irish Guards sport a plume of St Patrick’s blue in their bearskins. The emphasis on green is thought to be linked to “wearing the Green”, a symbol from the 18th century on, of sympathy with Irish independence.

The first St Patrick’s Day parade took place in 1737 in Boston, followed in 1762 by New York. George Washington allowed his soldiers a holiday on March 17, 1780 as “an act of solidarity with the Irish in their fight for independence.”

Until the 1970’s, all pubs were shut in Ireland on St Patrick’s Day, and the sole venue selling drink the annual dog show. Lenten fasting – and the obligation to abstain from meat – were lifted on the day, which most families would begin with Mass.

Since 1962, tons of green dye are tipped on St Patrick’s Day into the Chicago river, although the quantity has reduced, for environmental reasons, from 100 to 40.

Don't Be Surpirised by Payout Penalties

If you are locked into a closed mortgage and you are Selling (or trying to negotiate a lower rate with another lender) you will be penalized.  This penalty will be added to the outstanding balance of your mortgage at the lawyers when you sell.  Sellers are sometimes surprised by this cost. 

Penalties are usually calculated in the following way:

A) Three months interest on your current mortgage - a $300,000 mortgage would have a penalty of approx. $4,500.  I used 6% as an interest rate on a present mortgage.  $300,000 X .06 = $18,000 per year or $1,500 per month.

B) An interest rate differential which is the  difference of cost that the lender will incur if they out money at todays rate.  This only happens if rates are lower than they were when you locked in your mortgage.  This example would be if a client's current mortgage is for $300,000 at a rate of 8%. He/She is selling the home with 36 mon ths left to pay at 8%. Todays hypothetical Rate is 6%. The penalty could be as high as $18,000

$300,000 X .02=$6,000 per Year X 3 Years left on contract.

Payout penalties can really vary, so you have to call your lender to get the payout penalty to be sure.  Most lenders can charge an IRD (Interest Rate Differential) -- see your mortgage contract for payout penalty options,   "B" lenders sometimes have higher penalties up to 6 months payments.

 Best Regards,

     Bill

W.A. (Bill) Jones

Century 21, Castlewood Agencies

(403) 701-1739  ( 9:00 am to 9:00 pm )

www.My-Realty.ca       www.Century21.ca/bill.jones     BLOG: www.activerain.com/c21billjones

Email: Bill.Jones@century21.ca

  Check-Out this Hot Property;

2012 33 Street S.W. Calgary Alberta