Chris Grimes

Canadian new home prices have fallen again in November according to StatsCan. This was the second straight month in which there was a decline in new housing prices. New Housing prices dropped 0.3% in November from October. This decline has almost eliminated any gains the market saw in the first half of 2008. Although we are still awaiting the December numbers the current gain is at 0.7% year over year, which is the lowest Canada has seen since 1999.

The Globe and Mail is reporting today that Finance Minister Jim Flaherty is considering giving tax credits to homeowners who make home renovations. While there has been a lot of talk lately about large infrastructure spending in the upcoming federal budget, this home reno idea would focus on smaller but more wide spread spending. The idea is to provide personal tax credits for homeowners who make certain (yet to be determined) upgrades to their home. Not only would this help homeowners directly, but it could provide a significant boost to the construction industry.

There are a number of benefits to this type of economic stimulous strategy. Not only does it encourage long lasting home improvements, but renos increase the home’s market value. Plus, if the renos are energy efficient then homeowners will continue to save money on a monthly basis, through lower utility bills. As mentioned often in this blog, energy efficiency renovations can increases a family’s disposable income and help improve our environment. This type of program could also be executed quickly. Large infrastructure projects can often take a long time to implement. However, a surge in home renos across the country could get the economy going much faster!

What are the downsides? Well, these types of programs are typically difficult for the government to run, are hard to monitor and are open to fraud. Luckily the government is already running an ecoEnergy Retrofit program. This national program is well established, has strict rules, and uses licenced auditors to check that the renovations are completed as claimed.

So, if the government is looking for a way to boost the economy, provide long-term benefits for households, and reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, one of the strongest options it has is to heavily invest into and expand the ecoEnergy programs.

BBB assigns grades from A to F with pluses and minuses. A+ is the highest grade and F is the lowest. The grade represents BBB’s degree of confidence that the business is operating in a trustworthy manner and will make a good faith effort to resolve any customer concerns.

Ratings are determined by a proprietary formula that represents BBB’s opinion as to (1) the importance of each category, and (2) the appropriate score given to the business for each category. BBB assigns ratings by evaluating businesses in the following categories:

BBB experience with the industry in which the business operates
The business’ length of time in operation
Whether BBB has information that the business does not have required competency license(s)
Any known government actions against the business that are related to marketplace activities
Any advertising issues found by BBB
The number of complaints processed by BBB from the business’ customers
The number of complaints processed by BBB from the business’ customers that are of a serious nature
Whether the business has responded to complaints received by BBB
Whether complaints have been resolved in a timely manner or the business has demonstrated it made a good faith effort to resolve them
Business’ overall complaint history with BBB
Whether the business has honored any commitments to BBB to arbitrate or mediate disputes and comply with arbitrator decisions or mediated settlements
Whether BBB has sufficient background information and clear understanding of business
Whether the business is a BBB Accredited Business
Whether BBB Accreditation was revoked because the business failed to comply with agreed BBB standards

Canadian banks are proving that our financial system is the best in the world, as stated by the World Economic Forum in October. This week the Canadian major banks release their first quarter earnings for 2009, and most exceeded industry expectations. More impressive, however is they are remarkably better than their counterparts in the US and Europe.

The Royal Bank posted first quarter earnings of $1.05 billion, Toronto-Dominion Bank showed profits of $712 million, however as a sign of the times both of these banks profits were down by more than 15% from the first quarter of last year. The Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Canada’s fifth largest bank only earned $147 million profit, however they have had to write-off an additional $708 million in losses as they are shutting down their US credit portfolio. However, it wasn’t all bad news for CIBC as one year ago they posted losses of close to $1.5 billion.

The Bank of Montreal and the Bank of Nova Scotia are expected to release their first quarter earnings on March 3, 2009.

Overall bank profits are down from the beginning of 2008, but the banks are crediting there moderate growth to the strength of Canadian businesses.

Spring has finally sprung and Buyers are out there looking for homes to buy! Have you been combing the ads in the papers looking for your dream property? Researching the internet? Going to open houses and reading the feature sheets? Some of the acronyms and terms can be quite confusing! Here’s a cheat sheet to help you as you look:

4B/2B: four bedrooms and two bathrooms

assum fin: assumable financing

bedroom: usually a sleeping area with a window and a closet, but the definition varies in different places. In Ottawa, a room below grade cannot be a “bedroom” if it doesn’t have proper egress in the event of a fire

bathroom: There are different types of bathrooms: a full bathroom is a room with a toilet, a sink and a bathtub; a three piece bathroom has a toilet, a sink and a shower; a half bathroom or powder room has only a toilet and a sink. Also look at number of pieces which helps describe what is available. An ensuite bath can have anywhere from 2 to 6 pieces, traditionally

closing costs: the entire package of miscellaneous expenses paid by the buyer and the seller when the real estate deal closes. These costs include the brokerage commission; mortgage-related fees; lawyer’s settlement charges; transfer taxes; recording fees; title insurance and so on.

CMA: competitive market analysis or comparative market analysis. A CMA is a report that shows prices of homes that are comparable to a subject home and that were recently sold, are currently on the market or were on the market but did not sell within the listing period.

contingency: a provision of an agreement that keeps the agreement from being fully legally binding until a certain condition is met. One example is a buyer’s desire to obtain a professional home inspection before purchasing the home.

dk: deck

DR: dining room

fixture: anything of value that is permanently attached to or a part of real property. Fixtures include installed wall-to-wall carpeting, light fixtures, window coverings, landscaping and so on. Fixtures are a frequent subject of buyer and seller disputes. When in doubt about who will have ownership of fixtures, get it in writing.

frplc, fplc, FP: fireplace

gar: garage

gard: garden

grmet kit: gourmet kitchen

HDW, HWF, Hdwd: hardwood floors

hi ceils: high ceilings

in-law potential: potential for a separate apartment, subject to local zoning restrictions

listing: an agreement between a real estate Representative and a home owner that allows the Representative to market and arrange for the sale of the owner’s home. The word “listing” is also used to refer to the for-sale home itself. A home being sold by the owner without a real estate Representative isn’t a “listing,” it’s called a FSBO (for sale by owner).

lock box: locked key-holding device affixed to a for-sale home so real estate professionals can gain entry into the home after obtaining permission from the listing Representative

lsd pkg: leased parking area; it may come with additional cost

MLS: Multiple Listing Service. An MLS is an organization that collects, compiles and distributes information about homes listed for sale by its members, who are real estate Representatives. Membership isn’t open to the general public. MLSs are local or provincial.

personal property: movables, such as appliances and furniture

pot’l: potential

pvt: private

pwdr rm: half bathroom or powder room

real property: real estate is legally called “real property”

REALTOR®: a real estate Representative or sales associate who is a member of the CANADIAN REAL ESTATE ASSOCIATION. Not all real estate Representatives are REALTORS®.

title insurance: an insurance policy that protects a lender’s or owner’s interest in real property from assorted types of unexpected or fraudulent claims of ownership. It’s customary for the buyer to pay for the lender’s title insurance policy.

upr: upper floor