October 20, 2010...
Canadian Bank Prime rate is currently 3.00%.
Some Canadian banks today are offering 3.49% APR on a 5 year fixed rate mortgage.
The Toronto Stock Exchange (TSE) was up 129.35 points closing at 12,649.92.
Canadian dollar exchange rate rose today 92 basis points to 97.83 USD.
For you history buffs...
Eighteen years before cars hit the roads in Victoria, licence plates were being used. They were first issued in 1884 to operators of hackney carriages (taxis). The story goes that hackney operators were charging exorbitant fares to carry tourists through the town.
The city set charges for in-city travel (25 cents) and out of city travel ($1.00), but operators were charging as much as $2.00 for travel within the city. Rates were not posted in the carriages. Many complaints were received by Victoria's City Hall, but there was no way of identifying which carriage was over charging due to lack of identification. So, the city fathers came up with an ingenious plan to "license" each rig through the Hack Regulation Bylaw, which became effective on January 1, 1884. The cost of a licence plate was $1.00 for a year.
Read about how John Roberts stumbled across licence plate #6...
DFH Real Estate Ltd. once again hosted a successful Child Find day today (Saturday, October 16). The annual event was hosted at the DFH office on Shelbourne St. as well as at the Westshore and Sidney offices.
At the Shelbourne office approximately 50 children, babies to 12 year olds, were photographed and findgerprinted during the day. Each child received a booklet with the pictures, fingerprints and other personal information to take home. It was a fun event with helium balloons and refreshments, including popcorn, drinks, cookies and even Halloween candy being handed out. Also, sheets of sparkly stickers were given to all who participated.
Community Police officers were at the sites throughout the entire event to fingerprint the children. Yours truly was the photographer for part of the the day at the Shelbourne St. office.
Children are urged to come back every year (until age 12) to have new photos taken and obtain a new booklet. See you next year kids!
If you would like more information on Child Find in Canada, go to their website www.ChildFind.ca.
The 17th Annual RBC Homeownership Study conducted recently reveals that 10% of Canadians plan to purchase a home within the next two years as compared to 7% two years ago. The RBC study, conducted by Ipsos Reid, found that 91 percent of Canadians think that home ownership is a sound investment, the highest level in 12 years.
"With the Canadian housing market showing continued vigour, it's not surprising that Canadians feel more confident in the long-term value of owning a home," said Robert Hogue, a senior economist with RBC. "Exceptionally low mortgage rates and improved affordability have been key reasons for the resurgence in the housing market this past year."
"The expectation of higher mortgage rates on the horizon could be motivating buying intentions this year. But it's important that homeowners - especially first time buyers - get solid advice about what they can afford, not only today, but down the road," said RBC’s head of Home Equity Financing, Marcia Moffat.
A full report can be seen at http://www.rbc.com/newsroom/2010/0308-housing.html.
The following are figures from Citizenship and Immigration Canada for the year 2009 of immigrants landing and residing in British Columbia...
Over 24,000 of these new residents are living in the Vancouver area. Approximately 1,460 have taken up residence in Victoria. Each year Citizenship and Immigration Canada allows approximately 40,000 new immigrants to arrive on our shores. How many of these people are renting? How many have bought homes? Is there a market here we are missing?
Food for thought...
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Specializing in Residential Real Estate on South Vancouver Island--from Victoria to Colwood, Langford, Bear Mtn., Metchosin, Sooke, Malahat, Cobble Hill, Mill Bay, Shawnigan Lake, Sidney. 250-477-7291
As I was born and raised in this beautiful city, I am in a unique position to sell Victoria real estate! When you have a real estate need, give me the opportunity to meet with you and show you what I can do for you. Even if you aren’t planning to buy or sell a home for years, I am happy to answer any and all questions you may have about buying or selling real estate, where to spend money in order to get your home ready for the market, or just general questions about the communities that make up Greater Victoria.
If you, or anyone you know, is considering buying or selling a home, contact me at 250-477-7291 or toll free at 1-800-668-2272 or email me at ted@tedtyrrell.ca. I am here to help in any way I can. If you are relocating to Victoria or lower Vancouver Island, contact me. I know the "ins" and "outs" of Victoria and would be happy to give you a tour of the city! Believe it or not, part of my past was as a double decker sightseeing tour operator in Victoria!
As I have had numerous experiences with revenue properties in Victoria and other cities in British Columbia, I feel that I am well equipped to help you purchase a duplex, triplex or fourplex for long-term investment purposes. I would be pleased to share my knowledge with you. Contact me if interested.
If you are tired of looking through the MLS® system day after day and would like to have an ongoing automatic Home Search that provides you with a detailed personal list of all MLS properties in the area and price range you are looking for, just contact me to set up your free account. You set the criteria; i.e. area(s) of Victoria that you wish to search, minimum number of bedrooms, bathrooms, square feet, whether or not there is extra accommodation in the home, etc. Home search supplies you with addresses, multiple pictures, maps and great aerial views as well as all the detailed particulars of the properties you wish to view online.
You may be looking for a family home, a revenue property or a home for Aunt Zelda. You can set up multiple searches if you wish, so you can have different types of properties in different areas being available to you concurrently. Once the account is set up, you will be notified regularly, via email, of new properties coming onto the market or any price changes on properties you've been keeping your eye on. It takes the hard work out of manually searching the MLS® system.
My life began in the capital city of British Columbia—Victoria--where I enjoyed my first 19 years. Ever since childhood, California had always been an attraction to me, so while still young and with no ties, I applied for the “green card” and moved to the San Francisco area in the early 1960’s.
Several years later I returned to Victoria with a university degree and secured a position as a speech-language pathologist with the Greater Victoria School District. Within a handful of years I acquired a teaching degree and a Masters degree in education from the University of Victoria. In my last thirteen years with the school district I was the Regional Coordinator (Vancouver Island office) for Special Education Technology—British Columbia (SET-BC), a program that supplies specialized computer hardware and software for students with disabilities. I retired from teaching in 2001. However, having too much free time on my hands was not as enjoyable as I thought it would be.
One of my life long interests has always been real estate. What a perfect match! After acquiring my Real Estate License, I joined DFH Real Estate Ltd. and began in earnest to be a great REALTOR® , bringing my patience, enthusiasm, knowledge and good negotiating skills to the business. As I was born and raised in this beautiful city, I am in a unique position to sell Victoria Real Estate!
I first met Ted in the Spring of 2009 when I contacted DFH as a first time home buyer. As a newbie, I knew nothing about the process, which I made known when I contacted DFH. Ted invited me over to the office, where he acquainted me with the process and asked me a number of questions concerning my price range, the type of unit I was looking for, and gave me some very helpful tips about things to avoid and to look for when considering properties. He also gave me a list of contact numbers for people I’d need to be in touch with as part of the buying process, including mortgage people, lawyers, and property inspectors, which was to prove very helpful over the following month. We parted ways from that first meeting after having sent me a series of condominium listings to consider.
After looking at a number of properties for a week or two, I contacted Ted to let him know that I was interested in seeing a condominium in Victoria. He met me at the building in question at the appointed time, and we looked not only at the unit I was considering but also the rest of the building complex itself. He had also done his homework with regard to the building and the strata board, and was able to tell me about some of the problems with the structure, and let me know about the ‘politics’ within the building. Needless to say, Ted was very helpful in making my decision with regard to this decision while remaining neutral and not pushing in any way whatsoever.
Over the next few weeks, Ted and I viewed over half a dozen properties that I found through the on-line database. Ted was always prompt for these appointments, armed with knowledge about the buildings and the people to deal with in them, including the building where I eventually bought a unit. Once the building inspector confirmed that the unit was in good shape, I made an offer through Ted to the other party. There was the inevitable wrangling over price and other details, but eventually with Ted’s help, a most satisfactory deal was struck. After all the other details (payment, legalities, etc.) were taken care of, I took possession of my new condominium at the end of May 2009.
Throughout the process, I always had confidence that I was being well looked after and my interests were always foremost in Ted’s mind. He was extremely knowledgeable, helpful, and I was always confident in his ability to handle my case. I would not hesitate to recommend Ted Tyrrell for Victoria real estate services to my friends and family, and I will use his services again the future.
Clayton H.
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When we were moving from the lower mainland to the Victoria area, we started house hunting on our own. After consulting the real estate newspaper and driving around neighourhoods to no avail, it was obvious we neded some professional help. Fortunately, we walked into the DFH Real Estate office and met Ted.
After creating a profile on our needs, wishes and budget, Ted armed us with a list of suitable properties, which was updated daily by email. For the properties we wished to view Ted promptly arranged a visit. He was always on time. At no time during the viewing of homes did we feel that we were being pressured into buying. Our decisions and reasons for not buying a particular property were respected.
One property we were very interested in, unfortunately had an offer on it, but undaunted, Ted met with the builder in the evening and discussed other similar options available. Through this meeting we are now in our new house.
Before we signed anything, the paperwork was carefully explained to us, the price was discussed and any questions we had were dealt with.
We feel that we could not have had a better real estate agent. Ted was professional, gracious, reliable and genuinely interested in our transaction. Our phone calls were always answered promptly and any information we needed was quickly supplied. The whole procedure ran smoothly to a positive conclusion.
We would definitely use Ted Tyrrell again for any future Victoria real estate transactions and would recommend him to friends, relatives and strangers.
Norman & Margaret S.
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As a first time home buyer, I wasn't sure what all was involved in purchasing my first home. Thankfully, I met Ted Tyrrell, who was patient and showed genuine interest in finding me a home I'd be happy with. Ted showed me what to look out for in buying an older house and guided me through the whole process to finally purchase one.
Thank you Ted. I would not hesitate to recommend you and would definitely use your services again.
Andrew C.
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I am pleased to be able to express my gratitude to Ted Tyrrell for his assistance in purchasing our home. My wife and I felt very comfortable with Ted as he took the time to explain everything thoroughly. He was detailed, honest, and personable.
A great guy and a fine realtor, I have no qualms recommending him to anyone buying or selling.
Paul D.
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