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Stories Tagged - CREB®
Nov. 03, 2015 | CREBNow
What's your home's Transit Score?
Transit Score will now be made available on select listings on REALTOR.ca, the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) announced recently.
The national real estate agency said the addition is in response to a "demographic and socioeconomic shift toward sustainable transportation." It also noted that in a 2013 Nanos survey, 59 per cent of respondents indicated that the Transit Score would be valuable when assessing listings on REALTOR.ca.
The addition of the Transit Score coincides with the change in the implementation of the already popular Walk Score. Both scores will now be positioned in the new "Walk Score + Directions" tab, rather than at the bottom of the listing details page.
Oct. 14, 2015 | Barbara Balfour
Outside the box
Condominium corporation rules surrounding key-storage systems that provide real estate professionals and their buyers with access to properties for sale are often creating unsafe conditions, say industry officials.
"The condominium corporation prescribes where the lockbox may be placed according to condo bylaws, and it's not always in the most ideal location in terms of safety," said Lisa Roberts, manager of Member Programs at CREB®.
"In this situation, safety can be viewed through two aspects – in cold weather, having to walk down an alleyway where the pavement is icy, or through an area that is not well lit or well trafficked in order to retrieve the keys and show the property that is listed for sale."
Sept. 01, 2015 | CREBNow
Inventory levels rise
Calgary's residential resale housing market recorded further easing in absorption rates in August due to weaker sales activity.
Sales in the city declined by 27 per cent to 1,643 units last month relative to the same time last year and 12 per cent below 10-year averages.
"Persistent weakness in the energy sector weighed on sales activity this month, which once again retracted to levels well below the norm for the city," said CREB® chief economist Ann-Marie Lurie.
May 26, 2015 | CREBNow
Roar!
From community impact to mentorship distinction, Calgary's real estate community honoured some of the city's most exceptional REALTORS® at the second annual ROAR Awards this past weekend.
At this year's event, which was held at TELUS Spark, and emceed by Canadian comedienne and actress Jessica Holmes, five exceptional REALTORS® took home hardware in categories that included Marketing Excellence, Mentorship Distinction, Community Impact, Commitment to Education, along with the award for People's REALTOR®.
"It's humbling to think that people took time out of their busy lives [to nominate me]. It's really an honour," said Leisa Fuller of Century 21 PowerRealty.ca, who took home the award for the People's Realtor®.
The award, which is voted on by the public, is given to an individual who consistently goes above and beyond to deliver exemplary customer service to clients.
"Every client that hires doesn't have to – they decide to. And they pay us to do a job that I really love. I just can't imagine doing anything else," said Fuller.
With more than 140 nominations for this year's awards, ROAR committee chair Robyn Hauck said picking the winners wasn't an easy process. Nominations came from the public, in the case of the People's Realtor® award, or REALTORS®, in the case of the other four categories. Winners were eventually screened, interviewed and selected by sub-committees consisting of REALTORS®, past winners and community liaisons.
"At the end of the day, the people we selected were clearly the top performers who consistently went beyond what's expected to excel, inspire, give back and help others succeed," said Hauck. "This is what the ROARs are all about and what it means to be among the best in real estate.
"The winners are examples of what clients look for in a REALTOR®: professional, reliable, courteous and committed to providing the best possible experience. We were so impressed with all the nominees this year. They've all worked hard to deliver outstanding results for their clients and the ROAR Awards made sure their efforts didn't go unnoticed."
Lindsey Smith of CIR Realty took home the Commitment to Education Award for his devotion to professional development, commitment to sharing new concepts, teaching and for encouraging others.
"I think education for me is something that is a bit of a selfish pursuit, because those of you who are mentors and are giving back know that in order to teach someone you have to learn the stuff so in depth yourself that you become so much better," he said.
Milton Brandson of Century 21 PowerRealty.ca walked away with the award for Community Impact for his involvement with the Rotary Club of Airdrie, among other local commitments, for the past three decades.
"I think volunteering for me is not about a specific program or project but an accumulation of 35 years of small service in small ways," he said.
Singling out the REALTOR® who uses creativity to take their brand to the next level, the Marketing Excellence award recognized Chris Mulders of CIR Realty. The Airdrie-born-and-raised REALTOR® is behind www.airdrie360.com, which regularly features neighbourhood posts, videos, photos and real estate market reports.
"In addition to helping me grow my business, [marketing] has really let me meet some incredible people and do some good in my community," said Mulders.
Robyn Moser of CIR Realty was honoured for actively transfering her knowledge and good working habits to the next generation.
"My mentors were the people who probably didn't even know it," she said.
"And for me, that was a big thing. We've all made impacts in our community and our industry to people in our industry, and we have no idea that we've done these amazing things and made someone want to be better, drive to be better and strive to be better and even to see the possibility to be better."
For more information about the ROAR Awards, visit www.roarawards.com.
May 22, 2015 | CREBNow
ROAR awards name best local REALTORS
REALTORS® who demonstrate role model-calibre performance in specific areas of real estate were recognized on May 23 the ROAR Awards celebration event.
ROAR Awards are a CREB® initiative, and stand for recognizing accomplished REALTORS®.
May 01, 2015 | CREBNow
New listings decline as home prices ease
After the fifth consecutive monthly benchmark price decline in Calgary, the number of new home listings eased to 3,064 units in April, an 18 per cent decrease over the previous year.
"With fewer buyers making purchase decisions and improved selection for resale, new home and rental property, sellers have been either adjusting their expectations on price or delaying their plans about when to list their home," said CREB® president Corinne Lyall.
April 02, 2015 | CREBNow
Inventory gains influence housing prices
Elevated inventory levels and low sales for three consecutive months caused unadjusted benchmark prices to ease by 0.44 per cent in March, relative to the previous month, for a total of $454,300. Based on first quarter statistics, conditions are consistent with buyers' market conditions.
Typical home prices have declined by 0.59 per cent in the first quarter of 2015, compared to the fourth quarter of 2014. The sales to new listings ratio also dropped to 41 per cent and months of supply averaged 4.03 for the quarter. This is a significant change from one year ago when the market was facing inventory shortages and price gains.
April 01, 2015 | CREBNow
No fallout over fees
Buying a home in Alberta is about to get more expensive.
Beginning July 1, Albertans will be required to spend as much as $1,000 extra to purchase a home in the province as a result of increased real-estate-related fees in the new provincial budget.
Counted among the changes are increases to the transfer/title creation flat fee, which will go from $50 to $75 and the variable fee transfer fee will jump from $1 to $6 for every $5,000 in the home's value.
March 03, 2015 | CREBNow
"In it together" with CREB president Corinne Lyall
"With all the negative talk in the media and the community about the price of oil and the economy, we believe that it's time to turn the tables on the situation and focus on solutions," reads the website.
In It Together is the "brainchild" of Jeff Bradshaw, owner of video agency V Strategies, with the co-operation of his staff as well as Calgary Economic Development.
Joining Lyall in making comments on the site are names such as Mayor Naheed Nenshi, Phil Robertson of Phil & Sebastian Coffee Roasters and Steve Allan, chairman of Calgary Economic Development.
See Lyall's video below:
Feb. 04, 2015 | Cody Stuart
Shifting confidence
Jordan Meloches and his fiancée Ashley Hopkins didn't hesitate when they recently purchased a condominium in the northeast community of SkyView Ranch.
In fact, while many Calgarians were dissuaded from entering the resale housing market in January by lingering low oil prices, the couple said the current economic climate was the farthest thing from their minds.
"The market to us now really wasn't a concern. We bought in SkyView, which is still developing, so I think our value will only increase as the land out there develops," said Meloches, who cited the condo's proximity to their work and future potential as a rental property as factors when settling on a decision.
