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Royal LePage Niagara Home Connection Newsletter April 2012 - Sally Dollar

By
Real Estate Agent with Royal LePage Niagara Real Estate

 

Home Connection

Sally Dollar Sally Dollar
Sales Representative

905-937-6000 (Office)
1-866-999-9497 (Toll Free)
dollar@royallepage.ca
www.sallydollar.com

Royal LePage Niagara R.E. Centre- 101 Lakeport Rd.
www.SallyDollar.com
101 LAKEPORT
St. Catharines, ON L2N7L7

In this issue...
· Featured Listing
· Royal LePage Predicts Further Home Price Appreciation Contrary to Recent Talk of Decline
· A Guide to Roofing Improvement. Repair? Replace? ROI?
· Little Green Thumbs: How to Create a Children’s Garden
Garage Sale for Shelter is coming to Niagara

On Saturday, May 12th , 2012, Royal Lepage offices across Canada will come together to host the 4th annual NATIONAL GARAGE SALE FOR SHELTER, with 100% of proceeds staying local and going to help woman & children living with abuse. I am encouraging my friends, clients, & members of our community to get involved by donating gently used items to our local Royal Lepage office. Since 2009, we have raised more than $850,000, one quarter & loonie at a time! We would love for you to take part by donating gently used items to our office or shopping for a bargain.
Featured Listing
Featured Listing
New Listing - St. Catharines $144,900

4 Bedroom 1 1/2 storey home Highway 406, shopping and close to downtown. Eat-in kitchen, main floor laundry room/mud room, updated 4 piece bathroom, 2 good-sized main floor bedrooms, 2 additional bedrooms upstairs, hardwood floors. Updates include: Forced Air Gas Furnace 2010, Central Air 2010, Some New Windows 2010. Large fenced backyard with deck overlooking a large empty lot. A great piece of property. Virtual Tour www.SallyDollar.com

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Royal LePage Predicts Further Home Price Appreciation Contrary to Recent Talk of Decline
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The Royal LePage House Price Survey and Market Survey Forecast released in January showed the average price of a home in Canada increased between 3.6 and 6.1 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2011, compared to the previous year. Royal LePage expects average price growth to continue through 2012 and predicts national average prices to increase by 2.8 per cent by the end of the year.

Despite calls in some quarters for Canadian house prices to soften in 2011, the market proved resilient as demand created by low interest rates and a relatively stable national economy created upward pricing pressure for all housing types surveyed. Further, recent high profile reports forecasting significant house price declines in 2012 are not supportable. Nationally, consumer confidence in the housing market was high in the fourth quarter as real estate brokers witnessed an unusually high quantity of multiple offer situations, including over the holiday season, compared to the same period in previous years.

In the fourth quarter, standard two-storey homes rose 4.2 per cent year-over-year to $375,427, while detached bungalows increased 6.1 per cent to $344,392. Average prices for standard condominiums increased 3.6 per cent to $234,680.

"In the recovery period following the 2008-2009 recession, I found myself repeatedly speaking of 'irrational exuberance' in the Canadian housing market," said Phil Soper, president and chief executive of Royal LePage Real Estate Services. "Expectations were too high and the pace of expansion unsupportable. With this report, I find myself in exactly the opposite position. Widespread calls for a major real estate correction in 2012 simply can't be justified. The industry has significant momentum entering the year, and buoyed by the stimulative effect of very low interest rates, we expect the market to continue to expand - albeit at a slower pace."

Canadians remain confident in their real estate investments. Throughout 2011, buyers took advantage of low rates to enter the housing market or move-up to homes that better suited their family's needs or wants. All regions included in the Royal LePage Market Survey Forecast anticipate positive average price growth in 2012. This includes the relatively expensive Toronto and Vancouver regions, where rising home prices have consistently out-paced the other urban centres.

More information about the Royal LePage Survey of Canadian House Prices can be found at www.royallepage.ca.

If you are wondering what your home is worth in today’s market, please contact me and let me put my expertise to work for you!

Survey of Canadian Average House Prices in the Fourth Quarter 2011

 

Survey of Canadian Average House Prices in the Fourth Third Quarter 2011

Average house prices are based on an average of all sub-markets examined in the area, except for the smaller markets of Charlottetown, Moncton, Fredericton, Saint John and Victoria.

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noneA Guide to Roofing Improvement. Repair? Replace? ROI?

Your roof has a tough life. Just when it’s survived another long, cold Canadian winter, it faces the heat and humidity of the summer months ahead. That’s why spring is the perfect time to assess the state of your roof, and to decide whether you need to take steps to improve its condition. Here is a general guideline of where to begin:

Look for Proof of a Faulty Roof
No matter how old or new your roof is, it’s always a good idea to conduct quarterly inspections of its condition. Start with the interior walls of your home that touch the roof and look for things like flaking paint, ceiling stains, and peeling wallpaper. All of these may be an indication that your roof has a leak.

On your roof itself, symptoms of deterioration can include missing shingles, visible fiberglass threads, raised shingles with nails protruding, or any areas that look darker or a different shade. Check the roof deck in your attic as well, noting any water stains, rotting, and pinholes of light. If you are uncertain, you can always hire a roofing professional to do an assessment for you.

Two Options: Repair or Replace
If you’ve discovered signs that your roof may be damaged or leaking, first determine if it’s repairable. A roofing professional may be best able to determine this. If it’s less than ten years old and only has a few minor issues, the remedy may simply require a little patchwork.

Sometimes a simple repair won’t suffice, and you need to consider replacing your roof altogether. A professional roofer can determine the state and age of your roof to help you decide if you want to replace it. As a general rule, if your roof is older than 15 years or showing significant signs of decay they’ll likely recommend that you replace it. A moderately sized, professionally-installed roofing job will usually take about three to five days to complete. Select a roofing system design and colour that is in keeping with the neighbourhood standard and the colour scheme of your home.

Reap the ROI
If it’s time to replace your roof, you should consider what the return on investment will be.
The most common type of roofing system is the asphalt shingle, where you’ll pay on average between $2.50- $3.50 per square foot*. If and when you sell your home down the road, you can expect to recoup an estimated 25-75% of your roofing investment*.

Replacing your roof can also add a lot of curb appeal to your home. A new roof gives your home a mini-makeover, making it look more modern and up-to-date – not to mention safer and more energy efficient. To make the most of your investment, be sure to maintain and inspect it on a regular basis.

*The Appraisal Institute of Canada, 2011: http://aicanada.ca
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noneLittle Green Thumbs: How to Create a Children’s Garden

Most kids love to dig in the dirt and play with water. Why not foster this natural curiosity to create a beautiful – and potentially edible - children’s garden. Creating a children’s garden is a great way for kids to build self-confidence, feel a sense of pride in their accomplishments, and practice patience, while enhancing your home’s value and curb appeal at the same time. Here are a few ways you can get your kids involved:

Choose a Plot or a Pot
Stake out an area of your garden for your child and encourage a sense of ownership. A couple of large pots or an old sandbox on a balcony or patio can create the same impact. Provide your child with tools of the trade. A plastic garden spade, a small watering can, gardening gloves, and plant markers are a must.

Plan for Plantin’
Take your child to the nursery garden to choose seeds. Fast-growing plants will hold their interest: zinnias and “mammoth” sunflowers add dramatic colours and grow to over 3 metres in height. Black-eyed Susans are a great flower choice as they are relatively self-sufficient and have bright yellow flowers that attract butterflies, bees, and birds, which will surely indulge your little gardener’s curiosity. Plant vegetables such as cucumbers, radishes, potatoes, carrots, spinach, and zucchini, which all sprout fairly quickly, are relatively easy to grow, and add greenery to your garden. Bright red cherry tomatoes are a particularly good option for planting in pots on a balcony or patio. Growing vegetables together should encourage the little ones to eat healthy too.

Nurture Nature
When the seeds are planted and marked it’s time to water and indulge your child’s interest in worms, bugs and the nature of things. A terrific way of keeping plants insect-free is to attract frogs or toads to the garden. Providing a water source is a good start. If you don’t have a garden pond, a shallow bowl with a large stone or log is a good alternative.

Add a Child’s Touch
A boulder rock with the child’s name marked on it is a great way to make the small space feel special. A tiny well-placed gnome or fairy that peeks behind flowers and vegetables adds a sense of enchantment. When interest wanes, construct a funny scarecrow or set out a birdbath and enjoy the spectacle and sound of our feathered friends.

Relax & Enjoy
Gardening is a great way to convert a picky little eater. When it’s time to harvest your veggies from the kiddie garden, throw a blanket on the grass and enjoy a tasty picnic lunch. Relax with your “little gardener” and enjoy. There’s nothing quite like literally consuming the fruits (or, in this case, vegetables) of your labour!
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Join us and find out local listings, news, updates, market information, silly photos and other fun stuff on my Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/SallyDollarRLP
All offices are independently owned and operated, except those offices marked as "Royal LePage Real Estate Services Ltd." Not intended to solicit currently listed properties. The above information is from sources believed reliable, however, no responsibility is assumed for the accuracy of this information.

©2012 Brookfield Real Estate Services Fund.

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