LET'S MOVE FORWARD

Now that we are well into the 2009 year, there really should not be any surprises. What I mean is the economy is what it is, "markets" are what they are and it's up to all of us to move forward.

You will see from my March Market Update Chart that the number of sales this past month in Canmore is up for the third consecutive month. This is good. You will also notice that our banking system has lowered their prime lending rate by ½% earlier this week - with the new prime being 2.5. This in turn means lower mortgage rates.

Read the article titled Worthwhile Canadian Initiatives for an interesting account on our Canadian banking system.

Get out your calculator

Let's do some math using my Feature Listing at #6, 137 Wapiti Close. The asking price now is down 8.5% from what the highest ridge unit in this complex sold for 10 months ago. That is close to $80,000. If you are an American buyer looking for a safe haven to invest in and also enjoy the many activities and amenities that a mountain community offers - then you can save an additional 20% because your exchange rate is also much higher than it was a year ago.

Think about it! That's well below $700,000 USD for a Canmore townhouse unit in a pristine location only an hour from Calgary's international airport.

Pay attention

Each month I feature two properties that are not my listings but are available on our MLS system. In other words I consider these properties to be of great value, maybe in a location that seldom comes on the market or just that the sellers are motivated.

Last month I mentioned a new custom built downtown home. The asking price was originally $2.1 million. It sold for $1.555 million. Over a half million dollars difference!

SOUTH CANMORE LOACTION

One of Canmore's builder's - Elk Run Custom Homes has asked for my help in marketing their current project.

This 11 town home development is located only 3 blocks from the Bow River and has some of the highest levels of construction and finishing's as well as the latest in Build Green Technologies.

There are still 8 units left with a variety of layouts, sizes and pricing from $328,500 + GST to $798,500 + GST. The developer has reduced prices on most     of the units by over $100,000 and now also included furniture.

Relax and enjoy

A former client and good friend send me the You Tube link "Stand By Me." Give it a listen and think.

The message is simple ...

No matter who you are
No matter where you go if life     
At some point you are going to need somebody
To stand by You

It was time to say goodbye

Thanks to everyone that "stood by" my wife and I this past month or so.

About 10 days ago we decided to say goodbye to our long time family member TC. I have never had a dog as a pet before so the decision was very hard.

The attached picture shows TC sunning on our back deck. We discovered over the last couple of weeks that the only way we could even get a nap was to lay TC on the deck in the sun with a blanket on him. I snuck around to take a few last pictures as he slept and he lifted his head as I took this shot.


Have a wonderful month.