Tips and Tricks

This article provides you with advice for people who are considering the purchase of a home with a private septic system, both in terms of testing and inspecting the system to make sure that it is functional and passes local standards of operation.

Obviously, there is no test that will guarantee that all of the defects have been purged from a septic system. However, regular inspections can minimize your chances of getting septic failure – which can lead to hazardous conditions and significant cost for repairs – not to mention provincial fines that come when you have let your system get out of inspection.

So, as the buyer, there are several questions you should ask about the system.

1. How long ago was the property built?
2. Does anyone occupy the

Buying your first house can feel overwhelming, but it’s oh-so-worth-it to leave the rental life behind.

We break down the process for you to help get you on the right path to living in your dream home.

1. Save, save, save

First things first: You need to start a savings fund for your home purchase. “Home buyers should have at least 10 percent of the purchase price of the home in their savings account,” says Randall Yates, CEO, The Lenders Network. “In addition, lenders like to see at least two to three months’ worth of mortgage payments in reserves.”

There are also different types of mortgage programs available for new or low-income buyers that require a lower down payment, so be sure to research your qualifications for these programs while

Getting ready to sell your home in Kamloops?

Here are a few real estate tips to think about before you do.

Know your local Real Estate Market –  What are the driving forces in the current Kamloops real estate market? If you do not know, make sure your Realtor knows, if they do not know, find one who does. The focus in Real Estate always has and always will be local, and in order to sell your home, it is vital to know what the local trends here in Kamloops are.

There is nothing convenient about selling a home – You're going to have to get your home ready to sell. You're going to have to do some packing. Your normal living schedule will be interrupted by prospective buyers. The upfront knowledge that you are going to be inconvenienced once you have

The cost of owning a house and starting a family just might be the lost opportunity to get a good head start on saving for retirement.

With the March 1 deadline for contributions to registered retirement savings plans just ahead, it’s a good time to look at how to balance life’s biggest financial responsibilities. Home ownership, starting a family and retirement saving – can you do it all?

In cities with reasonably priced housing, you certainly can. But in expensive markets such as Toronto, Vancouver and their satellite cities, only high earners will manage this balance. Something will have to give in the household budgets of everyone else, and it’s probably going to be retirement saving.

There’s more to this than the average $770,745 cost of a

Real estate association offers optimistic forecast, saying buyers are gradually “adjusting” to mortgage stress test

Home sales in B.C. are likely to rise slightly this year, and more in 2020, according to a forecast released February 25 by the B.C. Real Estate Association (BCREA).

The association said it expects residential sales in the province to rise two per cent to 80,000 units this year. This follows a slow 2018 in which 78,345 homes traded hands on B.C.’s MLS®, which was 24.9 per cent lower than in 2017.

BCREA also predicted home sales to increase a further 6.9 per cent to 85,500 units in 2020. This would be a very normal level of activity, as the 10-year average for home sales in the province is 85,800 units.

The association

Follow This Simple Recipe to Safely Age in Place

Written by Karen Weeks for Kamloops Property For Sale.

Most of us want to remain in our homes throughout our senior years. Thankfully, there are often simple home modifications to help turn that goal into reality. Here are some key ingredients in creating or finding an appropriate home for aging in place.

Older and Better

As the general population ages, the housing market is working to keep up, and many people are choosing to remain in their homes throughout our golden years.

In order to realize that goal, many people are making their homes more accessible to accommodate the changes minds and bodies experience with age. Some people are referring to the trend as “aging in place,” some call it

The cost of borrowing for a home is predicted to get a little cheaper this year.

That's according to the latest mortgage rate forecast from the B.C. Real Estate Association.

"The average contract rate for 5-year mortgages has declined about 30 basis points from its peak in 2018, reaching 3.44 per cent in March," the BCREA states in a two-page report. "Unfortunately, this still means a stress test rate of 5.44 per cent, even for the highest quality borrowers."

However, the association points out that if five-year bond yields remain at the current level, "a 5-year qualifying rate of under 5 per cent should follow suit." The contract rate refers to the interest percentage listed on the face of a note or a bond.

The qualifying rate refers to a

Vancouver, BC – March 12, 2019.

The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) is calling on the federal government to revisit the B-20 stress test so that more BC families can achieve their dream of home ownership. Mortgage lending rules, known as the B-20 stress test, have eroded housing affordability by reducing the purchasing power of families by as much as 20 per cent. Introduced last year, the stress test forces even the most credit-worthy borrowers with large down payments to qualify at an interest rate that is two percentage points above the rate they negotiate with their bank.
 
“We would like to see a review and reconsideration of the current mortgage underwriting ‘stress test,’ as well as a return to 30-year amortizations for

The Housing Cycle is Entering A Big Shift In Key Cities Across North America

If you are a baby boomer, this might sound familiar: You moved out of your parent’s home as soon as you graduated from high school; you lived in a place you rented – maybe even a ‘room’ in a larger house, where you shared the bathroom with the other tenants; you could put all your belongings in one small bag; and you saved up to buy a car.

That was the ideal lifestyle of the largest demographic ever to populate the world. It’s estimated that 9.6 million baby boomers are in Canada today and they are rapidly becoming the senior population – a population whose living conditions are far different today.

But did you know that there is another demographic as big as – if not

The B.C. Real Estate Association has released its first quarter housing forecast summary and it's projecting a slight boost in the number of sales and a steady increase in the price of homes in Kamloops and across the province.

"We've seen a tremendous amount of growth the last few years, and the unemployment rate is incredibly low right now. So it certainly signals full employment in many sectors, which is certainly positive for consumers, for housing demand," noted the chief economist for the B.C. Real Estate Association Cameron Muir, who is predicting the growth over the next two years.

Kamloops is following the downward trend of housing sales in 2018 — down 10.8 per cent in housing transactions last year compared to 2017. But housing sales