Most of the big banks in Canada raised mortgage rates over the past few days, delivering another hit to our slow real estate market. While the increase might cause a small short-term surge in activity, as buyers look to take advantage of any rate holds they may have, the overall effect will likely decrease demand even further in the months to come. Our initial look at the real estate market in Edmonton showed lower than normal sales, and falling average prices. The REALTORS® Association of Edmonton has now released their monthly report on the Greater Edmonton area market showing an increase in year-over-year sales, which suggests there was an increase in sales in the areas around Edmonton (since my preliminary report only includes Edmonton…

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Here is our update on the Edmonton real estate market. (Previous week’s numbers are in brackets). For the past 7 days: New Listings: 644 (627, 672, 580) # Sales: 278 (294, 248, 173) Ratio: 43% (47%, 37%, 30%) # Price Changes: 455 (349, 386, 333) # Expired/Off Market Listings: 159 (195, 198, 318) Net loss/gain in listings this week: 207 (138, 226, 89) Active single family home listings: 3815 (3702, 3578, 3416) Active condo listings: 2761 (2682, 2638, 2560) Homes 4-week running average: $426k ($440k, $445k, $443k) Condos 4-week running average: $242k ($231k, $235k, $232k) With single-family inventory approaching record levels, it's not surprising to see so many price reductions and the average price on the decline. Have a great weekend!

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Like going to open houses? There's now an easy way to search open houses in the Edmonton area and Calgary area open houses. On EdmontonRealEstate.pro just click the "More Search Options" button beneath the search bar, then click features and "Search Open Houses." Or, you can just bookmark our Open House search page. You can also filter search results by any of the other options in our search, such as location, size, price, property type etc. As you can see below, there are 305 open houses coming up in the MLS® database currently: If you click on any listing, you can view the date and time of the open house: To search Calgary or Banff/Canmore Open Houses, you can bookmark Calgary Area Open Houses or Banff/Canmore Open Houses, go to our Advanced…

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Here is our update on the Edmonton real estate market. (Previous week’s numbers are in brackets). For the past 7 days: New Listings: 627 (672, 580, 594) # Sales: 294 (248, 173, 239) Ratio: 47% (37%, 30%, 40%) # Price Changes: 349 (386, 333, 342) # Expired/Off Market Listings: 195 (198, 318, 141) Net loss/gain in listings this week: 138 (226, 89, 214) Active single family home listings: 3702 (3578, 3416, 3341) Active condo listings: 2682 (2638, 2560, 2554) Homes 4-week running average: $440k ($445k, $443k, $438k) Condos 4-week running average: $231k ($235k, $232k, $233k) Have a great weekend!

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People looooovve making lists - best this, top that - and I've seen a lot of lists of the best places to live in Edmonton. Many are based on surveys, some are based on market stats, and some are just based on personal opinion. A number of these lists have been released in the past few weeks, so I thought it was good time to bring in a brokerage's perspective on things. Everyone has different reasons for choosing a neighbourhood, whether it is proximity to something (work, school, amenities, relatives), affordability, property types... the list goes on. What I can say for certain is no neighbourhood will be on the top of everyone's list, or even half of everyone's list. Most people choose a fairly broad area when looking for a place to live and narrow it…

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Here is our update on the Edmonton real estate market. (Previous week’s numbers are in brackets). For the past 7 days: New Listings: 672 (580, 594, 606) # Sales: 248 (173, 239, 230) Ratio: 37% (30%, 40%, 38%) # Price Changes: 386 (333, 342, 306) # Expired/Off Market Listings: 198 (318, 141, 171) Net loss/gain in listings this week: 226 (89, 214, 205) Active single family home listings: 3578 (3416, 3341, 3242) Active condo listings: 2638 (2560, 2554, 2444) Homes 4-week running average: $445k ($443k, $438k, $431k) Condos 4-week running average: $235k ($232k, $233k, $235k) Holy new listings batman! Listing activity this month is well above the levels we saw in for the past few years, including April 2014 which isn't on the chart below. Inventory hasn't…

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If you live in or are looking at a home for sale that was built before 1990, it might have asbestos in certain building materials like older tile and drywall compound. It was a widely used construction material because of its thermal resistance, strength and sound absorption. In those days, asbestos was commonly used in ceiling and floor tile, siding, insulation and in the compound used on seams between pieces of drywall. Older vermiculite attic insulation may also contain asbestos. Learn more about asbestos in the home.

What is asbestos and why is it bad?

Asbestos is the generic name for 6 different fibrous minerals that occur in nature. There are two major groups of asbestos: serpentine and amphibole. Asbestos can be a hazard to health when the…

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Here is our update on the Edmonton real estate market. (Previous week’s numbers are in brackets). For the past 7 days: New Listings: 580 (594, 606, 587) # Sales: 173 (239, 230, 210) Ratio: 30% (40%, 38%, 36%) # Price Changes: 333 (342, 306, 339) # Expired/Off Market Listings: 318 (141, 171, 173) Net loss/gain in listings this week: 89 (214, 205, 204) Active single family home listings: 3416 (3341, 3242, 3097) Active condo listings: 2560 (2554, 2444, 2346) Homes 4-week running average: $443k ($438k, $431k, $425k) Condos 4-week running average: $232k ($233k, $235k, $238k) I'm putting up my "spring" theme even though it's -20 outside... maybe the snow will disappear sometime this month... or maybe not. Have a great weekend!

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