Home Buying Advice For Non-Married Couples

For most, this is an awkward topic to cover. More and more couples are electing to buy a home together before marriage, as well as couples that choose to remain common-law. This change in societal norm can result in uncomfortable talks between your sweetheart, your lawyer, your Realtor and your parents. However, the most productive talks ARE the awkward ones! And, in terms of real estate, there's always uncomfortable scenarios you need to be prepared for anyway. In a traditional fashion, married couples had to plan and arrange their finances in a streamlined way for their real estate investment. Does this change for non-traditional you and yours? Nope! In fact, it's pretty much the same - sans the same last name. Let's dive right in and talk about it…

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Preparing For The Sale

Thinking about selling? Not sure about doing it on your own, or getting a Realtor to help you out? Here is the perfect place to begin. Let's go over the process from your perspective:

1) Call Your Realtor

Okay, so we're a little biased. We want you to go with us instead of doing this all yourself. Is it because we're greedy, commission hungry sales people? NOPE. It's because we're professionals. Would you install a water heater in your home if you weren't completely sure on how to do it? Probably not. You'd seek a professional to complete the work. The same thing goes for selling, and that's exactly why we're here. When you're beginning to think about selling your home, we have an informal conversation about why you want or need to…

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5 Things Every Homeowner Should Know About

Hey, homeowner! If you've come here, you probably aren't sure where the really important things in your house are. You're likely a first time homebuyer, but maybe not. No worries if you are - everyone has to start somewhere! Regardless, you want to know what systems require your prioritized attention and care. Follow along with the list below as we shed some light on the important questions you have about your home.

1) Where is my main water valve?

Since homes are built by different people and different construction companies, every home layout is different. However, your main water valve is most likely on the interior of your home, near ground level. For most homes, it's right by your water meter. If not, think logically. The fastest…

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Selling In Winter: Tips To Remember

From now until late February, we all experience "The Winter Blues". Selling your home in winter, especially during this time of winter, presents an extra challenge. In addition to that, COVID-19 restrictions can leave some sellers feeling defeated. Please don't be so hard on yourself! Things ARE challenging right now, but we can adapt to overcome the challenge. There ARE buyers out there right now, and they ARE looking. If your home is presented properly and priced perfectly, buyers WILL come! With that in mind, here are some tips that will serve you well:

Shovel

Shoveling is easy to forget about if your house has an attached garage. You may not have to worry about hoofing it through snow, but anyone coming to view your home will! Clear…

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Don't Do That! First Time Homebuyer Advice

It's such an exciting time, buying your first home. The leap into homeownership is what usually marks a new chapter in life, especially for young adults. While the process is made easier by choosing a Realtor to be on your side, there are still some mistakes that are made by adventurous first time buyers. In order to help you better, we've come up with 4 tips that will help you avoid making mistakes - based off of common regrets of first time home buyers, and admittedly, personal mistakes we made in our home buying youth!

1) Don't Assume You'll Be Here Forever

A study completed 6 years ago by the Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals (CAAMP) estimated that the average Canadian will own 4.5 to 5.5 homes in their…

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3 Surefire Ways To Improve Your Credit Worthiness

As we all know, there are no quick fixes when it comes to your credit. There is no magic way or secret trick to rapidly improve your credit standing. However, improving your credit is something that you can get STARTED on rather quickly. After some time, your credit score will improve and other aspects of your financial health will reach a healthy level. Without further ado, here are our three surefire ways to improve your credit worthiness:

1) Only Apply For Credit If Absolutely Necessary

Financial institutions may take the opening of multiple accounts as a red flag. They may see you as being unable to repay any debt at all because this behaviour is common with those who are financially distressed. Lenders approve their borrowers…

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7 Ways to Cut Through Clutter This Year

The New Year is always a great time for fresh starts. It brings a feeling of starting over; an opportunity to improve one area or all areas of your life. This year, take some time to complete projects you've been putting off for months. You can create an even better home for you and your family by decluttering and organizing your home. And, once your space is organized, you can begin to better organize other aspects of your life, work or other projects!

1) Keep Things At Arms Reach

Keep items that you use daily somewhere where they can be easily reached, whether that's in a basket, on a shelf or in a cabinet. Store everything that is used sparingly on a higher shelf, in the garage, or in the attic. It will be easier to find what you…

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5 Ways To Improve Your Winter Curb Appeal

Hey, sellers! Regardless of the season, your home should make a great first impression on potential home buyers. We know that winter creates some ugly conditions, but you can use these conditions to beautify your home's outdoor appearance! Don't let winter put a freeze on your home sale. Follow these 5 helpful tips to boost your home's appeal during this time:

Light It Up

With less sunshine and shorter days, adding outdoor lighting to your home will help illuminate it. Lighting the pathway, and/or lighting any features unique to your home can increase your home's curb appeal. Even placing lights in the main window of your home can make a big difference!

Plan For Snow

We get more than our fair share of snow in Saskatchewan.…

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Christmas Caroling Favourites

We're all a little more than bummed about not seeing our extended families this Christmas. But will we let that take away from the joy of the season? Heck no! Make joyful noises! Do something kind!

To help you out with that, we’ve gathered some Christmas favourites together in an easy-to-print format! Download the images below, and print them off to use for caroling. Or, leave them on your device to whip out whenever, wherever!

Angels We Have Heard On High

[Verse 1]

Angels we have heard on high

Sweetly swinging o'er the plains

And the mountains in reply

Echoing their joyous strains

[Chorus]

Gloria In Excelsis Deo

Gloria In Excelsis Deo

[Verse 2]

Shepherds why this jubilee?

Why your joyous strains prolong?

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The Major Elements Of An Offer

The purchase of a home isn't at all like buying a chocolate bar from a convenience store, or even like buying a large piece of furniture. There's legalities to consider, items to move, systems to check and so on. To make sure all of these things are taken care of, there's a process. You know, the home buying process and the home selling process we so often talk about. An important initial part of the process for both buying and selling is the Offer to Purchase, or Buyer's Offer if your prefer. So, regardless if you find yourself on the selling side of things, familiarizing yourself with the Offer to Purchase will be a beneficial step that'll help you and your Realtor negotiate and refine when the time comes to get back to the buyer. Here are the major…

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