Wow!

So as I've mentioned before, I work in a bank. We of course have been closely watching the exchange rate for the US dollar versus the Canadian dollar. The Bank of Canada rate has been below par for a couple weeks now, but the misconception of most people coming to the bank is that is not the individual banks selling rate for US currency. Yes, banks like to make money too, so they do charge wherever they can! Anyway, long story short, today was the first day that we were actually selling US dollars below par in the branch. People were so amazed when they came in today to get either US cash or a money order or whatever. Everyone remembers a few years ago, like about five or so, when the US dollar was selling in our banks here for almost 60¢ above par, so now people are buying it up as investment. Some of them are purchasing real estate down south while the buying rate is so good for us. We have one couple that are heading south to check out some Naples Florida real estate. That's too close to the everglades and the alligators for me, but being on the Gulf of Mexico does sound more appealing to me than the Eastern shores too. Oh well, it doesn't matter to me anyway. I can't afford to purchase any real estate anywhere at the moment! But it is cool that people that are in that position have the buying advantage of the strong dollar we currently have.


Olivia


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Snowbirds take flight

At the bank I work at, a lot of our clientele consists of senior citizens. Many of these older folks are snowbirds, and only live here at home during the warmer part of the year. Then come late fall or so they head to their winter homes. We've got lots of people that winter in Florida. Probably the bulk of them have a home in Florida state somewhere. But we also have a few that have homes in other warm regions as well, like Arizona and Mexico. We even have one couple that are lucky enough to have a home in Hawaii! I always joke with them that I'm going to knock on their door there one day, and they tell me I'm more than welcome to come and stay for a week or two. I just may take them up on that some year!

One of our co-workers that retired a couple years ago went to Arizona last year. She suffers from arthritis quite badly, and really loved how she felt so much better when they were down there. She said it was amazing to get up in the morning and not have to hobble her way out of the bedroom to the kitchen for coffee. They're planning on going again this year, and they're tossing around the idea of talking to a realtor while they're there. Like she said, they aren't looking for Arizona luxury real estate, but just a modest home or condo they can be comfortable in. That would be kind of cool too, if they were to buy a place there. It would be another place to go for a vacation and stay cheap! ;-)

Olivia

Why is it?

Why is it that every time a house sells in the neighborhood, the listing real estate agent for that property feels compelled to knock on your door and try to have you list your house too? A house a few doors away was just recently sold this past week, and I just had to go through the chaos of having to calm our dogs down from the bark fest when that realtor came knocking on the door. I find that irksome, especially since he already put a notice in the mail box yesterday saying that the house had been sold, and to call him if we had any thoughts on selling our property. I can read! And if we want to put our home on the market, which we won't be doing for a long long time, I'm sure I can find an agent to do that for me. Could be him, could be somebody else. Maybe I'm just in a bit of a cranky mood with this cold right now, but his visit didn't do anything to make me want to consider listing our house with him. And besides, we were quite happy with our GMAC agent that helped us purchase this home in the first place, and would probably look her up again should we ever decide to sell.

Olivia

Psst... wanna by some land in Florida?

If you're in the market to buy or sell some Orlando real estate, or for that matter, anywhere else in Florida, then you should consider checking out a site called Homekeys before you check anywhere else. Homekeys helps both real estate buyers and sellers all over the state of Florida, and they can even help you evaluate your home, to make sure it doesn't get listed at an undervalued price. They have thousands of properties listed by both brokers, and private sellers. Saving money on Realtors fees by selling or buying privately can be somewhat scary, especially for first time buyers and sellers, but you can take comfort in knowing that Homekeys will support you during each step of the buying and selling processes. If you have questions, you are not alone, and have somewhere to go for the answers.

Olivia

Going South...

This one very nice couple that comes into the bank now and then were in today to get some US cash for their trip down to North Carolina. They were telling myself and the other girls that they have a Wilmington NC real estate agent lined up to take them to view a few different new homes in that area. With the Canadian dollar being at an all time high in a few decades now, they've decided they are going to look for a vacation home where they will spend a few months in each year. They said they know most people around here opt for a home in Florida, but they've always liked North Carolina, and they like the prices of the real estate there. I guess so. They gave us the website to check out where they are going to be looking, and from what I can see, around $170 thousand will give them a nice brand new home minutes from the beach. You certainly can't get something like that around here, even with the six or seven cents exchange on the dollar. So we told this couple once they have a place and move in, we'll have to come down for a visit! They're so sweet. They told us the door is always open!

Olivia

High up in Vegas

Last night when I was watching that hottie, Criss Angel, the Mind Freak, I was checking out his digs at the Luxor Hotel in Vegas. Definitely not your standard hotel room, that's for sure. Don't get me wrong, it's a nice place, but I can't help but wonder if someone like him is going to be shooting a show there, which means he's going to be living there for the most part, why not buy a nice place of his own? Surely there are some pretty awesome Las Vegas Luxury Condos there to buy that would not only be a nice place to live, offer a little more privacy, and would make a great investment. There's a Trump Tower in Vegas too, and you know that place will be dripping with luxury! I would imagine that there are oodles of celebs that own prime real estate in Vegas. It's a happening place that just becomes more and more happening all the time. But then again, maybe Criss prefers having room service in the wee hours instead of having to make his own late night snack. It really doesn't matter anyway... he's still a hottie!

Olivia

We went a-visiting...

I spent this afternoon out driving with my mother in law. We went to take her sister home, who had gone up to the cottage with her last week. After we dropped her off, in a small town about 20 minutes or so from us, we went the the next little town and visited her other sister for an hour or so. When we got there, we noticed they had a "For Sale" sign on their front lawn, so she filled us in on their news of listing their house for sale. They've decided it's time to down-size. Their house is one of those nice old and big two story brick homes that was built around the start of the last century. They have a walk up attic space too, so it really could be a three story. They've lived there for years and years, and she was saying when they first bought the house, she was so worried that they wouldn't be able to make ends meet with having a 25 year mortgage for $19,000!! Oh my God! You can't even buy a car for that now! Well, a new one anyway! But then again, we're talking about 40 years ago when they first bought this house.

So their realtor has their house listed at $289,900! Not a bad return on that $19,000 investment, huh? But here's the kicker... they're planning on buying a condo now. Not a new luxury condo or anything, but just a nice place for the two of them. I think she said it was eight years old. The price tag on that is $177,900, and they'll have to pay condo fees too. So there goes most of that almost three hundred grand profit they'll make on their house. But her and her husband are looking forward to moving and having less work to do around the house. Makes me wonder what our own house is worth, and what it will be worth when the time comes that we decide to sell it.

After we left there, we stopped in at my sister in law's house, who lives in this same small town. We had a short visit with her, and checked out all the ATCs (Artist Trading Cards) she's been getting in the mail through swaps. She belongs to some craft swap site online, and has got these cool cards from all over the world. Some of them are really pretty and very detailed. And then some are pretty plain and simple. I think I may join in on these swaps come this fall. I wouldn't mind making a few of them myself, but I'm too busy right now to think about doing anything until after the summer.

Then we came back home, and I was dreaming about dinner all the way, hoping that my husband had the BBQ warming up to grill our steaks we are having. We get back home only to find out that my husband isn't home. He's got the bag of charcoal sitting outside, but he's nowhere to be found. If he doesn't get home soon, I'm going to start that BBQ and eat myself! I'm starving!

Olivia

Real estate prices

It just seems to me that real estate is going up all over the place. The average price for a detached house here where I am, in Southern Ontario is about $250,000. Out west in my hometown on Vancouver Island the average is about $320,000. I watch a lot of those shows on HGTV where people are either house hunting or trying to sell their house (and the decorating shows too!) and there never seems to be house either for sale or for purchase under $350,000., with many much higher. This really makes me wonder how the younger generation of today will ever be able to afford to buy into the real estate game. Those first time home buyers will have huge debt that I couldn't even begin to imagine signing my name to. Every now and then I randomly check the real estate prices in other places, particularly in the USA to see if their prices are as inflated as ours. The other day I was checking out Beaufort NC real estate, and I was pleased to see that you can still buy a brand new home there for under $200,000. A price like that for a new home around here is just unheard of these days, although about five years ago it was the norm. I'm glad I don't have to worry about house hunting these days. I'll just stay where I am and let my humble home turn to gold!

Olivia

Making money with real estate

Interested in investing in real estate for profit? Some good money can be made from rental properties, if you can get good tenants to rent to. Rental costs are going up all over, and if you buy wisely, you can virtually have your tenants pay your monthly mortgage, taxes, and utilities costs.

Or maybe you're into flipping houses. Picking up a house that requires a little cosmetic work to it to update the look and then selling for a profit is becoming increasingly popular, particularly as a husband/wife team. I've always wanted to be able to do this with a few friends. Everyone kicks in for the initial purchase; for down payment, lawyers fees, etc., plus renovating and decorating costs. Then everyone also puts in their sweat equity into fixing up the house. It sounds like a lot of fun to me.

Just remember though, when you're dealing with real estate, it's not always fun, and headaches are going to arise. That's why you should invest in some good Real Estate Management Software to keep things organized. That's a good first step to eliminate many unnecessary headaches.


Olivia

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