Six Simple Things You Can Do to Ensure a Smooth Home Purchase Buying a home can be an emotional, time-consuming, and complex process. There are a few things that you can do to help make the process go as smooth as possible: 1.) Check your credit. Before you apply for a home loan, regardless of your credit, it's a smart idea to obtain a copy of your credit report from the three major credit bureaus and review the information. If there are errors or things that need to be addressed, it's easier to address them before you have found a house, than after you have found a house and are trying to close your loan. If you know that there are a few blemishes on your credit, let your lender know what they are, why they are there, and why you are a still good credit risk. Lenders look at your credi... 03/16/2014

The New
 10 Step System To Get Your Home in Viictoria Sold Fast & For Top Dollar. The 
Real Estate Market has changed... Remember the 70’s and 80’s, & then 2005 when you could make a fortune in real estate? It was nothing then to buy a home, wait a short while, and then sell it at a tidy profit. And then do it all over again. Well, as you probably know, times have changed. As good as the market is right now, home prices are still at full 30% below what they were at their peak 7 years ago. Buyers are far more discriminating, and fully 80% of the homes listed for sale every month never sell. It’s more critical than ever to learn what you need to know to avoid costly seller mistakes in order to sell your home fast and for the most amount of money.     “The 7 Deadly Mistakes Most Home Owner... 03/14/2014

IS YOUR HOME WIRED TO SELL?   The type of wiring in residential homes generally depends on when the home was built, where it was built and if it has been updated. In older homes, knob and tube type wiring was the norm, replaced later by plastic-sheathed wiring. Often, newer electrical panels and updated wiring are good indications that a home has been maintained to code. It is always a good idea to have any electrical work completed by a licensed professional. The investment will not only make your home a safer place to live, but will also pay dividends for you when it is time to sell.   Lastly, when staging your home for buyers, avoid using extension cords or outlet splitters. Reducing this type of electrical clutter will keep buyers focused on your home, and not its outlets! IS YOUR H... 03/05/2014

VICTORIA BC FEBRUARY MLS MARKET STATS ARE OUT Wow where does the time go, it's almost Daylight Savings time(March 9) and Spring is almost here in Victoria. Our Victoria Real Estate Board Stats for February are out this morning, and they show Febraury Uncondonditional MLS sales are ahead of Last Year. New Listings are almost the same for the same period in February 2012 However our MLS listing inventory is down this year, meaning March could be a challenge for Victoria Home Buyers who are just starting to look and have been waiting to find their next home. 03/03/2014

FUNNY FRIDAY’S TGIFF “THE DOOR STAYS”   As we prepare for our weekend , I chuckled at this Cartoon.   Has this happened to you..When a sale completes a Home Seller tries to take a piece or part (fixture)of the house.   Have a fun and successful weekend :O)   TGIFF Thank God it’s Funny Friday’s FUNNY FRIDAY’S TGIFF -"THE DOOR STAYS" 02/28/2014

FAIRFIELD HOMES FOR SALE  MARKET REPORT FEBRUARY 24, 2014  Wow here it is almost March already in Fairfield in Victoria, BC and time again for my Homes For Sale Market Report for February 24, 2014  If you are Searching for a Fairfield Home to Buy you have come to the right place. The Quality of Life in Fairfield is always in demand, even if you do not own a Fairfield single home, the life style is available to Condo & Townhouse owners too. Fairfield Homes For Sale in Victoria BC Rockland: 9 Fairfield West: 22 Fairfield East: 15 There are currently 22 Homes For Sale over a Million Dollars in all of these neighbourhoods in Fairfield.  At the End of January there was 11.5 months inventory of Single Family Fairfield Homes For Sale up considerably in Feb 2013 when there was only 6.14 Months ... 02/24/2014

FAIRFIELD 5 BEDROOM HOME 1886 QUAHICIAN STREET $700,000 I JUST SOLD THIS BEAUTIFUL 5 BEDROOM 1948 CONTEMPORARY HOME The home is located in a Prime location in the eastern area of Fairfield, close to downtown Victoria and Oak Bay Village. tastefully decorated with recent updating throughout this charming 1948 character home. Nothing much left to be done with this family home. Beautiful open plan kitchen and formal size dining area, including gleaming new hardwood floors. Formal 13’ x 17’ living room and fireplace. 7’ high finished basement includes 19’ x 13’ family room, 3 more bedrooms. Possible home office or  6th guest bedroom. Lots of nooks and crannies for storage and display.  Features: New "Westeck"energy-efficient windows and new custom blinds throughout, efficient electric force... 02/21/2014

1886 Quamichan Street Fairfield Saturday SORRY SOLD  Nice 40’s contemporary home in Victoria’s popular Fairfield neighbourhood. Open House: Saturday April 5th Time: 2-4 pm Location: 1886 Quamichan Street Get Direction from Google Map    Prime Fairfield location, close to downtown Victoria and Oak Bay village. tastefully decorated and over $100,000 in recent updating throughout this charming 1948 contemporary family home with 2 Bedrooms on the Main Floor, 4 to 5 bedrooms downstairs. Nothing left to been here. Beautiful open plan kitchen and flormal size dining area, including gleaming new hardwood floors. Formal 13’ x 17’ living room and fireplace. 7’ finished basement includes 19’ x 13’ family room, 3 bedrooms. possible home office or guest 6th bedroom. Lots of nooks and crannies for st... 02/19/2014

FINDING YOUR HOME'S BEST SELLING PRICE IN VICTORIA BCStatistics show that the best opportunity to sell your home is often within the first few weeks of putting it on the market. This can be good news, or bad, depending on your motivation. Some Victoria homes sell right away, while others sit on the market for months without a single offer.To maximize your selling opportunity, it is important that your home be priced right. What is the right price? Many factors will determine your home's best asking price. Our current real estate market has a lot to do with it. Using sound judgment, research, and experience, a good agent can help you determine the right price for your home. They will help you evaluate your location, the recent sold data, current market trends, and your home's special fea... 02/16/2014

May all my friends in The Rain, have a great day with your loved one's. Remember to spend some time with your sweetheart...if you are away from each other Be sure to call them, and let them know you care... HAVE A WONDERFUL EVENING..Lots of Hugs From Canada! Cheers, have fun and successful weekend! 02/14/2014

January 2014 Housing Starts in Victoria BC January 2014 Housing Starts in Victoria BC, were trending at 2,150 units compared to 2,194 in December 2013, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). Home construction starts modestly trended down in January. The single family home market’s upward trend was offset by the downward trend in multiple-unit homes. said “Lance Jakubec, CMHC Senior Market Analyst.     For January 2014 Housing Starts in Victoria BC, CMHC uses the trend measure as a complement to the Monthly Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rates of housing starts to account for considerable swings in monthly estimates and obtain a more complete picture of the state of the Victoria housing market. In some situations, analysing only SAAR data can be misleading in some marke... 02/10/2014

HOW TO GET 800,000 POINTS BLOGGING IN THE RAIN My Secret or not so secret to getting 800,000 Blogging Points Start Blogging by posting your own posts, that also means commenting to on other members Blog Posts My First Blog Post...ha, Is It Time For Government to Start Cutting Some Slack ...Boy was I in the Dark back then. The Most Number of Member Comments on my posts were from this post.. about "Are You Doing Video Neighborhood Tours" Number of Subscribers to my blog commenting sure helps with points.. 46,600 viewed my Active Rain Profiles so far WOW! Getting a blog post Featured also Helps in the points dept..Here's an old post of mine i was featured for back in 2009  "5 Reasons Agents Should Blog and More From Seattle Rain Camp!" Monthly Challenges for points also help. Anyone rememb... 02/09/2014

SPEECHLESS SUNDAYS|BEAVER LAKE FROZEN AND COVERED IN SNOW I know many of you will chuckle when I mention it's cold here and it snowed on Friday...ha In Victoria you say. This winter in January we have enjoyed record warm days, mostly near 50 F, very unusual, but heck after about a month of Dry Sunny and warmer than normal day, we all got kinda used to it. Then February arrived...Well February in Victoria is or has been predictable weather wise...Cold and Sunny, Cold here means near freezing at night. Ha...This February we have seen minus zero figures during the day of -15 with the wind child factored in, yet no Snow, Well... Friday the clouds rolled in which warmed up the air a little and Bang...it Snowed in Little Old Victoria...Nothing Serious, just a light dusting.   Here's my street... 02/09/2014

FAIRFIELD LISTING SATURDAY & SUNDAY OPEN HOUSE AT 1886 QUAMICHAN STREET I Just Listed a Nice 40’s contemporary home in Victoria’s popular Fairfield area. Open House: Saturday & Sunday March 8 & 9th Time: 2-4 pm Location: 1886 Quamichan Street Get Direction from Google Map    Prime Fairfield location, close to downtown Victoria and Oak Bay village. tastefully decorated and recent updating throughout this charming 1948 contemporary home with 2 Bedrooms on the Main, 3 or 4 bedrooms Downstairs. Nothing left out here. Beautiful open plan kitchen and dining area, including gleaming new hardwood floors. Formal 13’ x 17’ living room and fireplace. 7’ finished basement includes 19’ x 13’ family room, 3 bedrooms. possible home office or guest 6th bedroom. Lots of nooks and crannies for storage an... 02/06/2014

FAIRFIELD AND ROCKLAND REAL ESTATE MARKET SNAPSHOT FEBRUARY 5-14   Wow here it Is February 2014 already in Fairfield & Rockland and my second Fairfield and Rockland Real Estate Market Snapshot in 2014     If you are Searching for a Fairfield or Rockland Home to Buy you have come to the right place.     The Quality of Life in Fairfield is always in demand, even if you do not own a Fairfield or Rockland single home, the life style is available to Condo & Townhouse owners too.     “Victoria's Fairfield & Rockland Neighbourhood is a delightfully peaceful and prosperous alcove of the beautiful Provincial City of Victoria. The serene and stately streets stretch out for miles along the sparkling Pacific coast on the SE corner of Vancouver Island...Fairfield is a long established residential ne... 02/05/2014

Housing Now, Victoria BC By CMHC, January 2014  Housing Now, Victoria BC By CMHC, January 2014 Housing Now, Victoria BC By CMHC, January 2014, The New edition has just been released. The 34 page reports Highlights the following: Greater Victoria area Detached Single Family Housing Trending Up.  Greater Victoria area New Housing starts trended higher in December.  Actual total housing starts remained steady at 1,685 starts in 2013, essentially unchanged from 1,700 in 2012.   Employment overview for Greater Victoria   Only apartments recorded an increase in new construction relative to 2012 levels, while all other housing types experienced a decrease.   If You and or anyone you know is considering your real estate options, this is one of those " Unbiased" reports that can shed a lot of i... 02/02/2014

DAY 31 IN 365 MILES IN 365 DAYS   One January 1, 2014 I joined a Facebook Group started by our Active Rain member "Carra Riley".   Her group is called “365 Miles in 365 Days”.The purpose is for those that are invited and join to walk, ride a bike or use their treadmill or elliptical trainer by going a minimum of a mile a day for 365 days.   I posted earlier this Month with my Speechless Sunday Photo   I joined so I’m  accountable to others and walking a mile every day, I also take a photo of the trail or neighborhood I go walking on...It’s amazing how being accountable gets you off the computer or coach and go for your daily walk, ride or treadmill. Today I went and delivered postcards door to door in a neighborhood in Oak Bay known as Estevan. It was a cool morning, but Sunny day, whic... 01/31/2014

BIGGEST VICTORIA HOME SELLER MISTAKES MANY HOME SELLERS MAKE EVERYWHEREWith over 40 years selling Real Estate in Victoria.. I see the many mistakes home sellers make when selling their home... I bet you are thinking "But wait Fred don't you advise you clients to help them?"..Yes of course I do, and many follow my recommendations. I'm not just talking about homes in Victoria I list for sale.However I see these mistakes all to often..The Biggest Home Seller Mistakes I've listed below as the top repeating mistakes many Victoria home owners make that many times stop or certainly reduce the chances of selling their home when they want their home Sold. Over Pricing a Home For Sale Buyers are comparative shoppers and today's home buyers do not want to pay more than they need too.Home buyers ar... 01/29/2014

SPEECHLESS SUNDAY|HISTORIC SPRING AND WELL IN SPRINGRIDGE   Yesterday we ventured to the Springridge and Fernwood neighbourhood with a friend and local Building Inspector Paul Harrison. We were enjoying a coffee earlier in the week and the subject came up about the Spring and water that once supplied our city with drinking water back in the early 1800’s. Fernwood History from the Fernwood Community web site. I mentioned I had read an article that the different level of Governments helped the local Community of Fernwood establish a Pump and Well over a Spring plus placed commemorative plaque to record the history of the original spring water. The Pump is located a Park in Fernwood called the William Stevenson Park between Gladstone and Pembroke Street West of Fernwood Road. We said “Lets... 01/26/2014

FRIDAY’S FOTOS | DAY 24 OF 365 MILES IN 365 DAYS Today I thought I would share with you Fotos I have taken around Victoria while on my daily Walks. As some of you know I joined 365 miles in 365 days event challenge on Facebook which was started by our own Carra Riley ….While out for my daily walks I try and share Fotos of where I’ve been on 365 miles in 365 days event challenge. These Fotos are not in any particular order..just few places I’ve been this week. Victoria’s Inner Harbour Trail along Colquitz River Hatley Castle at Royal Roads University Canada Geese on the Lawn at Hatley Castle Old Fish Ladder on the Grounds at Hatley Castle Pheasant  in front of Hatley Castle See My Day 19 on 365 miles in 365 days Post on my Speechless Sunday   FRIDAY’S FOTOS | DAY 24 OF 365 MILES IN 365 DAYS 01/24/2014