The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver recently released a report stating that it expects another gain of 9-11% in housing prices in 2008. The benchmark average price is hovering at $375,000 and this number could rise to $416,000 by this time next year. The Bank of Canada has just cut the overnight lending rate by ¼ point dropping it to 4.25%. This move was made to combat the rising CDN dollar and stimulate domestic spending; inflation was lower than was originally predicted for the months of Oct and Nov. What this means for Canadians is a probable easing of Mortgage rates over the next year to year-and-a-half. This is very good news as this reinforces the REBGV’s forecast of another strong year in home sales.

The rise in home prices is indeed discouraging for the first-time home buyer trying to get into the market. Having said that, it is still not too late to own your own home and receive rates of return on your money that are favorable and more stable than any other investment there is. Here is a possible scenario: $375,000 purchase price; $18,750 (5%) down payment; 5.5% mortgage rate; 5 year term; 25 year amortization; monthly payments of approximately $2,245; requires approximately $100,000 annual household income. There are still many homes available in Greater Vancouver for well below this price. Zero-down mortgages are another option the Banks are giving consumers to help them buy their first home.

Dec 5/2007

What is Blu Realty you ask?

Blu Realty is a small group of High Performance Real Estate consultants that are rapidly changing the way your home is marketed. Realizing the speed at which the market moves, we take full advantage of the internet and all it has to offer when searching for potential buyers. We are a niche Brokerage; choosing to stay smaller and more focused on our largest asset: Relationships! Our team stays above the competition by maintaining a cooperative model with each other. What this means is when you hire one of Blu Realty’s consultants to help you sell or buy a home, you get the whole team.

Another area of value we bring to the table for you are the unique skills that each member of the team possesses. We are not one-dimensional salespeople; we are designers, webmasters, publicists, networkers, strategists and financial experts. All of our marketing material is created and designed in-house giving us approximately 20% of an edge on the average Realtor. Saving money on design costs allows us to get that much more marketing material out the door and to the consumer. This also means that we have full control over the designs that you may have envisioned to market your home.

Our company believes that the best way to succeed in any business is to put our client’s best interests above everything. Period! The relationships we have built and continue to build will carry on long after the keys have changed hands.

At Blu Realty we are entrepreneurs and, above all else, friends who enjoy working together doing the job we love! We are located in the cozy Kitsilano neighborhood at 1849 West 1st Avenue. Stop in any time and someone will be there with a warm greeting to welcome you. Our distinct logo sits proudly above our front door.

Cheers,

Terry Voth & The Blu Realty Team

Nov 22/2007