They say only two things are certain in life: death and taxes. But for once, the government is scaling back its share. With around nine million of Canadians set to see their tax burdens lessened in 2016 thanks to the Canadian government's newly introduced tax cuts, CREB®Now breaks down some of the small print included in the changes.

$3.4 billion
With around nine million Canadians making between $45,282 and $90,563 set to see their tax bills decrease in 2016, the total cost to the Canadian government will be $3.4 billion. Single individuals who benefit will see an average tax reduction of $330 every year, and couples who benefit will see an average tax reduction of
$540 every year. The maximum tax reduction will be $679 per individual and $1,358 per couple.

Overseas condo ownership ramps up in Calgary

Foreign ownership is picking up in Calgary's housing market, according to a new report from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp (CMHC).

Late last week, the federal housing agency noted foreign ownership in Calgary's condo apartment sector has increased from just 0.2 per cent of the total market in 2014 to 1.1 per cent in 2015.

While it's a far cry from the level of ownership seen in markets such as Vancouver and Toronto, the rise in Calgary still represents a five-fold increase.

Gravel-trained dogs are not a theory

After being pulled off my feet and dragged two metres, I was winded and dazed with a broken rib and scrapes on my knees. A stranger tried to help me up, but my dog, still tied firmly to my waist, was barking in my defence against the obedient pair of shelties sitting quietly beside their helpful owner.

I lay on the ground sore and sad and embarrassed.

The host of the dog obedience television show I watched before attaching the leash around my waist forgot to mention you should get to know your dog first before you tie him to your waist. Later, my hairdresser, Heather, confirmed the same thing. The leash-on-waist thing is all lies, especially with a big or bad dog.

When we agreed to take a "free" rescue dog, we were thinking about the house. After all, poodles don't shed. There would be no more hairy dust-balls on the hardwood.

Bright ideas this holiday season

December offers a banquet for the senses and many chances to lose ourselves in the deliciousness of all the sights and sounds of the season.

Stop dreading the repetitive Christmas music. Embrace it and create your own playlist. Treasure every moment as if you were eight years old, beginning the holidays with excitement, gratitude and thanks.

Christmas is not just a time of year. It is a state of mind. It is a delightful feeling within cherishing fond memories, filling your hearts with goodwill, home, help and hope. This is the time when you can create the warm and inviting dreamy holiday vignettes you've seen in magazines, layering faux fur blankets, tapestries and velvet pillows that all speak Christmas.

Regulation changes could make investment market more attractive

Recent changes to secondary suite regulations could spell good news for investors looking for opportunities in Calgary's detached housing sector.

In late November, city council voted to relax the regulations on lot size and increase the amount of floor space allowed in the suites.

Under the new rules, homes zoned R-C1Ls, R-C1s and R-1s will have the minimum lot width removed altogether, while homes zoned R-C1N, R-C2, R-1N and R-2 l will see the minimum lot width reduced to nine metres.

The changes will also increase the maximum size on basement suites from 75 to 100 square metres.

In the midst of a correction, experts identify silver-lining investment opportunity

Buy low. Sell high. It's the quintessential mantra of successful investors.

And for those who have long sought to execute this philosophy in Calgary's real estate market, a window of opportunity may be opening thanks to weak oil prices – particularly in the apartment-style condominium sector, which has seen inventory levels skyrocket in 2015.

According to CREB®'s recent monthly housing forecast, months of supply in the apartment sector increased to 6.9 per cent in November, causing benchmark prices to slide
0.5 per cent from October to $287,000. Meanwhile, year-over-year prices were off by 4.6 per cent.

By comparison, months of supply in the detached and attached sector sat at 3.4 and 4.8, respectively.

Investors see opportunities within local housing market

Within the next six months, 26-year-old Calgarian Chad Kanovsky intends to take the plunge and buy as many as four multi-family units as income-producing investment properties.

The commercial real estate associate already has a stock portfolio, and is looking to diversify by adding local real estate.

Yet Kanovsky, who started working in land development as a teenager for his father's company, is adamant he will not be jumping into any "get-rich-quick" investment.

"I'm not looking to make a million dollars in the next year and then go to Mexico," he said.

Mattamy Homes opens first Calgary net-zero home

Even though it's nearly winter, Calgary just got a little greener.

Mattamy Homes, North America's largest privately owned homebuilder, has opened its first net- zero home in the city.

The first of five such homes set to be added to the northeast community of Cityscape are part of a national project that will double the number of net-zero homes – energy-efficient residences that generate as much energy as they consume on an annual basis – in Canada.

Residential development to continue in northwest

Developers in several northwest communities will finally be able to move forward with construction with news the City of Calgary has begun installing a new sewage pipeline through Bowness.

The two-kilometre Bowness Sanitary Trunk will largely be dug with the help of a German machine which will work "around the clock" to drill a one-metre wide tunnel from 13th Avenue N.W. to Bow Crescent N.W.

Addition of the new line, which is expected to be completed in fall 2016, will allow development that had been on hold due to sewer capacity concerns to move forward in the communities of Bowness, Canada Olympic Park, Crestmont, Greenwood/Greenbriar, Rockyridge, Scenic Acres, Silver Springs, Tuscany, Valley Ridge and Varsity.

City rolls out revised waste diversion targets

The City of Calgary is rolling out revised waste diversion targets after a report labelled the previous targets as "ambitious."

The new goal, which calls for 80 per cent of Calgary's garbage to be diverted from city landfills by the year 2025, replaces the previous goal of 80 per cent by the year 2020.

According to the report's author, City of Calgary waste services planner Dick Ebersohn, the revised goal takes into account information gathered since the initial rollout, thus making it more achievable.