Exploring the less-than-wonderful world of divorce and property division

Though a divorce or separation can be a painful period of time for a couple, the question of who gets what once a marriage dissolves can often be the great unknown.

Uncertainty about assets and individual financial security play a significant role in making a potentially difficult time even harder, says Lindsay Ewens-Jones, a family law lawyer, mediator, and arbitrator with McGurk LLP Family Law Lawyers.

"When people are separating or going through a divorce, they are anxious about their future, both financial and otherwise," said Ewen-Jones. "So what [each party] will receive in the ultimate division of property is of great concern."

Small-town experiment pays off for McKenzie Towne residents

Clifford Koss and Janice Conley have called the southeast community of McKenzie Towne home for 15 years. They moved there in 2000, after renting in McKenzie Lake across Deerfoot Trail.

"We like the area so much we named our business after it," says Koss, referring to the couple's home-based distribution company, Prestwick Resources. (Prestwick is one of four areas that make up McKenzie Towne, the other three being Inverness, Elgin and High Street, a 120,000 square-foot commercial strip.)

In fact, these days Conley and Koss say they rarely have occasion to venture outside of the community.

Will an increase in vacancy rates push down housing demand? 

Calgary has long had a reputation as a difficult place to rent – a reputation confirmed for much of last year when the city's vacancy rate hovered below one per cent.

Yet market uncertainty brought upon by oil patch woes have painted a much different picture in 2015, with Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC) reporting vacancy rates in the city as high as 3.2 per cent.

While good news for renters, it poses as potential bad news for home sellers, notes ATB Financial chief economist Todd Hirsch.

City council has approved what it's calling a 2016 Resilience Budget. Presented as part of adjustments to its operating budget for 2016-18, the resilience budget which will change what Calgarians will be paying for many City services.

CREB®Now takes a look at some of those changes:

1. $4.90
With a property tax hike originally pegged at 4.7 per cent when the City released its 2015-2018 Action Plan, the subsequent cut to 3.5 per cent will mean the average Calgarian will be shelling out $4.90 more per month rather than $6.75.

Earlier this year, Design Talks, or d.talks, captured the imagination of many Calgarians through its Lost Space Ideas Competition. Intended to spark interest in leftover, unused or underused spaces, the competition attracted submissions from more than 40 countries.

CREB®Now recently sat down with d.Talks co-founder Amery Calvelli to discuss everything from the competition to what she feels is Calgary's best-kept secret. Here's what she had to say:

Calgary creates secondary suite registry program 

Calgary's secondary suites debate now has its very own sticker.

In an effort to promote legal and safe secondary suites, the City of Calgary has launched a secondary suite registry and sticker program. The online, searchable registry tool and registered sticker program will help Calgarians verify if a secondary suite has been inspected by the City and meets the requirements of Alberta's building codes at the time of its approval.

Having added a legal secondary suite to his southwest Calgary home shortly after its purchase, Bryan Backman-Beharry believes the City's move will increase demand for legal, safe and abiding suites like his own.

"I expect it will increase demand for legal suites," said Backman-Beharry, who has already received his registry sticker from the City.

Inventories rise as sales activity softens further

Following four months of relative stability, unadjusted benchmark prices eased as expected in September to $456,100, a 0.26 per cent decline compared with last year.

Most of this aggregate moderation was due to price declines in the apartment sector brought on by higher-than-average inventory levels.

"Overall sales activity relative to new listings caused a softening in absorption rates, which resulted in inventory gains and ultimately placed moderate downward pressure on pricing," said CREB® chief economist Ann-Marie Lurie.

Why you should stick with the greiges when it comes to selling your home

If you've ever sold a home, you were likely told at some point to keep it neutral – meaning although you may have loved the lightness of a lime green dining room or the sensual feel of a dark red bedroom, you went with beige, grey or greige.

And for good reason, say experts.

"Neutral-coloured spaces allow us to feel a sense of connection with nature and experience pleasant or calming emotions, both of which facilitate a desire to stay in a space," said Katherine Schurer, a registered psychologist with Calgary's Now in Colour Psychological Services Inc.

Proper planning will yield long-term results

Readers often ask me about the best time to plant flowering bulbs. Some, in fact, wait months to act – or react.

The answer is no. Seeds will still grow if held for years and fall bulbs might leaf out if left on the counter, but bulbs won't bloom if left sitting on the laundry-room shelf all winter.

Plant your fall bulbs as soon as you buy them. Don't wait until it rains. the next blue moon or when you finish your thesis. Planting bulbs sooner rather than later is the best bet for best spring blooms.

Unlike seeds, flowering bulbs are special sugar packets with fully formed flower buds. Once rooted, they are ready to pop instantly into bloom next spring.

Pet owners say discriminating landlords distorting vacancy rates

Erika Lagyjanszki is about to make the move from Toronto to Calgary to start her business as a wedding photographer and a new life with her boyfriend.

Looking for a place should have been a breeze for the two given the uptick in vacancy rates in Calgary as of late.

In fact, according to the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC), in the Calgary CMA, the overall apartment vacancy rate increased year-over-year from 1.4 per cent in April 2014 to 3.2 per cent in April 2015.

"The increase in the vacancy rate was a result of the universe of rental apartments in Calgary rising at a faster pace than demand for rental units," said Christina Butchart, principal market analyst with CMHC.