Tidying up your yard and garden for a more attractive sell

It is pretty standard practice to tidy your house before resale, so I was surprised when my 30-year-old son, a newly minted professional, emailed me a photo of a house he was buying in Smithers, B.C.

There were clothes on the floor in one shot and people lounging on the couch in another. It didn't seem like there was any tidying evident, and he wasn't the least bit worried about it.

WinSport Ice House allows for winter sport training all year long

With the thud of running feet and the unmistakable sound of blades on ice, the test sled rushes down the hill on a rainy summer day.

Even in Calgary, August and snow don't go hand in hand. Yet that isn't the case at the Ice House located in the Markin MacPhail Centre at WinSport Canada Olympic Park, one of more than three dozen sites to be featured in the third-annual Doors Open YYC program Sept. 27 – 28.

Importance of education system cast into spotlight with academic results survey

In the real estate world, the phrase "location, location, location" often arises. Referring to the amenities around a home rather than the home itself, having a good school nearby is often near the top of the list for many buyers.

"The most important thing for me was not that there was a school, but that there were several nearby schools," said northwest Calgary resident Pamela Haskell. "Because there is so much specialization with programs and charter schools, I didn't want to count on having a school available only to see it become [an immersion school] the next year. A few schools in the area opens up the choices."

Two families share their stories of moving from China to Calgary

This is the first of a four-part homebuying series for new Canadians in partnership with the Epoch Times. Each month, the series will explore hot-topic issues such as understanding market trends, processes for buying a home, determining factors that influence house prices and more.

Like many first-time homebuyers, Calgarian Helen Yao had three must-have items on her checklist: location, location and location.

Yet new to Canada and the  real estate process, she didn't know where to start.