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Stories Tagged - Community
News
May 13, 2016 | Cody Stuart
And the winner is ...
Annual ROAR awards handed out to Calgary real estate profession
Five members of Calgary's real estate community walked away with top honours earlier this month as CREB® hosted its third annual ROAR (Recognizing our Accomplished REALTORS®) Awards at Telus Spark.
Hosted this year by Canadian comedian Gerry Dee, the coveted event was designed to celebrate the talent and accomplishments of Calgary and area real estate professionals in the areas of professionalism, excellence, dedication, mentorship and community involvement.
Julie-Ann Nasiri of CIR Realty walked away with People's REALTOR® honours. Of the five awards handed out during the evening, the People's REALTOR® is the only one where nominations originated from the public.
Five members of Calgary's real estate community walked away with top honours earlier this month as CREB® hosted its third annual ROAR (Recognizing our Accomplished REALTORS®) Awards at Telus Spark.
Hosted this year by Canadian comedian Gerry Dee, the coveted event was designed to celebrate the talent and accomplishments of Calgary and area real estate professionals in the areas of professionalism, excellence, dedication, mentorship and community involvement.
Julie-Ann Nasiri of CIR Realty walked away with People's REALTOR® honours. Of the five awards handed out during the evening, the People's REALTOR® is the only one where nominations originated from the public.
News
May 04, 2016 | CREBNow
Discovery centre gives glimpse into Harmony development
Open to the public this weekend
The folks behind the Harmony development in Springbank lifted the veil Thursday to its new 3,700-square-foot Discovery Centre, providing new details on the much-anticipated lake community just west of Calgary, including a first look at the Phil-Mickelson designed 18-hole golf course.
The centre is intended to introduce curious homebuyers and Springbank neighbours with new details of Harmony, which will eventually be home to approximately 10,000 people. Included are interactive exhibits that provide visitors with a massive projection model of the community, detailed displays and videos on the community vision and a tribe to the Copithorne family, which originally ranched the area.
"Given current market conditions, buyers are more cautious about making a purchasing decision and want to be more informed," says Maribeth Janikowski, communications manager for Qualico Communities, with is developing the community with Bordeaux Developments.
The folks behind the Harmony development in Springbank lifted the veil Thursday to its new 3,700-square-foot Discovery Centre, providing new details on the much-anticipated lake community just west of Calgary, including a first look at the Phil-Mickelson designed 18-hole golf course.
The centre is intended to introduce curious homebuyers and Springbank neighbours with new details of Harmony, which will eventually be home to approximately 10,000 people. Included are interactive exhibits that provide visitors with a massive projection model of the community, detailed displays and videos on the community vision and a tribe to the Copithorne family, which originally ranched the area.
"Given current market conditions, buyers are more cautious about making a purchasing decision and want to be more informed," says Maribeth Janikowski, communications manager for Qualico Communities, with is developing the community with Bordeaux Developments.
News
May 03, 2016 | Alex Frazer Harrison
Parking with benefits
Calgary to look at popular alternative to street parking
Nobody likes paying for street parking, but imagine if the money collected went directly into improvements for the community where you parked.
That's the idea behind Parking Benefit Districts (PBD), a concept gaining traction in a number of U.S. cities and may be on its way to Calgary.
"Parking Benefit Districts provide a solution to that political problem (of charging for street parking) as it creates a mechanism where the revenue generated stays in that local area," explains Greg Morrow, who sits on the CalgaryPlanning Commission and holds the Parker Professorship in Metropolitan Growth and Change with the faculty of environmental design and Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary. "You can direct parking revenue into local improvements like sidewalks, or installing new themed street lights."
Nobody likes paying for street parking, but imagine if the money collected went directly into improvements for the community where you parked.
That's the idea behind Parking Benefit Districts (PBD), a concept gaining traction in a number of U.S. cities and may be on its way to Calgary.
"Parking Benefit Districts provide a solution to that political problem (of charging for street parking) as it creates a mechanism where the revenue generated stays in that local area," explains Greg Morrow, who sits on the CalgaryPlanning Commission and holds the Parker Professorship in Metropolitan Growth and Change with the faculty of environmental design and Haskayne School of Business at the University of Calgary. "You can direct parking revenue into local improvements like sidewalks, or installing new themed street lights."
News
March 24, 2016 | Donna Balzer
What is your garden style?
Not everything is timeless when it comes to outdoor design
Do you have a high-end ultra-modern home with striking features that looks like it came out of a recent copy of Architectural Digest?
What about your yard? Does it look like it came from a Home and Garden magazine circa 1985?
This jarring contrast of cottage-style garden with modern home seems hard to understand until you think of the process. Homeowners do not design homes – builders and architects do. Yet homeowners are the ones often design their own gardens.
News
March 18, 2016 | Mario Toneguzzi
The many faces of prices
A guide to distinguishing average, median and benchmark prices
Sellers and potential buyers in today's residential real estate market can be understandably excused if they are confused about what's happening with housing prices.
After all, for both, price changes in the market are supremely important. Plus, CREB® gathers price information that, to the untrained eye, can tell different stories.
For example, in February, CREB® reported the benchmark price in the city for all MLS® properties that were sold was $445,000, or down 3.45 per cent from February 2015. However, the average MLS® sale price increased by 2.72 per cent to $472,529 while the median price was unchanged at $420,000.
From top to bottom, that's a difference of close to $30,000.
So what should one look at if they are either selling a home in this tough market or hoping to buy one?
A good start would be by looking at what each price category entails, said CREB® chief economist Ann-Marie Lurie. For example, the median price looks at every sale that has occurred in the market, ranking them from lowest to highest. The median price is the midpoint of all the sales.
Lurie said the average sale price is adding up the total dollar sum of the purchases divided by the number of total sales.
Sellers and potential buyers in today's residential real estate market can be understandably excused if they are confused about what's happening with housing prices.
After all, for both, price changes in the market are supremely important. Plus, CREB® gathers price information that, to the untrained eye, can tell different stories.
For example, in February, CREB® reported the benchmark price in the city for all MLS® properties that were sold was $445,000, or down 3.45 per cent from February 2015. However, the average MLS® sale price increased by 2.72 per cent to $472,529 while the median price was unchanged at $420,000.
From top to bottom, that's a difference of close to $30,000.
"It's looking at values based on criteria such as square footage, total bedrooms and bathrooms, location, property type."
So what should one look at if they are either selling a home in this tough market or hoping to buy one?
A good start would be by looking at what each price category entails, said CREB® chief economist Ann-Marie Lurie. For example, the median price looks at every sale that has occurred in the market, ranking them from lowest to highest. The median price is the midpoint of all the sales.
Lurie said the average sale price is adding up the total dollar sum of the purchases divided by the number of total sales.
News
March 14, 2016 | Alex Frazer Harrison
Force to be reckoned with
Chestermere's growth reflects growing interest in satellite communities, say officials
The first permanent homes in Chestermere were built he same year the first Star Wars film came out: 1977
Seven movies later, the city's population is approaching 19,500 – with proposed development expected to double that number in the years to come.
"Fantastic cities attract fantastic people," said Mayor Patricia Matthews. "We have this huge body of water that's a great attractor for a lot of people. You get that feel of being out in the country – that retreat moment when you come home."
The first permanent homes in Chestermere were built he same year the first Star Wars film came out: 1977
Seven movies later, the city's population is approaching 19,500 – with proposed development expected to double that number in the years to come.
"Fantastic cities attract fantastic people," said Mayor Patricia Matthews. "We have this huge body of water that's a great attractor for a lot of people. You get that feel of being out in the country – that retreat moment when you come home."
News
Jan. 28, 2016 | Barb Livingstone
The northeast revival
Calgary quadrant's showing staying power with price resilience
Northeast Calgary bucked housing trends in the city in 2015 by seeing strong price increases in the resale residential market, as opposed to others where prices remained flat or dipped, according to CREB®.
And some in the industry expect the still-relatively affordable offerings in the city's "new north" may continue to make it the darling of this year's even tougher market.
CREB® numbers show the annual benchmark price (the price of a typical home year-over-year) in the northeast rose 7.05 per cent for detached homes in 2015. When attached and apartment units are included, the rise was 6.21 per cent.
Northeast Calgary bucked housing trends in the city in 2015 by seeing strong price increases in the resale residential market, as opposed to others where prices remained flat or dipped, according to CREB®.
And some in the industry expect the still-relatively affordable offerings in the city's "new north" may continue to make it the darling of this year's even tougher market.
CREB® numbers show the annual benchmark price (the price of a typical home year-over-year) in the northeast rose 7.05 per cent for detached homes in 2015. When attached and apartment units are included, the rise was 6.21 per cent.
News
Dec. 19, 2015 | Cody Stuart
Residents invited to help decide future of Elbow Park
Feedback to follow homes' demolition
More than a dozen homes in Elbow Park that were damaged in the 2013 floods are now slated for demolition, prompting Municipal Affairs Minister Danielle Larivee and Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi to seek feedback from area residents on their vision for the community's long-term recovery.
Community members will have the opportunity to meet with the minister and mayor in January to help determine the short-term use of the properties sold to the province as part of the floodway relocation program.
More than a dozen homes in Elbow Park that were damaged in the 2013 floods are now slated for demolition, prompting Municipal Affairs Minister Danielle Larivee and Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi to seek feedback from area residents on their vision for the community's long-term recovery.
Community members will have the opportunity to meet with the minister and mayor in January to help determine the short-term use of the properties sold to the province as part of the floodway relocation program.
News
Dec. 14, 2015 | Alex Frazer Harrison
The re-emergence of bare land
Development standard finds its way back into the Calgary region
When is a detached home still a condo? When it's a bare land condo, an under-utilized development standard that is once again sprouting up in the Calgary region.
Developers in new areas such as Watermark in Bearspaw and Shawnee Park are designating some or all of their respective developments as bare land condos as part of a more collective approach to building and maintaining communities.
Bare land condos have previously popped up in other area communities such as Tanglewood Estates, The Lake at Heritage Pointe, Okotoks Air Ranch, Elmont Green and Lott Creek Grove.
When is a detached home still a condo? When it's a bare land condo, an under-utilized development standard that is once again sprouting up in the Calgary region.
Developers in new areas such as Watermark in Bearspaw and Shawnee Park are designating some or all of their respective developments as bare land condos as part of a more collective approach to building and maintaining communities.
Bare land condos have previously popped up in other area communities such as Tanglewood Estates, The Lake at Heritage Pointe, Okotoks Air Ranch, Elmont Green and Lott Creek Grove.
News
Nov. 30, 2015 | Cody Stuart
Q&A with East Village resident ambassador
Zoey Duncan is what you might call an engaged citizen. Having showcased her unique commentary on Calgary life through social media and blog zoeywrites.com, it didn't come as a major surprise when she was chosen as the East Village's first resident ambassador.
Having now added the ability to survey city life from high above, CREB®Now caught up with Duncan to find out what's going on in and around Calgary's "oldest newest neighbourhood."
CREB®Now: ?How exactly did you come to have a rent-free condo in the East Village for a year?
Duncan: The Calgary Municipal Land Corp. (the brains behind East Village) began a competition earlier this year in search of an East Village resident ambassador – someone who could see the revitalized neighbourhood through the eyes of a resident and share it with the rest of the world.
Having now added the ability to survey city life from high above, CREB®Now caught up with Duncan to find out what's going on in and around Calgary's "oldest newest neighbourhood."
CREB®Now: ?How exactly did you come to have a rent-free condo in the East Village for a year?
Duncan: The Calgary Municipal Land Corp. (the brains behind East Village) began a competition earlier this year in search of an East Village resident ambassador – someone who could see the revitalized neighbourhood through the eyes of a resident and share it with the rest of the world.
