Home buyers and sellers will enjoy new confidence that the home they buy is sound, if the Government of Alberta follows through on its promise to introduce legislation to augment home warranties this fall.

The new rules, to be tabled at the fall sitting of the legislature, which begins Oct. 23, would make warranties mandatory for all new homes, and also toughen fines for negligent builders. The changes come in the wake of an increase in complaints around the province of condo owners facing hefty repair bills on leaky units.

A 10-year-old Calgary girl has more independence in her home after four local companies banded together in support of the Easter Seals Give a Kid a Lift initiative.

Each year the initiative selects one recipient of a home elevator or lift. This year's recipient was Juliana Alexson who, at eight months old, was diagnosed with cerebral palsy and is wheelchair bound.

Calgary's housing market has accomplished the "rare feat" of adding improving affordability even with home resales on the rise, says a new report from RBC Economics.

In the report, which rates the housing affordability in six major markets across the country, Calgary was singled out for having the "best of all worlds" in improved affordability, resales and homebuilding and moderately rising prices.

Thinking about buying your first home? Getting ready to sell and upgrade your current home? Do you want to be better prepared and have a bit more knowledge about what all is going on? This is a simple dictionary of real estate terms that will help you out along the way.

This is by no means every term you will hear, but it's a start.

The good thing is that a REALTOR® already knows all of these!

The Buss on Calgary's Urban Beekeeping Scene

Taking a quiet moment to listen in Calgary, one can hear the constant hum of the city. If you listen a little closer, you might also hear the buzz from one of the city's many urban bee colonies.

After an article by reality star and contractor Mike Homes about the importance of competent home appraisers, the Real Estate Council of Alberta (RECA) has said they couldn't agree more.

Holmes ran a piece titled "The appraiser needs appraising" that ran in the Aug. 20 edition of The National Post.

There were 1,936 residential units sold in Calgary in July representing a 21.3 per cent increase over 2011, a testament to the fact the city continues to buck national housing sale trends.

"Recent mortgage rule changes prompted much discussion of a national housing correction," said Ann-Marie Lurie, CREB® economist.

According to an RBC poll, young Canadians place owning a home at the top of their financial lists.

The poll revealed 49 per cent of Canadians between the ages of 18 and 34 believed owning a home was their top financial priority followed by reducing or eliminating debt through regular payments (48%) and general savings for a rainy day fund (39%).