If you were thinking of Buying a Home Now would be a good time.  It could Save you over $1000 in Title and Transfer Fees.

As you are no doubt aware, yesterday’s release of Budget 2015 contains increases to fees for real estate transfers as of July 1, 2015. In statements related to the Budget, Service Alberta identified real estate associations among the stakeholders who were consulted on increases to fees related to the transfer of real estate. To that effect, AREA CEO Ian Burns has released the following statement to clarify that AREA was not consulted on these increases and to state the association’s position:

"Budget 2015 includes significant hikes to fees paid by real estate consumers beginning July 1, 2015, including registering new land titles and mortgage documents.

The Alberta Real Estate Association (AREA), the provincial, professional association for Alberta’s 10,000 REALTORS®, was not one of the real estate association stakeholders consulted...

Many of us envision the gutsy move to flip a house for quick financial gains – and some people are quite successful at doing so, say advisors in this field. For those with the time, energy and technical skills, buying a property to fix up and sell later at a higher price or to rent out for a period of time, can be a worthwhile investment. But do your research.

Three Recomendations for Success

1. Take note of the taxes. As the saying goes, the only things certain in life are death and taxes. Depending upon the municipal, provincial and federal taxation requirements for your area, sales tax and land transfer tax will apply at differing levels across the country. You could even be taxed based on the level of renovations if a lot of work has been done. Also, consider the personal or business taxation implications from the sale of the property or on rental income that is generated. An accountant and lawyer are two people you'll want to bring in early before you venture into this...

(NC) Out with the old and in with the bold. Rich, daring hues have been quickly invading spaces across North America and are becoming the go-to colours for design professionals, DIYers and home décor aficionados. Bordeaux reds, deep greys and invigorating blues are taking over, which make it safe to say that the bolds are sticking around.

Photo caption: This warm and inviting room features PARA Paints Spectrolite (PF73) on the accent wall and princess cut (PF57) on the ceiling.

If you're one to always stay on top of the latest trends and have yet to decide how to incorporate the go-to colours of the day into your decorating projects, painting is always an easy and affordable option. When plagued with the age-old question “how bold should I go?” brands like PARA Paints and their colour trend palettes are the perfect solution to help you tackle any paint project.

This year PARA Paints celebrates its 100th anniversary with the eye-catching 2015 Centennial Trend Palettes....

Prices Remain Strong as Spring Sales Pick Up

Edmonton, March 3, 2015: Average prices maintained positive growth month over month and year over year in the Edmonton Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) market. The all residential price was up a mere $38 from January (up almost 1 percent from February 2014). Single family houses averaged $430,770 up 0.84% over January and 1.17% over the same month last year. Condo prices continued upward with a 1.2% increase over January and 4.7% increase from February 2014. Duplex and Rowhouses were down 10.55% from January but are up 0.68% from the prior year.

“We are starting to see sales numbers increase as we enter the spring season. It is common to see sales start to ramp up in February.” REALTORS® Association of Edmonton President Geneva Tetreault explains, “It’s a positive sign to see that even though listings are up and sales are down from last year that prices remain stable and even slightly up from February 2014.”

Residential...