Selena December 2020 Newsletter

Happy Holiday Season

December, last month of the year finally! I am not usually so keen to get the year over and done but this has been a very unusual year. Our early predictions for the year were all out the window in the first month, along with everyone elses. Who would have known the effect a little bug would have on the whole world. No hand shakes, no hugs, no gatherings. And we are not done with it yet no matter how much we all wish it was over so the important thing is to stay safe, stay home and be low key. Here in Alberta we seem to be having one of the country’s highest rates so there may be further restrictions on the horizon. One plus side is the Alberta government has announced Covid vaccine should be available starting early next year so perhaps the local, national and global economy can finally get going again. The world will not be the same anymore but let’s build on the positive things we learned from 2020. Wishing you all a safe end to the year and a bright start to the new.

November Sales

The latest sales figures for November are out and the Edmonton market has been keeping up its run of increased sales. That summer momentum is still carrying through which is much needed here in Edmonton and the numbers for the year look on par with previous years which is such a relief considering how down the markets was in spring. Single-Family homes have been driving this trend and they have seen an increase in sale prices too but the condo market is the opposite. There are still a large proportion of condos being listed and condo values have been decreasing for last few years. One factor which has contributed to this stronger single-family market is less homes are being listed for sale right now. Couple that with historically low mortgage rates and some pent up consumer demand and the residential sector has held up surprisingly well. Many businesses have had to close their doors due to Covid, increasing the amount of commercial space available for lease and since commercial and residential drive each other in cycles we estimate growth will be slow in the beginning of the year. We assume once the number of Covid cases drop dramatically, due to a vaccine or what ever, then the borders will reopen and the country will once again accept immigrants. Edmonton has long been a destination for many new immigrants so we expect to see an increase in rental demand and home ownership in the latter part of the year due to population growth. Government and banks have indicated interest rates will remain low for the foreseeable future which should continue to stimulate Real Estate sales.

Mortgage Renewal

Did you know you can negotiate the interest rate when you renew your mortgage? Thats right you can, and that means you get to save money too.
We are Realtors, not mortgage brokers, so we always recommend talking to a licensed mortgage professional for your own personal situation.
Quite often the banks will send you an early mortgage renewal notice tempting you to sign up early by making it simple and convenient. They typically provide a couple different options but I normally wait until closer to the expiry date, and then call a mortgage specialist to renew as they can often offer much better rate. For instance, I just renewed one of our investment properties last month. The offering rate for the early renewal was over 2%, but I end up getting 1.75% for a 5-year fixed rate which is about $400 saving per year. Not bad for a quick phone call. You will find for owner occupied properties you can get a better mortgage rate than when you buy an investment property so 1.75% was really quite low at the time. Doing the research, today’s best national rate for 5 year fixed is 1.39% but this does not apply to all people or properties so speak to your mortgage broker. And if we stretch to the big 7 banks then that includes HSBC who is offering 0.99%. Wow, Free Money! But it does come with some restrictions obviously, and this is only available for owner occupied properties (ie: not for investment properties). So next time your mortgage is up for renewal, be sure to negotiate a better rate for your investment.

Latest Sales Data

Every Month the Edmonton Real Estate Board gathers the latest sales figures sorted by property type, price ranges, listed and Sold. Click the above link to download a copy from our website.

Happy Birthday Grandma

My dearest mom just had her 81st birthday a few days ago. Normally we would go out and celebrate inviting lots of friends come join us at a nice restaurant but since we are unable to do that right now it was a quiet event at home. She still look so young and active and perhaps thats the secret to a long life.

Fionna Helps Out

And if it’s a birthday then you need cake. This recipe came from her other grandma and she has been so keen to try and bake it (and eat it too). Fionna made this cake for her with a little help from Daddy around using the oven but she did most of it, even testing the icing.

See you next year.

Disclaimer: Not intended to solicit buyers or properties under contract.
This article contains the opinions of Andrew Barrett and Selena Cheung. Licensed Realtors® with COLDWELL BANKER Venture Realty.
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