Posted by admin on March 31, 2011 | Comments Off
The saga of Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne’s Malibu, CA house has had more twists and turns than the couple’s storied careers, alternately being listed for rent/sale for years.
Now this rock star property, which was listed for $40,000 rent last year, is once again listed for sale, this time at $10 million.
Enjoy the sweeping oceanfront views that will take your breath away as the steps from the balcony fall right on the sandy beach shore line. This 4,500 square-foot- villa on 0.16 acres was built in 1955 and boasts hardwood floors, stainless steel kitchen appliances, two covered parking spaces, powder room, fireplaces, walk-in closets and marble bathrooms.
The home also boasts wood framed glass front double doors that open to the main living room, faux-stone wall, a trio of French doors and a terrace. A workout room/ library, free standing hot tub and spa also are featured in this three-story home, along with office space and a back yard.
See the listing at REALTOR.com
Read more: Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne List Malibu Beach House (PHOTOS) | REALTOR.com® Blogs
Posted by admin on March 14, 2011 | Comments Off
For immediate release
Vancouver, BC – March 14, 2011. The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) residential sales in the province climbed 5 per cent in February from January 2011, on a seasonally adjusted basis. Compared to February of 2010, MLS® residential unit sales increased 8 per cent to 6,410 units. The average MLS® residential price rose 18 per cent to $587,571 in February compared to the same month last year.
“The surge in consumer demand in Metro Vancouver continues to propel the provincial statistics higher,” said Cameron Muir, BCREA Chief Economist. “Elevated sales activity in Vancouver’s pricier communities has pushed average home prices higher than market conditions would suggest.” Compared to February 2010, the average MLS® residential price in Vancouver has climbed more than 19 per cent, whereas the Benchmark or typical home price has increased a more modest 4 per cent.
Year-to-date, BC residential sales dollar volume increased 15 per cent $6.03 billion, compared to the same period last year. Residential unit sales remained relatively unchanged, albeit down by 0.3 per cent to 10,547 units. The average MLS® residential price climbed 15.6 per cent to $572,121 over the same period.
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For more information, please contact:
BCREA represents 11 member real estate boards and their approximately 18,000 REALTORS® on all provincial issues, providing an extensive communications network, standard forms, economic research and analysis, government relations, applied practice courses and continuing professional education (cpe).
To demonstrate the profession’s commitment to improving Quality of Life in BC communities, BCREA supports policies that encourage economic vitality, provide housing opportunities, respect the environment and build communities with good schools and safe neighbourhoods.
For detailed statistical information, contact your local real estate board. MLS® is a cooperative marketing system used only by Canada’s real estate boards to ensure maximum exposure of properties listed for sale.
Posted by admin on March 11, 2011 | Comments Off
In today’s marketplace, Canadian consumers are constantly being inundated with advertising claims from a number of real estate brands, many of which sound very similar from one company to the next. The consumer is left wondering whether there really is a difference between real estate companies.
While each brand tries to create a unique sales proposition, Coldwell Banker developed Ultimate Service®. It all starts with listening. Every customer and every transaction is different. Only by listening to the customer and truly understanding their individual needs, can you deliver a value proposition that will meet those needs.
There are three distinct steps to the Ultimate Service marketing process:
First, we listen to the customer, to understand their needs and goals.
Second, together with the customer, we develop a customized service plan to meet their needs and then commit to that service plan, in writing. We offer a signed pledge to customer satisfaction in the form of our Buyer and Seller service guarantees.
Finally, we give our customers an opportunity to evaluate our service in the form of customer satisfaction surveys.These satisfaction surveys benefit the consumer in two ways. First, it provides valuable feedback which allows us to continually evaluate and refine our service offering. Only by constantly improving can you ensure that your service stays ahead of your customers’ expectations.
But there’s another way that our survey benefits the consumer – it offers them a proven track record of our performance. In fact, Coldwell Banker Canada has just earned a 98% overall satisfaction rating from Canadian Home Buyers and Sellers. And what’s more, we’ve now done it for 14 years in a row!
This satisfaction rating is unique in the real estate industry. Why? Because it’s based on what real, live customers had to say about the service experience delivered by their Coldwell Banker professional. This 98% satisfaction rating was tabulated by an independent third party company, and is based on the responses of over 55,000 Canadian home buyers and sellers. No other company in real estate can make that claim.
When you choose Coldwell Banker, you don’t have to take our word for it that we provide outstanding service – just ask our customers!
Posted by kelownahousehunter on March 4, 2011 | No Comments
This sounds like a simple question, particularly when the media reports on it in terms of statistics.
The truth is that a lot of sales in the Okanagan are recreational sales to second home owners who intend to use their properties either for the occasional visit to the region or to rent out. These could clearly be defined as a recreational property… or is it a investment property… or is it a single family home? That is the dilemma that REALTORS(®) face every day when they enter the data into the MLS(®) system.
As an Agent in Canada, we have a number of obligations to a selling client and one of those is to accurately market the property in the correct category to gain market exposure for the client. The dilemma is, what is the best category?
The media is very quick to report on fluctuating recreational property sales and yet the only data they can access for their reports is MLS data, in fact it is the only accurate data of the resale market in Canada.
A quick scan of listings in the Okanagan would indicate that in fact most recreational real estate is not listed as recreational real estate at all. This situation has developed because as REALTORS(®) we attempt to categorize properties so that the search parameters make sense. But if you were to look at buying a condo at The Cove on the Westside, would you search for an apartment condo or recreational property? The answer is an apartment condo and so Realtors list (correctly I might add) the property as an apartment condo. If you were to buy a single family cottage at La Casa on the Westside, would you search for recreational property or a single family home, the correct answer is a single family home which is where these properties are listed yet it is very easy to argue that most of these sales are “recreational” purchases.
Even more confusing might be a multi-million dollar lakefront home. It may be listed as a single family home but is sold to a wealthy family who intend to use it one month in the year…. should it then be reported as a recreational property?
What this leads to is confusing media reports because the fluctuations in the Recreational category do not relate to the actual buying activity in the recreational market place. While the category may be helpful to some, it is certainly confusing to many and my advice is to talk to your local REALTOR(®) when you want to find out how market segments are performing because the data does not always tell the full story… it may not be perfect but it is the best we have at the moment.
The REALTOR(®) will use the data as a platform for discussion but will supplement that with more refined custom searches that will more accurately reflect the correct answer to your question.
About the author…
Mark Jennings-Bates has been actively been involved in the resort development industry and real estate investment industry since the early 1990′s in Canmore, Alberta and the Okanagan. He was the publisher of the Canadian Rockies Resort Forecast which provided insight into trends in the resort development industry in the late 1990′s.
He now sits on the Board of Directors of several companies and operates a resort development consulting company, BLC Group North America Ltd. with business partner Andy Harris as well as working as a Real Estate Representative with Coldwell Banker Horizon Realty in Kelowna.
Mark’s goal with these articles is to provide insight into some of the development opportunities in the Okanagan and juxtapose it with other resort development activities in North America and around the globe. From time to time he will publish articles designed to assist you in evaluating investment opportunities in resort oriented real estate programs?
Mark is a realtor with Coldwell Banker Horizon Realty in Kelowna and can be contacted at 860-7500.
