Thomas Miller

The smallest houses you can find

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Tue, 01 Oct 2013 21:21:00 +0000

The Chamfer Home is a tiny self-sufficient shelter with a clean modern design that is made from eco-friendly materials. Designed by S-Archetype, the portable living unit can operate completely off the grid, which means that it can be anchored just about anywhere – from a city rooftop to a patch of sand near the beach.

Designed to adapt to different lifestyles and needs, The Chamfer Home is the perfect dwelling for the modern nomad. Its stylish design shelters an open plan living space with floor-to-ceiling windows for natural light and great views of the landscape. This tiny mobile home is a charming concept that we hope to see become a reality!

For more tiny houses click here

210-square-foot Toronto home sells for $165,000

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Mon, 16 Sep 2013 22:39:00 +0000

A tiny Toronto house that caused a storm in the Twitterverse for its large asking price has found a buyer. The diminutive property sold firm for $165,000, says real estate agent Paul Vallis of Real Estate Homeward. The buyer struck a deal for 28 per cent off the asking price of $229,000 after three weeks on the market for the 210-square-foot house some locals knew as “the shack.” “My client is pretty happy,” says Mr. Vallis of the seller. The converted garage measures 210 square feet on a 14-by-20-foot lot. It has a sitting room and a wee bedroom but no bathroom or kitchen. Mr. Vallis says the purchaser is a real estate investor who will likely rebuild. “It’s an investor who is looking for small, unique properties like this,” he says.
Real estate mavens on Twitter are shocked that house prices in Toronto have become so steep and many pointed to this property as an example.

John Andrew is another market watcher who is shocked.
Prof. Andrew is director of the executive seminars on corporate and investment real estate at Queen’s University and he finds it perplexing that prices for houses and condos in Toronto are still so lofty. He figures that people who were waiting for prices to fall eventually gave up and decided to buy – especially when they saw that long-term mortgage rates are creeping up.
“People who go online after Labour Day are seeing that mortgage rates have gone up since the last time they looked,” Prof. Andrew said. “And they were already kicking themselves,” because they didn’t buy sooner, he adds.
Prof. Andrew was one of those forecasting a fall in prices that didn’t materialize. He knows young first-time buyers who eventually got tired of waiting and gave up their search.
“A lot of people were waiting for prices to come down,” Prof. Andrew said. “They’re not coming down and it almost seems like they’re never coming down.”
Long-term rates have risen almost a full percentage point if you go back about seven months, Prof. Andrew points out. The news has been reported but the gradual increase escaped the notice of a lot of buyers until now, he adds.
“I think this surge right now really is all about mortgage rates.”
Ricky Chadha, an agent with Royal LePage Estate Realty in Toronto, says that he has a few buyers on the go right now who fit that profile. The first-time purchasers are discovering that their target neighbourhood or condo building is no longer in their price range.
“Now what they could have afforded a few months ago is no longer affordable and they have to go for something slightly less.”
Housing markets across the country sprang to life in August – though the comparisons are to a particularly moribund August last year when the federal government’s tighter rules on mortgage insurance had re.......for rest of the article click here

Condo Fees to High?

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Tue, 29 Jan 2013 20:11:00 +0000

"Still, some rare apartments have both sky-high prices tags and high maintenance fees. The 18th floor of the Sherry-Netherland, currently on the market for $95 million, has monthly maintenance fees of $60,000. " Read the article here

Why we won’t crash like the USA

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Fri, 23 Nov 2012 22:27:00 +0000

By David Larock

Statistics Canada recently changed the way it calculates key economic data to bring its methods into line with agreed upon international accounting standards. As a result, the debt-to-income ratio for the average Canadian household shot up 11 per cent, literally overnight, to 163 per cent (a record high).

This has inspired lots of foreboding talk about how our “soaring” household debt-to-income levels are now higher than U.S. debt-to-income ratios were at the peak of their housing bubble. That may be technically true, but it is also totally misleading.

That’s because the standard method for calculating this ratio uses after-tax income, which isn’t a fair comparison because Canadian personal income taxes cover health care costs and American personal income taxes don’t. (To put this difference in perspective, according to my initial research the average American spends anywhere from 10 per cent to 20 per cent of their after-tax income on health-care related costs.)

While it has become fashionable to predict that Canada is headed for a U.S.-style housing crash, most economists still think that is unlikely and they use plenty of data to support their position.

To be clear, I readily agree that our household debt levels are too high and that’s why I have consistently supported the federal government’s attempts to reign in borrowing by changing the lending policies and regulations used by CMHC and OSFI. But that’s a far cry from believing that our debt levels are about to cause our houses to start spontaneously combusting. (Did I just give Maclean’s an idea for their next apocalyptic magazine cover … or have they used that one already?)

Before you start loading up on canned soup and fire extinguishers, consider this sampling of recent comments from the experts I read:

* A report by BMO economists in January 2012 first pointed out the flaw in using after-tax income to compare Canadian and U.S. debt-to-income ratio levels. Instead, they argued that using a debt-to-gross income ratio would provide a better apples-to-apples comparison. Using this revised methodology, BMO economist Sal Guatieri reported recently that Canada’s debt-to-gross income ratio (121 per cent) is still well below both the current (146 per cent) and peak (166 per cent) U.S. levels. That presents a very different comparison from the popular one being bandied about in much of the mainstream media.

* David Rosenberg, a well-known Canadian economist, wrote recently that our ratio of housing starts to the civilian population is “not far off the average of the last 10 years, whereas as in the U.S. back in the 2006-07 peak, that ratio was 25 per cent above the long-run norm.” In other words, Canada has not seen the kind of short-term spike in speculative real-estate investing/borrowing that we saw in the U.S. during the latter stages of their housing bubble.

* Mr. Rosenberg also notes that Canadian policy makers and regulators have been pro-active in responding to our rising household debt levels while their U.S counterparts were basically asleep at the switch until it was too late (hyperbole mine).

* Further to that last point, Benjamin Tal, an economist with CIBC, recently noted in an interview with Rob Carrick that overall Canadian household debt is now rising at its slowest pace in 10 years, while consumer debt levels are actually falling for the first time in 20 years. That kind of momentum makes for a trend in the right direction.

* In a separate report, Tal notes that the crash in U.S. house prices was far more extreme in cities with above-average levels of sub-prime lending, where prices corrected by an average of 40 per cent. This is more than double the average decline seen in U.S. cities with below-average levels of subprime loans.

“Eradicate subprime from the U.S. housing market and, instead of the most severe house price meltdown since the Great Depression, you get a soft landing.” By comparison, Canadian subprime loans account for about seven per cent of our total mortgage debt outstanding while U.S. subprime loans peaked at a little under 25 per cent of their total mortgage debt outstanding before their housing crash.

The bottom line: Like any informed observer who can see beyond his own short-term self interest to what is best for the whole economy over the long term; I am concerned about how ultra-low interest rates have pushed our household debt levels to record highs. But I reject the implication that we have driven over the debt cliff to financial ruin and are now in free fall just waiting to hit the ground.

www.integratedmortgageplanners.com/blog

Madonna's Condo is on the market

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Wed, 21 Nov 2012 21:33:00 +0000

Property Facts
Bedrooms: 6
Bathrooms: 8
Square Feet: 6000
Price: $23,500,000
Total Monthly Payment : Approx $131,619.42

Superstar Madonna may be on a world tour, but that doesn't mean she can't conduct a little business on the side.

She's just listed her Central Park West duplex for $23.5 million, our friends at Curbed report. Maybe the paperwork delayed her concert Monday night in Miami? Fans certainly weren't happy that Madonna was hours late, but your faithful Yahoo! Homes correspondent can attest to how long it can take to sign aaaaaaall. Of. Those. Papersssszzzzz. Uh? Oh, sorry, fell into a bored snooze for a second. Anyway, we're inclined to cut her some slack (even if superstars don't really sign their own papers).

Madonna reportedly moved out of the property months ago, but she's had quite a history with it. She and Sean Penn bought a unit in the building in the mid-1980s, and then she combined it with two more units, her brother Christopher Ciccone told Architectural Digest in 1991. It's now a six-bedroom, eight-bath property of more than 6,000 square feet.

If you are interested in purchasing this condo you can visit the website here

The rest of the article can be read at Yahoo!Homes Yahoo Homes

Ozzy and Sharon's house

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Tue, 18 Sep 2012 17:46:00 +0000

After selling the Beverly Hills mansion featured on their popular MTV reality series, The Osbournes, Ozzy and Sharon shelled out $12,388,500 for this Cape Cod-inspired mansion in the guard-gated community of Hidden Hills. The eccentric couple hired designer Martyn Lawrence-Bullard to redecorate the home, who blended antique French furniture, glittering chandeliers and hand-painted silk wall coverings for an eclectic look that's lavish yet comfortable. Spread over 11,000 square feet, the spacious home offers six en suite bedrooms, a guest apartment with a kitchenette, a wood-paneled study with a fireplace and an expansive studio/home theater. The luxurious estate is now listed for $12.999 million. You can check out the photos here

A Floating Island For Millionaires?

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Fri, 22 Jun 2012 18:12:00 +0000

Luxury hotel expert Gabor Orsos has combined his favorite aspects of mainland real estate and yacht living, all with a $4.8 million price tag. The Orsos Island offers a man-made eco-friendly alternative to buying land, but is it actually an island?

Cheap Vacaction Destination

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Wed, 30 May 2012 19:55:00 +0000

Five spots where the dollar buys a great vacation

1. NICARAGUA
For a beach vacation with a little more character and authenticity than your typical Caribbean all-inclusive, head to San Juan del Sur, a quaint beach town on the Southwest coast known for its laid-back beaches, brightly colored buildings and sea turtle sanctuaries. The currency has crept down more than 4 percent in the last year to about 23 cordobas to the dollar. So staying here is an even better value than usual.
Where to stay: Rent a two- to three-bedroom house on the beach for $850 or so a week, based on listings on Homeaway.com and VRBO.com. A room at a boutique resort with yoga, pools, ocean views and spa can be had for $180/night.
What to eat: A seafood platter for two with lobster, squid, octopus, clams, shrimp and sides can be had for about $25, says a representative from the Nicaragua Tourist Board. Washing it down with a local beer will only set you back another $3 or so.
What to do: A surfboard rental and lesson will cost about $35, according to Ryan Croft. Go deep-sea fishing for about $16. If you're in relaxation mode, a one-hour massage in town costs about $40.

2. ARGENTINA
Americans have been flocking to sophisticated Buenos Aires for a few years now. But with the Argentine peso down 10 percent since last May, the values are even better.
Where to stay: Book a sleek room at a boutique hotel in the Palermo district, known for its cafés and nightlife, for no more than $200 a night. A room at 5-star hotel fit for Eva Perón can cost well under $500.
What to eat: Enjoy a parilla, which features cuts of Argentina's famous steak with side dishes, for $30 to $35 per person, including a bottle of red from Mendoza. What to do: Admission to a tango club with a lesson starts at less than $10 (plus drinks). Do some shopping while you're in town. Bargain-hunters will find well-made men's leather belts for $35 and stylish women's leather tote bags starting at $135.

3. ICELAND
Iceland will never be a bargain destination. But financial troubles and a falling currency (down 9 percent from last year to about 126 kroner to the dollar) have turned it from a pricey splurge to a remarkable value relative to the rest of Nordic Europe.
Where to Stay: A room at one the best hotels in the center of Reykjavik will run $250 to $350, or less if you catch a sale, according to recent listings on Expedia.
What to eat: Indulge in an upscale sushi dinner (featuring local fish) or haute interpretations of indigenous ingredients like lamb for $20 to $30 an entrée. Alcohol is still pricey in restaurants, but a beer can be had for $5 to $7 in the many lively bars Reykjavik is known for. (Look for late-night happy hour specials.)
What to do: A day tour outside Reykjavik that includes a visit to Thingvellir national park and Gulfloss waterfall runs about $75. Spend the day lounging at the famous Blue Lagoon thermal baths for $45. For $65, you can get the use of a bathrobe, a drink and face mask at the Lagoon Bar.

4. POLAND
The dollar has risen against the Polish Zloty by more than 20 percent in the last year to 3.36 zloty to the dollar. You can visit a charming old-world city like Krakow and pay what could seem like wallet-friendly old-world prices.
Where to stay: Live like royalty in room at one of the city's top hotels for about $175, according to Expedia.
What to eat: Entrees top out at about $15 (a real splurge) at restaurants known for the homemade polish specialties like roast venison with wild mushrooms. A local beer is less than $3.
What to Do: See a portion of the splendidly preserved Wawel castle for $6. Visit the Museum of Contemporary Art for $3; a guided tour is about $24.

5. LOMBOK, INDONESIA
Bargains are getting harder to find in Bali since readers of "Eat Pray Love" began flocking to it. But they still abound in Lombok, a more laid-back island with great beaches and good sightseeing and shopping. And it's only a 25-minute flight from Bali.
Where to stay: Kick back at a 4-star resort on Senggigi beach for less than $100.
What to eat: Barbecued fish and satays at local market stalls will cost a few dollars. Look at about $25 per person for upscale drinks and dinner.
What to do: Hire a boat to take you to the Gili Islands for a day of snorkeling for about $10 per person (plus lunch). Hire a car and driver for a day of sightseeing for $45. Be sure to stop in the craft villages for handmade blankets, baskets and pottery far more unique than what you'll see at Pier 1 and at a small fraction of the cost. (Follow us @ReutersMoney or at http://www.reuters.com/finance/personal-finance. Editing by Linda Stern and Dan Grebler)

Worlds Tallest Tower

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Tue, 22 May 2012 18:37:00 +0000

A view of Tokyo Skytree, the world's tallest broadcasting tower at 634 metres (2080 feet), in Tokyo in this photo taken by Kyodo on May 21, 2012. The tower opened to the public on Tuesday, with hundreds of people entering the tower and its large shopping mall. Picture taken May 21, 2012. Click the photo to see more of the worlds tallest tower.

"The Hunger Games" Land Available

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 19:25:00 +0000

Hunger Games fans, take note: you can own the run-down village that served as the Everdeens' hometown in the movie... so long as you're willing to plunk down $1.4 million for it. The 72-acre North Carolina property called Henry River Mill Village was practically a ghost town prior to the flick. Now, the village is enjoying tremendous popularity that's only bound to grow once the sequels come out.

83-year-old owner, Wade Shepherd, lives across the empty village, and originally purchased it to "protect his interests" after the last resident moved out in 1987. While Shepherd never mentioned the exact reason why he's putting the town up for sale, there's probably no better time than now: "I'm getting too many visitors. Day and night, they're driving through, taking pictures, getting out and walking. I'm just bombarded with people," he told the Associated Press. Your $1.4 million will get you several District 12 locations you've seen in the movie, including the Everdeens' house and the Mellarks' bakery.

You can read the rest of the article here

makeitrightnola.org

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 19:15:00 +0000

Make It Right builds safe, sustainable and affordable homes for working families. We aim to be a catalyst for change in the building industry in New Orleans and beyond. The video below gives some pretty good insight into this company spearheaded by Brad Pitt.

Professional Athletes' Big-League Tax Bills

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Mon, 19 Mar 2012 19:54:00 +0000

By Jay MacDonald | Bankrate.com
Ready for some jaw-dropping moves by your favorite professional athletes?

Just check out their tax returns.

Behind every sports star who's hauling down the big bucks is a keen-eyed certified public accountant quick-stepping through a maze of state and local income taxes imposed on nonresident athletes, commonly known as the "jock tax."

Professional sports players get taxed by pretty much every city and state in which they play, says Ryan Losi, CPA and executive vice president of Piascik & Associates, a Glen Allen, Va., accounting firm that represents more than 70 professional athletes.

"NFL players typically file in 10 to 12 jurisdictions. NBA is somewhere between 16 and 20. MLB is somewhere between 20 and 26, and the NHL is between 14 and 16," says Losi.

Of the nine states that don't have state income tax, only Florida, Tennessee, Texas and Washington have pro teams, says Robert Raiola, CPA and sports and entertainment group manager for Fazio, Mannuzza, Roche, Tankel, LaPilusa LLC, a Cranford, N.J., firm that represents more than 100 pro athletes.

If you're dazzled by sports players' salaries, here's how the pros play offense and defense to preserve theirs.

How pro salaries are taxed

Professional athlete salaries, like real estate, are all about location, location, location.

The lion's share of most players' income, their salary, is taxed in the city and state where the team is based. But income from other sources, including endorsements, personal appearances, dividends and interest income, is taxed in their state of residence.

This is the reason New York Giants quarterback and Super Bowl MVP Eli Manning lives in Hoboken, N.J., instead of in the Big Apple. It's simple arithmetic, says Raiola.

"If he were a resident of New York, he'd pay 8.97 percent New York state tax and another 3.78 percent New York City tax on top of that, not only on his wage income but also his endorsements and investment interest," he says. "In New Jersey, he only pays 8.97 percent."

"Jock tax" assessments to players by away-game jurisdictions are credited back to the player in their state of residence but only to the maximum rate in their home state. Players who live in the nine states without state income tax (Alaska, Florida, Nevada, New Hampshire, Tennessee, Texas, South Dakota, Washington and Wyoming) pay full fare on "jock tax" assessments, Raiola says.

The 'jock tax'

Taxing states and some municipalities impose a "jock tax" on visiting professional sports players in one of two ways. Most use the "duty days" method, which divides the player's total number of work days during the season by the number of days spent playing in the state. A few use the "games played" method, which divides the total number of games in the season by the number played in the state.

And just to give accountants gray hairs, no two states do it exactly alike.

"They all agree on the fraction; they just don't agree on what goes into the numerator and the denominator," says Losi. "Some jurisdictions treat practices and OTAs (organized team activities) as a working day. Others say that if you travel but don't play, that doesn't count."

All those state filings can make for one doorstop of a tax return.

"Thank God for e-filing," says Raiola. "In the old days, a player who lived in California not only had to file in all of those different states but was required to provide a copy of each state return with his federal return. The average NBA player could pay tax in 20 states."

The invisible hand of taxation

Taxes -- or the lack of them -- may also have had something to do with NBA all-star and 2010 free agent LeBron James' choice to play for the Miami Heat instead of the New York Knicks. Losi points to Florida's lack of a state income tax.

"That may have been one of the factors that led LeBron to choose Florida versus New York," says Losi. "Ten percent of his first contract was going to be the difference. For him, it was an extra 5 (percent to) 9 percent difference in tax. That's real money."

But Raiola says what works for a megastar such as LeBron may not be the best move for journeymen players.

"If you live in Florida, the taxes you pay to those other states is really taking money out of your pocket because you're not going to get a credit for those state taxes," he says. "If you live in a nontax state, you could easily end up paying state tax on 60 (percent) to 65 percent of your earned income from the team, even though you don't have a tax in the state you reside in."

Big money, bigger taxes overseas

Professional golfers, tennis players and other athletes who compete on the world stage often leave a third or more of their earnings in the local coffers.

"Whenever they play in foreign countries, they have to pay taxes in that jurisdiction, and the tax liability is much bigger than the 5 (percent) to 10 percent state tax. It's usually in the 30 (percent) to 40 percent bracket," says Losi. "Usually it's withheld in their prize money, and they can file a nonresident return if they think they might have a refund coming."

Because the United States is one of the few countries that taxes all personal income regardless of source, some pro sports stars who compete internationally actually have a financial disincentive to make their home in America.

"If they're (not U.S. citizens or green card holders) and they're not planning to stay here more than 183 days out of the year, from a tax perspective it absolutely makes sense to not live in the U.S.," says Losi. "All the foreign golfers who come here to play, if they want all of their foreign prize money and endorsement money to be taxed, all they have to do is hang out here for 183 days."

The Canadian tax treaty

The tax treaty between the United States and Canada preventing double taxation for those who cross the border for work can complicate tax planning for Canadian-based NBA, NHL and MLB players. (There are no NFL teams north of the border.)

This is because Canada's top tax rate of 48 percent is 13 percent higher than the U.S. maximum (35 percent), and Canada taxes individuals based on their residency while the U.S. taxes people based on citizenship.

"As a result, it's advantageous for Canadian players to move to the U.S.," says Losi. "That's what a lot of the NHL guys do. As long as you don't have Canadian-source income, you don't pay Canadian tax, you save 13 percent on every dollar, plus there are a lot more deductions and credits in the U.S."

While the reverse is often true for U.S. players signed to Canadian teams, Raiola sees a solution to help even out the tax discrepancy.

"Get a signing bonus from a Canadian team, which under the treaty is only taxed at 15 percent," he says. "Canada withholds 15 percent, you get a full credit, pay the 20 percent down here, and you're not penalized for playing for a Canadian-based team."

Did you know?

* Sports players can deduct most expenses associated with preseason training not reimbursed by the team including hotel, apartment or home rental, meals, transportation to the training location, and car rentals.
* Players must claim the value of gift bags and other "swag" they receive at awards ceremonies and celebrity events as income.
* Most NFL, NHL and MLB players are paid only during the season. While NBA players can choose to be paid seasonally or year-round, Raiola says 3 out of 4 opt to be paid year-round.
* Players can deduct the cost of fines imposed by their team or league. League fines typically go to charity.
* An agent's fee is fully deductible.
* Lockouts can cost a player plenty. The current NBA season, which was shortened by lockout from 82 to 66 games, resulted in a 20 percent hit on all player salaries. "For Kobe Bryant, that's $5 (million) or $6 million that he's never going to make back," says Raiola.
* All four leagues and the Professional Golfers' Association of America, or PGA, offer pension plans. In addition, the NFL offers a 401(k) with a 200 percent match, and the NBA offers a 401(k) with a 140 percent match.

6 Worst Home Upgrades For Your Money : #6

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 20:23:00 +0000

Upscale Garage Addition

Instead of cleaning out the garage, how much would you pay to have a new one built from scratch?

This time, it would have all the organizational built-ins, and a durable, easy-to-clean floor to ensure it would never be messy again. And windows for natural light.

Oh yeah, and you could store a couple of cars in there, too.

The price tag for a top-of-the-line detached two-car with all the trimmings is about $90,053, according to the report. You can expect to recover about 53.6 percent of that when you sell.

"This one is completely decked out on the inside," says Alfano. "It's a dream garage."

And that's likely some of the problem with recovering the value at resale. Says Keim, "You've got a very small target audience out there that wants an upscale garage."

6 Worst Home Upgrades For Your Money : #5

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Fri, 18 Nov 2011 19:53:00 +0000

Bathroom Addition

Unless you're a hermit who never entertains, you've probably wished for an extra bathroom now and then.

But bathroom additions require serious coin. For a moderately outfitted addition with synthetic stone or plastic laminate surfaces, figure parting with about $21,695, according to the Remodeling report. Go upscale, with finishes like premium marble or fine tile, and you can easily spend in the neighborhood of $40,710.

Either way, you get about the same return: 53 cents on the dollar. "In the buyer's mind, the additional bathroom isn't worth that additional $20,000 to $40,000," Keim says.

Investigate a less-expensive way to get the same result without flushing quite as much cash. While additions usually cost more, pros might be able to reconfigure your existing space to add a bathroom for less, Alfano says.

6 Worst Home Upgrades For Your Money : #4

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Tue, 15 Nov 2011 19:02:00 +0000

Upscale Master Suite Addition

Who doesn't want to wake up in a five-star-hotel-quality suite with an attached spa bathroom and a kitchenette that affords you coffee and pastries before facing the world?

Once you see the price tag, it won't just be the coffee keeping you up at night.

For a super-deluxe master suite addition — which adds square footage and uses only top-dollar materials — the average cost is about $232,062, according to the report.

That's 460 nights at a posh resort with enough left over to raid the minibar.

In years past, this project was "sort of a trend in vacation homes" that migrated to primary dwellings, Alfano says. Sellers can expect to recover about 52.7 percent at resale.

Your buyer can purchase a newer house with the same features as part of the original floor plan that "probably lays out better anyway," says Loren Keim, author of "How to Sell Your Home in Any Market."

So while the next buyer may appreciate your luxury accommodations (which could even tip their decision in your home's favor), chances are they won't want to pay the full tab for your remodel.

6 Worst Home Upgrades For Your Money : #3

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Thu, 10 Nov 2011 15:42:00 +0000

Sunroom Addition

Real estate agents will tell you that potential buyers want square footage, pristine condition and lots of light. So a brand-new room that has the word "sun" in it, it has to be great for resale value, right?

Not necessarily.

Your first clue: The word "addition" — which means expanding the footprint of your home — indicates that this is not a renovation for the faint of heart (or wallet). "It's one of the more expensive projects," Alfano says.

While it seems simple enough, the national average for a sunroom addition is $75,224, according to the report. Homeowners can expect to recoup about 48.6 percent when they sell.

That doesn't mean that adding a sunroom is always a bad move.

If your home needs another common area, a sunroom could be the answer, says Katie Severance, co-author of "The Complete Idiot's Guide to Selling Your Home." An addition is best considered in the context of the whole home, she says. "The doctor has to treat the whole patient. You have to look at the house and say 'What's out of balance?'"

6 Worst Home Upgrades For Your Money : #2

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Wed, 09 Nov 2011 21:46:00 +0000

Backup Power Generator

You see a backup generator and imagine all of the comforts no matter what the weather.

But potential buyers hailing from outside your local area may not share that vision. (And a handful of those who do might have watched too many zombie movies.)

On average, when homeowners have a heavy-duty backup power generator installed, they spend about $14,718, according to the report. Going with a slightly less expensive model or having a less complicated installation could cut the costs significantly, Alfano says.

Average amount of the price recovered at resale time: 48.5 percent.

6 worst home upgrades for your money: #1

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Tue, 08 Nov 2011 19:50:00 +0000

It's the magic phrase uttered by almost anyone who's ever considered the cost of home remodeling: "We'll get it back when we sell."

Unless you keep those projects practical, though, you might just be kidding yourself.

For example:

• Steel front door: Good.
• Master suite addition costing more than the average American home: Bad.

Every year, Remodeling magazine looks at the hottest home upgrades and renovations and calculates just how much owners get back with they sell.

Upkeep is more popular than upgrades these days, says Sal Alfano, editorial director for Remodeling. These are the projects that often recoup the biggest slice of expenses at resale. But prices and returns do vary regionally, he says.

Ever wonder what brings the lowest return when you plant that "for sale" sign? Think high-dollar, high-end and highly personalized add-ons that make you drool. Like a totally tricked-out garage built from the ground up. Or a super luxe master suite addition. Or the home office redo designed just for you.

Home Office Remodel

Want to get an idea what today's office-away-from-the-office looks like? Walk into Starbucks.

These days, a home office consists of a multiple-choice combination of wireless laptops, smartphones, PDAs and touch-screen tablets. And that worker bee might be toiling anywhere from a home patio or a favorite restaurant to a park bench.

The standard home office renovation, meanwhile — complete with plenty of built-in storage and high-tech wiring — is this year's biggest loser in the resale value sweepstakes. Nationally, homeowners spent an average of $28,888 and can expect to recoup about 45.8 percent at resale, according to the report.

Return on investment doesn't reflect your enjoyment of the space, Alfano says.

He offers two tips for home-office remodelers when they sell. First, opt for something that can be easily converted back into a bedroom or den for (or by) the next buyer.

Second, when you're selling, call it a study, den or hobby room. "There's lots of call for multipurpose space. Don't lock yourself into that one use," Alfano says. Don't use words that invoke images of actual work. Or the office.

Cuba legalizes sale, purchase of private property

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Fri, 04 Nov 2011 20:39:00 +0000

HAVANA (AP) — Cuba announced Thursday it will allow real estate to be bought and sold for the first time since the early days of the revolution, the most important reform yet in a series of free-market changes under President Raul Castro.

The law, which takes effect Nov. 10, applies to citizens living in Cuba and permanent residents only, according to a red-letter headline on the front page of Thursday's Communist Party daily Granma and details published in the government's Official Gazette.

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The law limits Cubans to owning one home in the city and another in the country, an effort to prevent the accumulation of large real estate holdings. It requires that all real estate transactions be made through Cuban bank accounts so that they can be better regulated, and says the transactions will be subject to bank commissions.

Sales will also be subject to an 8 percent tax on the assessed value of the property, paid equally by buyer and seller. In the case where Cubans exchange homes of equal value in a barter agreement, each side will pay 4 percent of the value of their home.

"This is a very big step forward. With this action the state is granting property rights that didn't exist before," said Philip J. Peters, a Cuba analyst at the Lexington Institute in Arlington, Virginia. "If you think about it from the point of view of a Cuban family, it converts their house from a place to live into a source of wealth or a source of collateral. It's an asset that can now be made liquid."

While the Gazette was available online, few Cubans have access to the Internet and most were waiting for the booklet to go on sale at kiosks around the country. A handwritten sign posted at Havana's main distribution center Thursday advised that the law booklet was not yet on sale.

On the streets of Havana, residents said they were thrilled by the news but anxious to see the fine print.

"This is going to help me because I have some money and now I will be able to buy a better house," said Oscar Palacios Delgado, a 68-year-old office maintenance worker, adding he hoped the government would enact other changes to make it easier for Cubans to find building materials for home repairs. "This law will benefit many Cubans."

Cuban exiles will not be allowed to purchase property on the island since they are not residents. Still, they will be able to send money to help relatives buy new homes, and there was speculation some might try to buy homes themselves through frontmen, something the government would likely try to prevent.

The change follows October's legalization of buying and selling cars, though with restrictions that still make it hard for ordinary Cubans to buy new vehicles.

Castro has also allowed citizens to go into business for themselves in a number of approved jobs — everything from party clowns to food vendors to accountants — and has pledged to streamline the state-dominated economy by eliminating half a million government workers.

Cuba's government employs more than 80 percent of the workers in the island's command economy, paying wages of just $20 a month in return for free education and health care, and nearly free housing, transportation and basic foods. Castro has said repeatedly that the system is not working since taking over from his brother Fidel in 2008, but he has vowed that Cuba will remain a socialist state.

Cubans have long bemoaned the ban on property sales, which took effect in stages over the first years after Fidel Castro came to power in 1959. In an effort to fight absentee ownership by wealthy landlords, Fidel enacted a reform that gave title to whoever lived in a home. Most who left the island forfeited their properties to the state.

Since no property market was allowed, the rules have meant that for decades Cubans could only exchange property through complicated barter arrangements, or through even murkier black-market deals where thousands of dollars change hands under the table, with no legal recourse if transactions go bad.

Some Cubans entered into sham marriages to make deed transfers easier. Others made deals to move into homes ostensibly to care for an elderly person living there, only to inherit the property when the person died.

The island's crumbling housing stock has meant that many are forced to live in overcrowded apartments with multiple generations crammed into a few rooms. Even divorce hasn't necessarily meant separation in Cuba, where estranged couples have often been forced to live together for years while they worked out alternative housing.

According to the Gazette, the new law will eliminate the need for approval from a state housing agency, meaning that from now on sales and exchanges will only need the seal of a notary.

Cubans will also now be allowed to inherit property from relatives without having to live in it first, and they will be able to take title of property of relatives or others who emigrate. Previously, such properties could be seized by the state.

Guidelines For Legalizing Existing Suites In Saskatoon

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Tue, 01 Nov 2011 17:37:00 +0000

Guidelines For Legalizing Existing Suites In Saskatoon

These guidelines reflect minimum acceptable standards

For the purpose of this guideline an “existing suite” is one that was developed and occupied prior to January1 1999. A letter of verification regarding the age of the suite, signed by the current owner will be required. Further proof of the age of the suite may be requested.

1. Access to each suite must be gained without passage through a furnace room.

2. Dwelling units must be separated from each other (vertically and horizontally) by fire separation having a fire resistance rating of not less than 30 minutes.

3. The furnace room must be separated ( if the second dwelling unit is located in the basement ) from all adjacent areas by 30 min frie rating ( walls only ). A 45mm thick solid core door with 38mm solid wood jam complete with a latch and closer is required.

4. Interior exit stairs ( and exit corridor ) must be separated from the remainder of the building by a frie separation having a fire resistance rating of no less then 30 minutes.

5. Doors and door frames from the common exit into the dwelling units must have 20 minute frie resistance rating and be equipped with a latch and closer. (A 45mm thick solid core door with 38mm solid wood jam is acceptable).

6. Rise and run, width and headroom of stairs must reasonably conform to N.B.C and stairs must be provided with handrail/guardrail.

7. Ceiling height in exit corridor cannot be less then 1.95m. Projections or obstructions cannot reduce the headroom clearance beyond 1.80m

8.Ceiling height in all rooms of the second suite cannot be less then 1.95m over 75% of the ares. Projections or obstructions cannot reduce the headroom clearance beyond 1.80m.

9. Hard wired smoke alarms must be installed in each dwelling unit in accordance with the current National Building Code.

10. A smoke detector must be installed in the furance room ( if the second dwelling unit is located in the basement ) and must be interconnected with the smoke alarms on the main level.

11. The second dwelling unit must have at least two openable windows to the outside ( one must be in each bedroom ). Bedroom windows must have an unobstructed open protion having a min area of 0.35m2 (3.8ft2) with no dimension less then 380mm (15in).

12. All bathrooms must have mechanical or natural ventilation.

13. All bathrooms must be fully enclosed and have a lockable door.

14. Combustion air is requred into the furnace room.

Two sets of drawings will be required upon application for a building permit. All 14 items listed ubove must be included on the plan. The drawings must identify the size of new and existing windows and show the location of all cupboards, stoves, refrigerators and plumbing fixtures. Type and location of smoke alarms must be identified.

If you need more info got to The City Of Saskatoons Website http://www.saskatoon.ca/

Saskatoon Selling Price

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Thu, 27 Oct 2011 16:54:00 +0000

The average selling price in September trended down slightly to $311,057 from $315,774 (August). It was just over $1000.00 less than last September making it the second highest September in the history of Saskatoon.

Saskatoon Sales

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Tue, 25 Oct 2011 19:26:00 +0000

The number of Sales in Saskatoon dipped from 415 in August to 345 in September. This is par for the course when we look at sales over the last ten years. There has only been one year in the last ten when there were more sales in September than in August and that came in 2008 when there were 2 more sales in the month of September (241). A big positive is that 345 sales in September is the most sales that September has seen in the last ten years. As with the listings the # of sales should continue to trend down as winter approaches.

Out of Town Listings Rise in September

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 20:41:00 +0000

For the third straight year there was more listings in September than in the previous month of August. September was also the second highest month for new listings that we have seen in 2012. The assumption is that people are wanting to get moved into the city before the snow flies.

What to expect in October: A large slow down in the number of new listings is expected in October as people hunker down for the winter.

Out of town sale price

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 21:29:00 +0000

Listings Slightly Down in September

noreply@blogger.com (thomas_miller) — Mon, 17 Oct 2011 21:18:00 +0000

Only once in the past five years have there been more listings in September than in August. That was in 2008 when September boasted strong 831 listings to Augusts 795. With 604 listings this past September it was also the most listings Sept. has seen since 2008 and the second highest amount of listings for September in the last 10 years. October should continue to trend down as winter nears. Only once in the last ten years has there been more listings in October than in September. That came in 2006 when September had 376 new listings which was followed by an October that saw 378 new listings.

What to expect in October: A gradual/annual slow down