I'm a first time home buyer... I need to ask you anything

[Clarkey]

Originally Posted by Winsor_Pilates

I see your point but it's not a conflict of interest. The realtor has a duty to look out for your best interest and that means happily walking away from homes that fail inspections.
As Troutman has pointed out, it's a situation that occurs with dishonest realtors who just want to get the deal done.
A good realtor would want to work with good inspectors who actually do a great job and be happy to lose a deal if the home fails inspection. If I as a realtor know a building has issues, there's no way I'm trying to get my clients to buy it.
I'd use my experience as a realtor to find the best inspector I can find, who does the most thorough job and use them because they're of value to my clients.

I see why you're hesitant to do this, but again it comes back to you not being able to trust your realtor, more so then a "conflict of interest".

I think many realtor's who feel that a sale is in the bag do not want to do more work because the home inspector revealed a problem with the house. It's just typical lazy human nature, not exclusive to real estate agents. A hard working longer term thinking agent would see past the short term inconvenience and realize that helping the customer get a good property is the moral thing to do and will result in more business down the line. Unfortunately, many agents are on the left side of the intelligence curve and probably don't think this far.

[Shazam]

Originally Posted by Winsor_Pilates

I see your point but it's not a conflict of interest. The realtor has a duty to look out for your best interest and that means happily walking away from homes that fail inspections.
As Troutman has pointed out, it's a situation that occurs with dishonest realtors who just want to get the deal done.
A good realtor would want to work with good inspectors who actually do a great job and be happy to lose a deal if the home fails inspection. If I as a realtor know a building has issues, there's no way I'm trying to get my clients to buy it.
I'd use my experience as a realtor to find the best inspector I can find, who does the most thorough job and use them because they're of value to my clients.

I see why you're hesitant to do this, but again it comes back to you not being able to trust your realtor, more so then a "conflict of interest".

Freakonomics would like a word with you.

[troutman]

Realtors should not be allowed to represent both sides in a transaction. That is a complete conflict of interest IMO. Seller wants the highest price, buyer wants the lowest price - how could their interests be more opposite?

[Dan02]

Originally Posted by troutman

Realtors should not be allowed to represent both sides in a transaction. That is a complete conflict of interest IMO. Seller wants the highest price, buyer wants the lowest price - how could their interests be more opposite?

I've never understood why people let realtors do that, because if i recall they have to disclose it and if my realtor suggested he represent both sides i'd tell him to take a hike.

Maybe if the realtor agreed to half commission??

[Winsor_Pilates]

Originally Posted by troutman

Realtors should not be allowed to represent both sides in a transaction. That is a complete conflict of interest IMO. Seller wants the highest price, buyer wants the lowest price - how could their interests be more opposite?

Agreed.
It's far more tabooed than it used to be, and agents have to disclose that they are giving "limited dual-agency" instead of full agency. Obviously trying to get the buyer the best price, and seller the most money is total conflict.

[pepper24]

The best advice that worked for me was living below my means. I know too many folks that bought too big and expensive of house and are now paying the price.
Do 20 somethings really need $750K homes?

My wife and I were approved for nearly $1MM based on the equity of 2 condos we each owned before we met and sold plus having decent careers. We ended up buying a house for only $400K. Our realtor and mortgage broker thought we were nuts as "things were booming" but it's turned out great since things have cooled down. We have now added a little daughter so the 1800 sq feet plus basement and decent sized yard is plenty for 3 of us and there's more space if we want to add more to our family. The house is also paid off and our cost of living is super cheap. Recession, lay-offs, market crashed don't scare us vs. if we would have been stupid and bought a million dollar home we'd be worried.

[Jayems]

Went looking around today. Some really good deals building, but you have go deep south. $320,000 + for a two-story with a attached garage in Cranston. But I think we've decided that deep south just isn't for us, although we saw a real keeper in Evergreen right by the new school they're putting in.

Refocusing on SW (Westhills area, Cougar Ridge etc) and NW (Tuscany, Royal Oak etc) to try and get a better idea of price range.

[Thor]

Put my house in mckenzie up for sale 4 days ago, up on mls yesterday and had 1 person check out the home and put in an offer, he offered 30k less than list and this home is at fair market value.

Uggh, I hate low balling.

[Jayems]

What can anyone tell me about the neighbourhood of New Brighton and building a home there?

[Mike Oxlong]

Originally Posted by Jayems

What can anyone tell me about the neighbourhood of New Brighton and building a home there?

It's a nice area. I lived in McKenzie Towne for a few years so I am somewhat familiar with it. You are right by Mckenzie Towne and all the shopping, the New Brighton Club is a nice feature. My only concern with New Brighton is that it is SO close to the landfill. The further south you are the better but it's something to consider anyways.

I'll put in a plug for Auburn Bay. It is just south of McKenzie Towne and across from Cranston so you are going way south again, but it is a nice lake community. If you are planning on having kids in the future it is fantastic for the kids to be able to play hockey, skate, tobogan in the winter, and swim, fish, boat, play tennis in the summer. Even if you aren't having kids it's great for you to be able to do all that.

Downside for Auburn Bay is because it is stil relatively new there aren't many services down here. You have to go to Cranston/McKenzie Towne to get anything. That will change but it isn't here yet.

[Draug]

Originally Posted by Jayems

Refocusing on SW (Westhills area, Cougar Ridge etc) and NW (Tuscany, Royal Oak etc) to try and get a better idea of price range.

I'll put in a plug for Glamorgan. It is the community between 37th St SW and Sarcee, just east of Westhills.

We just sold our house that we lived in since 2002. We really like Glamorgan, especially how it is central to so much. The honest 15 minute commute to the west edge of downtown is incredible. Stay north of 45th ave to make sure the Grey Eagle Casino has no impact.

If you are the kind of person that would consider an older home (built mid 50's to 60's), check out Glamorgan. Find one that has been totally reno'd and updated. They also have nice big yards. The prices will range from $350K to $500K depending on square feet and amount of recent renovations.

[ken0042]

Originally Posted by Jayems

What can anyone tell me about the neighbourhood of New Brighton and building a home there?

There was an old thread about it a while back:
http://forum.calgarypuck.com/showthread.php?t=42261

Also a past post of mine talking about the dump and the wastewater ponds:

Originally Posted by ken0042

Living in Prestwick you are given some protection due to the prevailing winds; which are normally north, or west. The odd exception is sometimes from the south. You would need an NE wind to notice it. Plus as I mentioned in another thread, there are wastewater ponds north of 126 ave which can bring up quite the funk too.

And comments like yours, and my own experiences are what the builders are counting on. You in Prestwick say "I don't notice it." Me in Copperfield I say "I don't notice it." And although I am in the potential path of the winds, I am also almost 5km away.

I'm not saying that New Brighton always stinks, or it is all bad. But OP- be sure you have a look at where you are building- in detail. Look it up on Google maps and compare it to other distances. If your street doesn't exist yet, ask one of your buddies who does backpack camping to borrow their GPS (not a car GPS), and you can plug in your co-ordinates into Google maps.

Also look at everything else in the neighbourhood. How far are you from where the LRT tracks are going to be? How about the station? I checked that closely- I am far enough from the station to not have to deal with some of the bad elements you get, but close enough that I can walk to it.

One other thing I would look at- see if builders will offer you some sort of price protection; in case the market takes another down turn.

The bottom line is you aren't crazy to buy right now- but you would be crazy to not take the time to make sure you make the right choice.

[Antithesis]

Originally Posted by Jedi Ninja

Just to echo this, this is huge. If you don't have kids yet, you may not have thought about this yet, but schools can play a big role in the value of your property even if you don't have kids yourself.

This, BTW, is something you may want to look closely at if you are considering Cougar Ridge. I believe those kids get bussed to Wildwood, which isn't an awful school, but it's not great either. (Ranked 409 of 713 by the Fraser Institute). FYI, this isn't a knock against the teachers at Wildwood, but is more a reflection of the demographics of the student there.

Not sure what the situation in Tuscany is.

http://www.fraserinstitute.org/repor...ce/alberta.htm

That's all well and good, but don't hang your hat on those numbers either. The numbers that get reported to the public are so far from a clear (or fair, really) indication of things that they are almost meaningless. I don't want to get into another teacher debate or further derail this thread so I'll stop there.

If you want a true idea of how a school is, check out its website, every school in the CBE has one. Speak with parents of school-aged children in the area. Go to the school and ask to wander around a bit. As closed-off as schools may seem to be these days, if you make a point to let them know you are coming and check in with the office you'll be fine. Even if you like the area and the school isn't for you, the CBE is renowned for its number and variety of alternate programming offered throughout the city. Maybe something like that would be more to your taste. Let me know if I can help with that any further.

[alltherage]

Hey I have a question about this. My wife and I, property virgins, are looking at a 1400 square foot home in Woodbine (25-30yrs old I think?) and I am wondering, what can I realistically expect to pay in utilities each month?

Can anyone give me a rough idea?

[CM ONE]

I lived in a 1600 square foot bungalow in Evergreen and utilities through Enmax Easymax were roughly $300 +/- per month. Gas/Electric/Water/Sewer etc.

[Antithesis]

I would say our utilities average about $225-250 per month, 1100 square foot house, built in 2005.

[algernon]

Originally Posted by alltherage

Hey I have a question about this. My wife and I, property virgins, are looking at a 1400 square foot home in Woodbine (25-30yrs old I think?) and I am wondering, what can I realistically expect to pay in utilities each month?

Can anyone give me a rough idea?

Originally Posted by CM ONE

I lived in a 1600 square foot bungalow in Evergreen and utilities through Enmax Easymax were roughly $300 +/- per month. Gas/Electric/Water/Sewer etc.

The home in Evergreen is likely more efficient, as it would've been built with 2x6 and likely had a more attention paid to air sealing/leakage.

That said, other factors may reduce the heating load (orientation to the sun, trees shading the home, sheltered from prevailing winds, etc).

So, yeah, $3-500/ month probably. Can the vendor provide a year's worth of utility bills?

[Fobby]

I live in a 1700 sq ft 2 storey home. For the 2 of us, the utilities in the summer is around 175. In the winter time it's around 350.

[alltherage]

Originally Posted by algernon

The home in Evergreen is likely more efficient, as it would've been built with 2x6 and likely had a more attention paid to air sealing/leakage.

That said, other factors may reduce the heating load (orientation to the sun, trees shading the home, sheltered from prevailing winds, etc).

So, yeah, $3-500/ month probably. Can the vendor provide a year's worth of utility bills?

Not sure I like that one as much as the other answers. Yeah, we know the sellers... not super well mind you, but they are family friends. I suppose we could just ask them.

[Shazam]

Originally Posted by alltherage

Hey I have a question about this. My wife and I, property virgins, are looking at a 1400 square foot home in Woodbine (25-30yrs old I think?) and I am wondering, what can I realistically expect to pay in utilities each month?

Can anyone give me a rough idea?

What's the roof insulation like? If it's R12, then you can expect bills in the $600 range in winter.