Posts Tagged ‘Human Interest’

How to Hold an Online Garage Sale

Sunday, April 3rd, 2011

With Spring’s arrival, you may be thinking about emptying closets and ridding yourself of unwanted items. And if you’re thinking about moving, one important step is to get rid of clutter that may have accumulated around your home.

Organizing a traditional garage sale can be a hassle when you have to gather all your unwanted items, tag inventory, post neighborhood signs and online ads, and then spend your weekend haggling prices. If you don’t have that much time, consider holding your garage sale online.

Swap boards, donation directories and even online auction sites make it easy to do. Craigslist, Kijiji, and eBay are the best known of these sites, but there are many to choose from. What’s more, eBay once estimated that the average household has $2,000 worth of unused goods waiting to be sold. You may already be thinking of a few items that should find a new home casino online before you do.

Here’s how to hold a successful online garage sale:

Plan—or Not – The beauty of an online garage sale is that you don’t need to gather all your unwanted belongings at once. Instead you can post them online as soon as you decide to get rid of them.

Price It Right – Search online to learn prices of comparable items. Remember: if you don’t want to lug that item to your next home, it may be worth selling at any price. But if you’re still attached to it, you can set the price a little higher.

Show and Tell – Multiple photos are important—they draw attention to your item over similar ones. Also use them to answer anticipated questions. If you’re selling a piece of furniture, for example, include close-ups of unique details, dings and the upholstery pattern. Also provide detailed written descriptions.

Deliver the Goods – If you’re selling locally and have a vehicle big enough to hold your item, offer to deliver for a small fee. If you’re auctioning the item, you can add a flat shipping fee to the price, or allow buyers to compute and pay for shipping costs.

By getting rid of unwanted items through an online garage sale, you’ll have fewer items to pack when you decide to make a move.

Please contact us any time if you have any questions.

Calgary Real Estate Board 2011 Market Forecast

Monday, January 24th, 2011

The Calgary Real Estate Board has released their market forecast for 2011.  Below I have highlighted some key areas you may find of interest.

MLS RE-SALE HOMES

MLS RE-SALE HOMES 2009 2010 2011 Forecast Change Forecaster
Single Family Sales 14,400 12,095 14,500 19.9% CREB
Single Family Listings 22,459 25,709 25,000 -1.6% CREB
Single Family Average Price $442,327 $461,144 $480,000 4.1% CREB
Condo Sales 6,328 5,181 6,000 15.8% CREB
Condo Listings 10,323 11,423 10,000 -12.5% CREB
Condo Average Price $283,734 $289,697 $295,900 1.8% CREB
Town sales 3,943 3,525 4,000 13.5% CREB
Town Listings 8502 8828 9,000 2.0% CREB
Town Average Price $352,704 $359,327 $368,500 2.6% CREB

 

New Homes

New Homes 2009 2010 2011 Forecast Change Forecaster
Starts – Single Family 4,200 5,600 6,000 7% CREB
Starts – Multi Family  1,350 3,600 4,000 11% CREB

ECONOMIC INDICATORS

Economic Indicators 2009 2010 2011 Forecast Change Forecaster
GDP -2.8% 2.7% 4.15 1.4% Govt of Alberta
Calgary Net Migration 12,920 -4,154 10,000 340% CREB
1 Year Mortgage Rate 4.05% 3.83% 3.5% -.33% CMHC
5 Year Mortgage Rate 5.5% 5.75% 5.75% 0 CMHC
Oil Price (USD) $60/BBl $79.BBL $90/BBL 13.9% Govt of Alberta
Gas Price (USD) $3.75/NMBTU $4.00/NMBTU $6.00/NMBTU 50% Govt of Alberta
Calgary Employment Growth -1.4% 1.3% 2.0% .7% City of Calgary

 

The entire package with detailed explainations is availiable at CREB FORECAST. COM

If you have specific questions about this report or about the Market today please contact me directly.

Brought to you by Gord Piper and Associates.