Calgary Real Estate Blog - April, 2011

REALTOR.ca BlackBerry App is Now Available to Download!

CREA has now released the BlackBerry version of its popular REALTOR.CA app that allows anyone to search for houses across Canada - including the Calgary Real Estate Board MLS® System - from their mobile device and connect directly to the listing agent. It uses the devices built-in GPS to find nearby listings for sale and shows new listings in the neighbourhood and open houses.

The iPhone version of the REALTOR.ca app is incredibly popular and has already been downloaded almost 120,000 times in 2011.

To easily install the REALTOR.ca app, you can scan this QR code from BlackBerry AppWorld or search for “Realtor.ca” in BlackBerry AppWorld!

Further download and set up instructions can be found here.

REALTOR.ca APP Features for BlackBerry® 

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National home sales hold steady in March

OTTAWA – April 15th, 2011 – According to statistics released today by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), national resale housing activity held steady in March 2011 compared to February.

Seasonally adjusted national home sales activity in March came in one tenth of a percentage point above levels for the previous month, with stable demand in most large urban centres.

With national sales in each of the first three months of 2011 running close to their five- or ten-year monthly averages, seasonally adjusted national sales activity in the first quarter of 2011 was up 4.5 per cent from levels recorded in the fourth quarter of last year, and reached the highest quarterly level in a year.

Most of the quarterly increase in seasonally adjusted…

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First-time buyers in major Canadian markets move to get in ahead of higher interest rates, says RE/MAX

Kelowna, BC (April 5, 2011) --  Driven by the threat of higher interest rates down the road, first-time buyers are contributing to strong upward momentum in residential housing markets across the country, according to a report released today by RE/MAX.

The RE/MAX First-Time Buyers Report, highlighting trends and developments in nineteen major Canadian centres, found that low interest rates and balanced market conditions have provided significant impetus in 2011, particularly at lower price points.  Just over 30 per cent of markets are reporting sales in excess of 2010 levels as a result, while almost 70 per cent have experienced an upswing in average price.  Leading the country in terms of percentage increases in the number of homes sold are Western…

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Calgary Real Estate News (CREN) April 1, 2011

We've updated the Calgary Real Estate Marketing section of our website to include a copy of our advertisement from the March 18, 2011 issue of Calgary Real Estate Board News.

CREN® is published by and distrbuted weekly with the Calgary Herald! It is available for pick-up in over 1250 locations through Calgary and the surrounding communities - at Co-op, Safeway and Sobey's grocery stores, financial institutes, LRT stations, restaurants, hotels, real estate offices, and many other locations.

Buying a home may be the largest and most complex financial transaction you ever undertake. If you’re ready to buy a home, wouldn’t you prefer to work with the most qualified real estate professional you can find? Jeff Mikolajow is an Accredited Buyer's…

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RE/MAX Endorses Organ Donor Awareness

Designated by the Canadian Society of Transplantation, National Organ Donor Awareness Week is upcoming April 17-23, 2011. RE/MAX of Western Canada proudly continues promotional efforts for the 7th year by spreading the word on the need for organ donors through paid advertising and social media messages which will run in the month of April in Western Canada.

"It is our hope that our commitment to raising awareness about the shortage of organ donors will encourage the public to register their decision or sign a donor card", said Elton Ash, Regional Executive Vice President, RE/MAX of Western Canada. "If we do our part as an organization, we can help set another record-breaking year for organ transplants in 2011 and for many years to come."

According…

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Calgary's Housing Market Recovery Driven by Single Family Homes

Calgary’s NW sector boasted the largest gains in single family homes sales in the first quarter

Calgary, April 1, 2011 – According to figures released today by CREB® (Calgary Real Estate Board), Calgary Metro sales remained at levels similar to the first quarter of 2010.  Improved sales in the single family market have largely been offset by declining sales in the condominium market, indicating that the gradual recovery will continue to be driven by the single family market for the better portion of the year.

Single family home sales in the first quarter of 2011 were 3,309, a 4 per cent increase over the first quarter of 2010. The combination of stable home prices, low interest rates and year-over-year improvements in employment are the primary…

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