RE/MAX Real Estate placed 5th in total transactions – the highest ranking Western Canadian RE/MAX brokerage, and 27th in sales volume – which is a significant number when you consider the average Edmonton home sale price is somewhat lower than almost all of the other ranking cities in the report (Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary etc).  You can view the reports here: http://goo.gl/uanzV

The brokerage represents clients throughout the Greater Edmonton region and it’s Associates play key roles in many industry and community organizations.  RE/MAX as a whole has over 40% marketshare in the area.

To speak to one of our outstanding agents call us at 780-462-5000.

With the survey expanded by 50 brokerages this year, RE/MAX picked up 24 more slots than last year. RE/MAX brokerages qualified for 137 of the 200 placings in the 2011 REAL Trends Canadian 200.

Combined, the 250 brokerages closed 472,564 ends in 2011. RE/MAX brokerages accounted for 59% of them. More than 97% of the brokerages are franchised. Only eight are independents.

Here are the total number of brokerages from each franchise that made the cut for the REAL Trends Canadian 250:

•RE/MAX: 161
•Royal LePage: 23
•Coldwell Banker: 21
•Keller Williams: 12
•Century 21: 6
•Exit: 6
•Prudential: 5
•Sutton: 5
•Sotheby’s: 1
Although qualifying is based on transaction ends, the survey also includes a ranking of the top 250 brokerages by sales volume. RE/MAX is represented by 158 brokerages, generating $89 billion (52%) of the total $171 billion.

RE/MAX Affiliates may share this article, provided they do not charge for it and this notice is included. All other rights reserved.

2012 Final Table

On Saturday April 28 our 3^rd annual Celebrity Poker Tourney in support of the Stollery was held at the Yellowhead Casino here in Edmonton.  With 71 entries it was our largest event to date and we were able to exceed last year’s total with a fantastic $5,850 being raised for the Stollery Hospital here in Edmonton!  Congratulations to this year’s winner Randy Moore who edged out Henry Zurch in a hotly contested heads up duel.

A BIG thanks go out to the celebrities who came out this year to help out – Daintre Christensen of Global TV, Matthieu Bertrand of the Edmonton Eskimos and John Barry local media personality and chef extraordinare all pitched in their time to make the event a great experience!  New this year we also had the previous winners from year’s one and two be bounty prizes as well.  Here is a rundown of the Bounty winners as well as a recap on the final table:

Bounty Winners

Hadi Fayad eliminated Larry Westergard who was playing on behalf of title sponsor RE/MAX Real Estate.

Jay McGough eliminated Yvonne Brochu our Year 1 Champion.

Randy Moore eliminated Matthieu Bertrand of the Edmonton Eskimos.

Dean Jakula eliminated both Daintre Christensen and Cam Morrison our Year 2 Champion.

Final Table

Here are the final table results in order they were knocked out:

11.          Chris Stanley

10.          Ric Mah

9.            Shawn Jakula

8.            Nina Redding

7.            Dennis Todyruik

6.            Carl Phin

5.            Morgan Lindmark

4.            Jay McGough

3.            Hadi Fayad

2.            Henry Zurch

1.            Randy Moore

Congratulations once again to Randy and a BIG THANK YOU to everyone who helped make this such a great event by their attendance and an especially heartfelt thank you to our sponsors:

RE/MAX Real Estate – Southeast

North American Construction Group

The Mortgage Girls Jackie and Martene Woodward

TD Canada Trust and Steve Vidal

The Ranch

Union Hall

Casino Yellowhead

Addetto Men’s Wear

Servus Credit Union

See you next year!

The event is only a small part in an overall corporate affiliation with the Children’s Miracle Network that we have proudly been a part of since 1992 and stretches across Canada and North America. Since then RE/MAX affiliates have helped raise over $44 Million in Canada and over $107 Million in North America – an amazing number!
While events such as the Poker tournament are a great ancillary source of these amounts; a great deal of these monies are raised by individual Associates contributing directly from each real estate transaction they take part in. In fact, I am very proud to say that Edmonton has the distinction of having the title of “Miracle City” – 100% of our Associates contribute to the Stollery and its great work on behalf of the children of Northern Alberta.
I hope that you can come out and join us on April 28th at the Yellowhead casino to help us help the kids! The entry fee is $200 with a 2pm start time. Give Melanie Boles or Larry Westergard a call at 780-462-5000 for more information or to register! Visit our Facebook page for more info http://goo.gl/aM6jA

ComeBackKid 2012 Cananda rebranded

Single Family Homes
The first quarter of 2012 has started off a little faster than expected in almost every area of the city. Overall, the single family market saw almost 200 more unit sales – just over an 11% increase. The Southeast experienced the greatest year over year increase (24.4%) followed by the Northwest (22.7%). The North (-.43%) and the Southwest (1.43%) saw the least change from 2011, but even the worst performing region can be said to have held its own (229 vs 230 sales).
For the most part prices have held steady when compared to end of 1st quarter 2011. While there is a greater degree of variance across regions, city-wide saw just a 0.2% rise in sale price. The South region saw the greatest price increase (11.5%) while the Southwest and Northwest saw slight decreases in year over year sale prices (-1.6% & -1.7% respectively).
Condos
News wasn’t as good for the condo market; overall there were almost 50 less sales in the 1st quarter 2012 as compared to 2011 – a decrease of just over 5%. The most significant decreases in activity were seen in the Southeast and Northeast (-12 & -28%).
While overall, prices saw a small year over year decrease (-.7%), there was a great deal of variance across the city; from a 23% decrease in the Northwest, to a 9.5% increase in the west end.

Looking at the overall health of the Edmonton real estate market, I think it is safe to say that it is remaining stable. There are some concerns that the sooner than expected surge in sales activity has been driven artificially by the various “limited time only” interest rate deals promoted by various financial institutions in January and February. As we get into the next few months it will be interesting to see if the transaction numbers were affected by Buyers leaping into the market sooner than normal because of this. In 2010, we saw a similar scenario develop when the Federal government announced changes to lending policies for CMHC and changed the amortization length on mortgages as well. That year we saw a similar spike in activity early in the year that could not sustain itself and as homeowners brought their properties on the market in the Spring, the expected pool of Buyers they were counting on had already come and gone. For 2012, while this danger still exists, it is hoped that an improved job market will continue to keep Buyers active in the market to chew into the Spring listings – April will go a long way to finding out how the balance of the year plays out.
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An important fact to remember is that all real estate is local – City-wide statistics are only a general indicator of the overall market health. For a more detailed look at your neighborhood and how it compares to the City as a whole call one of our experts at 780-462-5000!

Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas and all the best over the whole of the holiday season!

Warmest regards,

The Associates and Staff at RE/MAX Real Estate – Southeast

We are only open on Friday December 23rd from 9 – 12:00.

We will be closed Saturday December 24th through Tuesday December 27th.

Wednesday and Thursday we are open 9 am – 430 pm and Friday December 30th 9 – 12:30 pm

Closed Saturday December 31 through Monday January 2.

Any of our Associates can be reached via the answering service by calling 780-462-5000.

Have a GREAT Holiday Season!

The forecast report looked at two real estate statistics – Average overall residential sale price (single family home and condo) and total residential unit sales – the two most common indicators of housing health.  The year over year comparison shows that 2011 was slightly off from 2010, down 1% from $328,803 to $326,000 while transactions were up 2.7% (16,850 vs 16,403) from 2010.  Looking forward, the report sees both sales and price as being flat, with little or no change to either.

What does that really mean for the consumer and why is steady as she goes not that bad of a thing?  Taking a longer look (a 5 year outlook) we see that the Edmonton market has recovered well from the housing downturn experienced in 2008/09, while we haven’t gotten back to the prices or activity of 2006/07, we are seeing that real estate activity is relatively robust –  it is better to think of the current environment as the new normal rather than a downturn.  Pre-boom (before 2006) it was common to see very small to negligible changes in these two areas, Edmonton was a much more consistent market when compared to its sister to the south Calgary which again appears to be on a bit of a roller coaster of activity again.  Edmonton’s prices, when compared to other major cities (Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary) are still relatively affordable and when compared to other cities with lower average prices (Montreal, Quebec City, Hamilton) has one key bonus – it has a growing job market!  Over 2011, Edmonton saw the largest increase in job creation in the country and has experienced positive migration again this year.   Interest rates continue to remain low and there doesn’t seem to be rush to bump them higher.  These facts mean that the Edmonton housing market appeals to two different ends of the market – the investor looking for a good return on investment AND families looking for a home of their own.

It would appear that the Edmonton market could see significant upswing based on these factors, yet, there are some overburdening shadows that are keeping a lid on some of this for now.  Exterior market forces such as the overall concerns of the global economy and a lot of the bad news still filtering in through Alberta’s economic shield continues to keep many consumers on the sidelines with a “wait and see” approach to housing decisions.  This is a principle reason that 2012 will not see much statistical change.  Once this caution and fear begins to disapate then we are most likely to see activity to ramp up in the Edmonton area and prices begin to re-adjust once more.

Slow and Steady, it doesn’t make headlines but it does get you where you need to in the end!

while residential values expected to once again set new records, says RE/MAX

Kelowna, BC (December 6, 2011) – Canadian residential real estate defied conventional logic and

outperformed expectations in 2011, posting another solid year of housing activity virtually across the board.  The trend is expected to carry forward into 2012 as Canadians continue to demonstrate their faith in homeownership, despite concerns over the European debt crisis and its impact on the global economy, according to a report released today by RE/MAX. The RE/MAX Housing Market Outlook 2012 examined trends and developments in 26 major markets across the country. Eighty-eight per cent (23/26) anticipated average price increases by year-end 2011—with percentage hikes ranging from one to 16 per cent. The forecast for 2012 shows the upward trend moderating, but still ahead of 2011 figures.  Overall home sales are expected to remain on par or ahead of last year’s levels in 85 per

cent (22/26) of markets in 2011—including Saskatoon with a year-over-year percentage increase of 13 per cent and an eight per cent uptick in Calgary, Winnipeg, Hamilton-Burlington and Sudbury. Almost half of Canadian markets will match the 2011 performance, while the remainder should post increases ranging from one to five per cent next year.  By year-end, an estimated 460,000 homes are expected to change hands, up three per cent from the 447,010 units reported in 2010. Sales are expected to climb one per cent to 464,500 units in 2012. The value of a Canadian home is set to climb to $363,000 by year-end—an increase of seven per cent over the $339,030 posted one year ago. By year-end 2012, the average price in Canada is forecast to appreciate two per cent to $371,000.

“What 2011 proves is that real estate continues to have momentum,” says Elton Ash, Regional Executive Vice President, RE/MAX of Western Canada. “The economic underpinnings support ongoing demand, particularly as job creation efforts continue and unemployment rates edge down further. Nationally, we remain on an upward track, and the confidence consumers have demonstrated in housing over the past decade will prove well founded once again next year. The rising belief in homeownership is key, especially among Generation X and Y—some of whom are making their moves sooner. Boomers and retirees are changing, too. They’re healthier and more active, with longer life expectancy. Overall, we’re seeing an extension of the homeownership cycle, and it’s great news for housing going forward.”

Improvement in both provincial and local economies, especially during the second half of 2012, should serve to further stimulate homebuying activity. Calgary, Saskatoon, and Halifax-Dartmouth will likely lead the country in unit sales in 2012, each with a projected increase of five per cent. Regina, Greater Toronto, Saint John, Moncton, and St. John’s anticipate a three per cent increase in home sales next year.

 “Canadian consumers are intent on making their moves now, in advance of higher housing values,” says

Michael Polzler, Executive Vice President, RE/MAX Ontario-Atlantic Canada. “Housing markets are not

impervious to the impact of economic concerns moving forward, but real estate has proven its resilience time and again—2011 was case in point, as residential real estate markets actually experienced an upswing in the volatile third and final quarters, instead of responding to economic concerns both here and abroad with a retreat in sales and prices.”

While tighter supply levels contributed to steady price appreciation in most major markets across Canada this year, an increase in inventory more in line with years previous should ease upward pressure on average price in the year ahead. The highest appreciation is expected in Regina, where values are forecast to increase eight per cent, followed by Greater Toronto, Halifax-Dartmouth, and St, John’s—each posting a five per cent gain. Overall, 81 per cent of the markets examined are forecast to set new records for average price next year. Noteworthy milestones include Greater Vancouver, which will break the $800,000 threshold, as well as Regina and Kitchener-Waterloo, which will reach the $300,000 mark.

“While prices will remain on the upswing, buyers will benefit from greater selection moving forward,” says Sylvain Dansereau, Executive Vice President, RE/MAX Quebec. “Stability or modest growth will characterize sales activity, while GDP moves forward at a more muted pace in 2012. Whether markets will meet or potentially exceed projections will hinge largely on consumer confidence. An unexpected call for interest rate hikes could also serve to bolster sales.”

Other highlights include:

• Population growth and immigration are major factors expected to prop-up housing demand and

household formation in the coming years. Since 2000, Canada’s population has experienced double digit

growth of 11 per cent. By 2031, over 42 million people are expected to call Canada home.

• Investment will also continue in Canada’s major centres, with income producing properties at the top

of the most wanted list. Low vacancy rates and stock market volatility reinvigorated this segment of

the market in 2011 and the very same factors are forecast to influence sales moving forward.

• Condominiums are expected to gain an increasing share of the marketplace, particularly in Western

Canada and Ontario. A focus on higher density urban growth is impacting purchasing patterns and

introducing new, affordable options—critical to the attainability of homeownership as price continue

to move upward.

• Housing stock in major Canadian centres will improve as municipalities focus on redevelopment and

revitalization.

RE/MAX is Canada’s leading real estate organization with over 18,500 sales associates situated throughout its more than 700 independently-owned and operated offices in Canada. The RE/MAX network, now in its 38^th year, is a global real estate system operating in 80 countries, with over 6,200 independently-owned offices and over 89,000 member sales associates. RE/MAX realtors lead the industry in professional designations, experience and production while providing real estate service