CREB® - Housing Statistics

Not intended to solicit buyers or sellers currently under contract.

The COVID-19 pandemic has made us aware of the many things in our homes that multiple people touch each day. We can sanitize those surfaces frequently, but today’s touchless technology makes it possible to avoid touching many surfaces at all. You may forget and touch your face, but at least you have no need to touch these household devices.

Clean connections

Even with touchless technology, it’s important to regularly sanitize every switch, knob, handle and remote device in your home. You also need to sanitize your cell phone frequently, since some touchless technologies are controlled by phone apps.

Smart hubs

A smart speaker system such as Amazon Echo, Google Home, Google Nest Audio, and Apple HomePod mini allows you to control many items around your home with voice commands instead of touch. With this touchless technology, you can turn the TV or lights on or off, play music or radio stations, adjust the thermostat, raise or lower motorized window shades and much more.

Locks and doors

Smart home security systems let you lock and unlock your home’s doors, raise and lower the garage door, adjust the thermostat control and more, all from an app on your phone. These touchless technology systems also offer convenience: You can let people in while you are away and shut the garage door if you forgot to when you left. Camera monitoring of your home is visible from your phone app, and you’ll  get a push notification when doors are opened while you are away. Personal monitoring devices for the elderly allow you to check on them remotely.

Touchless floor cleaning

Regardless of the coronavirus, who wouldn’t love to quit sweeping and mopping the floor? With touchless technology, you can hang up the mop and broom. iRobot’s Roomba will sweep for you, even around furniture and into corners.Then the iRobot Braava Jet M6 takes on the mopping, cleaning the floor areas you select. Or you might like the iRobot Roomba i7 Vacuum with Clean Base Automatic Dirt Disposal takes convenience to a new level - automatically emptying into an enclosed, disposable bag that holds 30 robot bins so you don’t have to think about vacuuming for weeks.

Touchless technology in the bathroom and kitchen

Hand washing has never been more important, but when you turn the faucet handle or pump the soap dispenser, you’re doing it with dirty hands. Why touch these at all when manufacturers like Moen and Kohler make faucets with motion-sensing technology that turns on the water with the wave of a hand? Likewise, brands like Kohler and simplehuman make dispensers that squirt liquid soap into your palm for you.

Not intended to solicit buyers or sellers currently under contract. New tech products for floor cleaning were added to HOUSEOPEDIA'S original article.

by CREB®Now Feb 1, 2021

COVID-19 has had widespread impacts on the economy. The shutdowns had significant economic repercussions in the retail, arts and entertainment, tourism, service, and transportation (airlines) industries across the country.

Alberta also faced the additional impact of struggles in the energy sector.

The reduction in global oil demand caused prices to drop to levels far lower than what we have seen over the past five years. This resulted in a significant drop in capital investment and drilling activity. While prices have been recovering from the lows of the spring, some energy forecasters expect prices to generally remain below levels recorded over the past four years and below $50/barrel in 2021.

The economic impacts of further shutdowns at the end of 2020 will likely flow into the early part of 2021.

Nonetheless, economic activity is expected to improve in 2021 following the significant retraction in 2020. However, with travel and social-gathering restrictions expected to persist until enough of the population is vaccinated, the hardest-hit industries – such as accommodation and food, travel, and energy – are expected to take longer to fully recover.

The government supports for businesses and households are expected to remain in place until the middle of 2021, helping to cushion the impact caused by the pandemic. However, given the global magnitude of the crisis, full economic recovery is not expected until late 2022 at the earliest.

Key factors impacting the Alberta economy in 2020

COVID-19 and the shutdown of our economy resulted in a sharp decline in growth, followed by a quick bounce back as the economy reopened. However, the economy did not bounce back to pre-pandemic levels and a second partial shutdown at the end of the year is expected to claw back some of the progress made.

The energy sector was hit particularly hard in 2020, as global oil demand fell and prices crashed. While prices have improved from the lows recorded early in 2020, they remain lower than the levels recorded when oil prices first fell back in 2014. While some mergers have already been announced, further consolidation in the sector is expected.

Final GDP figures for 2020 are not expected to be released until mid-2021, but Alberta is expected to be one of the hardest hit provinces in terms of economic contraction for 2020. It not only impacted our retail, tourism and airline industries, but also had a significant impact on the energy sector.

Low lending rates and government support helped prevent a more significant impact on the housing market.

Persistently high unemployment rates and significant job losses in some sectors of our economy dominated 2020.

Provincial figures point toward more people leaving the province than entering.This shift is due to some loss to other provinces, but also the significant drop in international migration. Thankfully, our young demographic has helped support population growth, albeit at slower rates.

Persistently high unemployment rates and significant job losses in some sectors of our economy dominated 2020.

Provincial figures point toward more people leaving the province than entering.This shift is due to some loss to other provinces, but also the significant drop in international migration. Thankfully, our young demographic has helped support population growth, albeit at slower rates.

Not intended to solicit buyers or sellers currently under contract.

With the COVID-19 pandemic keeping buyers close to home, video tours of seller’s homes are in greater demand than ever. If you are selling your house, it’s vital to make it look its very best in a video home tour. Here’s how to get your place ready for showtime!

The camera sees all

It’s always been important to stage a home before shooting a video tour. But today’s buyers may make offers without ever setting foot in your home. That means the tour needs to peek inside closets, pantries, cabinets, refrigerators and even drawers to allow would-be buyers to see everything they would check out if they toured your home in person. Since you can’t rely on keeping undesirable elements out of sight, off-site storage is your friend when you are prepping for a video home tour.

The first step is decluttering

Cluttered houses are a turnoff under any circumstances, causing buyers to think your space is too small for them. But clutter looks doubly bad on screen. Give your home a clean, minimalist look by focusing on these areas as you prepare for your video home tour.

• In the kitchen, clear counters of small appliances such as toasters, mixers, and coffee makers.  Declutter and organize your cabinets and drawers, moving unnecessary cookware, dishes, serving pieces, glassware and the like to storage. Organize your pantry and refrigerator.
• In bathrooms, clear the counters as you did in the kitchen. Pare down stacks of towels in the linen closet so the storage doesn’t look cramped, and declutter vanity drawers and medicine cabinets. (It’s a good idea to hide any medications before shooting a video home tour, not to mention valuables and other items you don’t want the public to see.)
• Drastically reduce the contents of your closets, then hang clothing with equal spacing between each piece. Make sure all hangers match and face the same direction.
• If rooms are crowded, remove some furniture. Arrange what’s left with sufficient space in between, as a room looks small if the furnishings are too close to each other. In the living room, for example, seating should be 36 inches apart, and the space between sofa and coffee table should be about 18 inches. Area rugs should be a foot or two from walls.
• Throughout the house, remove knickknacks, sports trophies and family photographs from shelves and walls. Tuck the cords of audiovisual equipment out of sight.
• Clean out the garage and neatly organize the yard implements and tools you need to keep there.

Cleaning before a video home tour

Your home needs a good, deep cleaning before a video home tour, just as it would if you were showing it in person. Consider hiring a professional maid service to make your house sparkle. But if you want to handle this job yourself, focus on the following.

• Since the tour will begin at your front entry, make sure that area is swept and dusted. Retouch paint as needed.
• Sweep, dust and/or vacuum floors, and mop where possible. Remove all spots from carpeting.
• Remove all smudges from painted walls. Touch up paint where needed.
• In the kitchen, clean counters thoroughly with warm, soapy water. Rinse, then buff with cooking oil on a microfiber rag to make them gleam.
• Thoroughly clean the inside of your refrigerator. If your refrigerator and other appliances are stainless steel, use a special cleaner to shine them, making sure not to leave streaks.
• Clean all windows inside and out to let in as much natural light as possible.

Lighting

To ensure your video home tour looks its best, bring as much light as possible into your house.

• Turn on every light, even if you are shooting the video in the daytime.
• Open or take down blinds and curtains to admit the maximum amount of natural light.
• Make sure all light bulbs work. Decide on one type of bulb, such as LED or fluorescent, and use it consistently in all outlets to create even lighting.
• Eliminate shadows and dim areas as much as possible.

Spring and summer bring fresh air, lightness, and a sense of rebirth as the world comes alive again after hibernating. Check out these easy home design tips for the warmer months.

Warm Month Colors

Spring and summer traditionally mean pastels, but don’t let that stop you from using bold, vibrant colors. Yellows, golds, greens – you’ll find all of these reflected in nature, and they’re good choices for freshening your home design for the warmer months. Also watch for blue/green hues and softer, more muted versions of some primary colors to lead the way in 2021. Consider painting a focal point wall in a bathroom or living room in a trendy color to change up your interior, then coordinate with throw pillows and accessories.

Wreaths

Wreaths for your front door or inside the house make a simple and easy element to switch out as the seasons change. Use ribbons and other materials in bright colors along with other season-appropriate materials. Wildflowers, bird nests and eggs, tulips, daffodils – pick the elements that say spring to you and incorporate them into your décor.

Table décor

Linens should be swapped out and washed regularly, especially if they’re used frequently, and a change of season makes the perfect time to switch. Put away those fall- and winter-themed centerpieces and opt for fresh flowers instead. Keeping the blooms changed out with new ones will bring a sense of life and lightness to the room, as well as some color. Use a spring- or summer-based theme and create table arrangements around it for both casual and formal dining areas. Also add glasses appropriate for cold mixed drinks like margaritas to your table settings or bar area for easy access.

Bedrooms and bathrooms

You can put away those heavy down or down-alternative comforters in exchange for lighter-weight quilts. Likewise, swap out the flannel or jersey sheet sets for cotton ones, which breathe more easily during warmer months. For your bathroom, think about towels and rugs in brighter colors. Botanical artwork featuring seasonal plants and colors can quickly update your rooms and coordinate with bedding and towels.

Living rooms

Unless your home stays cold, you can probably put the heavy throws away in a blanket chest or closet. Clean them first before storing inside bags to keep dust mites from collecting. Replace them with a lightweight throw in a soft texture like chenille, which will make your seating area appear more inviting, even if it isn’t used much. Use season-appropriate plants in living rooms and choose airy window treatments like sheers to open up the space and let light in.

Not intended to solicit buyers or sellers currently under contract. The article was revised from HOUSEOPEDIA'S original article.

LED lights have revolutionized lighting, replacing old incandescent and fluorescent bulbs and saving energy. Understanding the various LED light colors, however, can be confusing. Let’s illuminate the differences.

LED savings

Lighting is measured by two metrics: lumens and watts. Lumens measure a bulb’s light output, and watts are the measure of electricity needed to generate that output. A Light Emitting Diode (LED) bulb uses only 20 percent of the electricity that an incandescent bulb does to produce the same lumens — a big cost and energy savings.

Warm to cool

LED light bulbs come in warm white, natural white and cool white. What do these names mean, and how are the various colors best used in your home?

Lighting power is described on LED bulb packages with a number shown in thousands followed by the letter “K,” which stands for kelvins, the unit used for measuring light temperature. The tone of the light from a bulb covers a temperature scale from “warm” light, with a slight amber tint, to “cool,” with a brighter white tint. The higher the number before the K, the brighter and cooler the light.

A 2700K bulb, for example, will cast a warm look, making for a more relaxing setting. A kelvin range at or above 5000K means light from the bulb will be bright, cool and possibly harsh. At the midrange of the kelvin spectrum is natural lighting, with a kelvin rating of around 3500K.

Location determines light temperature

Bulbs in the lower-kelvin range work best in most of the house, from living areas to bedrooms. Lighting can affect your mood, so a warm look invites relaxing in these rooms. Lower-kelvin bulbs are closest to the old incandescent “soft white” lighting.

Higher-kelvin cool lighting is best for work areas such as the laundry room, garage and workrooms. This lighting brings out detail and color in a room. Most commercial offices use cool lighting, so it also makes sense for task-oriented residential rooms.

The décor of a room can also play a role in your lighting selection. Areas with rich wood floors and furniture benefit from warm lighting. Rooms with lots of white might look best with midrange natural lighting. The highest cool white bulbs, however, could make mostly white rooms look stark or even harsh.

Not intended to solicit buyers or sellers currently under contract.

With homes trending smaller, today’s houses are being built with cleaner lines and styles to emphasize the open concept. Detailed trim work and dark stains are out; light colors and simpler styles are in.  Let’s look at six of the latest trends.

Cabinets. Painted cabinets in bright colors with straight, simple lines are in vogue.  The cabinets may be white from top to bottom, or have the “tuxedo look,” with one color of cabinets above and a complimenting color for the lower set. Detailed router work on cabinets and ornate handles have given way to straight lines and simple pulls. Also gaining in popularity is the open-shelving concept rather than cabinetry. This look is usually coupled with white subway tile.

Counters.  After a long, popular run, dark patterned granite is giving way to lighter, brighter quartz surfaces in both kitchens and baths. Edges are straight, simple and clean.  Decorations on the counter are minimal. Small appliance garages keep the mixer and toaster out of sight for a cleaner and less cluttered effect.

Floors. Hardwood is still in fashion, but the trend is toward wider planks, darker stains and a slightly roughed-up look. Laminates and engineered floor materials are stronger and in some cases less expensive than hardwoods. Having a continuous floor from kitchen to dining to living room ties the entire living space together. In carpeted areas, new advances in fibers make carpet silky soft.

Walls. Some version of beige has been the “play it safe” builder standard for decades because it is neutral, but today’s homes are being painted in varying shades of gray or a blend of beige and gray. Call it “greige.”

Appliances.  Smart phone technology has influenced appliance designs. Stove tops using touch screen technology allow you to turn on and set heat levels with a finger swipe. Having no knobs furthers the uncluttered look. Refrigerator surfaces have matte finishes, even in white, that resemble your cell phone’s back cover. Also in matted finishes are stainless steel stove and oven fronts. Swinging French doors on the oven eliminate the old single door that cuts off walking space.

Bathrooms simplified. Little-used garden tubs are out, along with the ornate trim flourishes. Instead, consumers want bigger showers with seating, large custom tile, multiple shower heads and frameless doors. Cabinets and counters follow the trend of kitchens with brighter looks and simple lines.

Not intended to solicit buyers or sellers currently under contract.