Source: http://blog.remax.ca/remax-2018-spring-market-trends-report/#1481171191537-f67101ac-d5e8

Source: http://blog.remax.ca/remax-2018-housing-market-outlook/#1481171191537-f67101ac-d5e8
 

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New home shopping is an experience unlike any other. Stepping into a beautiful showhome where everything is new and clean and beautiful, without any clutter, it can seem like the perfect fit. Inside, you might be screaming out, “Yes! I am this colour coordinated and organized.” You want a new home. In fact, come to think of it, you need a new home.

After walking through the home dreaming about all the things you love and all the things you would change, you walk back down to the showhome office. “So, what did you think?” the salesperson asks. You profess your deep love for the home, and then it begins. They can hold that last walkout lot for you for 48 hours with a $500 cheque that they won’t cash, you agree, and then you embark on the long journey of decision-making and paperwork.

Everyone knows that the salesperson works for and represents the builder, but what does that really mean? Who represents you? Many people embark on this journey alone, trusting in the showhome staff to take good care of them. Some people even opt to save a few bucks using the builder’s lawyer for signing the documents. You are on your own from the beginning to the end, so what if something goes wrong?

Having a real estate professional along with you when purchasing your property is good for many reasons. To start, they are a neutral party that represents you, the buyer, while the showhome staff represent the builder. Most builders have cooperative commission structures in place to pay your representative, but have you ever stopped to wonder why this is a good idea? Over the years I have seen many reasons, here are a few:

NEGOTIATING CONTRACTS
Have you ever actually read through a builder’s contract? They are terribly long and very one-sided, leaving buyers at risk for things like having their house sold to someone who is offering a better price. It has happened before, and occasionally there is a requirement for conditions to be removed before the deadline, or the builder is going to sell to someone else.

REDUCING SALES PRESSURE
In general, people buy what they see in the showhomes. But have you ever wondered if you are getting the best deal? What will your decisions mean for resale? What upgrades add value to the house, and which just cost you money without any future return? Having a professional go with you to help you made these decision is paramount.

The sales team will always be working toward upselling, and they don’t care if your add-ons cost you thousands but give you a negative return, they just want to up that price. That is their job. While not every salesperson chooses their own numbers over integrity, it does happen all too frequently. Your real estate professional is there to look out for your best interests alone, and will help you navigate through all the sales pressure in making solid home-buying decisions.

SCORING A BETTER PRICE
While many showhome salespeople will say that you get a better price without an agent, it’s simply not true. Agents can assist you in negotiations, getting you a better price while still being paid for their efforts by the builder. And remember, that salesperson only makes money if you buy with them. Your agent makes money regardless of who you buy through, and can use their experience to shop around with different builders and negotiate a deal that will leave you smiling.

ASSISTANCE AFTER POSSESSION
Our office has well over 150 agents and we communicate with other offices regularly, selling our properties and discussing how to best represent our clients. If your builder tries to state things such as “the city isn’t issuing any more permits for grading this year” or you find yourself getting the runaround, if we don’t have the answers we know someone who does, and often leveraging the power of the more than 3,000 real estate agents can get answers.

So before you go looking at showhomes, sit down with your favourite agent. It helps to bring them along, and they need to register you with the showhome to allow them to represent you. When it is all said and done, you will be glad you did.

Source: https://mailchi.mp/aa76eea92fde/the-owl-slow-but-steady-improvements-in-the-job-market?e=6f1f3fb3a5

It may not be the bonanza of new jobs that a lot of Albertans had become used to in the first half of the decade, but the employment situation in our province continues to improve gradually.

A net 8,300 jobs were added in March, following a more modest increase of 2,300 in February. However, all of the jobs added last month were part-time. The unemployment rate provincially dropped to 6.3 per cent–the lowest since the summer of 2015. Much of that decrease was due to a drop in the overall labour force (that is, fewer people were looking for work).

The longer-term view is always the more appropriate one, and in this respect the news is positive. Over the last 12 months, Alberta created 46,400 full-time jobs, an increase of 2.5 per cent. New job creation has been strongest in manufacturing (+15,000), oil and gas (+14,200) and business support services (+5,500).

Jobs in the government sector have not been a major contributor (+3,600), and two sectors which had previously seen the strongest gains during the recession–health care and education–have been essentially flat over the last year.

Calgary’s unemployment rate popped back to 8.2 per cent in March, up three-tenths of a percentage point from February. There was some slight decline in total jobs (-1,600), but also an increase in the labour force (+1,300), suggesting that either previously discouraged job seekers are back looking for work, or people are moving to the city.
 

Source: https://mailchi.mp/986382aa0e63/the-owl-oil-prices-warming-up?e=6f1f3fb3a5

With temperatures still below zero and plenty of snow on the ground, it may feel like it’s not heating up, right? The good news is that it is, at least when it comes to oil prices.
The price of North America’s benchmark price for oil (West Texas Intermediate) currently sits around $US 65 per barrel, that’s 25 per cent higher than during the same time last year. The last time oil prices were this high was back at the beginning of 2014 when Alberta’s economy was growing at a rate of nearly five per cent.

Throughout 2015-2017, prices were stuck around $US 50 per barrel (WTI). Higher US production levels were a significant factor in this–but it is changing. Supply levels are on the decline and global demand for crude oil is intensifying and causing prices to push higher.
There is more good news, too.

At the start of 2018, the Canadian benchmark price for oil, Western Canadian Select (WCS) (the price Alberta producers receive) had not improved at all from last year. Canadian pricing was thought to be held back by pipeline bottlenecks. However, over the first three months of the year, this changed. Compared to January, WCS prices are now 13 per cent higher and currently sit around $US 44. The price improvement from the beginning of the year is due to higher demand for cheaper WCS blend. Prices have also improved on the back of the latest victory regarding the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project.
Higher oil prices are good news for Alberta for several reasons. Improved energy prices will help provide expansions to capital spending programs in the province. They will also alleviate some of the problems Alberta’s labour market is still encountering from the 2015-16 downturn. When it comes to oil prices, the forecast at this point looks warmer.
 

Source: https://mailchi.mp/f320db705863/the-owl-retail-sales-start-2018-on-a-record-high?e=6f1f3fb3a5

Albertans’ debit and credit cards were a bit busier in January as retail sales reached a record high in the province. Total sales reached $6.8 billion to start the year—this number is adjusted for seasonality. Compared to the beginning of 2017, sales were 2.1 per cent higher at the start of 2018.

In per capita terms, Albertans outspent the rest of the country at malls and gas stations by an average of $224 per month in January. This difference can be explained by a number of elements like a higher employment rate and higher incomes. The difference also accentuates the strength of the provincial economy, even after a significant recessionary period.

The fact that retail sales have started the year on a record high is proof the recession of 2015/16 is well behind us. However, our province may experience some pullback in spending as the year progresses. This could be due to a couple of factors. First, the provincial unemployment rate is expected to come down only gradually. Many Albertans may still be without work which could affect spending. Second, with higher interest rates and mounting household debt, consumers could react by spending less. As a result, sales growth will likely begin to slow.
 

Source: https://mailchi.mp/f62d4f673bfb/the-owl-manufacturing-finds-its-groove?e=6f1f3fb3a5

For the first time in a little more than three years, sales from Alberta factories and shop floors have reached pre-recession highs. In January, total manufacturing shipments grew 1.1 per cent from December and reached $6.3 billion. Compared to January of last year, manufacturing shipments were up more than 11 per cent.

Sales gains were recorded in about half of all of manufacturing’s sub-sectors. Transportation equipment manufacturing came out on top with shipments in this category growing seven per cent from the end of last year. In a sign that Alberta’s energy industry is growing, significant sales gains were seen in chemical (+6.4 per cent), petroleum (+5.4 per cent) and fabricated metal manufacturing (+4.7 per cent).

The province’s manufacturing sector is starting the new year with some real momentum. Shipments in almost every sub-sector of manufacturing remain well above the previous year’s levels. Much of the momentum has to do with the stabilization and resurgence of Alberta’s energy sector. For example, petroleum manufacturing is up more than 15 per cent year-over-year, and sales of manufactured machinery are up by close to 26 per cent.

As economic conditions continue to improve and as Alberta’s energy sector continues to rally, manufacturing as a whole will help stimulate our province’s economic growth.