Real Estate Blog

Investment properties can be profitable, come in many forms, and are a solid addition to one's financial portfolio. These investments can establish a steady influx of cash, tax breaks, and capital appreciation.

Because real estate investment endeavours can be labour-intensive, selecting the correct route is essential. With that in mind, here are some solid tips to get started with buying your first investment property.

Consider the Common Types of Investment Properties

There are four primary properties to explore before investing:

• Flip and turns
• Residential rentals
• Vacation rentals
• Commercial properties

Here are their pros and cons to help investors go into the project with open eyes.

Flip a House and Turn It for

Many people who come to the city of Kelowna for a vacation move here permanently—it makes quite an impression on them! From sandy Kelowna beaches on Okanagan Lake to the beautiful weather and the arts and cultural destinations, the city has much to offer. The winters are warmer than in most other parts of Canada, making year-round activities possible. Nearly half of the grape vines in British Columbia are here, too, making the Okanagan Valley the "Wine Capital of Canada." Here are five reasons to love living in Kelowna, British Columbia.

Easy Access to Okanagan Lake

Okanagan Lake is the center of activity in Kelowna during summer. There are several kilometres of sandy beaches on the lakeshore, with easy access for residents to get out and enjoy

Multi-family housing can be an excellent way for people to diversify their investment portfolio while generating passive income. However, before purchasing a multi-family property, buyers should consider how they want to manage it. Will they become an on-site landlord or live elsewhere and hire a property management company?

These are big questions because not everyone has the desire or time to be a hands-on landlord. While some buyers prefer using a property management company, others may be thrilled at managing their property. Here's a comparison of these two methods.

What Is a Property Management Company?

A property management company is what its name suggests: a company that manages properties. When someone hires a property manager, the

One of the keys to successfully investing in a rental property is to avoid extended vacancy periods. Therefore, the way to keep a high tenancy rate is to market the property correctly. Several things factor into this, from crafting a great listing to simply being a good landlord. Here are some tips on how to market your investment property.

Craft a Great Listing

Creating an excellent listing is the first step in marketing an investment property. The single-family property, condo, or multi-family home should sound as enticing as possible. The owner should consider what they would most want to know about the property if they were looking for a rental and highlight those features in the ad.

A great listing should include the essential features

If there is one thing that urban condominiums have in common, it may be that they are sometimes short on square footage and light. This isn't necessarily a problem, but it may be challenging to choose furnishings and lighting that add to the illusion of spaciousness. You'll want to focus on comfort and style, make an effort to maximize storage, and arrange furniture in a way that doesn't crowd existing space. Here are some creative ways to increase space in your condo.

Small Condo Design Ideas: Choose Furniture Wisely

Using furniture that does double duty is one of the best ways to boost functionality and gain visual space in a compact condo. Make use of vertical space by using wall space to compensate for limited floor space. Tall, narrow

Did you know that autumn is the second best time of year to sell a home? It's a two- to three-month window of stability sandwiched between the summer and winter holiday seasons where families are getting back into routine. Agents are motivated by the last big sales push of the calendar year, and neighbourhood signs are covered with leaves and "for sale" signs. Here are some tips to make sure buyers are motivated by your home.

For informational purposes only. Always consult with a licensed real estate professional before proceeding with any real estate transaction.

Inspect Your Home

Just like when selling a home in other seasons, it's important to inspect your home and take care of any problems that may stand out to buyers. For the fall in

Gardeners across the Okanagan are turning to xeriscape to create low-maintenance dream gardens. Xeriscaping (zera-scaping) is gardening or landscaping using natural environmental conditions in which you live rather than going against the grain or fighting against them. The prefix “xeri” is Greek for the word “dry”.

While we in the Okanagan aren't quite in the desert, we do like to use our water judiciously. This style of gardening is about creating wonderful, nearly self-sustaining drought-resistant landscapes. It also helps with pest control, reduces the need for chemicals, and creates a richer habitat for pollinators such as bees and butterflies.

Planning & Design

Xeriscaping starts with your imagination and incorporating the elements of

A For Sale by Owner (FSBO) home sale may seem like the ultimate in DIY projects. With just a little ingenuity and a lot of hard work, a seller can eliminate the real estate agent fees that cut into their potential profits. And yet, sellers who enter the process are often completely overwhelmed with the details they face. It may be easy for someone with a sales background to point out the original baseboards of the home as a sign of its integrity, but the endless paperwork may not nearly be so easy to navigate. See why hiring a real estate agent for the home selling process makes far more sense.

For informational purposes only. Always consult with a licensed real estate professional before proceeding with any real estate transaction.

Listing the

It's that time of year again! The leaves are changing colour, the air is getting cooler, and pumpkin patches are popping up all over town. Nothing welcomes in the spirit of the fall season than a visit to a local farm in the Okanagan region. Pick up a pumpkin and other harvests while exploring corn mazes and orchards and enjoying special festivities at these favourite Kelowna, BC pumpkin patches and corn mazes.

Make a Day of It at McMillan Farms

Scour this 100-acre farm for that perfect orange or ghost pumpkin, and certainly don't miss out on the fresh berries, apricots and other seasonal goodies. McMillan Farms is situated along Mission Creek, and this family-run operation goes all out for the fall season. Gear up for festivities that include

According to telecommunications giant Telus, 39% of Canadians are willing to pay more to have a home in an area with top-of-the-line connectivity. That means a high-speed, large-capacity fibre-optic network. Of that 39% willing to pay more, 25% of those say they'd pay as much as $5,000 more, 13% indicate that they would possibly pay as much as $10,000 more, and 6% of those say they'd go up to $10,000 more for a house in a neighbourhood with fibre-optic service.

Armed with those statistics, Telus undertook a $140-million project to provide super-fast Internet to every household in Kelowna and the area, including the other side of the lake in West Kelowna. What's this mean for real estate? People looking to maximize the value of their homes for sale