Worried about high fuel costs?

This clip is from Pillar to Post:

Water heating is the third largest energy expense in your home. It typically accounts for about 16% of your utility bill.


There are four ways to cut your water heating bills:

Use less hot water.

Turn down the thermostat on your water heater.

Insulate your water heater.

Buy a new, more efficient water heater.

A family of four, each showering for 5 minutes a day, uses 700 gallons of water a week; this is enough for a 3-year supply of drinking water for one person. You can cut that amount in half by simply using low-flow aerating showerheads and faucets.

Interior Leaks

This clip is from Pillar to Post:

In some cases what appears to be a roof surface leak is not a leak at all, but rather an interior source of water. Here are some example:

Air leakage from the house: If household air can leak into the attic, the warm moist air will condense on surfaces in the attic during cold weather. This can cause damage to the roof decking and structural framing and in severe cases cause water to drip back into the house. Sealing the house from the attic in cold climates is very important.

Leaking forced air ducting: If heating and cooling ducting runs through the attic, they should be well sealed, to prevent condensation in cold weather.

Air conditioning ducting: If air conditioning ducting runs through the attic, it should be well insulated and should have a good vapor barrier.

Attic mounted heating and cooling: High efficiency furnaces and air conditioning evaporators located in the attic can create condensation and leak into the house.

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Things are slow???

So...How is the market these days?


Slow? When people ask me “How’s the market these days” Pretty slow I hear?”, I have to sit back for a minute. What do you mean by slow?

I have around 45 to 50 listings, all these listings have owners and they want to be kept up-to-date on what’s going on. I am trying to figure out the best way to market these properties, looking for buyers, how to make financing work for buyers, as well as setting up property inspections, appraisals, and so on. I am taking calls every day from people asking about properties for sale, for rent, and they are wondering how much I could get them for their property if they sold it.

I am involved with the communities that I have properties in. For example, I am working with the Vulcan Tourism and Trek Station on ways to help promote the Town of Vulcan and surrounding areas.

Right now, I am on an airplane on my way to St. Johns, Newfoundland for an MTC Conference and Fall General Assembly meeting for the Canadian Real Estate Association. In two weeks, I will be attending the National Association of REALTORS® Conference in New Orleans. These are great networking opportunities where I can promote my properties and my surrounding areas, as well as learn from other real estate professionals. I have learned that the more I know, the more a realize that I don’t know. Thus, I am a sponge, trying to soak up as much as possible.

So when people say that they hear that things are slow….define slow….

Summer comes to an end

The daylight hours are getting shorter, but there are still people out shopping for lots, getting a jump on competing buyers who are waiting until next spring.  One RV lot was sold this past week.  Still a good selection of properties, both RV and Cottage lots, for those recreational property shoppers.

Ways to satisfy a beach yearning in Calgary#Comments#Comments

Ways to satisfy a beach yearning in Calgary#Comments#Comments

View from the beach

view from the beach

Busy week!

It's been busy the last week and a bit at the lake! Sales have been better with one RV lot with park model sold, and a conditional offer on a cottage lot. There certainly has been an increase in activity with people looking at lots. The thing is that buyers are more ready to make a move as opposed to just one month ago. Does this mean that the recreational property market is turning around? Ask me in 6 months... All I know is that we have some excited new owners at the resort and it's a beautiful day at Lake McGregor Country Estates!

Keeping the bugs away from your backyard

This article is from Pillar to Post and it's about keeping your backyard bug free!

"Sure, spending time outdoors is great – except for all the bugs. But experts say you can stay bug free – without spending a fortune – if you…

Get out the clippers. Keep tree branches cut back from your deck and patio, and minimize ants. Also, pull up any weeds nearby. Mosquitoes use them as rest stops.

Give flowers a shower. Soaking them thoroughly with a garden hose before a picnic or party to mimic a rain shower. Pollinating insects like bees don’t like wet conditions and will stay away until plants dry out. That’s usually about two hours.

Blow bugs away… with a fan. The air current from a fan will deter flying and biting insects because they aren’t strong enough to fly against the wind it makes. It’ll also blow away any trace of your scent, so they can’t find you.

Keep flies away with basil. Flies hate basil, so if you keep a plant on your patio, they’ll stay clear.

Wipe down tables with vinegar. Its a great disinfectant that bugs back away from, so they’ll stay away from your patio table. Outdoors, the odor will fade so it won’t bother guests.

Plant the natural pesticide. Beautiful chrysanthemums. Their leaves contain the same chemical, pyrethin, found in most pesticides. Just having them in your garden will send bugs packing."

Maintaining your lot

We had a wet spring and now we are enjoying the nice warm summer. With that, the grass is growing like crazy! If you are not going to be out at your lot for a couple of weeks, there are several young folks at the lake who are more than willing to take care of your lot for you. Check the bulletin board in the clubhouse for names and phone numbers of individuals who are looking to make some extra money this summer. And when you do come out, you can just put your feet up and relax!

Last Weekend of June

It was a beautiful weekend at the lake! The weather was great and with all of the rain that we have had, the landscape is just amazing! Lots of people taking advantage of the weather and were out on the water, fishing, boating, and just chilling out.

The nice weather brought out potential buyers this weekend too. Why not, as there is a good selection of properties to choose from and people still have lots of time to enjoy life at the lake this summer, and for the rest of this year and many years to come.

I got the opportunity to check out some of properties that we have for sale at the resort again. Lots of pride of ownership out there!

Green, green and more green!

I am guessing that there will be no fire ban this weekend. Call it a hunch... We sure have been getting more than our fair share of rain this past week, but the hills are sure green now! It is beautiful! And we are getting up over 20 degrees all weekend. Is it safe to say now that summer has arrived?

I must say that the rain has caused some problems in other areas of the province. Rivers and streams are high, and some places have been flooded. Even the farmers are hoping that we are done with the rain now and we get some heat. At the resort, if the lake rises, we are fine. And I don't think that anyone out here has had any basements flooding. For those critics who think who don't like the location of the resort in relation to the lake (on top of the hill), well...we can discuss that in our deck, in our dry basements, or where ever else you like at Lake McGregor Country Estates. You won't need your hip waders here.

Open houses this weekend

We are hosting open houses this weekend at the resort. Looks like Mother Nature is going to be helping too as we are forecast to have warmer dry weather this weekend. The rain was great and sure greened things up, but its the warm sunshine that brings people out.

Saturday we will feature cottage lots and an RV lot for the open house. Sunday features a really nice park model in which the new owners gets a Sea Doo and trailer along with it!

The Docks at the Marina are out!

I drove by the resort today and I see that the docks at the marina are out. Well part of them anyways. Summer is here!

"We wish we had your clubhouse"

I speak to several people about resort properties several times a week in my travels. One common theme is "Your developer sure did it right. I wish we had your clubhouse and setup."

Look at the past week or so with this crazy weather we have been having. Other resorts and camping areas have empty spots because of the weather. What are families supposed to do when they go camping if the weather is bad? I say, Welcome to Lake McGregor Country Estates! Family lounge with pool table and fireplace, adult lounge with fireplace and satellite tv, games room, an exercise room, a large auditorium for friends and family to share a meal, have dance, or just visit, and then there's the indoor pool, sauna and hot tub.

There are other resorts around, but we are the one with the clubhouse! We are the one where there is something to do for the whole family no matter what the weather! We are open year round! For you owners at Lake McGregor Country Estates, look around you and see how others look at you when you say that you're still going out this weekend, even though the weather might be bad. You've got things to do! For those of you who are not owners, aren't you the least bit curious to come out and have a look? Even if the weather is bad, maybe that's the best time to come out! We'll see you soon!

Get your fishing license online

Save yourself a trip to the store and get your fishing license online. Click on the link and you'll be set for fishing in no time!

National Safe Boating Week

Here comes the long weekend and a great way to start it off with National Safe Boating Week from May 22 to 28. A little reminder for all of us as we get back into boating mode!

Our friends at the lake...

Just a few of our friends at the resort. Must be at least 24 that call the hills a the resort home.

Spock came home!

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Jasper Leadership Conference

Just returned yesterday from the Jasper Leadership Conference which was hosted by the Alberta Real Estate Association. It was a very good conference where we networked with people across Alberta, British Columbia, Saskatchewan and even Manitoba. We talked about the latest trends in real estate, keeping up with marketing to the public in the fast paced techological society, and how we can all work together to make our industry better, both on the inside and on how the public percievs real estate industry members.

The weather was great and the scenery was magnificant! If you are ever wondering where to take the family for a nice get-away, head to Jasper!

Trade Show

I am at the Brooks and District Trade Show this weekend in Brooks. I am promoting my listings, including listings at Lake McGregor Country Estates. Been a slow start to the trade show, but things usually pick up Friday evening and throughout the day Saturday and Sunday.

I stopped by the Nelson Homes booth, as they are here as well. I will be bringing back some brochures from them. They have brought out a couple of houses to the lake. These seem to be a more economical way to get a cottage up at the resort. They can build a cottage for less than $100/square foot. The ones they showed me plans of price out to be about $96 to $98 per square foot to build. These homes are built in High River and, depending upon the pitch of the roof, will cost between $10,000 to $18,000 to move to the resort. Just another option for those looking to build.

Boil Water Advisory

Issued on April l1, 2010 by Alberta Health Services.

A "Boil Water Advisory" is in effct for Lake McGregor Country Estates.

Bring your water to a rolling boil for at least one minute prior to using it for domestic purposes, including drinking, making infant formula and juices, brushing teeth, washing raw foods and making ice.

This Order is being issued as a precautionary measure until the safety of the water can be assured.

Water should be boiled until further notice.

For more information contact www.calgaryhealthregion.ca/envhealth or local health centre.

April showers...no wait...SNOW STORM!

April 13 and 14, 2010 are two days that are going to be remembered for a while as we had a big heavy dump of snow. The snow brought down power lines and broke power poles in the area, including the area between Bow City and Lomond. Stangely enough, Calgary got nothing! Lethbridge, on the other hand, had wide spread power outages.

The resort had no electricity right now and it may be like that for a few more days as crews work to resort power throughout the southeastern part of Alberta.

Well, we were hoping for some precipitation...and we got it! The good news is that it's supposed to be almost 20 degrees on the plus side come Sunday!

Clubhouse Update

"Please note that the club house will be closed starting April 12, 2010 to April 15, 2010 as we are having the carpets and tile clean." Looks like it's officially spring as its time to do some cleaning! We should be in great shape for summer!

Time to fish!

Got a phone call this morning from someone wanting to know if the lake was opening up, getting free of ice, so folks could go fishing! Well of couse there is ice fishing, but even people like me who don't ice fish are free to try their luck fishing off the shore! Gotta love spring time!

Where did the snow go?

Well it is officially spring and the snow looks to have left us! Will it be for good? Only Mother Nature knows. The nice weather seems to be bringing people out looking again. Had people out this past week and more this weekend. We've got owners out on their decks catching a few rays of sun already. I have had people looking at park model homes this weekend. It's a good sign for things to come I think. I bet the next couple of months will be busy! Some great buys for those looking to pick up some recreational property.

10 Inexpensive Ways to Wow Buyers

Now is the time for home owners contemplating a spring sale to spruce up their properties in anticipation of what Mike Larson of Weiss Research calls a potentially vibrant home-selling season.

"If you have been beating your head against a wall, this is going to feel a lot better,” he says.

Here are 10 cheap ways to make a property more attractive to shoppers:

Improve first impressions. Touch up the paint on the front door and other areas that buyers see first.

Clean up the landscaping. Trim the hedges and trees and plant some annuals in the flowerbeds.

Paint the interior. A coat of light yellow or cream with contrasting white woodwork looks fresh and clean.

Refurbish the floors. Buff the hardwoods. Install new carpets – or at least get them professionally cleaned.

Take care of the big problems. If the house needs a roof or the front stoop is crumbling, get them fixed.

Buy warranties. Putting appliances under warranty gives homebuyers a secure feeling.

Improve energy efficiency. New windows or improved insulation tells a potential buyer the seller is on top of things plus they come with tax benefits.

Replace light fixtures. Updated fixtures, especially at the entrance way and in the foyer, create a good first impression.

Buy a stove. Home owners whose kitchen isn’t top of the line can jazz it up for a few hundred dollars by buying a new stove, which gives the room a fresh feel.

Tidy up the bathrooms. Get rid of mildew, replace caulking, and replace stained sinks.

Source: U.S. News & World Report, Luke Mullins (01/21/2010)

SPOCK IS COMING HOME!

According to the January 20, 2010 edition of the Vulcan Advocate, "Leonard Nimoy is definitely comint to Vulcan."

The actor who played Mr. Spock on the original Star Trek series is scheduled to attend the Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo in April, but he will first make an appearance in Vulcan on April 23. Details about time and what he will be doing there are still in negotiation.

Me thinks this will help shatter the record for tourists in Vulcan this year!