So, you’ve de-cluttered your home in Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, Parkland County or the Edmonton area.  You’ve thrown out the real trash, and the things you’re keeping are neatly stored away in an appropriate place.  But what do you do with the stuff that’s left, the items that are too good to just throw away but no longer needed or wanted in your home?  Here are a few suggestions beyond giving things to friends and family members, or holding a garage sale:

 Recycle:

• City of Spruce Grove :  A wealth of information about Spruce Grove’s Blue Bag program , the EcoCentre  (which accepts electronic waste, appliances, tires and scrap metal, in addition to regular Blue Bag items), and information about the disposal of all kinds of other goods.
• Stony Plain’s Wipe Out Waste program, recycling services, etc.
• Parkland County Solid Waste and Recycling

Donate:

If you have anything in good condition (clean, undamaged, meeting current safety standards, etc.), chances are there’s a person or an organization that will accept it.  Be sure to educate yourself about an organization’s guidelines for accepting gifts, however, since not all items will be welcomed by everybody.  Google “donate goods in Edmonton”,  and a very long list of charity websites comes up.  Here are just a few possibilities for passing on your unneeded items to someone who can use them:

• Freecycle  is a concept born of the Internet. Advertise what you have to give away (or what you’d like to receive for free), and watch what happens! Visit the Spruce Grove group’s website.
• Check out “Thrift Stores” and “Youth Services” in Spruce Grove’s Green Book Community Resource Directory.
• See the City of Edmonton’s Reuse Directory for a long list of organizations that accept all kinds of goods.
• See also the list of charities at DonationTown.
• St. Andrew’s United Church Bargain Basement, Spruce Grove, accepts clothing, household goods:
• Cerebral Palsy Association of Alberta  accepts donations of gently used clothing and small household items, including books. Even better, they will pick up items from your home.
• The Canadian Diabetes Association is another group that will pick up items such as clothing, footwear, books, kitchen wares, toys, small appliances, etc. via their Clothesline program.  Arrangements for pick-up can be made online or by calling 1-800-505-5525.
• Goodwill Industries of Alberta does not pick up items from your home but there are drop-off locations in Edmonton and one in Spruce Grove.
• Salvation Army.  Drop off only for clothing, furniture and household goods.
• Alberta Association for Community Living  will pick up clothing and household items; see their website for what they will accept.
• Computers for Schools
• Electronic Recycling Association can arrange pick up of all kinds of electronics.
• ReBOOT Canada  will pick up donations of computer equipment.
• Bicycles for Humanity
• Habitat for Humanity ReStores:  Donate (or buy!) all kinds of reusable building supplies at the two Edmonton locations (addresses available at the website). Pick up and drop off possible.
• Shelter organizations in Edmonton: Most have an ongoing wish list of personal care items, household goods, clothing, food items and the like. A few to contact include: Mustard Seed Edmonton; Homeward Trust; Alberta Council of Women’s Shelters; Bissell Centre; Elizabeth Fry Society; WIN House.
• Eyeglasses: Most optometrists and opticians, such as LensCrafters, will accept old eyeglasses for recycling, as will Lions Club International and Goodwill.

Sell:

You can still pay for advertising in the local paper, or put up notices around town about things you have to sell or give away, but there are easier and cheaper ways!

• Kijiji  Edmonton will advertise for free almost any item that people want to sell, give away or trade.
• Craigslist Edmonton will do likewise.
• EBay

What Other People Have to Say About the Subject:

Moving and Packing – Get Rid of Unwanted Stuff Before You Move

Where to Donate All Your Unwanted Stuff – The Good Human

Questions or comments about this article or anything else to do with homes and real estate?  Contact me here, email me at barry@barryt.ca, or phone me at 780-910-9669.

In my business, as I travel around Stony Plain, Spruce Grove, Parkland County and the Edmonton area, I see a lot of homes.  Very few of those homes, if they are currently being lived in, resemble “show homes”.  That’s because, let’s face it, living is messy.  Evidence of everyday life is everywhere, from wet towels flung over the shower in the master ensuite to children’s artwork clipped to the fridge with magnets given away by local businesses to untidy piles of unread mail atop the dining room table to empty bottles waiting to be taken to the recycle centre, along with the smells of this morning’s breakfast bacon and a cat litter box overdue for cleaning….  You get the picture!

***Given the competitiveness of today’s real estate market, it’s not enough to hang the towels neatly on a towel rack and spray the air with room deodorizer.  The fact that professional home stagers even exist suggests that having your home sell quickly and for a good price requires much more these days.***

Homebuying.about.com has this to say about Home Staging:

“Home staging is about illusions. It’s how David Copperfield would sell a house. It’s beyond decorating and cleaning. It’s about perfecting the art of creating moods. Staging makes your house look bigger, brighter, cleaner, warmer, more loving and, best of all, it makes home buyers want to buy it.

 “Contrary to what you might think, it’s about more than preparing the house for sale. Staging is what you do after you’ve cleaned, de-cluttered, painted, made minor repairs; it’s all about dressing the house for sale.

 “It’s about adding the small details: the lipstick, mascara and, for simplicity, a stunning, single strand of Tahitian pearls.”

So, how do we get from the lived-in look I described in my first paragraph to the artistry of a staged home? 

Let’s start with de-cluttering.  If the very word makes you shudder, you are not alone!  But we all know it’s a worthy activity for many reasons, even more so if the home we’re living in is about to be put on the market.

In a perfect world, de-cluttering is something we do as part of our regular routine, along with sanitizing the bathrooms and vacuuming the carpets.  For example, mail gets opened over the shredder and the trash can, with just the essentials kept for future needs (stored somewhere handy and inconspicuous).  Daily newspaper goes into the recycle bin after being read.  And so on.  But clutter has an insidious way of building up to overwhelming proportions.  Yesterday’s perfectly acceptable possessions – take VHS videotapes, for example – are, all of a sudden, today’s clutter, no longer needed, wanted or useful.  How did that happen?!

And, more to the point, what do we do about it?  Where to start?   It may help to read books and magazine articles on de-cluttering and getting organized, or to visit some of the thousands of websites that tell you why and how to do it (see a few below), or even to hire a professional organizer, but at its simplest and yet most difficult, de-cluttering is about making hard decisions.  It’s about focusing on the life lived in the space, rather than the stuff in the space.  

We are the only ones who can decide what items are trash (throw them away!), what things we no longer need or want but still have value (sell them or give them away!), and which few items we really love and need and use on a regular basis (keep them!).

Ideally, we end up with just the things that contribute to the life we want to live in small enough numbers that our home appears tidy and spacious, yet still reflects the life of the occupants.  Then, maybe, our home is ready to be staged for selling.

De-cluttering Websites:

15 Great Decluttering Tips

100 Reasons to Get Rid Of It (from Martha Stewart)

Declutter, declutter, declutter!

Declutter Forever: Home Organize It!

Decluttering for Home and Head

Fly.lady.net:  How to Declutter [this is an excellent website for all kinds of home management tasks]

Green Interior Decluttering Process

Living Gently Quarterly: Spring Decluttering

Pitch, pile or file?

The Super Easy Approach to Decluttering Your Home

Tips for Decluttering Your Home When Downsizing

Why Declutter? 

Ready to put your newly de-cluttered home on the market?  Contact me here, email me at barry@barryt.ca, or phone me at 780-910-9669.

The phrase “Dress for Success” has a different meaning in real estate than it does in other businesses.  You know that before you put your Stony Plain, Spruce Grove, Parkland County or Edmonton area home on the market, it’s important to clean it thoroughly, get rid of clutter, and make minor repairs.  But these days, in order to sell your home in the shortest amount of time and for the best price, that’s not going far enough.  The next step is home staging.

What is home staging?

Home staging is literally setting a scene and creating a mood – transforming an ordinary house into an attractive, welcoming home that any potential buyer might envision himself living in.   The key is universal appeal.

Secrets of home staging

Home staging doesn’t mean erasing all evidence of the people living in the house, but it’s important to remember that how you live in your home and how you sell your home are two very different things. 

Differences show up in the number and type of things on display, the size of furniture and how it’s arranged, and in the general state of cleanliness and tidiness.  This is one situation where “good enough” probably isn’t!  A perfectly staged home is going to resemble more a suite in a 4-star hotel – before a guest unpacks! – than the homes most of us grew up in or currently live in.  With that in mind, here are a few things to know about home staging.

Update.  The simplest and least costly upgrades, besides paint, include light fixtures, taps and faucets, door and cabinet hardware, switches and switch plates, and drapery and window treatments.

Neutralize.  Neutral colors for walls and floor coverings are best.  People must be able to visualize themselves and their own possessions in the home so the decorating must serve only as a backdrop.  Neutralize also means keeping things generic:  “middle-of-the-road” décor, furnishings and accessories.

Clean.  Really, really clean; mother-in-law clean; brand-new-home clean….!

Edit.  People must be able to see the space, not the stuff in the space.  Corners must be visible, rooms must appear to be open and airy, closets need to look spacious and unfilled, and so on.  This may mean that typical home sellers have to dispose of or pack up for off-site storage 30% to 80% of their possessions.  For example, your kitchen counter should be as close to cleared off as you can make it, with maybe just a coffee maker and toaster to suggest its functionality.  In the bathroom, remove all personal care items, cosmetics and the like from the counter, leaving perhaps just a fresh container of liquid soap next to the sink.  And so on.  Tip:  Take a photo of a room in your house.  Chances are the “too much” factor will be more evident in a picture.

Depersonalize:  Small numbers of family photos, personal memorabilia and items connected to hobbies are fine.  What isn’t fine is anything that detracts from a potential buyer seeing himself in the space.  People don’t want to look at your toothbrush or razor in the bathroom, dirty dishes in the kitchen sink, or piles of clothing on the laundry room floor, for example.  In other words, the place must not look used.

Tidy:  Whatever items are left after possessions have been edited need to be arranged as neatly as possible.  This means not only things readily visible but also everything in closets, drawers, cabinets and other storage spaces in every area of the house, including the garage and outdoors.   As always, the point is to make spaces appear as roomy and functional as possible.

 Sense it.  I’ve heard that 75% of the buyer’s decision is affected by the first 5 seconds through the front door.  Sight and smell are going to be the most important senses in that first impression, and their impact is instantaneous.  Never underestimate the effect of the sight and smell of fresh flowers!

 Light it.  Remember that home staging is about creating a mood.  Warm and bright will sell your home.

Suggest.  Of all the “secrets” of home staging, this is the most important.  Suggest a feeling of hominess and coziness by arranging a few pieces of furniture, such as a pair of modest loveseats and a couple of smallish tables and lamps, in an appealing vignette which will make the buyer want to be a part of it.  Add some accessories such as colorful cushions, a throw in a soft fabric, a couple of classic books or a tea service or a potted plant on a side table with a lamp turned on.  Keep the number and size of items small to trick the eye into maximizing the proportions of the room.  The phrase “less is more” is the very essence of home staging, employing subtlety, simplicity, refinement and classic design.  Everything in a space is there to highlight the best features of the space.  Tip:  Visit a store like Ikea and study the room vignettes.  These are perfect examples of home staging.

Accessorize.  Besides basic furniture appropriate to a given room, professional home stagers add a variety of accessories to hint at feelings or activities associated with that space.  For example:

• in the kitchen: a large bowl of fresh, colorful fruit; an open cookbook; a new matched set of tea towels and oven mitts
• in the bathroom: new clean towels tied with ribbons on the side of the tub; a spa basket of scented soaps and lotions on the counter; a small tray of scented candles
• in the bedroom: new bedcovering and extra pillows; a simple swag of fabric draped above the windows; a small ottoman with an afghan throw; small bedside tables with lamps turned on
• in the living room: mirrors; potted plants or silk flowers; area and throw rugs; a display of unusual knickknacks in a grouping of 1, 3 or 5 items
• on the patio or deck: a small patio table and a pair of chairs, with perhaps a potted plant on the table, to suggest a conversational grouping

While all of this may seem like a lot of work, most sellers who take the trouble to stage their homes really do see a better price within a shorter time frame.

 Ready to sell your Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, Parkland County or Edmonton-area home?  Contact me here, email me at barry@barryt.ca, or phone me at 780-910-9669.

If you are one of those rare people who travels light through life, this article may not be for you.  But if you are like most people, and you’ve been in your home for a while, the thought of downsizing has probably crossed your mind, especially if your family and life circumstances have changed since you first moved into your home, whether in Stony Plain, Spruce Grove, Parkland County, the Edmonton area or elsewhere.

 There are many good reasons to downsize:

• saving money on home upkeep, insurance, taxes and utilities
• unloading some of the “stuff” most of us can’t help accumulating on our life’s journey but which we find we no longer need
• lessening our impact on the environment
• simplifying our daily routines to save time for more interesting and enriching activities
• preparing for a time when someone else may have to look after our affairs and possessions

Before you can downsize your home to a smaller place, you will probably need to downsize inside your home first, getting rid of many everyday objects found there.  This can be extraordinarily difficult.  The truth is that downsizing and de-cluttering often come with a huge pile of emotional baggage.  Making the decision to part with property and possessions you’ve used and loved for a long time, each item attached to memories, can be a wrenching experience.  Sometimes the sheer volume of physical and emotional “stuff” can be so overwhelming that it’s hard to even begin.

Most experts will tell you to start with a small space, like a closet or even a small room.  They suggest you remove everything from the area and sort items into several piles, with the ultimate goal being to throw away the trash, give away or sell things you no longer need or want but which still have some value, and keep only those items you really love and use.  Sounds sensible and simple enough, right?  Most of these experts will also provide you with all kinds of motivational prods to force you to get past your objections (“My grandmother made that old quilt!”  “I might have a use for that tool some day!”), along with questionnaires to help you decide what kind of hoarder you are and which pile something belongs in.

The fact is that none of this advice is going to be worth much until you are sure that you need or want to downsize in the first place.

A thought-provoking article published in the Montreal Gazette (“Boomers upsizing their downsizing plans”) suggests that maybe we shouldn’t be too hasty in automatically assuming that downsizing is for everybody.  Baby boomers once again are doing things a little differently from previous generations.  Some people when they reach a certain age are discovering that it actually makes sense to move into a bigger home, albeit one with a floor plan more geared to their current and future physical needs (for example, a bungalow with an open floor plan rather than a multi-level home), while others decide to keep the family home but renovate it to accommodate changing situations.  There are a number of reasons for this interesting trend:

• Family dynamics have changed. Children are taking longer to leave the nest, or are returning to the family home after relationship break-ups and the like. There are also many people in late middle age who find themselves raising their grandchildren.
• Work lives have changed. Some people realize they don’t want to retire in the way previous generations did. Instead they decide to modify their work so that more is done from home. This creates the need for a home work space.
• Many older adults have the money to continue to enjoy the quality of life that comes from living in a larger private space. This might include making room in the home for hobbies, exercise, more entertaining, etc.
• Keeping a house rather than moving to a condo or some other kind of communal living space may make good economic sense as equity in homes continues to rise.

So … to downsize or not?  Maybe our reluctance to part with possessions has less to do with procrastination and more to do with the need to make practical, realistic life choices.

If you’ve made the decision to downsize and you are interested in looking at smaller properties in the Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, Parkland County or Edmonton area, please contact me here, email me at barry@barryt.ca, or phone 780-910-9669. 

It’s no secret that the Edmonton area has world-class shopping, but some of the best items for sale are not found in any mall.

If, like me, you’re a big fan of fresh, locally grown produce and home-made goodies, you’ll be happy to learn about the Farmers’ Markets, U-Pick farming operations and market gardens found in the Tri-Municipal area of Spruce Grove, Stony Plain and Parkland County.  At all of these venues, consumers have the opportunity to make personal contact with the people who actually produce the goods.

(Google Maps feature is available for some addresses below:  Click on the addresses for a map of the location of the facility.) 

Local Farmers’ Markets

Farmers’ Markets are not just a great place to get some of the best and freshest fruits and vegetables; they are also the spot to find home baking and wonderful fruity jams and other preserves (organic, no chemicals, no preservatives), along with special hand-crafted gift items.  A little tip about Farmers’ Markets:  For the best selection, it is always a good idea to get there early!  The “regulars” know which vendors sell the best in each category, and those vendors are usually among the first to sell out.

Spruce Grove Farmers’ Market:  Located at the Grain Elevator on the south side of Highway 16A :  120 Railway Avenue, Spruce Grove.  Saturdays, 9:30 AM to 2:30 PM.  In 2010, operates indoors from April 17 to December 18.  For more information contact:  Lisa Lohr, ljscreations@yahoo.com.  Phone 780-960-9380.

Heritage Farmers’ Market:  Toby Kazeil Pavilion, 4202 – 50 Street, Stony Plain (Stony Plain Exhibition Grounds).    Saturdays, 9 AM to 1 PM.  In 2010, operates indoors from March 20 to October 9.  For more information contact:  Lisa Wood, lisa@multicentre.org.  Phone 780-963-2777.

Stony Plain Farmers’ Market:  Located in the Stony Plain Community Centre, 5008 – 51 Avenue, Stony Plain.  Saturdays, 9 AM to 1 PM.  In 2010, operates April 10 to December 18.  For more information contact Joanne Blicq, jblicq@hotmail.com.  Phone 780-963-3028.

U-Picks

Tips from U-Pick veterans:

• For berries, bring your own plastic 4-litre ice cream pails with handles and lids (light, easy to carry, handle can loop over a wrist or be tied onto a belt to leave hands free for picking).
• Always phone ahead to make sure field conditions are right for picking.
• Wear a hat and proper footwear, and remember your bottled water, sunscreen, bug repellent and cash (many U-Pick operations are not set up for debit/credit cards). You may wish to bring gardening gloves and wear long sleeves to protect against scratches from prickly bushes.
• Bring a cooler with ice packs for transporting your freshly picked produce.
• Many U-Pick farms can accommodate large groups and often have picnic and barbecue facilities; phone and ask.
• A website with more useful tips:  PickYourOwn.org

Grove Berry Patch:   52430 Range Road 265, Spruce Grove (1.5 km south off Highway 16A on Spruce Valley Road aka Range Road 265).    Kameron and Carol Jones welcome you to their 20 acres of saskatoon bushes and 1 acre of raspberries, chokecherries, black currants, high bush cranberries and vegetables.  Open daily 9 AM to 6 PM and evenings by appointment.  Open 9 AM till dusk during saskatoon season (July and August).  Wheelchair accessible.  Phone ahead to check on conditions and availability:  780-962-5824.

Roy‘s Raspberries:  26421 Hwy 16A, Acheson:   located just east of Spruce Grove, south of Hwy 16A on Range Road 265.   20 acres of raspberry bushes, 10 varieties of red raspberries, 2 varieties of golden.  Open daily 8 AM to 8 PM until Labour Day; after Labour Day, open reduced hours until severe frost.  For more information contact manager Harvey Boyko at 780-962-3959 or email roysrasp@xplornet.ca.

Dunvegan Gardens:  Located at 215 St (aka Winterburn Road) and 23 Ave, Edmonton.  Raspberries, saskatoons, black currants.  No pesticides used.  Open May to August Monday to Friday 9 AM to 8 PM, Saturdays 9 AM to 6 PM, Sundays noon to 5 PM; September to April Monday to Saturday 9 AM to 6 PM.  Also operates a greenhouse and garden centre.  For more information phone 780-470-0565 or email info@dunvegangardens.ca.

Saskatoon Valley Orchards:  Box 19, Site 502, RR 5, Stony Plain:  6 km south of Stony Plain to Secondary Hwy 627; 13 km west on 627 to RR 22; 1 km south.  11,000 saskatoon bushes:  Smoky, Northline, Thiesson, Honeywood varities.  Open July and August, 8 AM to 9 PM.  For more information phone 780-963-8311 or email pktmogan@msn.com.

Happy Acres U-Pick:  1 52225 Range Road 273, Spruce Grove:  5 km south of Spruce Grove on Golden Spike Road.  Chemical-free strawberries, raspberries, saskatoons, rhubarb, apples, currants, Nanking cherries + wide variety of vegetables.  Also offer farm eggs and honey.  Open Wednesday to Sunday 10AM to 9 PM.  Phone 780-968-0099, or email  happyacresdebbie@hotmail.com.

Market Gardens

Inspired Market Gardens:  Located at 52207 Range Road 25 near Carvel (35 minutes west of Edmonton).  Specializing in culinary herbs, edible flowers, and salad greens raised using all-natural growing conditions and sustainable agriculture methods, and naturally organic pastured poultry.  Hours for 2010:  May 1 to June 27, Wednesday to Saturday 10 AM to 5:30 PM, Sunday noon to 5 PM.  July to September, Saturdays noon to 5 PM.  Home of the World Bassett Hound Races!  For more information phone 780-968-4648 or 1-877-874-4455, or email info@inspiredgardens.ca.

B.A.’s Market Garden:  Box 31, Site 460, RR 4, Stony Plain:  ½  mile south of Stony Plain, west on 524, follow to the end. At the entrance to Hasse Lake Park.  Barry Altheim markets fresh vegetables all year round.  Phone 780-963-0574.

Garden Valley Organic Orchards:  27212 SH 627, Spruce Grove:  3 km west of Edmonton on Hwy 16A; 10 km south on Hwy 60; 9 km west on secondary hwy 627 (Garden Valley Road), or 10 km south of Spruce Grove on Golden Spike Road aka secondary hwy 788 to secondary hwy 627; 1 km east.  Available for u-pick:  strawberries, raspberries, saskatoons, apples, chokecherries, black currants, rhubarb + wide variety of fresh vegetables.  Spring/summer Monday to Saturday 9 AM to 8 PM, Sunday 9 AM to 3 PM.  Phone 780-963-9370.

Home Grown Food & AgriProducts:  10 – 19 Granite Drive, Stony Plain.   Phone 780-963-5305.  Open Monday to Saturday, 10 AM to 6 PM.  While technically not a “market garden”, this health food store is included in this list because of its commitment to fresh, locally grown, organic products.  From their website:  Homegrown Foods is here to provide you with the finest quality fresh, natural, organic, whole foods, nutritional products, body care products and health information in a fun comfortable clean, safe environment. We also have an extensive gluten free product line along with organic/hormone free meats & a large assortment of wild fish. 

 Did we miss some facilities that should be included in this list?  Phone me at 780-910-9669, email me at barry@barryt.ca or contact me here.

1. Location

Real estate’s number one criterion really plays out in Stony Plain.  Located within Parkland County 8 km west of Spruce Grove and 17 km west of Edmonton, Stony Plain has easy access to all the amenities of both cities.  The town retains its rural roots while offering modern transportation options via Highways 16, 16A and 43, as well as rail and bus links.  Travel times:  roughly ½ hour east to Edmonton (great for commuters), an hour to the Edmonton International Airport, 3 hours west to Jasper, 3½ hours south to Calgary, 4 hours north to Grande Prairie.  Take a look at Stony Plain’s official website.

2. Lifestyle

Quiet small town atmosphere, 14,000 friendly residents, safe and secure streets, along with every convenience of modern life.

3. Neighborhoods

Many towns claim to cater to every taste and budget but Stony Plain truly does have something for everyone:  condos and low-rise apartment buildings in Downtown Stony Plain, mobile and modular homes in Meridian Meadows, all the way up to luxury homes on acreage properties within town limits in Country Plains Estates.

4. 100+ Years of History

AlbertaFirst.com (a website that has regrettably been discontinued) had this to say:  “The Town has a pride in its history which began in 1881 when the first homestead in the area was documented. In 1892 the area was known as Dog Rump Creek until a post office was named for the region and it became Stony Plain. In 1907, Stony Plain’s first Sheriff, Israel Umbach, made national headlines when he chained a locomotive to the railway tracks for non-payment of taxes and changed the course of history. In 1908 Stony Plain was officially incorporated as a town. Stony Plain’s history is kept alive through its murals program, numerous historic sites, and the Multicultural Heritage Centre.”   Interested in learning more about the rich history and interesting tales of this area?  Check out Along the Fifth: A History of Stony Plain and District.

5. Unique Downtown Character and Hospitality

Twenty-six larger-than-life outdoor murals, historic buildings such as the Stony Plain Hotel which dates from 1906, quaint shops, and one-of-a-kind restaurants make it a treat to stroll through the downtown core of “The Town with the Painted Past”.

6. Multicultural Heritage Centre

So much to explore!   Housed in two buildings, the Old Brick School built in 1925 and the Oppertshauser House which dates from 1910, the Multicultural Heritage Centre with its beautiful landscaped grounds and gardens features displays and exhibits of local history and pioneer life, a gift shop and art gallery, Wild Rose Library and archives, and the much-loved Homesteader’s Kitchen restaurant, famous among locals for its fresh pies!  Also worth a visit is Stony Plain’s Pioneer Museum (5120 – 43 Ave) which hosts the Pioneer Harvest and Old Time Threshing Bee in September.

7. Festivals

Summer festivals reflect Stony Plain’s strong rural traditions.  Late May/early June features Farmers’ Days and Kinsmen Rodeo, complete with parade, midway, carnival games, arm wrestling competition and more old-fashioned fun.  The Blueberry Bluegrass and Country Music Festival, attracting well-known names and world-class performers, takes place each July (celebrating 25 years in 2010), followed in August by the Cowboy Poetry Gathering.

8. Farmers’ Markets

Fresh fruits and vegetables, homemade goodies, and handmade craft items are in abundance every Saturday morning 9 AM to 1 PM from mid-spring to early winter at the Stony Plain Farmers Market at the Stony Plain Community Centre (5008 – 51 Avenue) and at the Heritage Farmers’ Market (located at the Multicultural Heritage Centre).

9. Recreation

Everything you can imagine!  Sports of all kinds for all ages (soccer, hockey, baseball, basketball, golf, curling, skating, skiing, martial arts, BMX, you name it!), gymnastics, dancing, clubs of every description, and much more.  For specific details visit the Community Connections section of my website  and scroll down to Sports and Recreation.  But there’s more.  Stony Plain also has an extensive parks and trail system running through town, and is just a few minutes away from the TransAlta Tri Leisure Centre  with its spectacular sports facilities and the Chickakoo Lake Recreation Area in Parkland County, as well as numerous other lakes and campgrounds.

What a great place to live, wouldn’t you agree?  Contact me now for your Stony Plain Real Estate needs.

You’ve just moved into your new home, whether in Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, Parkland County or elsewhere, and you plan to enjoy and use your new property for many years.  The last thing on your mind at this time is the expense and aggravation of unexpected repairs.

Did you know that each element in your home has a predictable life span, an approximate time limit to a trouble-free operation?  If you know what this life expectancy is, you are in a better position to plan for the inevitable maintenance that comes with home ownership.

If the roof on your home has asphalt standard shingles, you can expect to have to replace that roof in 12 to 15 years after the home was constructed.   An asphalt premium shingle roof has more than double this life span:  15 to 30 years.  Wood shingles last only 10 to 20 years, while a slate tile roof, although much more expensive to install, is expected to last between 40 and 80 years.

What about home heating and cooling?  Most homes in Alberta have forced air furnaces for heating; 10 to 25 years is their life expectancy.  Central air conditioning will need to be repaired or replaced after 10 to 15 years, while window air conditioning may operate without problems for up to 20 years.

You might be surprised to learn that a hot water heater as young as 5 years may need to be replaced.  After 15 years, it might be a good idea to replace it simply as a precaution since that is the end of its normal expected life span.  Galvanized water pipes are expected to last between 20 and 25 years.  If you live on an acreage with a well and septic system, expect to replace your well pump after 10 years and your septic/sewer pump between 5 and 10 years.

Budget for home appliance replacement also.  Expect 5 to 12 years of use for both an automatic dishwasher and a garbage disposal.  The range in your kitchen will generally run trouble-free for 15 to 20 years.  In the laundry room, 5 to 15 years for a washing machine and 10 to 25 years for a dryer are standard.

The above information comes courtesy of Pillar to Post Home Inspections.  Click on this link from their Living with My Home website for a detailed chart showing the life expectancies of other home components, as well as approximate repair and replacement costs.

Comments or questions about this article?  Phone me at 780-910-9669, email me at barry@barryt.ca, or contact me here.

Ever heard of Interest Rate Differentials, or IRDs?  If you haven’t, and your mortgage contract contains a clause referring to it, you could end up with much, much less from the sale of your home in Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, Parkland County or the Edmonton area than you had anticipated.

I just re-read an email from Frank DeAngelis, a Spruce Grove lawyer (contact information below) who often handles the legal side of home sales and purchases for my clients.  Although the email was written a year ago, its content and advice are just as relevant in today’s real estate market:

“In the last few months the Real Estate Department at Main Street Law Offices has dealt with some very surprised and upset Vendors relating to the amount of their mortgage pay-outs. 

“Most Vendors seem to be expecting a three month interest penalty if they pay their mortgage out early.  However, MOST mortgages call for a three month interest penalty or an interest rate differential (“IRD”), whichever is HIGHER.  This higher cost effectively reduces the equity that Vendors have in their existing properties, making their next purchase difficult to complete as they were expecting more equity from the sale of the old house. 

“IRDs can be substantial and are a current concern due to the large decreases in interest rates over the past year.  For example, take a $300,000.00 five year mortgage taken out in 2007 at 6.5%.  With current rates at 4% or less, the pay-out penalty today with three years remaining on the term is $300,000.00 X 2.5% X 3 = $22,500.00

“We strongly recommend that you insist on your clients getting an estimated pay-out statement from their banker, including the IRD pay-out, in any circumstances where reliance is being based on an estimate of equity in the sale property.  This will help avoid closing surprises and assist us greatly in achieving ON TIME ^TM closings for your referrals. 

“Sometimes the bankers can help resolve the issue by “porting” the mortgage.  Each lender has different policies, so each case has to be addressed on its own merits.  We suggest you involve the bankers early to see what they can do to make this issue less of an impact on closing.” 

Frank C. DeAngelis, Barrister & Solicitor

Standard homes in the Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, Parkland County and Edmonton region are not the only real estate I deal with!  Here are a few of the inhabitants of my salt water reef aquarium.

The deep blue fish on the left is known as the Achilles Tang Hybrid, a rare and special fish.  “It is a quark [sic] of nature where an Achilles Tang and a Goldrim Tang have merged together during conception. It is one of the few reef fishes in Hawaiian waters known to hybridize.”   (from the website SaltAquarium.about.com).   The long nosed fish on the right is a Copperband Butterfly fish.  I bought this fish because it has a highly specialized diet; it loves eating an aquarium pest known as Aiptaisa Anemones.  These pesky sea anemones are known to take over a saltwater aquarium.  The problem with Copperbands is that once they have eaten all the Aiptaisa, they will sometimes starve to death because they are such finicky eaters.  I have managed to get my Copperband to eat frozen brine shrimp (which I feed to all my fish).  Occasionally I find a rock with Aiptaisa growing on it in my quarantine tank.  Once I move the rock to my main tank, my Copperband will hunt down all the Aiptaisa and make a meal of it in very short order.

This is a photo of my starfish.  It is currently wrapped around my blasto coral from Australia.  It always amazes me how gentle this creature is.  It never damages or knocks over any of the corals.  My wife Paulette calls him Gumby.

These are some of my favorite corals, the Australian Acans.  These corals are fully extended out with their feeder tentacles exposed.  This is the sign of a happy and healthy Acan.

This is a photo of my main tank which I started in the fall of 2008.  It is now fully matured (this can take 6 plus months).  The photo shows most of the fish in my tank, along with my black and white clown fish.  Just below them is a living giant clam, which my clown fish have decided to “host”.  Clown fish, also known as anemonefish, usually host an anemone in the wild.  I can only describe this as a love affair between these two creatures.  Because having a poisonous anemone can be extremely detrimental to a reef tank, I choose not to have one.  So my clown fish have taken to hosting my giant clam, claiming it and defending it as their territory.  They are never very far away from this clam.  They nudge it in the morning to wake it up, sleep on it at night and do not like anything coming close to their clam, including my hand when I try to clean the inside glass.

Another picture from my main tank.  Pretty much everything you can see in this aquarium is alive:  the corals and fish, of course, but there is even life in the sand and rocks.  The rock, referred to as “live rock”, serves many purposes, and is probably the most popular material used for natural biological filtration in saltwater aquariums.  What surprises most people is how alive the corals are.  They expand and contract, react to touch, light and food.  What people may not know is that many corals are carnivorous, and many have long stinging tentacles used to protect their territory.  The winner of any coral conflict is usually determined by which coral produces the strongest poison.  Fortunately for us, human skin is too thick for most corals to penetrate. Although there is a lot going on in a reef aquarium during the day, plenty of interesting things happen after the lights are turned out at night.  A flashlight will expose the many night creatures and add a whole new dimension to a reef system.

Are you looking for a special kind of real estate?  I’d love to help you find your dream home.  Phone me at 780-910-9669, email me at barry@barryt.ca, or contact me here.

Wherever we live, Spruce Grove, Stony Plain, Parkland County or elsewhere, most of us have things we collect or activities we like to do in our leisure time.  These collections and activities often spill over into our homes, even if they are usually done elsewhere.  Without proper planning, this can sometimes be disastrous.  Think, for example, of current popular television programs on hoarding and decluttering.

If you have any sort of hobby, and you are in the market for a new home, it’s a good idea to give some thought about how that hobby will fit into the physical confines of the houses you look at, and what modifications you might have to make to a house in order to accommodate your hobby.

Let’s say you enjoy hiking and camping, or similar sports or activities that you normally practice away from home.  Where and how are you going to store the gear needed for these activities?

Maybe you are a serious collector of… well, almost anything!  Books, coins, model cars, sports memorabilia, dolls, antique furniture, teapots, clocks, insects….   More than three objects in any of these categories could rightly be called a collection.  The question for your home is where and how are you going to store and display your collection?

Or, maybe your hobby is some activity or craft you do, which may or may not result in a physical endproduct.  Some hobbies are fairly easy to fit into everyday life.  Gourmet cooking?  Your kitchen may be a little better equipped than the average but usually no major changes need to be made.  Enjoy reading, doing crossword puzzles, blogging, or watching vintage movies?  Again, easy to do at home without disrupting daily life.  Scrapbooking or sewing?  A table and a few storage containers in the corner of a guest bedroom will often be enough.

But suppose your hobby requires

• a great deal of space (think model trains or weaving or woodworking or restoring old vehicles)
• the use of toxic chemicals (oil painting or furniture refinishing)
• structural changes to your home (pottery making with a home kiln, perhaps, where special wiring might be needed, or collecting wine, where special lighting and temperature controls may be required)

Can hobbies of this type be accommodated in your home?  Yes, with a little forethought and planning.  A good rule to follow is to do what you must but always keep the end in mind.  That is, consider what you will need to do to return your home to its original condition should you give up the hobby or when it is time to sell your home.

I recently developed the basement of our Spruce Grove home.  I thought this would be a good opportunity to incorporate a salt water aquarium into our home.  There is just something about the choice of fish and corals and all the colours available in a salt water reef system.  A fragile system that does not forgive neglect or ignorance, it has very specific needs that include water temperature, lighting, chemical control (e.g. calcium, PH balance, ammonia, nitrates, magnesium, etc.), water flow, salinity, and more.  There can be costly lessons during the learning curve.  But if one is passionate about a hobby, the work and expense are eventually well worth it.

I brought in someone who is an expert in salt water systems and had him advise me on what was needed.  He suggested we add two dedicated electrical circuits to accommodate all the equipment, and a sink with hot and cold running water.  We built the tank into the wall so that it can be viewed from the family room.  All the equipment is located behind the main tank in an oversized closet just off the exercise room.  The system was installed so that it could easily be converted back to what the average home buyer would expect to find.  All that we need to do is remove the equipment, frame the opening where the display tank is, mount and finish some drywall, and no one would ever know there ever was an aquarium there. Except for maybe plumbing in the wall and a humidistat hooked up to an exhaust fan.

 It is worth remembering that when you modify your home to accommodate your hobby or business, you may have to remove all evidence of it ever having been there as it may be viewed as a deterrent or expense to prospective buyers.   

For most people, hobbies and interests are a special but integral part of their lives and need to be considered when shopping for a new home.

Comments or questions about this article or about Spruce Grove Real Estate?  Email me at btwynam@telusplanet.net, phone me at 780-910-9669, or contact me here.