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Is your home office the dining room table? Is it anywhere you can sit down undisturbed with your laptop? If so, you might be interested in converting a room or nook into a dedicated home office. Depending on what you do for a living, there could be a tax advantage to creating this space too.

 

The first step is to pick a spot. Ideally, you want an area where you can work without too many distractions.

 

Next, make sure the spot you’ve chosen can accommodate a desk and any other furnishings you’ll need. Think about what you want within easy reach of your work area. Will you need a place for books and other papers? An extra chair for client meetings? A flipchart? A filing cabinet? Think about all of the options in advance.

 

Then, you’ll want to make sure the spot you picked has the electrical outlets you need, especially if you’re going to have a printer, special lighting, a computer and other items that need power.

 

Finally, you’ll want your home office to be a place where you can enjoy working. So decorate it with that in mind. If you like plants, get plants. If you enjoy golf, have your golf trip pictures hanging on the wall.

With a little work, you can quickly create a home office space that is comfortable, functional and enjoyable. It sure beats the dining room!

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For some homeowners, the process of listing, showing and selling their home can be stressful. Fortunately, there is plenty you can do to make it much less nerve-racking—and even exciting and enjoyable. Here are some ideas:

 

1. Make a plan. Decide when you’re going to show your property, search for a new home, view listings, etc. Block out these times in an agenda book or calendar. That way, you and your family can see what’s coming up.

 

2. Be flexible. Few things go exactly as planned! So, it’s important to build in flexibility. For example, you may plan to see homes for sale on Saturdays, but if an opportunity comes up on a weeknight, give yourself room in your schedule to jump on it.  

 

3. Eat well. There are numerous studies that connect poor nutrition with increased stress. When people are selling and moving, there’s a tendency to rely on quick fixes, such as hot dogs and pizza! Try to plan more nutritious meals that will keep everyone healthy and energized.

 

4. Get stuff done early. Doing things last minute, such as finding a real estate lawyer or getting rid of clutter, can quickly lead to stress and frustration. Whenever possible, get tasks done early. That way, you won’t have to worry about them.

 

5. Hire the right professionals. By far, the surest way to a stress-free move is to get the right professionals working for you: everyone from contractors to mortgage brokers to movers.

 

By the way, a big part of what I do for clients is help make every aspect of buying, selling and moving go smoothly. Contact me to learn how I can help you.

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In the first quarter of 2018 there were 648 residential home sales in Saskatoon, this represented an 11% decline year over year from 2017. The year over year decrease in home sales for the month of March was 24% with just 234 residential transactions last month. The number of new listings introduced on the MLS® for Saskatoon is also down for the quarter with 2,183 in 2017 compared to 1,807 so far this year. 

 Active residential listings in Saskatoon at the end of March totaled 1,670 for both single and multi-family homes, consistent with the five year average of 1,695. This current level of inventory would take just over seven months to liquidate at the current rate of sales. 

The reduction in active listings is not only the result of fewer homes being listed on the market. “Some sellers may have decided not to relist their home just yet, opting to wait for the more active spring market to try their luck.” according to Jason Yochim, CEO with the Saskatoon Region Association of REALTORS® (SRAR) “Many sellers believe that spring is the best time to sell” he adds. The real indicator of success in selling is correct pricing based on what else is competition in the market and the current market conditions relative to supply and demand. “A REALTOR® is the best person to provide insightful and objective advice on this critical element.”

The sales to listing ratio is a comparison of the number of sales for a period of time to the number of new listings. The intent of this ratio is to attempt to determine if it is a buyers or seller’s market. A ratio between 40% and 60% is considered to be a balanced market. A ratio below that is considered a buyer’s market and above, a seller’s market. The sales-to-listing ratio for March was 35%, down slightly from the five year average of 40%. Last month, the average home in Saskatoon took 64 days to sell compared with 47 days in March of 2017. The five year average for the Saskatoon market is 50 days. 

The average year to date residential sale price continued its steady decline by 2%. For the first quarter of 2018, the average home sale price in Saskatoon was $333,826. Since averages can be misleading, a better reflection of the market is the median. The median home sale price continued to decline from $330,000 in January, to $317,250 in March. In March of 2017, the median price was just slightly higher at $320,000. The five year average for median residential home sale prices in Saskatoon is $330,000. 

The Home Price Index Composite Benchmark Price (HPI) increased slightly for the first time since June of 2017 to $293,200. By comparison this value was last seen in February of 2012. The highest point reached by the HPI was $319,600 in May of 2015. The recent decline in the HPI showed signs of slowing in January of 2018.The HPI is the most accurate indicator of where home prices are trending.   -Source: April 2018 SRAR News Release 
 
Looking for sound market advice?  As REALTOR® and Nationally Accredited Buyer Representative - ABR®, Seller Representative Specialist - SRS® and Real Estate Negotiation Expert - RENE, I can provide you with this advice. Call today.
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