Hot Property Communities in Central Alberta to Watch for in 2016

image: courtesy of Meridian Beach

Pay no mind to the media hype surrounding the Central Alberta economic impact on the real estate investment market. Exciting things are happening for 2016, with four burgeoning communities catching the eye of prospective homeowners and investors from near and far. While property developments continue, catching up with the demand, even more rousing is the overall growth of these communities. Whether your are considering a new place to live, or are looking to capitalize on this growth to maximize personal wealth and revenue streams, the following areas are hotbeds to watch for in the year ahead.

4 Communities You Should Consider for Your Next Home Purchase in Central Alberta

1. Gull Lake

This recent article (click here) regarding the reasons to buy a home in Gull Lake speak for themselves, but allow us to gush further about this trending Central Alberta community. Gull Lake is on fire, with new property developments such as Meridian Beach making headlines in major provincial media. Gull Lake developers are accommodating prospects looking for a home and vacation property investment alike. The Raymond Shores and Sandy Point developments are gaining feverous interest from those considering RV resort communities while luxury beckons from the country lakefront of Westlake Estates. Being the hub of outdoor recreation in Central Alberta has drawn a slew of complementary businesses and activity providers, ensuring continued growth and development of Gull Lake as one of the freshest resort communities in Canada.

2. Sylvan Lake

Before Gull Lake garnered national attention Sylvan Lake was the see all be all as the hottest resort community in the country. This quaint yet growing geographic hotspot isn’t slowing down anytime soon with 2016 projections looking monumental. Developments such as The Slopes of Sylvan Lake in particular are garnering attention from its use of expansive green space, eye-catching architecture, and energy efficiency. Buyers in neighboring metropolises are taking notice. A recent quote from developer Chris Artibello in the Calgary Herald sums it up in layman’s terms quite well:

“You can go up there for a weekend, it’s 90 minutes away. You are 10 minutes from two different boat launches and you’re five minutes from all the groceries and shopping, beach front and all that sort of stuff.”  (Calgary Herald, May 2015)

Amenities aside from “resort life” are accommodating residents more than ever as well, including new enhancements to the educational system (HJ Cody high school in particular) and medical services (including a new medical imaging centre in early 2016). From lakefront to rolling hills, a property to match your needs is situated in Sylvan Lake.

3. Blackfalds

Blackfalds is home to one of the newest and most exciting community developments in Central Alberta. New property developments (click here) along Arrowhead Close, Morris Court, and Paramount Crescent perfectly convey what new buyers can expect. As with the communities above (Gull Lake, Sylvan Lake) the municipality of Blackfalds too is making big strides to accommodating residents. One look at the 2016 Blackfalds budget (here) evidences that arriving and existing residents/visitors will enjoy new and/or enhanced parks, outdoor recreational facilities, historic site restorations, and roadway/trail improvements.

4. Red Deer & Lacombe County Acreages

Red Deer and Lacombe are staples in the Central Alberta buyers’ market. But this longstanding reputation doesn’t make the scene any less exciting. It is within the acreages that prospective builders, homeowners, and investors are striking gold. With each urban community (Red Deer and Lacombe) growing and becoming more densified, the outlying county areas are becoming hotbeds for home development. The expansive acreages, developing properties, and bungalows located along the regions’ highways and the likes of Range Road (click here) are attractive to those considering a multi-generational family home and lucrative for those seeking an investment property.

2016 is going to be a big year for buyers of Central Alberta homes. Contact the Dusty Smith Real Estate team anytime at 403-347-0744 and allow us to serve as your concierge to the flourishing communities detailed above.

4 New Year Resolutions to Selling Your Central Alberta Home

It’s hard to believe that 2015 is coming to a close. Some of you have big plans on the horizon for the year ahead. You may be selling your house in order to move into a new, bigger, and better home. Others may be looking to cash-in on a long held investment property. Whichever the case, now is the time to apply that age old concept of New Year resolutions to your real estate goals. Selling a home in Central Alberta, regardless the economy, comes with a unique set of circumstances. Today, as the days of 2015 come to a close, we look at four key resolutions that will help you close a lucrative sale of your home or investment property in 2016.

Four Tips to Selling Your Central Alberta Home in the New Year

1. Set the Right Price

This may seem like stating the obvious, but trust us when we say that this point is the most overlooked. On one side, you have homeowners that assume setting a high listing price from the get-go is the best way to go. They do so under the logic that the tactic will leave them the negotiation room that they need to land on the actual price they had in mind. However, this overinflation of the price only serves to keep savvy Central Alberta buyers at bay. They and their real estate agents will simply gloss over your listing in favor of those that set a more reasonable price. The problem is compounded when your inflated price keeps your home on the market longer than necessary. Prospective buyers become suspicious (assuming something is wrong with your property) and bypass your listing.

On the other side of the loonie, you have homeowners that undervalue their home, fretting over the state of the economy and attempting to unload their property in a panic. Not only will this thought-process leave you with negative opportunity cost, setting a price too low can make agents and buyers cautious. They will assume anyone unloading a property at such an undervalued price is hiding something, and their suspicions will rise. Once again, your listing will be passed over. Set the price of your property at its true market value (view tips here) in 2016 if you hope to sell your home within the same year.

2. Consider Concessions Instead of Price Negotiation

Instead of diving too deep into the negotiation game, consider sweetening the pot to get prospective buyers off the fence and into the closure of the sales contract. If you have set a true market price for your home, it is not unreasonable to expect its receipt, especially if you have concessions to offer. These concessions can include existing furnishings within the home, small renovations, fresh paint, relocation allowances, and whatever creative items and services you can offer. Look at your resources and connections to determine what a prospective buyer may need from you, and use these concessions to help you close the sale on your home.

3. Quick Fixes to Design & Decor

Put yourself in the shoes of prospective buyers. How will they view your home from the moment they pull up to the curb to the moment they walk through the front door and exit into the backyard? While we discourage you from taking on excessive expenses and overdoing it with renovations, small aesthetic and functional edits to your interior/exterior design and decor will go a long way. Ensure that your yard is well kept and apply a quick coat of paint to gutters and the trim (window trim, etc.) of your home exterior to enhance curb appeal. Move your interior excess into storage, so that you remove clutter and open up the home, making it seem even more spacious that the literal square footage may allow. Manipulate natural and artificial lighting to focus on the best features of your interior while diverting attention away from less attractive zones (stains, cracked paint, etc.). Take down personal decorative pieces (artwork, etc.) that may distort a buyer’s vision of the home becoming theirs. While you may consider a professional home-stager, you can accomplish a lot with a little logical thought and putting yourself in the psychological position of buyers.

4. Use a Reputable Full-Service Real Estate Marketing Team

Last but most certainly not least comes the most important New Year resolution to selling your home in Central Alberta. There is no more efficient way to sell your property than by securing the services of a local area REALTOR that comes with a full-service and highly specialized real estate marketing team. A professional marketing team will be accessible to you at all hours of the day, have access to more prospective buyers than an individual agent, and will be far more versed in the numerous home marketing channels of modern times. In addition, such a team is better equipped to navigate the curious Central Alberta economy of 2016. Click here to learn more about how a full-service team will serve you best in the year ahead or simply contact the Dusty Smith Real Estate team anytime at 403-347-0744.