An Ipsos Reid survey commissioned by First Canadian Title recently revealed that new homeowners are all too frequently unaware of the true costs of home ownership. Fully one in four first-time homeowners are unprepared for the costs and surprises that come along with the purchase.

 ”Despite the joys associated with owning a home, people are often dismayed at some of the surprise costs they encounter, particularly during the first year of home ownership,” says Susan Leslie, of First Canadian Title. Examples of these costs can run from relatively mundane ones such as having to change the locks, replacing a light fixture, or appling a fresh coat of paint to more serious matters such as property encroachment issues or unexpected claims to title.

 You don’t have to be one of those caught unaware. Serious issues such as property encroachments, unpaid liens, defects on title, or costs associated with pre-existing building code violations can be covered with the purchase of relatively inexpensive title insurance.

Twenty-six percent of new homeowners said they were completely or somewhat unprepared for the costs and expenses involved in the first year of home ownership. A full forty-three percent were very or somewhat unknowledgeable of closing costs such as mortgage loan insurance, legal fees, and land registration fees.

I recommend title insurance to anyone making a home purchase. It’s an inexpensive way of insuring yourself against some of the unexpected costs that can be incurred in home ownership. I also provide all of my customers with a worksheet that shows them exactly how much they will have to pay in closing costs. I’ll help you to avoid the potential hidden costs and show you how to make a successfull real estate purchase (or sale).

CMHC released it’s outlook on the housing market in BC recently. They have forecast a slight dip in the number of MLS sales, but predict that prices will continue to rise.

Their prediction is that we will see an average price increase of 11.8% this year. 2008 will see an average price increase of 6.3%. Those are strong, healthy increases.

One area that I find particularly interesting in their research article is the comparison of resale homes vs. newly built. They point out that the cost of these products is diverging as we see the construction costs escalating in Metro Vancouver. As a result, they predict that we will see consumers increasingly choosing to purchase resale housing rather than new construction.

With the BC economy growing, job growth continying to be strong, unemployment well below the national average and interest rates rising only moderately, I think that it’s likely we will see continued strength in the Vancouver real estate market. In particular, I think that we can start taking advantage of the divergence in value between resale homes and new construction.

If you are an investor looking for great rental returns, I am seeing some incredible value in resale condos in Downtown Vancouver. Give me a call or send me an email and I’d be happy to show you what I mean.

Despite some predictions that rising interest rates and a seasonal decline would combine to temper the summer real estate market July 2007 was one of the busiest on record. The 3,873 units sold last month were 41.8% above last year and 5% higher than 2005. Only July 2003 had more sales at 4,023.

What happened? It looks as though the driving force was twofold. First, we saw people jumping into the market who had given up waiting on price corrections. Secondly, because of the rising interest rates buyers who had locked into lower interest rates rushed into the market.

The result of these factors was that sales were pushed up significantly last month along with a boost in prices. The median price of East Vancouver detached homes rose to $651,250, a rise of 10% over last year.

 Sales had slowed slightly from November 0f 2006 until the early part of 2007. At the same time, however, prices were rising and not dropping as some had hoped. The last couple of months look to have headed in the opposite direction as buyers appear to have tired of sitting on the sidelines.

Have you heard about the couple in Vancouver’s West End that moved into their new condo and discovered that it was already occupied? That’s right. It was a newly renovated $509,000 condominium that wasn’t as perfect as they’d hoped.

Unfortunately, the young couples new home is infested with bats…at least 80 of them. The majority of the bats are living in the walls keeping the owners up all hours of the night. However, one bat was discovered taking a nap on their bed. Worst of all, because of the BC Wildlife Act the bats cannot be forcibly removed.

The provincial government did give them an exemption to this law, but the couple has chosen to wait out the bats. Apparently, once the young bats can fly they will likely move out and find a new home.

 Why am I telling you about this? Well, the couple apparently chose to purchase their new home without a property inspection prior to removing subjects. No matter how heated the real estate market becomes, this is one subject that you need to think VERY carefully about not including in any offer you make.

I have to say, this is one result that I couldn’t possibly have imagined on my own…but hopefully we all learn our lesson from this.