Vancouver Real Estate board overall

Single family houses sales for July totalled 790 with the average sale price of $1,041,325. This 28% decrease in number of sales and a 8% decrease in average price over last year same time period (July) .

Townhouse sales for July totalled 384 with an average sale price of $538,297. This is a 11% decrease in the number of sales and an decrease of 5% in average price over the same time period last year (July).

Condominiums July sales totalled 927 with the average sale price of $406,366. This a 10% decrease in number of sales and decease of 9% in average price over the same time period last year (July).

Total of all types for July was 2101 sales with an average sale price of $669,231. This is a 18% decrease in number of sales and a 12% decrease in average price over July last year.

The volume of sales overall continues to decrease substantially over the same month of the previous year. The Vancouver Real Estate Board sales volume year to date is down by 20% and year to date average sales price is down 7%. The number of active listings is 18% higher this July compared to last July. Increased inventory and reduced demand has the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver stating that it now a BUYERS market.

Local Maple Ridge

Single family houses July sales totalled 101 with the average sale price of $491,780. This a 7% increase in number of sales and average price unchanged compared to July last year.

Townhouse July sales totalled 27 with an average sale price $276,418. This is a 25% decrease in the number of sales and a 14% decrease in average price compared to last July.

Condominiums July sales totalled 22 with the average sale price of $162,840. This is a 46% increase in number of sales and a 26% decrease in price over last July.

Total of all types of sales for July was 150 with an average sale price of $404,737. This is a 3% increase in number of sales and a 4% decrease in average price over last July.

The Maple Ridge sales volume year to date is down by 6% and year to date average sales price is up 2%. The number of active listings is 1% higher this July compared to last July.

The number of properties on the market in Maple Ridge is similar to last year and our prices and market activity are virtually unchanged in the last 2 years.

For more detail just call 604-466-4549 or email

pearceteam@telus.net .

Prime Rate remains stable at 3% with term variable rate mortgages at 2.8% - A $300,000 mortgage at 2.8% for 25 years is $1389 per month. The governments change from 30 year to 25year amortization maximum resulted in and increased monthly cost of $150 on this mortgage.

Some banks offering rates as low as 2.69% for 2 years and rates of 3.89 for 10 year terms.

** Note**  The government implemented new financing rules as of July 9^th 2012. CMHC will not insure a mortgage of 30 years. Some chartered banks and other lenders will still offer a 30 year mortgage although you will have to have more than 20% down.

On refinancing your mortgage without moving (selling & buying)  the maximum is now 80% of the value of your property. This is down from the previous 85% of the value of the property

1. Cut a Rug - Avoid area rugs as using the same type of flooring throughout adjoining rooms creates a feeling of spaciousness.
   
   
2. Is That a Door In Your Pocket? - Installing pocket doors is an easy and inexpensive way to create loads of extra useable space.
   
   
3. Mirror Mirror - Strategically place mirrors throughout your home for the illusion of added space and also to reflect light to adjoining rooms.
   
   
4. 'Tis the Season - Divide your clutter into seasons.  By displaying just one box each season, you’ll reduce clutter, change scenery and keep every last item that you can't bear to part with.
   
   
5. Hide & Seek - Maximize every bit of hidden space you have such as using shelving pockets on the backs of doors or bed risers for that all important under the bed storage.
   
   
6. Open Up - Arrange your furniture so you can see as much of the floor as possible.  Moving furniture away from entrances will make a space appear larger as rooms with blocked views can feel cramped.
   
   
7. Lighten Up - Painting walls a soft shade and the ceiling bright white will give the illusion of added height.  Letting in plenty of natural sunlight also helps a space appear larger so keep window areas clear of heavy drapes.

1. The first thing you need to do is install Firefox which is a popular Internet browser.
   
   
2. Next, download Adblock Plus and click "Add to Firefox".
   
   
3. Click "Install Now" in the box that opens up.  If the box does not automatically open up, you may need to click "Allow" in the banner that appears on the top of the web browser.
   
   
4. Restart Firefox once the download is complete.
   
   
5. Select "Tools" from the menu on the top of the Firefox Browser.  Then click on "Adblock Plus Preferences" from the drop-down menu.
   
   
6. Click on "Filters" and then select "Add Filters".
   
   
7. Type http://*.googlesyndication.com/* into the box that appears. Then click "OK".