Like so many others at this time of year, I have caught a nasty winter cold. The last 2 days have been the worst for congestion, which is why I was really looking forward to my hour of hot yoga this afternoon.  For one full hour I felt great and managed to get some exercise too. :) Hopefully sweating away this terrible cold.

I have practiced yoga in a few different places but have found "West Coast Hot Yoga" as the best in the lower mainland. They have very good instructors and offer a clean, comfortable atmosphere for beginners and people of all levels of practice.

I enjoy not only the aspect of exercise, but the experience and exhilaration I get each time I attend a class.

A regular yoga practice ....

eliminates toxins
lubricates joints
strengthens bones
expands lung capacity

West Coast Hot Yoga has 2 locations. One in South Surrey/White Rock and another in Yaletown. I highly recommend dropping in for a class. Here's a link to their website : http://www.westcoasthotyoga.com/en/home

I know I've said this before, but one of the best and most rewarding parts of our job is possession day! Being able to pass our clients the keys to their new home, there truly is no better feeling in this business. Even when everyone is exhausted as they go through the moving process, there always seems to be a smile on their faces. We enjoy following up with them a few weeks later as well to see how they've put their touches on their new home.

Wishing Bob and Stacy, Stuart, Allison and the girls many happy memories in their new homes!

Publicity stunt or not...either way Jagrup Brar should be commended for his efforts. The Surrey-Fleetwood MLA is trying to bring awareness to an issue in great need of attention by living off a welfare rate of $610 for the month of January.

http://www.ctvbc.ctv.ca/servlet/an/local/CTVNews/20120105/bc_mla_on_welfare_120105/20120105/?hub=BritishColumbiaHomehttp%3A%2F%2Fwww.ctvbc.ctv.ca%2Fservlet%2Fan%2Flocal%2FCTVNews%2F20120105%2Fbc_mla_on_welfare_120105%2F20120105%2F%3Fhub%3DBritishColumbiaHomeAfter

According to statistics Canada's consumer price index report released in December - "On a year-over-year basis, prices increased in all eight major components in November. Transportation and food continued to post the largest increases."

FOOD one of the necessities of life costing us 4.8% more in the last year. The last time the welfare rates were increased was in April of 2007. The basic amount for a single person went from $510 - $610. Unbelievable.

I know how to save and make a dollar go very far, just ask my family who tease me all the time. But I know there's no way I could make $610 work for myself. Let alone $1101/month for my family of 4. Considering housing takes up the majority of your funds, how is anyone expected to be able to eat a healthy meal. The schools, media, advertisements everywhere you go healthy eating habits are preached....a child on welfare cannot expect to be able to eat healthy when parents have to find food to fill hunger, with the few hundred $ they have left after paying for rent. That doesn't even account for utilities, transportation, hygiene products, or even thrift store clothing.

I'm appalled at the negative comments being made about people on welfare. Comments surely made by people that have not had to struggle to make ends meet. Like any system there will always be abusers. But I would think the majority of people needing welfare services, would rather live a lifestyle where they do not have to figure out where they are going to live or how they are going to feed their kids the next day! No parent would choose to have their child live in poverty!

I was meeting a client to review a counter offer that had come back the night before. With my IPad and my fancy new stylus (pen like tool used for tablets) in hand I headed to my clients home. I did not have any papers at all! I didn't have the usual 3 copies of printed contracts piled on my passenger seat. You know the copy incase I make a mistake, 1 copy to leave my client and 1 I would fax off to the other Realtor. I was simply armed with just the iPad and stylus.

When I walked into the kitchen to have a seat it was so refreshing not having to lug around a giant bag (that weighs a ton I might add)  and lots of papers to spread across the table. I simply sat across from my client and got down to business.
 
We not only reviewed the contract, made changes to the contract, and signed the darn thing on my handy little iPad with my handy little stylus pen, I was also able to send a copy of the contract to the other Realtor, my client and myself all in one go via email right there in real time with ZERO PAPER USED. My client was super impressed and I was happy to have saved a few trees.

This new way of doing business isn't so new. Before iPad our office did and still does use hp tablets. Just another tool to help our clients in the pursuit of a perfect home. We do our best to not only be eco conscious but also to offer the best of the best for our clients so they too can feel good about working with us.

If you have any questions about this type of tool we use or you are interested in working with us please feel free to contact myself ( Kara ) or Bettina anytime!

I hope you enjoyed =-)

Kara 

One of the things that attracted me to the brokerage I work in, was the technology that our office provides to their realtors. Being a part of the 1st paperless real estate office in Canada has been very rewarding. In a time where people need to be considering their carbon footprint more than ever, our office is playing a huge part in helping to reduce it.

We work in an industry where a lot of paper gets printed between property information, to contracts and then processing paperwork. For offices without the technology we use, this can result in mountains of paper for each and every client. Every contract we have signed gets approved and processed through our office all without a single piece of paper being printed off.

Here's a youtube video of our broker Rick Dubord from when our office first became paperless, which shows you just how beneficial being paperless is.


http://youtu.be/NUanUBTNACA

Looking back at 2011 in the real estate market, it was definitely a challenging year. Every community in the Fraser Valley was a little bit different than the next. With interest rates as low as they have been, you would think more people would have been scooping up the entry level homes, such as townhouse and condos. But they seemed to have been hardest hit in all communities. Bringing sellers to a hard reality that in order to sell they needed to price their homes right and not necessarily where their neighbours were listed in order to get their homes sold. Which again is why it is good to hire a professional Realtor to help get your home sold!

Our Fraser Valley Real Estate Board President couldn't have said it better..

“I can’t remember a year that illustrates better how local real estate is and the importance of talking to your REALTOR® before making a decision to buy or sell.  For example, in my community of Abbotsford, sales of single family homes dropped by almost 7 per cent compared to 2010, pushing prices down slightly, while in South Surrey/White Rock sales increased year over year by 45 per cent resulting in double-digit price increases.” to read more of the stats from 2011 including December stats click on the following link:

http://www.fvreb.bc.ca/blog/index.php/2012/01/04/2011-real-estate-market-showcases-regional-variation