Competitive Canadians Go Green I recently stumbled across an awesome website that I now plan to spread the word about.  It's called The Green Grouch. It challenges residents of Canada to compete for the becoming the Greenest City by Earth Day 2011.  So far Grande Prairie, AB is in the lead, with us in Lethbridge, AB here ranking at #22.  Not good enough people!!! How it works: You create an account and log on weekly for a checklist.  The site trusts that you are honest, and at the end of the week you get to check off which tasks you have done.  It then ranks the cities each week.  The thing I like about this website is that it involves action, and holds you accountable frequently. If you are Canadian and reading this, click on the link above to check it out.  Little things make a big di... 02/17/2011

A Brilliant Green Idea! Yes I am a green realtor.  I'm a tree-hugger at heart who specializes in green built homes.  I try to keep on top of all sorts of green news though.  I come across a lot of cool ideas that I want to start sharing via my blog. I read a news article about this program and just HAD to blog about it. This is currently happening at a French Immersion school in Calgary, but would be brilliant for other schools as well. The program is called the Bicycle Recycle and Exchange.  Families are encourage to donate any used but working bikes.  For every bike donated you will receive a $10 voucher to use on the purchase of a bike.  Used bicycles will be sold for $20.  Encouraging the reuse of bicycles not only helps the environment but also helps kids stay active.  If you would... 02/15/2011

Hotel Review: The Lethbridge Lodge The most famous hotel in Lethbridge would be the Lethbridge Lodge.  I recently had opportunity to visit there and decided to dedicate this blog to them.  While the Lethbridge Lodge is a little older than some of the other local hotels, it definately has the most character and an abundance of features.  One of my favorites is that it is pet-friendly.  I plan to suggest this hotel to clients coming into town who own dogs.  Kennel fees can be pricey and most don't want to leave their pets with strangers anyway.  The courtyard has beautiful gardens that are often used for photo shoots, as well as The Cotton Blossom Lounge, a pool and a hottub.  There is another restaurant/cafe at the entrance of the hotel and for the party animals, a nightclub attached to ... 02/15/2011

United States •   With indicators pointing to accelerating economic growth, the debate between inflation hawks and doves is heating up. •   In the pro-inflation camp, higher food and energy prices abroad, and rising inflation expectations stateside are setting off alarm bells that much higher U.S. inflation may not be far off. •   On the dovish side of the argument, domestic price data continues to trend downward, wage growth has slowed, productivity has kept unit labor costs low, and job growth has remained tepid. •   The Federal Reserve is leaning towards the dovish camp, citing the slow pace of job creation and expecting inflation to remain contained. As such, expectations of withdrawal of monetary stimulus appear premature.   Canada •   This week’s housing indicators painted a pictu... 02/13/2011

It is official, as of today I have moved my Activerain outside blog to a new domain.   I have taken the old domain that it was previously hosted on and converted that domain to a traditional website and now have created a new domain to host the outside blog.    The new domain is http://lethbridge-alberta.com   So now I will set about getting that new domain ranked back up where my other blog had previously ranked on the first page of google for Lethbridge Real Estate.     02/10/2011

Get Your Ducks in a Row - See a Lender As a realtor, it's very hard to say "no" to new clients.  Even if they want to see that $500k home and are "positive they will probably qualify".  However, to avoid ultimate dissapointment it is best to get your ducks in a row. First things first - Do You Qualify to Buy?  Step one is to visit your lender or mortgage broker.  They will give you all the information you need.  If you shop for your dream home first, and then find out it's $200k out of your price range, it can be terribly dissapointing.  Mortgage Broker vs. Bank - Even though you may have a long history with one financial institution, it can pay (thousands) to shop around.  A mortgage broker is like a professional shopper.  They run 1 credit check, and proceed to shop for rates from sev... 02/09/2011

It is such a treat to hear back from past clients, I have to share this Testimonial: "Kristie Kruger came over with a great combination of professionalism and humor.  She knew her stuff and it comforted us to know she was handling it.  Kristie made the process a positive experience.  She helped us with everything, from staging, open houses, walk throughs, mortgage brokers, contract details, new home builders, moving boxes and a moving trailer.  She had energy for all of our needs.  We'd strongly recommend her to others." - H.H.   02/09/2011

Home Maintenance - Down Spouts In Alberta, with all of these chinooks, we wind up with a lot of precipitation and a lot of melting, throughout the entire winter.  Many people tend to leave their downspouts in an upright position throughout winter since it's not raining, but BEWARE! With the melting, you will get pooling on your sidewalk, which will seep into cracks, and sit alongside your foundation.  If it re-freezes, you can find damage starting to your cement work around your house, driveway, and even to your foundation. Another possiblitly - water may seep directly into the weeping tile and can easily overload your homes drainage. Your main goal as a home-owner should be to keep water as far away from your home as possible. CMHC reports: "Basement flooding is unfortunately a common ... 02/04/2011

I wanted to forward this information.  What a fabulous way to get involved, give back and network. This is from the Choose Lethbridge Website: Economic Development Lethbridge has an exciting volunteer opportunity for business leaders to become members of our board.Economic Development Lethbridge (EDL) is a community-based, non-profit volunteer organization led by a 25-member Board of Directors. The mandate of the organization is to strengthen and develop the Lethbridge economy by initiating and facilitating proactive economic development strategies and promoting our great city as an excellent place to live, learn, invest, visit and do business.EDL is committed to the development of a prosperous, sustainable, innovative and inclusive community. The Nominations Committee of the Board is c... 02/01/2011

Happy February!! February can be short and cold, but it doesn't have to boring.  Below are my highlights of events you may want to check out: Arts & Culture  February 2 - 5: Playgoers of Lethbridge Presents: The Importance of Being Earnest. Show times:  8:00 pm  Tickets are $20 and are available through the Ticket Centre (403)329-7328 February 2: Métis History @ Galt Museum & Archives. The story of Roderick and Angelique McKenzie's twelve children in the 1800s as Métis in Canada.  1 hour presentation.  Tea and coffee served. February 10: Beading Basics @ Galt Museum & Archives. 7-9pm. Learn basic beading techniques from Marie Moser of Elusis Beads you can use to make creative necklaces, bracelets, earrings, and key chains.  You'll make your own take-home project inspired by our costume ... 01/31/2011

Lethbridge Public Library There are two libraries in Lethbridge finally!!! Main Branch - 810 5 Avenue South, and The Crossings Branch - 255 Brittania Way W There are a couple events this week:  Nursery rhymes, creative play, games, short stories, songs and books for toddlers 18 months to 36 months and caregivers.  Monday, January 17, 2011 - 10:00am - 10:30am (The Crossings Branch) Tuesday, January 18, 2011 - 9:45am - 10:15am (The Main Branch) For more information about programs, meeting room rentals, hours of operation and the bookmobile visit The Lethbridge Public Library.   01/29/2011

Lethbridge, AB Census Highlights A census can kinda be a bit boring to read straight through so I thought I would offer the highlights from the 2010 census for Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada. City of Lethbridge has 36,413 households in 2010   Vacancy rate is 5.3%   There were 452 dwellings under construction at the time of the 2010 census, a substantial increase from 342 in 2009 (32.2% increase)   The population consists of 51.1% females and 48.9% males (sorry single gals!)   Average age of females 38.3, Average age of males 36.6 01/28/2011

Scholarship Opportunity for Canadian Students 4 Days Left - Toyota Earth Day Scholarship Program Twenty $5000 scholarships are being awarded to Canadian students entering their first year of post-secondary education, regardless of their choice of studies.  Students must apply before January 31st, 2011. A national winner - selected from the 20 regional winners - will also be awarded the Toyota Earth Day Scholarship National Award and a Panasonic notebook computer at the National Award Ceremony. For more information and to apply Click Here! 01/27/2011

All About Kiva Last week at our Urban Spirits Rotary Club Meeting we had a guest speaker talk about Kiva.  I was so thrilled as it is how I choose to give back after real estate transactions, so I am inspired to do a blog all about Kiva! Kiva's mission is to connect people, through lending, for the sake of alleviating poverty. Basically Kiva organizes several individual to fund a loan for typically an entrepreneur in a developing country.  This individual eventually pays back the loan interest free and then the money could either be withdrawn or re-loaned. Visit Kiva to read the details on how a Kiva Loan Works.  I wanted to share these interesting facts from the Kiva website as of January 26, 2011 Total value of all loans made through Kiva: $189,464,650 Number of Kiva Users: 868,249 Nu... 01/26/2011

Controversy with the Property Inspection Clause in Alberta This is something that not alot of people know.  CREB reports: "Clause 1 of the Property Inspection Schedule states: The buyer will have the right to have a property inspection completed by a professional or otherwise qualified inspector. Who is a professional property inspector? There are no Alberta regulatory rules that govern or license property inspectors. There is an association but it is not a requirement to belong. Neither the seller nor their representative have any say in who the buyer engages to perform an inspection, unless there is written agreement or term inserted into the contract or the schedule. The buyer is at liberty to use a friend, relative, inspection company, plumber, electrician or any other person they c... 01/25/2011

Animal Shelters It is a beautiful thing when a homeless animal finds new owners.  In Lethbridge there are currently 3 animal shelters as shown in the map below. My new favorite website is Petfinder. It is the eharmony of pet adoption.  Browse differents pet profiles and pictures online from the comfort of your living room.  No doubt this extra access will find these poor animals many homes.  The greatest thing about this website is that it is not just for Lethbridge.  You can search by zipcode, postal code or location.  You can even specify which breed you are looking for.  Absolutely brilliant.  Reblog and spread the word!   01/25/2011

When to Move Up and When to Move Down In Real Estate in Alberta we commonly use the phrases "move up" and "move down".  To those of you that aren't familiar, this is referring to selling to buy a bigger home or downsizing.  If you have ever had opportunity to study Real Estate Grids on property values it is quite interesting.  Basically it looks like sharp up/down zigzags steadily increasing.  Hence why we don't see any 1920's prices of houses for $8000.00.  Right now we are currently at a jagged bottom, yes prices have definately decreased since 2005-2007. This is typically where we eventually start to see a climb.  On the news recently, you may have heard them talking about a strong economy building in Calgary (our nearest major city).  This of course always trickles into the Lethbrid... 01/22/2011

New Lethbridge Firestation Set to be Green You can't drive down Scenic in Lethbridge, AB., without noticing the facility being built at the corner of 4th avenue.  Construction has been going on since Spring of 2009 and city workers plan to complete the building by this year.    This firestation is going to house firefighters, admin, fire prevention personnel, and public safety communication staff, thus becoming the new fire headquarters for Lethbridge due to it's central location. From the outside one might not recognize that the facility is suprising high-tech and once completed will be cutting edge.    The architecs and designers of this building are thinking ahead and have built to house further expansion and upgrades.  I think this is brilliant: The vehicle washing system has been b... 01/20/2011

Did you Survive Blue Monday? It was news to me that yesterday was Blue Monday.  Apparently the most depressing day of the year (the third monday in January).  People dealing with x-mas bills, cold temperatures and short days can cause a serious case of the blues.  I am happy to report that January isn't the most blue month in Real Estate.  Looking over statistics, the past 2 months have been among the busiest of the entire year, which is typically strange for winter.  If you are contemplating buying or selling in spring, take advantage of the activity now.  For details on how I can help you with your real estate transaction contact me at 403-359-3263 or visit My Web Page.   01/18/2011

Networking Idea: A Man's Best Friend? I love Active Rain for ideas.  So here I offer one of mine, proven successful. Often I find that we feel we have to network in a professional environment, somewhere where there is meetings.  Well, what about having a little fun with it? I suggest taking your pooch out to the local off-leash dog park.  Fellow dog owners are willing and eager to chat.  Sure the conversation might start off about dogs, but it is quite easy to steer it towards what one another do for work and even exchange business cards. Trust me, it works!!! 01/18/2011