This is a great exhibit currently going on at the Ottawa City Hall Art Gallery at 110 Laurier Avenue West. The exhibit comes right in time the subject of transportation in Ottawa and the Light Rail Train project is often talked about. The best thing about this 150 Years of Rail Transportation in Ottawa exhibit is that it's absolutely FREE! You can visit the exhibit at City Hall between 9 a.m. and 6 p.m daily. Exhibit Description: Explore the fascinating story of how rail transportation helped to develop and shape Ottawa. Discover the rich history of our railways – from the first trains and streetcars up to the present day O-train. Learn about the major milestones of the last 150 years including the arrival of the first passenger train in 1854, the development and decline of streetcars, ... 11/18/2009

WARNING! The cost of buying and selling real estate is rising 8% on lawyers, realtors, apprisers, inspectors adding about $1,500 in new taxes to the average residential real estate transaction in Ontario!   For homeowners the HST will also add hundreds of dollars in additional tax on utility bills (gas, electricity and home heating fuel), on home renovation labour, the cost of lawn upkeep or landscaping and the cost of snow removal.Movers be heard! Check out this Sample Letter in the link attached and In less than 30 seconds you can send an email to your MPP asking them to vote against sales tax harmonization legislation. http://bit.ly/stopthehst. 11/18/2009

Don't Miss out on this great opportunity! $1,695/Month! Month to month or lease available Dec. 1st  includes 5 appliances. Renovated 2 storey single family home 1550 sq. ft. ,main floor laundry and family room, fireplace plus garage. 3 large bedrooms, walk in closet, luxury ensuite double sinks, hardwood , tile floors, freshly painted. New windows, roof, doors. c'air means low utilities. Private fenced yard, quiet street, walk to Walmart. Contact Mary Caird, Broker Keller Williams Ottawa Realty 613 797-1010 or e-mail us at info@myottawarealestate.com. 11/17/2009

Multiple Offers - Ottawa Real Estate is certainly a Sellers' Market.  This evening I came in second in a multiple offer situation and I didn't lose by $1K or $2K, there were 3 offers, one came in at asking price with one condition, the 2nd (mine) came in at $14K over asking  - no conditions and the winner was $25K over asking no conditions.  Was my Buyer dissappointed?  You betcha ya.   Did I think that he lost - No.  Even though the house did meet all his requirements, $25K over asking was just to much for this particular house.  Location was great, square footage was good, layout was good, view was excellent, the kitchen was dated, flooring needed updating.  As real estate agents, its our job to protect our clients - not to just sell real estate.  The search continues and I know that ... 11/16/2009

OTTAWA – November 16, 2009 – Monthly MLS® home sales activity continues to run strong, with new monthly records set in July, September, and October. This has prompted The Canadian Real Estate Association to revise its MLS® home sales forecast for 2009 and 2010. CREA now forecasts national activity will reach 460,200 units in 2009, up 6.6 per cent from last year. CREA’s previous forecast issued in August had annual sales this year about even with 2008 levels. The new sales forecast for 2009 puts activity about on par with annual activity in 2004, but below levels reported for the years 2005 through 2007. British Columbia and Ontario are still forecast to post annual increases in activity this year, but the forecast has been lifted as a result of recent record level activity in both provi... 11/16/2009

General Rick Hillier, Canada's former Chief of Defence Staff recently released his book "A Soldier First".  In over three decades of service to his country, General Rick Hillier has remobilized support of Canadian troops, worked closely with Prime Ministers, increased Canada's significance within NATO, and solidified Canada's reputation on the world stage. In support of the book, General Rick Hillier will present his leadership strategies and experiences at a leadership event to be held on Monday, November 16th at the National Arts Centre in Ottawa. General Hillier will share his viewpoints on leadership and will be joined by special guest Vern White, Ottawa's Chief of Police.  The two will discuss and debate on the topic of leadership. As professionals, we are always looking to advance... 11/12/2009

On Thursday, November 11th in Ottawa, veterans and civilians will gather at the War Memorial on Elgin Street for the Remembrance Day ceremony. This day gives Canadians a chance to honor and remember our veterans and all who served and scarified their lives for Canada during World War I, II, the Korean War and during peace keeping missions. The ceremony will start at 10:30 am on the 11th and it will also be broadcasted live on CBC radio and television.  At 11:00am the first gun will fire and the two minutes of silence will begin.  The second gun shot will be fired after the silence is over and the rest of the ceremony will continue.  We will have a chance to listen to prayers, the singing of "Flanders Field", and the public will have a chance to lay down a Remembrance Day wreath which wi... 11/10/2009

Ottawa Real Estate is hot and properties are selling like hot cakes but remember this is not a reason for Buyers to pay more than the fair market value.  For sale by owner properties are popping up like weeds and everyone wants to make a huge profit but Buyers, please beware that the only person that will help you in determining whether the FSBO property is worth the asking price is YOUR REAL ESTATE AGENT. The Sellers are trying to make as much profit as possible and how did they determine the asking price.  Were they able to do a Comparative Market Analysis?  Probably not, they assumed that because the house down the street sold for $$$ then their house is worth $$$.  Each house is as different as people. a  Prices are established based on location, condition and upgrades. FSBO propert... 11/10/2009

Have you ever come to think about why most family homes are 3 bedroom homes in Ottawa ? This definitely seems to be the most frequently designed footprint of all the townhomes and houses.Sure there are 2 bedroom condos in Ottawa, and there are 4 bedroom homes in Ottawa, but by far there seem to be more 3 bedroom homes in Ottawa than any other ! This is probably because designers way back then could have done some research that there are more people with a family with 2 chidren, than there are people with a family of 3 or more children,and so the 3 bedroom homes in Ottawa were designed.This is a sign of modern times, because many years ago, when people had more children and the cost of living was not so expensive, .........by the way I read some research that showed that the average cost... 11/09/2009

The global theme for World Usability Day 2009 is how our products and services impact our world. Let World Usability Day 2009 in Ottawa be your impetus to create greater awareness for designs, products and services that improve the sustainability of our world. The Ottawa World Usability event will feature local experts in the area of designing for a sustainable world. The keynote presentation will be given by David Berman, author of Do Good Design: How Designers Can Change the World: "In this lively presentation, design expert David Berman discusses the power and effectiveness of good design, and therefore the need to incorporate notions of social responsibility into design principles. Berman is a Canadian communications strategist, designer and author, and a vice-president of Icograda,... 11/08/2009

I can honestly say this past month in Real Estate has been crazy and challenging as a Realtor (for myself anyways!) - with so little inventory on the market it's hard to keep your Buyers happy - we must practice patience! With practically every offer becoming a MULTIPLE offer scenario be ready to put your best foot forward and have your financing all figured out! According the Ottawa real estate board President Rick Snell "Resale home sales still riding high in Ottawa"! During the month of October members sold 1,202 residential properties through the MLS system which is an amazing increase of 24.7% over October of last year! "Once again we saw record-setting sales numbers for the month of October.  This brings our sales year-to-date to four percentage points higher than the same period ... 11/07/2009

Today we participated in the Keller Williams Realty 5th annual inspirational breakfast.  Now your probably asking your self "what is this inspirational breakfast all about"?  For the past 5 years our company has been hosting a breakfast get together for us to celebrate setting goals for ourselves, our achievements, and what donations to our charities we have made over the past year.  This is also a great time for us to all be in the same room at one time, we are able to mingle and chat with each other, share stories and so on.  We are like family to each other, and a day like this is really a lot of fun. This year we had Mark Willis who is the CEO of Keller Williams Realty International come in as a guest speaker.  He made us really think about how to attain our goals, if you want somet... 11/06/2009

The West Wellington Community Association. The evening will feature presentations by Councillor Christine Leadman, the City of Ottawa and community organizations with expertise on the issue, followed by a question and answer period. A focus of the town hall will be light rail transit (LRT) issues which relate particularly to those residing within WWCA boundaries, including the role of Tunney's Pasture transit station and the possible east-west LRT corridor options. Thursday, November 5, 2009 7:30 p.m. St. George's Roman Catholic Church (415 Piccadilly Avenue) 11/05/2009

Homes for Sale in CentretownAs of Nov 4th, 2009 there are 8 Homes for sale in Centretown Ottawa. The listing prices range from $287,000 to $789,000. Also as of Nov 4th, 2009 there are 32 condominiums for sale in Centretown Ottawa.   The listing prices range from $240,900 to $974,900. Centretown has Ottawa's main financial and commercial district to the north and transitions to more residential homes and infill condominiums to the south.  Many of these large Victorian homes have also been converted to multi-unit residential buildings. Bank Street provides the main shopping district of Centretown with its many eclectic shops. For a more detailed report on Centretown Homes for Sale, please contact Lucas Smith.  We are available to show homes 7 days a week. Search for Homes For Sale in Cent... 11/05/2009

Open Houses What is the purpose of an Open House you ask - Its two-fold (1) To attract Home Buyers  and (2) To attract Home Buyers.  I'm not trying to be funny by repeating myself but its exactly what we are trying to do. The First One is hopefully to attract a Home Buyer for that particular house, sometimes its a curious neighbor that knows someone or someone drives by and sees the sign, walks in and falls in love with the house. The Second One is to attract Home Buyers as clients because not everyone is going to like this particular house but maybe we can show them something else. Open Houses are a tool to market your home.   11/05/2009

Take part in the Glebe EnviroFair "Greening Your Home" here in Ottawa, Ontario. The event will be held at 174 First Avenue at Bank Street at the St. Giles Presbyterian Church on Saturday November 7th, 2009. The Glebe EnviroFair opens at 9 am with an exhibit. The first seminar will begin at 9.30 am and the last one will start at 3 pm. Seminar topics include "What you should now about the Green Energy Act" , About Solar Domestic Hot Water, Wind Power, Home Energy Audits, Solar Electricity, On-demand water heaters and more!   11/05/2009

The Ottawa Glebe Community Association (GCA) is hosting an event this Saturday (November 7) that should of interest to anyone who is looking to "Green" their homes. Here is a description of the Envirofair from the GCA website: This latest iteration of the EnviroFair is intended to give you solutions to keep at least some of all that expensive heat in your home this winter. Be sure to put the "Greening Your Home" edition of the EnviroFair on your Saturday, November 7, 2009 calendar. The EnviroFair takes place at St. Giles Church, corner Bank and First. Councilor Clive Doucet opens the EnviroFair at 9:00. Keynote speaker is David Chernushenko. always thought-provoking, David's latest film, "Powerful: Energy for Everyone" will be shown. Throughout the day we will run 45 minute seminars on ... 11/04/2009

Are you looking to buy a bank repossessed home or a power of sale in Ottawa? In order for your to save time and effort in locating these properties in Ottawa, Ontario you can ask a REALTOR in Ottawa to provide you with free email notifications as soon as a property meeting your search terms come on the market. This can be easily accomplished by filling up a simple form like this one on my website. Or simply by giving me a call at 613-889-7732. 11/04/2009

Homes for Sale in Hintonburg and Wellington Village As of Nov 4th, 2009 there are 9 Homes for sale in Hintonburg and Wellington Village. The listing prices range from $248,500 to $945,000.   Also as of Nov 4th, 2009 there are 3 condominiums for sale in Hintonburg and Wellington Village. The listing prices range from $439,900 to $450,000.   Hintonburg is an urban suburb of Ottawa. Its main artery Wellington Street is its main attraction with its many bakeries, bistros, art galleries and restaurants. One developer even used the term “Ottawa’s epicurean row”. For a more detailed report on Hintonburg Homes for Sale, please contact Lucas Smith. We are available to show homes 7 days a week. Search for Homes For Sale in Hintonburg Search for Homes For Sale in Wellington Village   11/04/2009

Should you join the condo club or go for a more traditional home ownership? Consider your lifestyle and weigh the pros and cons of each before deciding which to buy.  Here are a few things to think about, this may help you make the right desision.  A condo is probably the right choice for you if: You don't have a lot of money to spend but still want to invest in home ownership. You are interested in being part of a small community living in the same complex. You are comfortable living in close proximity to your neighbours. You are a single individual or a couple that is looking for a small home rather than a large property. You don't mind having certain aspects of your home ownership regulated by a committee (a home owner's association made up of some of the tenants who live in the othe... 11/04/2009