Do you love holiday entertaining but not the hours of preparation? We’ve compiled a list of high-end eating establishments that will satisfy your taste buds and keep you out of the kitchen!

The Fairmont Hotel Vancouver

900 West Georgia St., 604-647-0517

For $375, 8-10 people can enjoy a roasted Fraser Valley Tom turkey with sage and sausage stuffing, roasted root vegetables and brussels sprouts, Yukon Gold mashed potatoes, cranberry Triple Sec relish, giblet gravy, traditional mincemeat tart, artisan bread rolls, and creamery butter. Orders are for Christmas Eve and Christmas Day only. Pick-up is between 10am-3pm.

The Sutton Place Hotel

845 Burrard St., 604-682-5511 ext. 34

Their $375 meal serves 8-12 people with an 18-pound roasted turkey, apple sage stuffing, mashed potatoes, seasonal veggies, cranberry sauce, gravy, dinner rolls, and cranberry cheesecake to top it all off. The deadline for ordering is Dec. 21st as they are limited in numbers. The Sutton Place is already sold out for Christmas Day, but you can still order for Christmas Eve and Boxing Day. Pick-up is between 11:30am-7pm.

Max’s Deli & Bakery

3105 Oak Street, 604-733-4838

Enjoy an 18-20 person meal for $279 that includes a 22-pound turkey with stuffing, mashed potato, yam and veggie medley, and in-house cranberry sauce and gravy. The deli recommends ordering by the 11th to ensure your reservation. You have the option of pick-up or delivery, hot or cold, and anytime before Christmas.

Big Lou’s Butcher Shop

269 Powell Street, 604-566-9229

Big Lou’s only offers a ready-to-bake meal that includes non-medicated, free run, Fraser Valley 12-pound (minimum) turkey already tied and seasoned with Italian sausage stuffing, mashed potato, roasted seasonal veggies, cranberry sauce, and gravy. This $165 meal feeds 8-10 people. If you order by the 11th, you will received 10% off! Dec. 18th is the deadline for all other orders. Pick-up can happen between Dec. 20-24. Please note their hours: Mon-Sat 11-6, Sun 11-5, and Christmas Eve 11-4.

Whole Foods Market

Various locations

Whole Foods is there for you whether you need meals with all the trimmings that serve 4 or 8, or classic side dishes to complete your meal. Their meals are centred around traditional turkey, pork loin, roast lamb, or ham, and they even have vegan or gluten free options! Take a browse through their extensive holiday options. You can order either online or in person (ask for the Holiday Solutions table). Call the store for order deadlines as they are inventory based, and order at least 48 hours in advance. You can pick-up at anytime, until 7pm on Christmas Eve, and they are closed Christmas day.  

(Photo: flickr.com/nightthree)

I always say, “The best time to sell is when it's right for you." There is never an ideal time to sell when you consider our busy lives. Selling your home gets in the way of routine which just makes the whole process darn inconvenient. That being said, if you want to sell, ideally you want to make sure the process from start to finish is one that does not consume your lives for an extended period of time. Most homeowners are relieved when their home sells in less than a month. Anything longer and it begins to wear on sellers' patience.

If you have a home to sell in 2015 you should be thinking of selling anytime from late January onward. Late January would not normally be a time that you would consider simply because gardens are still asleep due to the winter. In Vancouver, over the past several years, the late winter market has proven to be an opportune time to sell. Why, you ask. It is the Lunar New Year, a time when many overseas buyers travel to Vancouver for the purpose of buying real estate. This is a very busy time many smart homeowners have taken advantage of with tremendous success when it comes to selling their homes. This year the Chinese (Lunar) New Year is on February 19th. Typically we see a pickup in home sales 2 weeks before the New Year which lasts for at least a month after. If I was a homeowner on Vancouver’s West Side, I would seriously be looking to be on the market by no later than mid-February to take advantage of the traditionally busy time.

Andrew & Jill Hasman

(Photo: flickr.com/stewart)

The Real Estate Board of Vancouver (REBGV) just released their report for November 2014. For a month that is traditionally more quiet out of the year, home buyers in Metro Vancouver remained active!

Take residential property sales in Metro Vancouver, for example. They reached 2,516 on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) last month. Even though that’s a 17.7% decline from the 3,057 sales in October 2014, it’s still an 8.4% increase compared to November 2013 at 2,321 sales.

The overall good news is that last month’s sales were 6.9% above the 10 year sales average for the month of November!

Read the full article here

Detached Homes:

-Sales in November 2014 were down 16% from last year, but the average sale price is up 16% to $ 2.963 million. House inventory is down by 9% from 730 units to 664 units.
-Month’s supply is 5.6 this year vs 5.2 months a year ago. This indicates in average terms a ‘balanced market’.

Condos and Townhomes:

-Sales were down 20%  for townhomes and up 13% for condos during November 2014 vs a year ago. The average selling prices were 18% higher for townhomes to $ 1,002,000 and 6% higher for condos to $ 647,700. Inventory was unchanged for townhomes and down 8% for condos at the end of November compared to a year ago.
-Month’s supply for townhomes was up to 5 months from 4 months and for condos down to 4.3 months from 5.3 months a year ago. These figures indicate a fairly balanced market with slight upward price pressure.

It’s important to note that the above statistics are for the West Side as a whole. Markets really do vary by specific neighborhoods and by the type of property. If you have any questions about the market in your neighborhood then it’s wise to speak with a realtor who has presence in your area. Call us today at 604-657-7936 and we will be happy to provide you with some helpful market information specific to your neighborhood.

Do you own a home that was built prior to 1965? If you do then your property may contain a buried (out of use) Oil Tank. Under the City of Vancouver By Laws, these buried tanks pose an environmental hazard and must be removed.

If you are planning to sell your home and you think there is a possibility of a buried tank, the plan of action should be as follows: 

1. Call an Oil Tank Removal company and have them inspect your property for a tank. There are several in the lower mainland that will come out on a day or twos notice. If you have no tank have the Oil Tank Company provide you with a letter confirming such. The cost for this is minimal. If a tank is located then you’ll need to gain a couple of estimates.
2. The tank removal can take place prior to listing your home for sale or after. The key thing to consider is that any tank removal must take place no less than 1 month prior to the closing of a sale. This is due to the time it will take for the oil tank company to deal with an Environmental Report if required. Also, banks funding a mortgage for a prospective buyer on your property will not fund a mortgage without all documentation being provided regarding the oil tank removal and the environment report.
3. I have come across many home owners who have told me they know nothing about an oil tank on their property only to find one after a site scan is conducted. In order to assist the selling process its best to have the site scan done so that a letter can be provided to a prospective buyer’s before they make an offer. This scan should be done prior to the home being listed for sale.

If you have any questions and or need a list of recommended Oil Tank specialists we are pleased to provide.

Happy Selling!

Photo: currenenvironmental.com

VANCOUVER, B.C. – November 4, 2014 – Home sales in the Metro Vancouver* housing market continue to outpace long-term averages for this time of year.

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) reports that residential property sales in Greater Vancouver reached 3,057 on the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) in October 2014. This represents a 14.9 percent increase compared to the 2,661 sales in October 2013, and a 4.6 percent increase over the 2,922 sales in September 2014.

Last month’s sales were 16.6 percent above the 10-year sales average for October.

“We’ve seen strong and consistent demand from home buyers in Metro Vancouver throughout this year. This has led to steady increases in home prices of between four and eight percent depending on the property,” said REBGV president Ray Harris.

New listings for detached, attached and apartment properties in Metro Vancouver totalled 4,487 in October. This represents a four percent increase compared to the 4,315 new listings in October 2013 and a 14.7 percent decline from the 5,259 new listings in September.

The total number of properties currently listed for sale on the MLS® system in Metro Vancouver is 13,851, a 9.2 percent decline compared to October 2013 and a 6.6 percent decrease compared to September 2014.

The MLS® Home Price Index composite benchmark price for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver is currently $637,000. This represents a six percent increase compared to October 2013.

“Detached homes continue to increase in price more than condominium and townhome properties. This is largely a function of supply and demand as the supply of condominium and townhome properties are more abundant than detached homes in our region,” Harris said.

Sales of detached properties in October 2014 reached 1,271, an increase of 19.1 percent from the 1,067 detached sales recorded in October 2013, and a 60.9 percent increase from the 790 units sold in October 2012. The benchmark price for detached properties increased 7.9 percent from October 2013 to $995,100.

Sales of apartment properties reached 1,268 in October 2014, an increase of 15.5 percent compared to the 1,098 sales in October 2013, and a 57.9 percent increase compared to the 803 sales in October 2012. The benchmark price of an apartment property increased four percent from October 2013 to $380,200.

Attached property sales in October 2014 totalled 518, a 4.4 percent increase compared to the 496 sales in October 2013, and an 53.3 percent increase over the 338 attached properties sold in October 2012. The benchmark price of an attached unit increased 4.7 percent between October 2013 and 2014 to $479,500.

Download The Full Market Report Here