Facebook
Twitter
Pinterest
Copy Link
SPOOKTACULAR SPOTS IN KELOWNA FOR TRICK-OR-TREATING
Halloween To-Do’s in Kelowna
Halloween is a fun opportunity for children to get dressed up in costumes and for adults to indulge in fun with the little ones. Whether you want to find a corn maze or go pumpkin carving, we know that your child’s highlight of the season will be trick-or-treating!
If you are looking for some safe, fun family-friendly spots to go trick-or-treating in Kelowna, check out C21Kelowna’s list of fang-tastic neighbourhoods below!
Kelowna Trick or Treating
If you are more interested in indoor or trick-or-treating events, also check out the following list courtesy of: https://www.dotheokanagan.com/trickortreating-hot-spots
SPOOKTACULAR PUMPKIN WALK – Kelowna (outdoors)
Free Event
When: Oct. 30 | 5 PM – 8 PM
What: Dress up and walk to paths lit up by jack-o-lanterns. Vote for your favourite!
Where: Mission Creek Regional Park, 2363 Springfield Rd
Click HERE for Facebook
Kelowna Pumpkin Patch
HALLOWEENIE AT GRIZZLI WINERY – Kelowna (indoors)
Free Event
When: Oct. 31 | 2 PM – 6 PM
What: FREE, safe, ‘lights on,’ family- and pet-friendly indoor event. Balloon twisting, colouring and trick-or-treating. Dress up!
Where: Grizzli Winery, 2550 Boucherie Rd
FALL FESTIVAL AT WILLOW PARK CHURCH – Kelowna (indoors)
Free Event
When: Oct. 31 | 5:30 PM – 7:30 PM
What: Dress up in a fun family-friendly costume and collect lots of treats along the indoor candy trail with over 40 collection stops. There will also be bounce houses, hot chocolate, balloons and more! This event is perfect for younger children as it is a non-scary event.
Where: 439 Hwy 33 (Rutland)
A SPOOKTACULAR HALLOWEEN AT THE EAST KELOWNA MARKET – Kelowna (indoors/outdoors)
Free Event
When: Oct. 30 | 10 AM – 2:30 PM
What: This market Sunday will be filled with all sorts of spooky surprises to have a fang-tastic day! Come check out over 75+ artisan, crafters, and food vendors to shop, eat, drink and be scary! Special treats for children along with a family monster walk outside of the hall filled with ghosts, witches, and other spook-tacular things! Don’t be a scaredy cat! Come dressed up to enter a best-dressed costume contest!
Where: 2704 East Kelowna Rd
Halloween in Kelowna
Century 21 Assurance Realty Earns Gold, Silver and Bronze!
We are proud to announce that Century 21 Assurance Realty Ltd. in the Central Okanagan, has been rated the #2 overall Century 21 Brokerage in all of Canada for the second consecutive time! This award was recently announced by C21 Canada at the Canadian Conference held in St. Johns, Newfoundland.
Our congratulations go to Century 21 Heritage House in the GTA which earned the #1 ranking.
This ranking is based on several factors, as listed below:
- Realtor performance
- Growth
- Technology & brand adoption
- Participation in C21 Canada activities
- Charitable contribution
- Collaboration and more!
Kudos go to Anne Wolfe (left) & Maureen Yakimchuk (right) from our office who were also nominated by C21 Canada as two of the top eight Realtors in all of Canada!
This year, Century 21 Assurance Realty was also voted the #1 Real Estate Brokerage in the Okanagan by Kelowna Capital News readers for 2022 AND the #3 Real Estate Brokerage in the 2022 Best of Kelowna award by KelownaNow readers.
Thanks go to our exceptional team of Realtors, Brokers, Mentor, and Staff who are committed to helping Clients in the Okanagan achieve real estate excellence. We are extremely proud of our colleagues who have earned and contributed to this acknowledgment as they are the ones who have truly earned these awards!
Century 21 Assurance Realty in Kelowna proudly helps clients to achieve the Gold Standard In Real Estate.
TAKE YOUR CAREER TO THE NEXT LEVEL!
Contact Max Carbone to learn more: CALL or EMAIL
OR
Contact Dean Desrosiers to learn more: CALL or EMAIL
What you NEED TO KNOW before moving to Kelowna
Your Relocation Guide To Kelowna
Moving to a new city is an important life choice. You’ll want to be equipped with everything there’s to know to make your move successful!
The team at C21 Kelowna has assembled the following Relocation Guide to Kelowna to make your move to the Okanagan a breeze.
By the end of this article, you’ll be aware of some of the pros and cons of living in Kelowna, the desirable areas of town for you and your family, and what type of lifestyle you can expect in Kelowna.
KELOWNA AT A GLANCE
Kelowna and its surrounding area has a population of 195,000 residents. In fact, Kelowna is one of the fastest-growing municipalities in the country and it’s no wonder why!
The landscape throughout the Okanagan is pristine, and one of the only places where you can drive for less than an hour from the beach and end up on a ski hill!
Whether you’re interested in lakefront property, a downtown condo, or a cozy family home, Kelowna has plenty of Real Estate options for you!
Browse through our listings to find your perfect Kelowna home OR CONTACT US and we’ll put you in touch with one of our knowledgeable and skilled Realtors®. They will customize a search based on your needs to save you time and help make your moving process to Kelowna much more manageable.
PROS OF LIVING IN KELOWNA
- Pristine natural landscape
- Tons of outdoor activities at no cost
- An international airport to make your vacation getaways much easier with direct flights to Hawaii, Mexico, Dominican Republic, and Jamaica, just to name a few!
- Kelowna is home to an increasing young adult population, which also means the entrepreneurial space is expanding as companies old and new alike expand into the new technological era
- Access to TONS of outdoor activities, like golf and skiing at world-renowned ski resorts such as BIG WHITE, SILVER STAR, and APEX which are nearby.
Big White Ski Resort
CONS OF LIVING IN KELOWNA
- Renting requires a damage deposit, and a pet deposit if you have one, landlords can restrict the size and number of animals allowed in rental property
- Growing traffic as roadways are not expanding at the same rate as the population
- Homelessness, drugs, and petty crime
WHAT KELOWNA’S FUTURE HOLDS FOR YOUTH
The University of British Columbia, Okanagan Campus, is helping expand Kelowna’s cultural district and innovation centers. For example, the University of British Columbia is projected to start building its downtown Okanagan campus in Fall 2022!
In addition to the Main campus by the airport, the University of British Columbia, Okanagan is projected to raise the student population to 18,000 by 2040! This one aspect helps attract and retain people of all ages and demographics!
In conjunction with a growing student population in Kelowna, the downtown core is also expanding with condominium towers. If the city isn’t your desired neighborhood, Kelowna’s residential areas are also growing.
University of British Columbia, Okanagan Campus
RECAP: MOVING TO KELOWNA 101
Kelowna is a booming city. Its natural landscape offers tons of summer and winter activities that families and residents will love. Not only is it a growing and evolving community but it’s also becoming increasingly multicultural.
Picking a place to live isn’t easy, but adjusting to Kelowna’s lifestyle will be a breeze if this sounds like the right place for you!
Tuesdays and the Power of Local Market Knowledge
Traditionally on Tuesdays mornings across the Okanagan, local agents gather at their real estate offices to share a coffee, learn market stats, local issues, new listings and tips and tricks from their esteemed managing brokers and leaders. Some offices hold these meetings, and some do not. This week, I am reminded of the importance of Tuesday Team Meetings.
July 13, 2021, marks the return of my brokerages’ weekly in-office meetings for agents and support staff. Since March 2020, my office (Century21 Kelowna) has diligently held zoom and or hybrid zoom and in-personal meetings when allowed by the health order. Each week we did our best to connect our agents to fellowship, education, local knowledge, and inspiration. Yet, something is missing from internet webcam meetings.
Realtor® local knowledge and connection to local colleagues, business practices benefit consumers. Agents who attended these meetings, in my opinion, learn more, learn faster and often give their clients better service. To me, Tuesday morning meetings are part of our “great agent recipe.”
What are the benefits for agents and consumers who work with these agents? There are many, and here are my top five.
5) Better problem-solving. I am not talking grade nine math here. Agents are professional problem solvers, and every transaction, home, contract, negotiation or client need can present a unique challenge. Consistently I have been assisted by a comment, habit or suggestion from a colleague during a Tuesday morning office meeting.
4) Motivation. Real estate can be lonely work. Showing homes and writing contracts is exciting work but hundreds of hours organizing paperwork and conducting research and due diligence is more common. So a weekly boost of energy by sharing time with motivated colleagues is essential.
3) Regulatory and Ethics. Each week, it seems, agents in BC have a new rule and a new form. Yet, these rules and forms protect consumers and give the public trust that they will be treated fairly during a transaction. In addition, weekly meetings are one of the best places for my managing broker to impart her knowledge and ethical guidance to our team of agents.
2) Recent Selling and Buying Trends. My office gives agents a chance to share their new listings. We tour a selection of hi-def photos while the agent pitches the unique features of the property. It’s common for most of our office to be exposed to 30 or more new listings each week on Tuesdays alone. Afterward, we talk about buyer needs, upcoming listings, unique clients requests and troubleshooting. Client information stays private, yet knowledge and wisdom are shared.
1) Better Negotiation Skills. I believe our Tuesday morning meetings help make our agents the best negotiators in the valley. Information is power, and up-to-date and accurate information gives our agents an added advantage at the negotiating table for their clients.
Real estate trading (buying and selling) is complex. Realtors are human. Humans need connection. Tuesday are back! Let’s get it on!
Happy negotiating!
Dean Desrosiers
Associate Broker | REALTOR®
CENTURY 21 Assurance Realty Ltd
Agent Development & Recruiting, Commercial
250-863-4707
dean.desrosiers@century21.ca
Real Estate Coach (NORE®)
www.deandesrosiers.com
Increased Stress for your Stress Test!
There are a lot of different stressors in the world of real estate right now, particularly for those who are
trying to “get in the game” to buy their first home or investment property. On June 1, the Canadian
government will be adding a little more stress to the lives of those looking to purchase real estate.
**Disclaimer: this is not professional mortgage advice. For particulars of your own financial situation,
you should consult with your mortgage broker.**
Now, onto the good stuff.
What is the Stress Test?
The Stress Test was introduced by the Canadian Government in late 2017 as a market control and
mortgage-default prevention measure. Essentially the premise was this, ‘make Buyers qualify at a
higher mortgage interest rate than what they will actually pay so that if/when the interest rates
increase, homeowners won’t suddenly find themselves underwater and defaulting on their mortgage
payments.’ Some logic there, arguably.
Now there are plenty of opinions for and against this move, but that is neither here nor there for today’s
discussion. Today we are talking about what the changes to that stress test are and how they might
impact you.
So, what are the changes?
The current stress test requires that you qualify for a mortgage at your rate plus 2% or 4.79%, which
ever is higher. As of June 1, 2021, all borrowers will have to qualify at the new stress test levels of either
your rate plus 2% or at 5.25% — whichever is higher.
WOWZA!
What does this actually mean for YOU?
Clearly, these changes will have a large impact on borrowers and their capacity to enter the market.
According to the Green Mortgage Team, this change to the Stress Test will “decrease borrowing power
by approximately 4% to 4.5%,”1 depending on the purchaser’s specific situation.
What should you do?
You could buy a bucket of ice cream, close all the blinds in your house, put on some Adele and eat your
sorrows away… or you can call your mortgage broker and find out exactly how this will affect you and if
there are any measures that you can take to counteract the increased Stress Test rates.
If you don’t currently have a mortgage broker and are thinking about getting into the market, call me or
your Realtor and we will be able to direct you to some stellar Mortgage Brokers who can help give clarity
to what these new rules mean, specifically, for you!
Written by: Justina LeeStolz, PREC2
Connect. Local. Community.
1 https://www.greenmortgageteam.ca/mortgage-stress-test/
2 Personal Real Estate Corporation
Unrepresented is no Party…
Did you know that Real Estate Agents in British Columbia are held to the highest standard of conduct under the law in all of North America?
Well, now you know. But what does this mean?
Real Estate Agents in B.C. are fiduciaries. Or, as Miriam Webster explains, “of, relating to, or involving a confidence or trust: such as held or founded in trust or confidence”. It’s a legal and binding relationship similar to Lawyers and Doctors.
In real estate, the relationship is called Agency or a Client Relationship. When it comes to real estate trading, the act of buying and selling real estate, the rules in B.C. stipulate there are only two types of consumers; clients and non-clients. Consumers in BC must choose. Non-clients or “unrepresented parties” are those individuals or entities who do not have an agency relationship with a licensed agent. Non-clients do not have the protection of a fiduciary relationship. They are not owed any special legal duties. Other than their whits, they have no special legal protection under the law. Clients engaged in an agency relationship with a Real Estate Agent in B.C. are entitled to the following special legal duties.
Loyalty – They will act only in the best interests of their client.
Full disclosure – They must share everything they know that may influence a client’s decision in a transaction.
Avoid conflicts of interest – An agent must avoid any situation that would affect their duty to act in their client’s best interest. For example, when working for a seller as a listing agent, it is a conflict for the listing agent to give agency to a buyer.
Confidentiality – An agent must not reveal private information without the client’s permission. This duty extends after the client relationship ends. The duty of privacy includes, but is not limited to, a client’s reasons for buying or selling, their minimum or maximum price, and or any preferred terms or conditions they may want in a contract.
All agents in B.C. are obliged to act honestly and with reasonable care and skill with clients and non-clients. At the same time, buying and selling real estate is a complex venture, and there is no doubt that a skilled agent working closely with a client under these rules is an ideal match for success.
At CENTURY 21 Assurance Realty Ltd, our agents are trained as fiduciaries to the highest standard and looking forward to helping clients navigate the complex and competitive market.
Dean Desrosiers
Associate Broker | REALTOR®
CENTURY 21 Assurance Realty Ltd
Agent Development & Recruiting, Commercial
250-863-4707
dean.desrosiers@century21.ca
Real Estate Coach (NORE®)
www.deandesrosiers.com
