Real Estate professionals now have several reasons to adopt video solutions for being ahead of their competition. According to All Abroad the Bandwagon article, real estate professionals are getting more and more attracted to using video in order to promote their listing.

Previously real estate professionals, would spend advertisement money on search keywords to attract potentional buyers to their properties. Now they’re realizing that video can be a better investment with a higher return on investment (ROI) for several reasons. Pricing for search keywords have risen up. Search engines such as Google, Yahoo, AOL and MSN have started to index video higher in public’s search results and of course there are many people who watch video ads. The recent surveys have shown that 129.5 million people watched online video ads at least once a month and it is estimated that we will have 183.3 million by 2013.

The article also points out 6 key points in order for professionals to build effective videos which can generate leads for them. So if you’re a professional and are facing a tough time in the current economical time, you might want to give this cheap, easy and efficient solution a try and take a leap of faith in the power of internet.

The following predictions are not RealtyTeller’s. Our aim is to educate home buyers and sellers with our research and allow them to make better decisions in terms of their real estate investments.

Mortgage predictions for those who are seeking new mortgages:

CTV analysts predict that the high jobless figures in Canada means that the bank of Canada will cut interest rates on Jan 20.

Also TD economist Charmaine Buskas expects a potential 0.5% cuts in mortgages by Jan 20.

Mortgage tip for those who will soon be renewing their mortgage term:

Many people avoid shopping around when it is time for them to renew their mortgages. They usually are easily convinced that their current lender is providing them with the best rates, but that’s usually because people don’t feel like putting in the effort to shop around. If you’re one of those people with a busy life and find it difficult to find the best rates, here are two things that can help you out.

1. Check out TrueNorthMortgage. This is what they have to say about themselves:

“We are able to offer you lower rates than the banks because we search all lenders for the most suitable mortgage product with the best rate.  We also receive a volume discount which we pass directly on to you.”

“You’ll always get our lowest rate — now and at the time of renewal whether that be through 
ING Direct, TD Canada Trust, Scotia Bank or any other bank. No hassles, no haggling.  Our
rates are updated daily and are always accurate. True North operates out of Calgary but our
services are available to Canadians nationwide. Simply apply online and one of our mortgage
specialists will contact you within 2 business hours.”

2. What many people don’t know about mortgage renewals, is that you can ask your lender to renew you, into an open mortgage temporarily. The rate can be higher than your permanent rate (7%-8%), but you will only need that for a few weeks until you shop around for a better rate. Your rates will be higher for a very short time so you will not lose any money but instead finding a better rate will save you a lot in the long run.

Predictions for real estate in 2009

Garth Turner is probably one of the few people who actually predicted the slow-down of the real estate industry in Canada. He published his book “Greater Fool” on March 2008, less than a month after the Vancouver housing peaked. This is what he has to say about Canada’s Real Estate in 2009:

“Canada is following an identical trajectory to the U.S., just with a two-year lag. It will collapse, though more gently than the States.”

That’s not to scare you but instead to increase your awareness. Garth has recently published his new book where he addresses ways through which you can avoid getting hurt during such financial times. If you are a homeowner, investor or are looking for ways to avoid the harms of the current economy, you might want to check out Garth Turner’s recent book “After the Crash“.

Thank you for reading,

RealtyTeller

Here’s a brief look at what happened in Canada’s residential real estate market in 2008:

- The national average price of homes sold via the MLS® in November 2008 declined by 9.8% from where it stood on November 2007.

- New rules on mortgage introduced by FSCO:

- Your broker/agent must disclose if they are receiving a finder’s fee, bonus, basis points or any
other remuneration on the mortgage, and the method of calculation of these payments.

- Your broker/agent needs to disclose the number of lenders your Brokerage acted for in the previous
fiscal year.

- The cost of high ratio mortgage default insurance will no longer need to be included in the cost of
borrowing.

- Your broker/agent must disclose any and all material risks of a particular mortgage and clearly establish
why the mortgage you recommend is suitable for the client.

-The price of a new house rose 1.5%t between October 2007 and October 2008.

“We should not lose sight of the fact the World Economic Forum labeled Canadian Banks as the soundest banks in the world, and remember that Canada is the only country of the G8 not running a deficit,” the CREA President added.

So in conclusion, 2008 was a halt to Canada’s accelerating real estate market but that does not mean that the market will plummet. It simple means the market is balancing itself out.

RealtyTeller

Hello all and happy 2009. We have great news for all Canadians who are thinking of buying or selling a home sometime soon. We are here to help you. We are working on a great new product to help homebuyers and home sellers across Canada at every stage of purchasing or selling their property. But that’s not all.

All of our services are 100% FREE. We don’t ask for any money or commitment from you, and you can use our product for as long as you want. We are currently building RealtyTeller so you cannot really use it yet. But we couldn’t wait any longer and wanted to help you in one way or another until RealtyTeller is ready.

So we decided to start this blog. This is RealtyTeller’s official blog and our goal is to frequently update you with real estate news, stats and information. These are information that would take you time to research and find and we’re doing the work for you. If you like to educate yourself and buy the right home, then visit http://RealtyTeller.com frequently. You can also subscribe to our RSS feed and get our latest posts, live. So what will we be writing about?

If you are a first time homebuyer, we will provide you with all the resources that you will need. We will show you the way in finding a great first home and making sure everything goes right. We will talk about the boom and the bust in Canadian real estate market. We will talk about mortgages in Canada, and how to save you tax money. More importantly, you’re always welcome to leave us your comments and criticism for us to write about what you care to know about. After all our objective is to help you and if you tell us your questions, we’ll find you the answers.

Thanks for reading,

RealtyTeller