Reblogged - Peter Kinch

Don Campbell - Market timing real estate a fools game.

I missed this video ( video is a little wonky)because I was looking at Mt. Fuji on December 31st. As usual Don R. Campbell gives great advice for anyone interested in the Canadian real estate market.

His advice, "Market timing is a fools game." He promotes value investing. Looking for areas where you get good cashflow and good R.O.I. It's not easy to find these areas without a significant amount of research.

Real Estate Pitfalls to watch out for:
Forestry or logging towns in Canada - the industry is not doing well but may rebound in 2012-2013
Areas in the US - there are still many sub-prime mortgages coming up and the economy will remain weak for the next few years.
Pre-Sale Condos - it's not really investing it's speculating. If you line up and pay an agreed price for today's market on a product that isn't built yet it's too risky.

This and That

What a decade. It started with Y2K and ended with a global recession. It seems 2010 is bringing new optimism in it's wake and the news is reflecting that.

Alberta poised to lead in growth - "Following a sharp economic contraction this year, Alberta's economy is forecast to be one of Canada's fastest growing provinces in 2010.

Scotiabank economist Alex Koustas predicts that in 2010, the energy province's GDP will grow by 2.9% after shrinking 2.6% this year.

Only B.C., at 3%, is forecast to grow at a faster rate.

Come 2011, Alberta will be firmly planted ahead of other provinces, thanks to a growth rate of 3.5%, Koustas said."

Housing market rebounds - "It turns out, the Realtors Association of Edmonton president wasn't optimistic enough.

"We predicted residential sales of 15,550 this year and exceeded it in early October," Ponde said on Tuesday as the group released its final month of Multiple Listing Service figures for 2009.

"We anticipated that single-family prices would end the year at $352,000 and condos would be at $222,500."

The average prices turned out to be $364,032 and $240,322, respectively."

Real estate market expected to remain strong in first half of 2010 - "However, the Canadian real estate market has been much quicker to recover than its American counterpart, in part because of a more stable banking industry, historically low interest rates and improving consumer confidence.

Royal LePage executive Phil Soper says Canada's real estate market enters 2010 with "considerable momentum from an unusually strong finish to the previous year."

The stimulus effect of low borrowing costs has contributed to a sharp rise in demand that has driven activity to new highs, he said in a statement.

-Edmonton: Detached bungalow, $299,286 (down 0.7 per cent); standard two-storey home, $340,557 (down 1.2 per cent)"