Edmonton Real Estate Investor: May 2015

"Albertans are being set up for higher personal, corporate and resource taxes.

Despite what new premier Rachel Notley says, the province’s finances aren’t really that much worse than the Tory government said. For all the Tories’ faults (and there were many), they didn’t sugar-coat the state of Alberta’s revenue problems.

But by claiming, as Notley did following the first NDP cabinet meeting on Wednesday in Calgary, that “we are starting to find the challenges are a bit bigger than what may have been featured in the Prentice government’s campaign,” Notley is getting ready to abandon her own campaign promises not to raise taxes much, except on the richest Albertans.

If you promised not to raise taxes on 90 per cent of Albertans, but now that you’re safely elected you admit that was never realistic, how do you explain to voters that the 90-percent pledge can’t be kept? Why, of course, you blame the unpopular, outgoing government." JUMP

Meet Marg McCuaig-Boyd, Alberta's new energy minister - "Geography may have been the reason why McCuaig-Boyd was given the energy portfolio. It's no secret oil and gas is the predominant economic driver in the northern part of the province, followed by agriculture and forestry." Jump Here

Hopefully this turns out well and with a new vision we can reduce the boom bust history of Alberta's oil and gas industry.

Study on foreign investors raises eyebrows - "The study is providing the kind of closer look at international buyers that B.C.investors, in particular, continue to seek. Ostensibly, a similar study on the Vancouver and Toronto markets would help to end speculation about what if any real impact Chinese nationals are having on property prices in those cities."

Investors are always looking for safe places to park their funds. What might be a starter - middle class home for a U.K citizen is a nominal capital investment for overseas. Here

Inside dope on plans for Edmonton's first medical marijuana grow op - "Alberta Green Biotech was founded in 2013 by Noel Avila, a Filipino immigrant who is now a Canadian citizen. He and his brother, Leo, a software contractor, raised money from primarily Edmonton and Ottawa investors to pursue an application under Canada's Marijuana for Medical Purposes Regulations to become a licensed producer."

Medical marijuana is a new proposed to be billion dollar industry, if marijuana is ever legalized for personal use it will become a multi-billion dollar industry. Great way to get positioned as a approved retailer. Jump here

Rental inventory tight as homebuyers wait - "With economic uncertainty weighing heavily on the thoughts of those in Alberta, rental inventories are under pressure as renters choose to stay put. Despite rising rents, many view buying in the current climate as a risk they’re not prepared to make." Here

Numbeo is such a great site to get lost in if you are interested in living in other countries or just curious about where your city ranks.

"Numbeo is a collection of Web pages containing numerical and other itemizable data about cities and countries, designed to enable anyone to contribute or modify content. Numbeo uses the wisdom of the crowd to obtain the most reliable information possible. Numbeo then provides you with a statistical analysis of the data collected. In addition, Numbeo provides a variety of systematic research opportunities for its readers with its compilation of worldwide information."

Todd and I love Paris and wanted to see how Edmonton and Paris compare in a Numbeo city cost to live comparison.

"You would need around 4,337.32€ (5,918.67C$) in Paris to maintain the same standard of life that you can have with 5,100.00C$ in Edmonton (assuming you rent in both cities). This calculation uses our Consumer Prices Including Rent Index. This comparison assumes net earnings (after income tax)."

You can do any comparison you like but just because Bangalore is 70% cheaper than San Fransisco doesn't mean it's the next hot place to live. So take the information and use it wisely.

See the full Edmonton vs Paris breakdown Here

There are so many great videos here. I was sent one as a link and ended up watching about 5 in a row. I can see so many applications for the topics they cover. From your terrible teen to helping clients. Very interesting:

Alberta Oil Sands Investment Real Estate News®
Glenn Simon Inc., Suite 1217, 5328 Calgary Trail NW, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Tel 1-888-780-5940 Fax 1-888-276-4517
www.glennsimoninc.com email: info@glennsimoninc.com

May 17th., 2015
Volume 18, Issue 8

Dear Friends and Partners,

It’s been a wild week. The biggest change of course was the NDP’s surprising majority win and Rachel Notely becoming the Premier-elect. The second surprise was the massive snowfall after; a hell-freezing-over type of storm. Alas, this is a democratic win. The question on the minds of big oil, business owners and real estate investors is how will the new government effect business? Will royalties increase, taxes go up, rent control come into place…is the economy grinding to a halt? In reality we don’t yet know. I think that there is a good balance of opposition (Wild Rose and PC at 50%) to temper the direction. Fresh eyes can bring new ideas and progressive change, especially in environmental regulation, and if done right, without hurting the economy.

No matter what the diagnosis, we can manage and thrive as property owners and investors as we adjust to a ‘new game’. One thing is for sure, there will be bargains to be had if you have your buyers hat on; fear and uncertainty always offer a discount. Continuing to focus on quality property in areas with infrastructure in place or committed (read: already funded) such at hospitals, universities, LRT and select areas of the Arena District will fair well.

Strategies to hedge against a recession include reevaluating your portfolio and culling the dogs, CF bleeders or any hard to tenant/manage property. Use the next few months to renovate and sell any dead weight to mitigate negative CF and buffer up a CF fortress to weather a storm or at least inclement weather.

West Edmonton: Jasper Park Legal 4-Unit Cash-flow

Turbo charge your portfolio. This legal 4-unit, 1962 built, RA-7 zoned property is located directly across from school and park in Jasper Park. Near Telus World of Science, Edmonton Zoo, NAIT, Hospital and fast access to downtown and on either the Yellowhead or Whitemud. This property has front entrances to the 4 X1 BD and a parking pad for six cars.

This property was purpose built and is in good condition. It is rare to find a legal 4-pled for this price. Investment capital includes $15K budget slated for further renovations to modernize and improve value and rent-ability. All suites have own laundry. This is a turn-key deal. Excellent access to downtown, transit and parks.

This property comes complete with great tenants making this a totally turn-key property for you. Jasper Place is a mature area that is a desirable for tenants working in the city or attending NAITS west-side campus. HUGE upside potential due to the RA-7 zoning of the building, great purchase price, strong economic fundamentals and the proximity of this property in relation to Edmonton's desirable growing core.

Purchase price: $449,000
Total Investment: $108,500
Your Estimated 5 Year Profit $60,697
Your pre-tax Total ROI is 56% or 11% per year

These 4 suites rent for top dollar and have everything arranged, including financing structure and incredible tenants. Your investment includes: impeccable tenant selection, financial analysis, professional inspection, insurance, financing set-up, legal fees, basic accounting, reserve fund, CMA, bi-annual statements, strategic market planning to ensure successful entry and exit, plus much more!

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Albertan’s wanted a broom, not a hammer and sickle

By Ezra Levant, Special to Financial Post, May 6th, 2015

Canada’s Left is jubilant that the NDP won a majority in Tuesday night’s Alberta election. Fair enough – no-one else has beaten the Progressive Conservatives in 44 years, let alone a fringe socialist party in Canada’s most conservative province. Perhaps the revolution was finally here! It could be. Rachel Notley, the incoming premier, wears a Che Guevara wristwatch. One of her new MLAs, Rod Loyola, publicly praises Hugo Chavez, the late Venezuelan authoritarian. And Alberta’s new First Husband, Lou Arab, is an executive with the labour union, CUPE.

FOLLOW THIS ARTICLE

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Calgary business groups say they look forward to working with NDP government

By Mario Toneguzzi, The Calgary Herald, May 6th, 2015

Calgary business groups say they are looking forward to working with the new majority NDP government in Alberta despite still having some concerns about the party’s platform.
Amber Ruddy, senior policy analyst with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, said the voters clearly spoke on Tuesday night and now there’s a real opportunity to have small business issues front and centre.

READ MORE HERE

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Assaf & Hyde: The next four years in Alberta don’t necessarily have to be bad for business

By Danny Assaf and Goldy Hyder, National Post, May 8th, 2015

Looking at the chaos in the world today, one could be forgiven for thinking revolutions only happen at the barrel of a gun. The beauty of our democracy is that we can revolt at the ballot box and that’s exactly what happened in Alberta on Tuesday. Even with the most dramatic revolutions, however, there are things that must remain constant for any government: jobs and economic prosperity. All of us, of every political stripe, need to provide for our families and ensure opportunities for our children.

GRAB THIS STORY

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I appreciate all your calls and emails. I'm looking forward to helping you with your next step towards building real wealth.
Your success continues EVERYDAY, let me help you build for tomorrow.

“Since we cannot change reality, let us change the eyes which see reality." - Nikos Kazantzakis

Warm Regards,

Todd and Danielle Millar

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P.S. Stay ahead by checking out Danielle's daily blog at Edmonton Real Estate Investor for all your cutting edge market news and information.

P.P.S. Don’t forget to visit our website and take advantage of the Resource Tools and product section including REIN's #1 real estate books and Quick Start home study sets at a discount. Get your copy of the Canadian Success Stories book and the 2011 Top Ten Investment Towns of Alberta and Ontario.

I went to pick up my son the day after the landmark NDP victory in Alberta. I was bursting to talk to someone to say "What do you think?" except no one said anything. I heard more about the snow than I did about the election. Although there were a few 'Hell has frozen over' jokes.

We're all waiting to see what will happen. And that's all we can do is wait. In the meantime here are a few good links to check out:

The danger of financial ignorance - "While men outperformed women on the finance quiz, greater numbers of women responded that they “don’t know,” a result that held true all over the world. The upshot is that women, more conscious of their limitations, are more likely to be interested in financial-education programs" Here

Don't raise the minimum wage. Fine tune it - "Maybe a solution can be found to sharpen the minimum wage tool. In the Netherlands, the minimum wage increases with the worker’s age. A 15-year-old must be paid a minimum of €2.89 an hour ($3.92, up to 36 hours a week). When the worker turns 16, it rises to €3.32. It notches higher by increments of about €0.50 to €1.50 an hour until it peaks at €9.63 for a 23-year-old worker." Here

Stay tuned here on Alberta and the NDP election...