One element which separates apartments is their pet policy. The interesting thing about pet policies is that it alone can be the determining factor for someone deciding whether they want to rent an apartment with you or not. There are a variety of reasons to go one way or the other, but from a business perspective, I would like to make the argument that you should allow pets.

There is an interesting dynamic in the area where I live – on average, apartments that allow pets cost around 150-200 more than apartments that don’t, not including pet rent. These numbers are not official, they are simply my experience with trying to find a living space while owning a small dog.

This is of course piled in top of the fact that there are far less apartments which allow pets than there are not – specifically dogs. It is easy to understand the arguments for why apartment managers may not what dogs living in their units – but I think it’s easy to put both of those arguments to bed.

First off, I think it’s important to recognize that there are a lot of pet lovers in the world, and many of them are more than happy with apartment style living. Of course, there are many types of pets that aren’t suited for apartments, but those of us who do have pets that are apartment worthy, and wish to rent, are met with challenges in affordability and availability.

Lets address the arguments against pets. Mess and noise tend to be the largest arguments against pets. You also have to consider allergy issues and that you might drive away people who simply don’t want to live around animals.

Small pets are easy to manage. The real question comes down to cats and dogs.

As far as cats go – they are quiet and tend to be not messy. The only thing you have to consider with them is the shedding, and potentially cats which haven’t been house broken (you can of course make that a requirement but it is difficult to verify).

Dogs are often the pet which is not allowed. They can be messy, and they can be noisy. However, I think more credit should be given to owners here. Most noisy dogs are either nervous in a new situation, or have been poorly trained. As far as the mess potential goes, this is again a training issue. What I am getting at here is that most of your problems can be handled via good interviewing processes with new tenants who want to bring in dogs.

Do some research in your area of local dog boutiques and stores which specialize in dog food, toys, and treats – any owner who shops for thier pet at a higher end store is more likely to be the type of owner you are looking for (on top of that their dogs will be eating better and less likely to make a mess because of that fact alone).

Regardless of those details, you can mitigate any of the downsides via property leasing contracts for pet owners.

Make costs variable dependent on the type of breed.  Use pet rent if you have ongoing costs associated with pets in the building (maybe you need extra cleanup in the public areas due to pets). Use pet referrals. Assume the carpet will be replaced and factor that into your costs, also inform the tenants that will be the case. Make sure there will be no surprises for the pet owners at any point along the way of at the end of the lease.

So why should you do it? Because a lot of apartment communities are not. There are little risks involved to you in doing so – potential costs caused by pets are handled via appropriate pet fees. It’s an easy way to build value and stand out from your competition.

In accordance with PIPA (Personal Information Privacy Act), we are required to inform you that as a result of the software change, your personal information, including name, contact information, and financial information will be stored outside of Alberta, specifically in the United States of America (where the data server is located).

We are also pleased to announce the creation of a Tenant Master Insurance Policy to compliment our Current Owner’s Master Insurance Policy. The tenant policy will provide tenants with superior protection at competitive rates. This addition allows Power Properties to streamline any claims and ensure that our tenants have adequate insurance coverage.  I would also like to take this opportunity to encourage all of our clients to compare Power Properties Owner’s Master Policy to their current insurance, as I am confident that you will not find superior coverage at a lower price.  Should you have any questions regarding our Master Policy please do not hesitate to contact our insurance broker:

Greg Sanden, CAIB

Account Executive

Anthony Clark Insurance Ltd.

Phone: 403-225-5116

Cell: 403-510-2695

Fax: 403-259-4429

Email: greg.sanden@acib.ca

It is also worth noting that Greg was able to negotiate a reduction in the premiums this year for all of our clients, making our Master Policy even more attractive.  I have attached an insurance summary page for your review as well.

Finally, Power Properties leasing and lease renewal fees have changed effective January 1, 2012. Our current fee had not increased in five years, while the cost we incur to provide the services included in the fees (including locksmith, video production, and advertising) have risen steadily. This modest increase ensures that we are able to continue to provide the exceptional service you have come to expect from Power Properties, while remaining competitively priced. The new fees are as follows: the leasing fee will be $775+gst for properties in Calgary and $875+gst for properties located outside the city limits. The new lease renewal fee will be $135+gst. As recognition of the value we place on our client relationships, the new fees will not take effect for existing clients until January 1^st of next year (2013). New Agency Agreements will be sent out throughout the year as the respective leases come up for renewal.

I wish all of you great success in 2012 and want to thank you for your continued patronage.

Sincerely,

Jamie Palmer

President/Broker

Power Properties

Vivian McKee: Eastpm@powerproperties.net

Or 403-509-0040

I am confident that she will uphold the high standards you have come to expect from Power Properties.

Sincerely,
Jamie Palmer
President/Broker
Power Properties Ltd.

We are pleased to announce the recent addition of several new staff members and a new department at Power Properties:

As of November 1^st 2011, all repair, maintenance and insurance calls will be placed to our newly created Maintenance Department. With the creation of a dedicated maintenance department, our goal is to increase the speed and effectiveness of our response. In addition, it is our hope that we will be able to address the overall maintenance of the properties in our care in a more preventative and holistic manner. We have added two new positions to fulfill this mandate. Margaret Zobatar is the new Maintenance Manager and will be looking after large-scale projects and repairs in conjunction with Gary Baumgartner. Margaret has an extensive trade’s background and is in fact a licensed electrician. Allicia Ensor is our new Maintenance Assistant and will be answering and troubleshooting repair and maintenance inquiries. Allicia blends extensive administrative experience together with a family tradition of trade’s work. They can be reached at:

Margaret Zobatar:      repairmanager@powerproperties.net

Allicia Ensor:               repairs@powerproperties.net

We have two new faces overseeing our Northwest and East Portfolios: Jeff Fitzgerald is the new Northwest Property Manager; he comes to Power Properties with extensive real estate and property management knowledge in both condominiums and residential properties. Mari Leatham is the new East Property Manager. Mari brings strong customer service and property management experience to Power Properties.  Jeff and Mari can be reached at:

Jeff Fitzgerald:                        nwpm@powerproperties.net

Mari Leatham:                        eastpm@powerproperties.net

We are always striving to provide the highest level of service possible to our clients and tenants. I am confident you will find these changes reflect that ambition.

Sincerely,

Jamie Palmer

President/Broker

Power Properties Ltd.

report by TD Economics, released Wednesday, said the province can expect GDP growth of 3.2 per cent in 2012 with the national average at 2.5 per cent. For this year, TD Economics predicts Alberta’s economic growth to be 4.2 per cent, behind Newfoundland and Labrador at 4.7 per cent and Saskatchewan at 4.3 per cent.

At the national level, economic growth for Canada this year is expected to be three per cent.

Dan Sumner, economist with ATB Financial in Calgary, said the TD forecast is in the same range with what many other economists have been saying recently.

“It’s in the realm of what we’re expecting and it shows that things have improved a lot in the last four months particularly,” he said, adding that energy prices are the key to the provincial economic growth.

“We’ve had high oil prices for quite a while now. That’s going to underpin investment in the oilsands and these kind of decisions take a while . . . Now they’ve been steadily higher, it’s going to filter through.”

Sumner said Alberta has been slow to see recovery in the labour market although it has picked up in the last two months. “But in 2010 as a whole, employment actually fell. It was down 0.4 per cent. In 2011, we’re expecting to seeprettystrongemploymentgrowth. Employment is typically considered a lagging indicator. GDP growth happens first. Then employment happens after,” said Sumner.

TD Economics said the estimated GDP growth in Alberta for 2010 is three per cent following a 4.5 per cent decline in 2009. It said the annual average per cent growth from 1995 to 2008 in the province was 3.1 per cent.
In other economic indicators, TD said employment would rise three per cent this year and by two per cent in 2012 in Alberta with the employment rate falling to 5.9 per cent in 2011 from 6.5 per cent in 2010. In 2012, the unemployment rate will fall to 5.6 per cent, said TD.

Alberta housing starts are forecast to fall by 14.3 per cent this year followed by a 6.5 per cent increase the next year while existing home sales should drop by 1.5 per cent in 2011 and another eight per cent in 2012. And TD is forecasting average house prices in the province to grow by 1.3 per cent this year and another 0.8 per cent next year.

Craig Alexander, chief economist for TD, said that over the next 12 to 18 months, the overall pace of the Canadian economic expansion is likely to moderate, as interest rates rise and domestic spending cools.

The report said prospects for resource exports remain relatively bright. “Our outlook assumes that oil prices will average $95 to $100 US per barrel throughout this year and next,” said the report.

Most people think that if real estate goes up 5% then that is the return on investment – just like a stock. Not quite. If you invest $ 1000. in a stock and it goes up 5% then the return is 5%. However when buying real estate, you do not have to put the full $1000, up, you put 20% down or $200.00 and take out a mortgage of 80% , Now if real estate goes up 5% it has gained $50.00 in value just like the stock but the return on investment is actually 25%. ( 50/200=25%). Not so fast, you say, but you have to pay the mortgage. Yes and No. Yes you make a mortgage payment but you also receive rental income so in fact the tenant is really paying off your mortgage. Assuming the rental income pays all your expenses, you really make more than a 25% return on your investment of $200.00 . Your Mortgage balance has gone down 10.00 so if you add the increased equity to the appreciation you are really making a 30% return (50.00+10.00 / 200 = 30% . When is the last time you made 30% return on any of your other investments? One of our clients explained real estate this way: Where else can you buy something and only put 20% down, someone else puts up the other 80 % and someone else pays off the mortgage for you and at the end of 25 years you own a significantly appreciated , income producing asset. Now does everyone understand why real estate is such a great investment. It is not quick but it is steady and makes a wonderful retirement nest egg.

One of the most frequently heard reasons for not investing in real estate is that they do not have enough money for the down payment. Have you ever decided to put money in your bank account and not get any interest on it? Of course not. But what about the equity in your home? We are so schooled in the thought that we must strive to pay off our mortgage, we forget that having available equity in your home and not using it is like hiding the money under your bed. It is there but you are not making any use of it. Think about it. If you have a $400,000 home would you keep it if the value was declining? No you would not. You would sell it and rent a home. You have already made the decision that real estate will appreciate over the long term by holding onto that home. Assume your $400,000 home will appreciate 4% per year. That is $16,000 not counting the increase in equity you earn while making the mortgage payments, What if you have $150,000 left on your mortgage. That means you are hiding $250,000 under your bed and getting no return. Your home goes up in value 4% whether or not you have a mortgage. But what if you do an equity takeout and increase your home mortgage to $300,000. Now you have $150,000 in cash to buy another property. You could buy two investment properties worth $300,000 each by putting $75,000 down payment on each of them. You have your original $400,000 home and now two $300,000 revenue properties for a total of $1,000,000 in real estate. If they continue to appreciate at 4% your equity increases $40,000 per year instead of just $16,000 per year. The tenants will pay off the mortgages by paying rent. That’s how you build a retirement nest egg – using all your resources that you already have. Talk to one of our realtors to see whether you can take advantage of your current home to increase your wealth.