Handy CITY MAP LINKS

Looking for information about:

·       Zoning

·       Land use

·       Underground utilities

·       Schools

·       Parks

·       Recreation centres and more

Check out cities interactive maps…

City of Surrey                   - COSMOS 

City of Coquitlam             -  QtheMap 

City of Port Coquitlam     -  PoCoMap

City of Port Moody          -  Port Moody Maps

City of Langley                 - Langley Maps

City of White Rock           -  WROMS

City of New Westminster -  CityViews

City of Burnaby                -  Maps

Maple Ridge                     - RidgeView

Pitt Meadows                    - MedowsMapView

Delta                                 -  DeltaMap

Abbotsford                        -  WebMap

Anna's recent Langley dining experience....

Anna says Langley has an amazing Thai Restaurant you must try Ban Chok Dee Thai Cuisine.

The decor is beautiful as well as comfortable, plus the food was 5 star delicious, she usually takes extra Thai food home, not this time, so good it was all gone.

Have you tried it?

Do you believe in gratitude?

Simplified Business Solutions - Caroline LePage says it best...

This is the perfect article to share for Tip Tuesday! It's an excellent reminder that we have so many reasons to focus on appreciating people!
"I think it's hugely valuable to stop often, probably every day and just take a moment to be grateful to all of the people who have helped you get where you are today, or who are helping you get to where you want to be tomorrow."

6 Types of People We have to Stop Taking for Granted

inc.com

Because if we don't, there may be a price to pay another day. More about Caroline here.

Thank you for your Referrals!

Good business is built on referrals!  

When people take the time to appreciate good service it is tremendously valued and appreciated.  Your testimonial can be as short or long as you like - feel free to send them to me directly as it enables me to better serve you.

Please reach out if we can be of assistance. We want to add the referrals, comments or kudos to our new website which is currently under construction.

Thank you again!

Anthony   aibhahe@gmail.com 

Your comments mean the world to me & Foreclosures listed below for you.

Foreclosure in Greater Vancouver (Attached Properties)
Foreclosure in Fraser Valley (Attached Properties)
Foreclosure in Chilliwack (Attached Properties)
Foreclosure in BC Northern (Attached Properties)
Foreclosure in Greater Vancouver (Detached Properties)
Foreclosure in Fraser Valley (Detached Properties)
Foreclosure in Chilliwack (Detached Properties)
Foreclosure in BC Northern (Detached Properties)

Check out latest listing updates, open houses, pictures, events, helpful articles and hopefully some clever memes.

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"WE'RE ALL DOING IT": Lies and Deception the BIG 5 Banks Train Their Employees to TELL YOU.

These are three of the most common fibs I've been exposed to around mortgages:

http://www.cbc.ca/news/business/banks-upselling-go-public-1.4023575

1. "Mortgage insurance is required to get the mortgage". 

This is false; It's not required at all and is generally way more expensive than broker quoted insurance if you actually need it. 

Get quotes on line at; http://www.lowestrates.ca/insurance/home

Check your existing insurances, you may already have the same coverage.

2. "Our mortgages only have 3 month interest penalty break fees"

This is false; Fixed rate Mortgages typically have HUGE interest rate differential penalties. 

For a quick overview of Break fees by Bank and Mortgage type click here; https://www.ratehub.ca/penalty-calculator

Remember to read the break fee terms before you sign.

3. "We can easily transfer your mortgage to another property"

This is false;  Most of the time you have to re-qualify for the transfer. 

Again find the Transfer Terms in your mortgage and ask them to change the terms to; "Transfer without re-qualification".

Lesson here is, if you don't like any specific terms, ask for them to be changed, sometimes it works,,,

Some great advise from the Mortgage Pro's at Robert Klein Mortgage Group regarding the above three deceptions: 

1. BANK Mortgage insurance is crap. Get it just to bridge over while you apply for a term policy direct from an insurance company. Once approved cancel the BANK's mortgage insurance. 

2. Use a NON BIG BANK lender with cheap interest rate differential penalties or go variable as its typically just a 3 month interest penalty. Avoid all big bank fixed rate mortgages like the plague.  

3. Generally Banks want you to re-qualify to transfer a Mortgage to another property so don't sell your property until you're approved for you're new mortgage. 

http://www.anthonyibhahe.ca/ 

https://dominionlending.ca/mortgage-broker/aibhahe

Anthony Ibhahe PREC*

Associate Broker /Chemical Process Engineer, M.Eng., EIT., CFBMB

Royal LePage West Real Estate Services

Reasons why I Chose to Invest in Real Estate Over Stocks Any Day of the Week

I usually get these questions asked by my friends, families and strangers once they know I'm involved heavily in real estate.  Should I invest in stocks or should I invest in real estate

The question I asked myself years ago when I was doing my research on different investments was, should I invest my money to produce residual income month after month and increase my cash flow or just put some money in stocks hoping to get a return some day while still slaving away in a nine to five job.

The banks don't finance your investments in stock but they do become partners with you financing 75% of your investment in real estate. That is a no brainer.  Stocks are also very volatile and sometimes there are big changes in a day, but most of the time, it varies month to month, or there could be a huge crash and it might fall to crap overnight.

When you invest in stocks, you can do your due diligence on the company you are investing in, but you are just one vote out of tens of thousands if not millions of other shareholders. You absolutely have no control what direction the company is going to take - what products they create, who they hire, and how much they're going in debt.

We can keep going on and on but here's why I think you NEED to invest in real estate.

You are the CEO and board of directors of that property, venture, multi-family complex, or commercial building.

You get to choose:

1. Where to buy

2. How much to spend

3. How much debt to get into

4. What renovations you are going to make

5. Who the tenants are going to be

6. Who your property manager is going to be

7. Who your contractors are

You are entirely in control 100% of the time. You choose when to sell and when to hold.

So, in my opinion, real estate is a much safer and better investment. You get to touch it, you get to feel it, and you are in control of it.

Ainose's Personal Letter to Jesus

Ainose's Personal 2016 Christmas Letter to Jesus

In December of last year (2016) each student from my son's grade 4 class in school was asked by their religious studies class instructor to write a personal letter to Jesus as one of their christmas home work assignment for the course. Here is a copy of my son's letter to Jesus with comments and grade from his instructor. Enjoy the read:))) 

Don't Pay CPP Through Dividend Income - Read This if You Are Self Employed

I'm not an accountant, so deal directly with your accountant on these types of matters.  If you need an accountant I can refer.  

The best way to explain it is what I do personally.

1. All of my revenue goes through a corporation
2. I claim expenses against revenue
3. I do not pay salary to myself
4. I pay corporate taxes based on net income
5. I pay out dividends to myself and the other shareholders

All of our income is dividends.

CPP is based on personal income and not dividend income.   

If you are self employed it's up to $4500/year in savings.  If you are income splitting, it doubles to $9000/year.  

This way you save $9,000/year in CPP payments.

***Numbers are approximate 

The holiday season are almost over...

The holiday season are almost over. Hope everyone is having a good holiday and hope this year has found you and your family in the best of health and happiness. Mine is going well, as well as I had a fantasic Chrstmas Day celebration. I just returned from an Eight-Days trip to California where I spent some parts of the holiday season, including Christmas Day, with my family and friends visiting amazing places like DisneyLand, Disney Adventure Park, Universal Studios, Palm Springs etc. 

It is hard to believe 2016 is only a day away. Where did the time go? I want to thank you all for being such fantastic clients and friends and thank you for all your support this year as well thank you for remaining loyal readers of my newsletters. 

I am definitely looking forward to 2016 and our continued relationship. Wishing you and your entire family a very Happy and Prosperous New Year 2016!

CHEERS!!!

Best places for snowshoeing in Vancouver and Whistler

Thansk to Global Warming we don't really get much snow in Vancouver any more. However, it would be really nice sometimes to get away, for even a short getaway, to a snowy destination and bundle up. 

Here are some awesome trails to go snowshoeing in Vancouver and Whistler during the day to experience that Winter Wonderland kind of feeling, besides the obvious mountain sports like skiing and snowboarding. I haven't done it myself but I've heard that it's beautiful and a wonderful experience. So everthing you need to know is right here if you are feeling slightly adventurous and you have some time in the new year.

Link: Where to go snowshoeing in Vancouver and Whistler

Remembrance Day

The Ode of Remembrance is cited on Remembrance Day followed by the phrase "Lest we forget."

This month's newsletter is dedicated to all Veterans in Canada and abroad. Thank you so much for your services to Canada:) 

The Ode of Remembrance

They went with songs to the battle, they were young.
Straight of limb, true of eyes, steady and aglow.
They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted,
They fell with their faces to the foe.
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning,
We will remember them.

Lest we forget.

In the First World War 61,000 Canadians died, in the Second World War 42,000 Canadians died.

Vancouver In the 1970's - 25 Pictures and 1 Video

Video link: Vintage Vancouver, BC

Video and some amazing photos of old Vancouver

Above is a photo of the cross street between Robson Street and Thurlow Street in 1978.  

Here is a link to 25 more photos:  http://www.vancitybuzz.com/2014/03/vintage-photos-of-vancouver-1970/

Funniest Real Estate Listings By Ellen

Funniest Real Estate Listings - Ellen

Sit back, relax and watch this funny video from Ellen Degeneres's tv day time show...Ellen searched everywhere for the funniest real estate listings she could find, and she found them! A misspelling in one of these listings put an entirely new meaning to having a good time at home!

What a Toddler wants for breakfast...

Anyone with kids can relate to these lighthearted observations from Toddlers!

July 2015 List of Current Foreclosed Properties in BC.

Abbotsford - Detached (July 2015)
Abbotsford- Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
BC Northern - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Burnaby - Detached (July 2015)
Burnaby - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Chilliwack - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Cloverdale - Detached (July 2015)
Cloverdale - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Coquitlam - Detached (July 2015)
Coquitlam - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Islands-Van. & Gulf - Detached (July 2015)
Ladner - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Langley - Detached (July 2015)
Langley - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Maple Ridge - Detached (July 2015)
Maple Ridge - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Mission - Detached (July 2015)
Mission - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
N. Delta - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
New Westminster - Detached (July 2015)
New Westminster - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
North Surrey - Detached (July 2015)
North Surrey - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
North Vancouver - Detached (July 2015)
North Vancouver - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Pemberton - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Pitt Meadows - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Port Coquitlam - Detached (July 2015)
Port Coquitlam - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Port Moody - Detached (July 2015)
Richmond - Detached (July 2015)
Richmond - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
South Surrey White Rock - Detached (July 2015)
South Surrey White Rock - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Sunshine Coast - Detached (July 2015)
Sunshine Coast - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Surrey - Detached (July 2015)
Surrey - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Vancouver East - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Vancouver West - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
West Vancouver - Detached (July 2015)
Whistler - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015)
Whistler - Townhouses & Apartments (July 2015) (1)

If you are interested in knowing more about the above foreclose list, or just want to know how a bank foreclosure sale works, please message me at: aibhahe@gmail.com

Photos of my recent trip to the City of Kelowna

Link to more photos from the City of Kelowna:)
https://www.pinterest.com/anthonyibhahe/my-trip-to-kelowna-bc/

Our first time in Kelowna, and we really enjoyed it. We visited Kelowna because I wanted a place to unwind for a few days.

The hotel “Siesta Suites” was our abode for 2 nights / 3 days in Kelowna. An excellent choice of location because it is located in downtown Kelowna, and walking distance to everything including the beach, Kelowna General Hospital, restaurants and shopping.

Oooh! the views and sceneries here are beautiful and breath taking...So many interesting places to visit with lots of out doors activities.

First thing we did when we got here was to take a nice long evening walk on Gyro beach. The next day we visited Whiplash Cable Wake Park, Kasugai Gardens, main UBC Campus in the Okanagan, and two different distilleries including Urban Distilleries, and later took the rest of the evening walking in downtown Kelowna window shopping.

Starting early in the morning on our third and final day, before leaving Kelowna, we visited four different vineyards including Mission Hills, Quails Gate, Sand Hills, and Volcanic Hills.

My must-see places when I come back here again this summer would include Myracanyon Adventure Park, Kangaroo Creek Farm, WildPlay Element Parks, Safari Ridge Aventures Paintball & Outdoor Laser Tag, and Kelowna Mountain Bridges and Vineyards etc.

Stay tuned for more exciting news and photos about my up coming visit to this beautiful city☺

Breaking news: My son cut his hair!

and he is loving every minute of it:)))

Link to more of Ainose's photos:

https://www.pinterest.com/anthonyibhahe/ainoses-photos-ages-2-7/

Jim Jefferies - US Gun Control - Live Stand Up Comedy

Video link: Gun Control

Here is a great perspective on gun control that had me laughing really hard! Click on the attached video link to watch it.

10km Walkathon Fund Raising Event for St Catherine’s Elementary School

Hurray!!! I completed a 10km Walkathon fund raising event with my son, Ainose, to raise $25,000 for St Catherine's Elementary School.

This year, with assistance from family members and friends, Ainose successfully raised $525 for the event compared to about $300 he raised for the same event last year.

Everyone had fun completing the 10km Walkathon. The children especially had the most fun doing it because they were off school for the entire day.

The money raised this year will be used to fund important programs and activities in the school. Some portion of the money will be used directly towards updating all of the outdated washrooms in the school.

Thank you so much to all my clients, friends, family members and co-workers who donated money for this event!

Four Things That Can Go Wrong After Pre-Approval

There are four things that could potentially derail your mortgage loan even after you’ve been pre-approved by a lender.

1) You have insufficient documentation
2) You don’t have enough funds for your closing costs
3) You made a large purchase, or purchases and have taken on additional debt
since pre-approval
4) Your income or employment situation has changed

It is very essential that you avoid all of these types of issues at all cost so you are more likely to receive a “clear to close” green light from the underwriter.

1. You have insufficient documentation.

Mortgage lenders request a variety of financial documents when approving borrowers for home loans. These include Notice of Assessment (NOA's), bank statements, pay stubs and a current employment letter stating your type of position with your employer, start date, guaranteed hours per week, pay rate per hour or total annual income.

Most mortgage lenders would issue a pre-approval based on partial documentation, and usually do not require all of the necessary documents up front during the pre-approval stage. Complete documentation is required during the final approval stage, which occurs after you make an offer on a property and get the offer accepted.

In the best-case scenario, this will only lead to a slight delay in the mortgage approval process. In the worst-case scenario, it could cause you to be denied a mortgage due to insufficient documentation — even after you’ve been pre-approved for a loan.

You can reduce the chance of document-related problems by rounding up your documents way in advance before the lenders ask for it. The simplest and best method to do this is by staying in close contact with your broker before and during the underwriting process.

For a full detailed explanation of the remaining three reasons, please message me at: aibhahe@gmail.com

Piano lessons?

It is amazing how challenging situations turn into successes in our lives. Sometimes it is important to just exercise some patience, relax, enjoy the moment, and have fun doing what you do.

Two years ago I wanted my son, Ainose, to learn how to play the piano. So I decided to have him take some piano lessons once a week. However, after his regular 45 minutes weekly piano classes, it was very challenging to get him to do any additional practice at home on his home piano. It was so frustrating that one had to force him to practice, which was sometimes not the best strategy to take because he resented the whole idea and started to loose interest in it.

Today I am really excited that Ainose enjoys playing the piano. Now he plays the piano everyday, and sometimes getting him off the piano is one of my newest challenges in life…but I am taking it in stride☺☺☺

I can't wait to share with you in the coming months some home made science projects that we are currently working on right now.

BIDDING WARS! Still Happening???

Detached Properties in Fraser Valley that sold for over their asking list price in February 2015
Detached Properties in Greater Vancouver that sold for over their asking list price in February 2015

Last week CBC News reported that "Vancouver real estate: detached homes spark bidding wars." They also stated that "Real estate agents say locals, not mainland Chinese buyers, are driving the market."

Is this true? The answer is YES!
Are we seeing multiple offers? The answer again is YES!

For the month of February alone, the total number of single family detached homes / properties that sold in both the Greater Vancouver and Fraser Valley areas of BC is 506. 364 for Greater Vancouver and 142 for Fraser Valley respectively.

Here is the interesting part of it, 145 out of the 364 total sales in Greater Vancouver sold for over the asking price, and 35 out of the 142 total sales in Fraser Valley sold for over the asking price. For full details please refer to the attached pdf files.

Now do the math and you will find out that over 35% of the total sales recorded in the month of February actually sold for over their asking price. This is good news for Sellers.

The important lesson to take from this brief article is that the real estate market for both the Greater Vancouver and Fraser Valley areas of BC is strong and alive. It is a Seller's market. it is also a good time for first time home Buyers, Buyers looking to upgrade into a larger property, and small / big investors to get into the market and take advantage of all of these offers because of the all time low interest rates currently being offered by virtually all lenders, and the real potential to build even more equity on the current value of these properties in 5-10 years time.

Please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions about the value of your property or neighbourhood.

CBC Link: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/vancouver-real-estate-detached-homes-spark-bidding-wars-1.2937732

DO NOT Early Renew Your Mortgage, You Have Time!

If your mortgage term is coming to an end in the next few months...do not "early renew" with what your lender offers you. Rates are going to continue to go down so please do not cut yourself short and take your lenders first offer.

Things to think about when up for renewal.

1. Do you have any high interest credit cards or loans you would like to roll into your mortgage?

2. Can you qualify for a re-advanceable mortgage?

3. How long are you planning on staying in your existing home? Why sign for a 5-year term when you might move in the next 2-3years?

4. How does my existing lender calculate mortgage penalties?

5. YOU HAVE TIME! Don't succumb to bank peer pressure.

Even if you are close to your renewal date, there are a few strategies that we can implement to give you time even after your deadline.

Let's work together to ensure your mortgage is working for you and not the other way around.