Tips for selling your property in the winter

We all know that winter in Southern Alberta has its challenges. We never really know what the weather has in store for us. It can change from one hour to the next. When you have a property for sale in the winter, here are a couple of tips to help improve your chances for getting an offer: - make sure your sidewalks are shoveled. This includes access to the garage, if you have a detached garage. No one wants to be trudging through three foot high drifts to get to the front door, or to check out the garage. Plus, you do not want to have anyone falling down your steps and getting hurt. Keep the sidewalks clear of snow and of ice. A little investment in a snow shovel, (or hiring someone to clean the walks for you), and some de-icer are a good investment. - have your furnace checked. Replace your furnace filter and make sure that your furnace room is free from junk. Potential buyers will want to have a look at the furnace and like to see one that has been taken care of, especially when they are more aware of it during the cold winter months. Too much debris around the furnace does not look good and also hinders air flow. Things like this cost little, but could be worth a lot. - if your property is vacant, make sure someone is checking on it daily. At least have someone drive by to check that there is smoke coming from the chimney. If not, get in there right away to make sure that the furnace is running. A frozen house and frozen pipes are no good! On that note, I suggest putting a sign on the switch for the furnace. I found out the hard way that people like to turn switches on and off when looking at a house for sale, and sometimes they do not leave things they way that they left them. I had my house for sale and it was vacant. Someone looked at the house and flicked switches, and turned off my furnace. It was not labeled and they must not have realized that this is what helped keep my house warm. Well, to make a long story short, I had frozen pipes that burst and there was damage in my basement. It was a mistake someone made and now we will just classify that as a lesson learned. - one more thing, if you house is vacant, pour a little bit of liquid fabric softner down the floor drain in the basement (usually in the laundry area). This helps keep the drain from drying out and getting some unpleasant odors in the house. Basically, make sure that the property is being taken of, that there is still pride of ownership, even though you have decided to let this property go. Ask yourself, what would I like, or dislike, if I were looking for a property. Then act accordingly.

Cool website used to help attract people to Vulcan

This website was made to help attract those in the medical field to Vulcan. It's a neat site that gives highlights of what Vulcan has to offer.

Aerial View of Vulcan taken this past fall

Budget facelifts that add value to your home | The Chronicle Herald

Budget facelifts that add value to your home | The Chronicle Herald

Slip sliding...

We have had freezing rain and fog the past day or two and it has made for some slippery sidewalks and roads. I just want to say a thank you to the Town of Vulcan and Vulcan County for a job well done in working on keeping our roads and sidewalks as clear as they can. I have been in other communities in my travels and I must say that Vulcan does a very good job compared to these other places. I am not sure if it is because of our senior citizen population, or just because it is their priority, but hats off to those folks who keep our streets and sidewalks clear!

Vulcan re-branding clip on CBC

The following is a news clip from CBC that aired on October 29, 2012 regarding Vulcan's re-branding. It is an interesting story and I have been following it for a while. It seemed like just a crazy dream, but as time goes by, it looks like more promising on coming true! If the link does not open for you, just copy the link below and paste to the address bar. http://www.cbc.ca/video/watch/News/Canada/Calgary/ID=2298195930

In like a .....snow storm!

Old man winter rolled into Vulcan this past week and welcomed us all to the season! We all knew the storm was coming and, yes, the weather guy got it right - we got a dump of snow! Talking with a local RCMP member, the snow plows were out at 2am, clearing the highways, laying down whatever they lay down to make it not so icy. The morning of the snowfall was a little quiet to begin with, but as the day wore on, people were out with their shovels and snow blowers, pushing the white stuff away. Some people did have a "snow day", but I still saw many businesses carrying on with life. I know I showed one property in the afternoon (thanks to the tenants there who shoveled the sidewalk!), and caught up on paperwork throughout the day. And yes, I got the snow blower hooked up to the garden tractor and felt like a man as I bulldozed my way through the drifts and conquored what I would have otherwise had to have shoveled! Yep, chalk one up for the good guys! Wrote up an offer last night, and I need to set up some showings for the coming week. Nice to see things still happening as we get closer to the holiday season where things historically slow down. Then again, I did not win the lottery AGAIN last night, so my theories are out the door!