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Gastown Designated a National Historic Site!

Gastown is one of Vancouver’s most popular tourist designations, well known for its carefully preserved cobbled streets and heritage buildings. To recognize its historic significance, the Honourable Jim Prentice, Canada’s Environment Minister who also oversees Parks Canada, has designated Gastown as a National Historic Site.

 

“The designation of Vancouver’s Gastown recognizes the role of this special place in shaping the economy and development of Western Canada,” said Minister Prentice. “The remarkable collection of architecturally significant buildings is an exceptional and early example of an urban historic district created by civic involvement in the heritage conservation movement.”
 

Gastown was named after Captain "Gassy Jack" Deighton who had a saloon built in 1867 near the south shore of Burrard Inlet. Soon, businesses followed and in time the community grew into the City of Vancouver.

 
Today, many buildings remain from the 1886 to 1914 period when Victorian and Edwardian commercial architecture was prominent. During the past decade, the City of Vancouver, the Gastown Business Improvement Association and commercial building owners have shared a commitment to preserve, revitalize and promote Gastown. The City has been offering financial and administrative incentives to building owners and retailers to conserve their heritage buildings as part of the City’s Gastown Heritage Management Plan.
 
All of these efforts have paid off. The area is undergoing a resurgence. Buildings are being brought back to life, and new businesses and new residential units are being developed.
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Provincial Energy Upgrade Program Ends

The BC Government’s LiveSmart BC Efficiency Incentive program has ended. The $60 million program, launched in May 2008, had been expected to run for three years. Instead, in just 15 months, the government claims it has reached its target of 40,000 initial home energy assessments.
 

The program was part of the province’s Energy Efficient Buildings Strategy, a one-stop service created to provide homeowners with coordinated access to incentives offered by the provincial and federal governments and utility partners such as BC Hydro and Terasen Gas.

 
As of August 15, 2009, 11,000 homeowners had completed efficiency retrofits. Homeowners already enrolled in the program have until March 31, 2011 to complete their retrofits and follow-up. They will receive the rebates and incentives listed in the current LiveSmart BC Efficiency Incentive Program incentive chart at www.livesmartbc.ca.
 
Homeowners are still eligible for the federal ecoENERGY program incentives which were increased by 25 per cent in the last federal budget.
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Central Banks Signal Low Rates Here to Stay
The Financial Post

 OTTAWA-- Despite growing confidence that economic growth is in the offing, monetary policy around the world is likely to remain "ultra-accommodative," perhaps until 2011, as doubt remains as to whether or not the growth expected this quarter is sustainable, analysts say.


That is the view emerging following the weekend gathering of the world's leading central bankers in Jackson Hole, Wyo., highlighted by remarks from Ben Bernanke, U.S. Federal Reserve chairman, who warned of the uncertainties ahead, and Jean-Claude Trichet, president of the European Central Bank, who suggested he is in no rush to reverse emergency stimulus measures.
 
"The key message from Jackson Hole was that monetary policy is likely to remain ultra-accommodative for the foreseeable future - at least for the next several years," said Julian Jessop, chief international economist at Capital Economics of London.

"It seems more likely that there will be no increases in interest rates in any of the major economies over the next 12 to 18 months."

Strategists at RBC Capital Markets concurred, adding in a note released Monday: "We continue to believe the economic backdrop will warrant a significant additional period of low rates. Indeed, even at the Jackson Hole conference, there was not even a suggestion that we should be braced for anything other than that outcome."

This outlook applies to Canada as well. Banc of America Securities-Merrill Lynch, as part of global report on monetary policy, said it does not expect the Bank of Canada to begin raising rates until 2011 - well past its pledge to keep the key policy rate, at 0.25%, until June 2010.

Canada has a significant output gap - the difference between potential and real gross domestic product - and the rate at which money is deployed in the economy, or money velocity, has shrunk 15% since late last year even though the central bank has taken its target rate to its lowest possible level, the BofA-Merrill Lynch analysis indicates.

"To compensate, we think the Bank of Canada will probably need to keep rates lower... to ensure that money creation remains in the double-digit [growth] territory needed to reinflate the economy and close the output gap," the report says.

This outlook is similar to what economists at Laurentian Bank Securities suggested last week. They said a lack of pricing power for firms, a sizeable amount of excess supply and virtually non-existent upward pressure from labour costs means the bulk of policy tightening would not materialize until 2011.

The Bank of Canada signalled in its last economic outlook that it expected economic growth to resume this quarter, marking, technically, the end of a deep but relatively short recession. It expects growth this quarter of 1.3%, 3% in the final three months of 2009, and the latter again in 2010.

Further boosting the recovery story was data from Japan, Germany and France that indicated economic growth in the second quarter. But there are growing concerns about the sustainability of this emerging recovery. In a note published last week, Olivier Blanchard, chief economist of the International Monetary Fund, warned of a difficult recovery that would take years to unfold as elements of the financial system remain dysfunctional.

Of particular concern in his outlook was the source of demand once governments phased out fiscal stimuli. The worry is that U.S. business investment and household spending would remain weak, and Asian economies would fail to pick up the slack.  Still, some leading central bankers warn about leaving interest rates too low too long.

Masaaki Shirakawa, governor at Bank of Japan, told his peers at Jackson Hole that policymakers must avoid economic bubbles fostered by expectations that interest rates will remain low.

"Shirakawa's point about the need to prevent future bubbles is weighing more on minds of central bankers, so maybe they do have to be a little more careful," said David Cohen, director of Asian economic forecasting at Action Economics in Singapore.

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Property Photo: # 701 488 HELMCKEN ST  in Vancouver
Please visit our Open House at # 701 488 HELMCKEN ST in Vancouver.
Public Open: Sun. Aug. 30th 2-4 pm
Yaletown living at its finest in this affordable, well run building at the corner of Richards. Bright unit with open floor plan, hardwood floors & marble tile. Large den can be spacious office or second bedroom? Comes with parking, storage,and visitor parking too. Steps to restaurants, shops, parks, seawall, and new Canada Line skytrain station. Weekday showings after 3 pm preferred. Open House Sunday, August 30th, 2-4pm. Agents Open Fri Aug 28th, 10am-12pm.
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Property Photo: # 1104 438 SEYMOUR ST  in Vancouver
I have sold a property at # 1104 438 SEYMOUR ST in Vancouver.
Views of beautiful Burrard Inlet & mountains, great location close to transit & Seabus, downtown core, historic Gastown, makes this unit a must have! Bright, functional floor plan, laminate flooring, north facing. Excellent amenities sharedw/the Delta Conference Plaza Hotel includes indoor pool, sauna, steam room, hot tub, exercise room & guest suite. What are you waiting for?
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Property Photo: # 202 319 E 7TH AV  in Vancouver
I have sold a property at # 202 319 E 7TH AV in Vancouver.
Spacious, nicely updated 1 bedroom in solid Bosa building, steps from vibrant Main Street & close to city centre. Stainless steel appliances in new kitchen, newly renovated bathroom, huge master bedroom, designer colours & decor,laminate flooring, gas fireplace & large balcony with a private treed outlook make this unit truly special. Building is trouble-free with newer roof, insuite storage room, laundry on every floor, secure bike room in underground. Pet restrictions: No dogs permitted. Open House: Sat. July 18th 3-4:30pm
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Property Photo: # 701 488 HELMCKEN ST  in Vancouver
I have listed a new property at # 701 488 HELMCKEN ST in Vancouver.
Yaletown living at its finest in this affordable, well run building at the corner of Richards. Bright unit with open floor plan, hardwood floors & marble tile. Large den can be spacious office or second bedroom? Comes with parking, storage,and visitor parking too. Steps to restaurants, shops, parks, seawall, and new Canada Line skytrain station. Weekday showings after 3 pm preferred. First open house Sunday, August 23rd, 2-4 pm.
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Property Photo: 5630 KINCAID ST  in Burnaby
Please visit our Open House at 5630 KINCAID ST in Burnaby.
OPEN HOUSE: Sunday, Aug. 23rd 2-4 pm
Deer Lake Place beauty on large 66 x 133 lot in peaceful family neighborhood. Extensive renovations from top to bottom with attention to detail throughout. New electrical, plumbing [all work done by permit], HE furnace, hot water tank, added insulation, kitchen, baths, laminate flooring, double glazed windows, exterior paint and landscaping. Roof is only 5 years old. Close to Douglas Road Elementary, Burnaby Central Secondary & Burnaby Montessori Schools & minutes from BCIT, downtown or points east. Open House Sun Aug 16th, 2-4pm.
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Property Photo: # 701 488 HELMCKEN ST  in Vancouver
Please visit our Open House at # 701 488 HELMCKEN ST in Vancouver.
OPEN HOUSE: Sunday, Aug. 23rd 2-4 pm
Yaletown living at its finest in this affordable, well run building at the corner of Richards. Bright unit with open floor plan, hardwood floors & marble tile. Large den can be spacious office or second bedroom? Comes with parking, storage,and visitor parking too. Steps to restaurants, shops, parks, seawall, and new Canada Line skytrain station. Weekday showings after 3 pm preferred. First open house Sunday, August 23rd, 2-4 pm.
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Steady As She Goes.
           Another week of positive news regarding Canadian Real Estate and general confidence. All central banks are cautioning that the recovery will be slow and long. All expect to keep rates down for an extended period of time. In Britain they do not see inflation for the next 5 years (inflation causes rates to rise). The USA is also downplaying a speedy recovery and, in fact, we are still seeing a decline in many parts of their economy.
           Low rates and a busy market with prices solid and potentially going up. Still a fantastic time to purchase or refinance an existing mortgage. 
 
             Bank Prime Rate 2.25%
Term
Best
Bank Posted
1 year
2.65%
3.75%
3 year
3.55%
4.65%
5 year
4.19%
5.85%
10 year
5.50%
7.15%
25 year
9.15%
9.75%
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Bold numbers denote change from last posted rates. 
  
Variable mortgage from Prime +.30...TODAY at 2.55%!
 

Courtesy of

Laura Stein - The Mortgage Centre
Telephone: 604-657-6535 ext 22
2

www.mortgagecents.ca

 

Call Laura today and tell her Lyn sent you!

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Property Photo: # 1802 1008 CAMBIE ST  in Vancouver
I have sold a property at # 1802 1008 CAMBIE ST in Vancouver.
Yaletown! Nice, North facing, 1 bdrm unit with views of the city & mountains. Open floor plan, S/S appliances, laminate flooring, insuite laundry, storage & 1 parking lot. Excellent club house facilities include: indoor pool, exercise room & concierge. Rentals & pets permitted. Currently rented month to month. Good tenant would like to stay. Open House Sat. July 18th 12-2pm
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Property Photo: 5630 KINCAID ST  in Burnaby
Please visit our Open House at 5630 KINCAID ST in Burnaby.
OPEN HOUSE: Sun. August 16th 2-4 pm
Deer Lake Place beauty on large 66 x 133 lot in peaceful family neighborhood. Extensive renovations from top to bottom with attention to detail throughout. New electrical, plumbing [all work done by permit], HE furnace, hot water tank, added insulation, kitchen, baths, laminate flooring, double glazed windows, exterior paint and landscaping. Roof is only 5 years old. Close to Douglas Road Elementary, Burnaby Central Secondary & Burnaby Montessori Schools & minutes from BCIT, downtown or points east. Open House Sun Aug 16th, 2-4pm.
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