Tom Brokaw Explains Canada to The United States

Tom Brokaw explains the relationship between Canada and The United States, in a pre-recorded short film that aired on NBC, prior to the Opening Ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympic Games in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada on Feb. 12th, 2010.

This makes me proud to be Canadian… And I’m VERY glad our economy isn’t like the one of our neighbours to the south.

It’s well worth the 6 minutes to watch this… Very well done!

New FINTRAC Rules for Real Estate Developers

On February 20, 2009, an amendment to regulations under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act, 2000, c.17 (the “Act”) comes into force. This change now includes “real estate developers” as part of the group of financial service providers and financial intermediaries that must meet the reporting and record-keeping requirements described in the Act.

When a real estate developer sells a new building, which includes houses and condos, they must comply with the specific requirements under two regulations under the Act (the “Regulations”):

1. Under the Regulations, they must report ‘suspicious transactions’ to FINTRAC. ‘Suspicious transactions’ are transactions that are in progress or have been completed in which there are reasonable grounds to suspect that that money involved in the transaction stems from a money laundering offense, which can include a terrorist activity financing.

2. Under the Regulations, the developer must:
• Maintain a ‘receipt of funds record’ for funds received in the course of a transaction (subject to certain exceptions);
• Maintain a ‘client information record’ for every client;
• Follow specific procedures for determining the identity of every person who conducts the transaction and every corporation (including the names of their directors);
• Submit a ‘large cash transaction report’ to FINTRAC when the developer or its solicitor receives $10,000 or more in cash; and
• Report any transactions involving known terrorists or terrorist property.

FINTRAC has the authority to make inquiries into the real estate developer’s business and obtain documents or other information from the developer’s records for compliance purposes. The consequences of not complying with the requirement to report to FINTRAC involve criminal penalties and, depending on the offense, could result in a fine, imprisonment, or both. The maximum financial penalty amount that can be imposed for violations classified as very serious is, in the case of an entity, $500,000 and in the case of a person, $100,000.

If you have questions contact Jeff Kahane at  Ask Gurus, or www.kahanelaw.com

Should You Sell Your Home?

Millions of homes are sold every year. Even though each transaction is different, all sellers want the same result – the best price in the least amount of time with the fewest problems.
Selling Calgary Real Estate is more difficult than it used to be. As a seller you need to be aware of a range of issues and deal with many complex forms. You also need to know that buyer agents represent buyers and each of them are giving their fiduciary responsibility to their clients.

Successfully selling a property requires the Realtor to have experience and training in areas like marketing, financing, negotiation and closing deals – this is the very expertise that Real Estate Agent offer.

It is Important to Know Why You Want to Sell Your Home.

1. You should have a clear idea why you want to sell your home.  Selling a home is an important matter and there should be a good reason to sell, such as moving to a new community, needing more space, retiring to a smaller home or moving closer to family. Your reason for selling can impact the negotiating process so it’s important to discuss your needs and wants in private with the Real Estate Agent who lists your home.

   To get an idea of whether it’s a seller’s market or a buyer’s market, many people start by looking at online or printed real estate guides to research the current market and the price of comparable properties.

2. Is Your Home Ready to Be Sold?
   The home-selling process typically starts several months before a property is made available for sale. For best results when selling your home, you need to look at your home through the eyes of a prospective buyer and determine what needs to be cleaned, painted, repaired and thrown out.

   Ask yourself: “If I were buying this house, what would I want to see?” The goal is to show a home which looks good, maximizes space and attracts as many buyers – and as much demand – as possible.

When setting a list price for your home, you should know the current market conditions. Consider the following pricing factors:

• If you set the price too high, your house won’t be picked for viewing, even though it may be much nicer than other homes on the street. You may have told your Real Estate Agent to just bring an offer, but compared to other houses for sale, your home looks way too expensive to be considered.

• If you price too low, you’ll short-change yourself. Your house will sell promptly, yes, but you may make less on the sale than if you had set a higher price and waited for a buyer who was willing to pay it.

Canadians ‘Scared !

This is the front page of today’s Calgary Herald.

The article says that 90% of Albertans are scared that we in Canada could have a majority government.  Personally I don’t want to see this happen.  If there was an election to be held right now, I do think that the Tories could still be on top.

What are your thoughts on this government… What do you want to see happen?

Canadian Coalition

What are your thoughts on the Canadian Coalition… What do you want to see happen???