If you lose a job, even temporarily, it might mean you need to ask your landlord for some rent relief. The COVID-19 pandemic has definitely negatively impacted the economy and created a lot of uncertainty when it comes to business, and to life in general. It’s important that you understand your options when it comes to rent relief.
Speak with your landlord
The best opportunity to secure your rent relief is to negotiate with your landlord. If you are financially impacted by COVID-19 and are unable to pay rent, speak with your landlord and explain your situation. There are many situations where landlords have allowed rent reductions and rent deferrals because of the coronavirus outbreak.
If your landlord does not agree to provide you with rent relief, then you can try negotiating the transfer of your last month’s rent to your current month’s rent. This is a good time to highlight any agreed terms like deferrals in writing. These contracts will help protect you as a tenant from sudden evictions and will assure the landlord that rent deferred will be paid later on in instalments.
Given the precarious economic situation that the country is in currently, rent deferral can give some individuals breathing room to those impacted by COVID-19. But it is also true that landlords might also be facing financial difficulties themselves. Landlords who have rented out their mortgaged condos might be able to get mortgage referrals but they would still need to pay maintenance fees. While you might seek out rent deferral, keep in mind that your landlord could be in the same situation as you.
When it comes to the financial government, they have not announced any measures to specifically address rent-related issues. They did implement CERB, but since this relief will take time to get to Canadians, the attention has been focused on provincial governments since rent regulation falls under its jurisdiction.
In British Columbia, there is an eviction freeze until further notice and a postponing of eviction orders which are already in place. However, there is no rent relief as tenants are still obligated
to pay their rent. The British Columbia government website encourages renters and landlords to work things out on their own.
If you’re having trouble with negotiating, then here are some more ideas for leverage in your favour:
– You have always paid your rent on time. If you have a good track record of paying your rent, then your landlord will most likely be more willing to hear you out.
– The rental property is in good condition. Keeping the property maintained will make all the difference, so you can mention this.
– You have not had any complaints from your neighbours. Being a good neighbour goes a long way, and if your property manager has not had to deal with any bad situations in the past, they will want you to stay on the property.
– Empty apartments still cost the property owner. When the apartment is vacant, then the property owner will lose money regardless. Remind them of this and how much time it also takes to find a new tenant.
Are you preparing to sell your house? You might want to consider performing these home improvements in order to secure a bigger price tag come closing time.
When you are preparing your home to sell in a competitive real estate market, it might not make sense for you to take on any big home improvement projects. Once you are sure that your house doesn’t need any major repairs, you can focus on some easy updates that can help make your home more appealing. Getting a kitchen or bathroom remodel might be out of budget, but there are still plenty of different ways you can make in key areas that will help get your home ready to sell.
Painting
Painting is one of the lowest cost improvements you can make, with the highest rate of return. When you are trying to sell your house, giving it a coat of neutral paint will help give your entire house a facelift, and buyers will love seeing a blank canvas. You can also enlist the help of a professional to get colour recommendations based on other features in your house, like the cabinets or floors.
You can invest a large amount of money if you want to get this done professionally, but if you want to go the DIY route, you can do that pretty cheaply yourself if you are handy with a paintbrush and have some time.
Landscape your yard
The outside appearance of your house is the first thing that your buyer will see, and it will give them their first impression of your house. Having an overgrown or patchy yard will be a huge turn-off. You should take care to remove any plants that are dead, and cut back plants that are overgrown. You can also keep your lawn looking fresh by re-sodding or planting grass seed, and you might want to do some edging to help create clean edges.
You can either hire professional landscapers to help you out, or you can roll up your sleeves and take care of removing anything dead by yourself. You don’t need to be a professional to buy some grass seed. Simply follow the directions for planting and you’ll be good to go.
Also Read: Buying and Selling a Home at the Same Time
Update lighting fixtures
Replacing your lighting fixtures throughout your home can be an easy update for a small investment. But it can make a big difference where appearances are concerned. If you’re looking to update your light fixtures, make sure to keep the colour palette consistent with your
home’s hardware. For example, you wouldn’t want to mix gold and silver tones together, but mixing metals like copper and bronze is fine. Consider the fact that older brass fixtures will be considered more of a dated look. If you are going to the trouble of updating these fixtures, then make sure that it results in a true update.
If you’re on a budget, don’t feel like you need to buy something fancy or expensive. You can simply just remove any huge, dated chandeliers and let the buyers use their imagination. Or switch it out for something smaller and simpler.
For the people who have always craved for owning an Invermere Real Estate Lakefront.
Invermere lakefront real estate has several good options that you can consider. Owning such prestigious property has always been in high demand, and it has initiated the rise of the development communities.
In such neighborhoods (Fort Point, Timber Ridge, Indian Beach Estates, Akiskinook Resort, Terra Vista, Calberly Beach, Baltac, Cold Stream Landing), you get privacy and comfort. Plus, you have private access to Lake Windermere. Investing in such property will provide you and your family with a unique recreation environment that will be filled with great memories.
Lake Windermere
One of such places in South East British Columbia is the Columbia River Valley. Resting right between the Rocky Mountains on the eastern end and Purcell range on the western end is the Lake Windermere. It is 17.7 km long and is one of the largest lakes and the warmest in Kootenay.
But this is no ordinary lake! Invermere, a thriving town, is in its northwest corner of this lake, and Windermere community is a few miles down the road towards its east shore. The lake is only three hours drive away from Calgary, and for this reason, it is a tourist’s heaven. During the summer months, the population of this neighborhood swells to more than three times the original.
The Location
Frequently dotted with campgrounds, national parks (including the Kootenay National Park), cottages, three recreational beaches, more than a dozen golf courses (click to view SCOREGolf selects 3 Invermere golf course in Top 59), and several other tourist attractions, Lake Windermere has so much to offer. But it’s not just about spending summers here.
The Invermere municipal management also maintains a 30+ km long track called the Lake Windermere Whiteway. It is the longest in the world of its kind and is present between Windermere and Invermere. There are four different loops of varying lengths, and both families and individuals can enjoy cross-country skiing, skate skiing, ice skating, snowshoeing, fat bike riding, and of course, dog walking.
You can also add family skating pleasure and pond hockey skating rinks. There is no better place in the world when it comes to outdoor ice activity than the Whiteway. The famous Bonspiel-on-the-Lake also takes place every January, and you can participate in snow golf and ice fishing derbies too. Every year more and more visitors are looking to build their summer residences.
The Columbia Valley Real Estate
In Kootenay Columbia, Invermere and Invermere Rural are the two best Invermere Real Estate Lakefront options for recreational purposes. This information comes from a report done by British Columbia assessments for the Top 100 Residential Properties of Highest Value in the Kootenay/Columbia region.
This report covers the geographic regions, including Golden, Invermere, Revelstoke, Kimberley, Fernie, Cranbrook, Trail, Creston, Nelson, and Castlegar. The report comes out every January, and the numbers are based on the market values of the 2018 financial year.
- $5,553,000 is the highest and $1,957,000 the lowest (100th) assessment.
- In the top 15 spots- 6 properties are present in Fort Point (Invermere), and 6 are in Windermere (Invermere Rural).
- In the top 100 spots-53 properties are in Invermere Rural, and 17 are in Invermere.
- 80 of these properties are single home residencies, while 20 are in acres.
- Above all, 67 of these properties are on Invermere lakefront, Lake Windermere lakefront, or Invermere rural.
Lakefronts
Lake Windermere and the Rocky Mountains
Not all Invermere lakefront real estate offers a private waterfront. Some Waterfront properties are part of a community and share beach and boat docks.
As the prices are very high for these properties, you need to hire an expert Invermere real estate agent to assist you in finding your dream home. You may also need to inspect the property carefully on your own and choose the right water. Also, see if there are any insurance requirements that you need to fulfill.
If you have any questions regarding BC Lakefront Real Estates, contact DK Rice, the top realtor, at dk@rockieswest.com or 250-342-5935.
