What does "Full Service Brokerage" mean to you?

• We are currently in what is known as a "Buyer's Market".  A buyer's market exists when the for sale inventory exceeds the number of buyers. In these markets, some homes aren't selling at all. 
• In this situation, you want to be represented by an experienced, hard working agent, who is great at marketing, exposing your property to the most buyers and ensuring it shows at its best.  We spend a considerable amount of time sorting through the photos we take in order to select those with the most light, best angles, and edit them to ensure they are cropped and resized to accentuate positive attributes.  Where possible, we hire a professional photographer to shoot the home (virtual tours) and property. 
• We spend a lot of money advertising your property.  We include our brokerage's phone number as well as our individual agent contact information.  We use several websites including REALTOR.ca, DrumhellerHomes.com, Century 21 Canada, and others to advertise your property.  Social media also is a tool we use.  You won't necessarily see us blast our followers with new listings, but rather we showcase features of our listings, provide links to community events, highlight areas of town, and such.  We also use window displays, kiosks, and advertising spaces at local businesses to promote our listings.  Although city agents often host open houses for the public, in Drumheller we often do a REALTOR open house so that the other agents can visit your home.  We then can work directly with the other agents who come through, allowing us to point out the features of your property.
• Real estate is an extremely competitive business, and you will want a skilled negotiator on your side.  We strive to give you honest advice, and in the end will help you negotiate a sale you are happy with.  Negotiation is more than haggling over price.  It takes time, patience, creativity and no two negotiations are alike.  We continually come up with creative ways to satisfy the interests of both sides and know that the opening offer is never the accepted solution.  
• We do so much more than listing/ putting up a sign for sellers or showing houses to buyers.  We network with local tradespeople so that when you ask who can call for new flooring or windows, we have a list of reputable contractors to provide you.  We give you the numbers for utility companies, insurance providers, lawyers, home inspectors, etc.   We guide you through every step of the home buying or selling process.  In some cases, we even help you find a place to rent if you are inbetween places or get you into our accountant so that your taxes are done and your mortgage can be approved! In any event, you can rest assured that we are doing everything in our power to get your property sold when you hire us.  And we thank you for choosing Gary Chambers and Kim Suntjens, The Chambers Real Estate Team in Drumheller, AB. 

Foreclosure Process in Alberta

Unfortunately, we have had a number of foreclosed properties to list for sale lately.  If you are experience financial stress, please talk to your lenders sooner than later!  

What is foreclosure? It is a legal process for a mortgagee (lender) to sell, or take ownership of, a property when the owner defaults on the mortgage. When you sign a mortgage, you enter an agreement to buy the property, if you aren't making the payments, or have allowed significant damage to the property, for example, you have broke that contract. 

When purchasing a "foreclosure" there are significant differences in the process of an offer being accepted and in the warranties and representations that will be included.  Buyers need to understand that the process is different and there are more risks involved.

If you are the property owner and you've failed to meet your mortgage obligations, you will be receiving a Statement of Claim.  The Statement of Claim may be filed once a mortgage is one payment behind, but usually is filed after the mortgagee is two or three months in arrears. The Statement of Claim basically states why the bank is asking the Court to foreclose on your property.  Once served, the Defendant (owner) has 20 days to file a response.  Your response may vary, and please see legal advice to ensure you know your options and their consequences.  Whether you negotiate a quit claim, file a demand notice, or statement of defence, it will be up to you and your legal counsel to determine your best course of action.  After the pleadings have closed, the Plaintiff's lawyer orders an appraisal (Affidavit of Value) to establish the value of the property.  This Affidavit of Value will have two values- the opinion on Market Value and a "Forced Sale" Value.  

Where there is significant equity in the property, the Court will grant a Redemption Order which declares the amount ownig on the mortgage, grants a redemption period of between 1 day and six months, and then provides for a Judicial Sale Listing to commence once the redemption period expires.  

As you can see, it will be at least two or three months, but more often eight or nine months from the time a foreclosure action is commenced to when a property can be listed for sale.   Throughout this time, the Defendant has the ability to payout the mortgage and costs in order to halt the process.  

Once the redemption period has expired, the court may order the sale of the property.  In Alberta, the court decides who the foreclosure property will be sold to and for what price.