Jason Luke
RE/MAX Advantage Realty
#102 - 321 Sixth Street, New Westminster, B.C.
P: 604-526-2888
F: 604-526-0723
Email

Welcome to my Burnaby Real Estate Blog!

I offer all sorts of useful information on the local market and am happy to put together both useful tips and reports on conditions in the marketplace. I feature news and information from Greater Vancouver in this section as well.

Thursday July 29th, 2010 - Provincial Minister Pen Stewart Questions Municipal Salary Hikes

Recent pay hikes of municipal politicians have caught the eye of Ben Stewart, Provincial Community and Rural Development Minister. Burnaby’s mayor and councilors just approved pay raises for themselves and Port Coquitlam followed suit. Perhaps it’s not the fact that the raises were granted, but the amount of the increases.

In Burnaby, Mayor Derek Corrigan now makes $114,031 per year. Last year his salary was $97,414. That is a 17 percent hike. The councilors got a 1.6 percent raise from $43,298 to $44,017. That is more in line with the way the economy is going. Both raises were retroactive until January 1st. A monthly vehicle allowance was also approved for all council members. Prior to this the mayor was the only one with this perk.

Port Coquitlam’s salary increases were even higher, percentage wise. The Mayor, Greg Moore, got a 27 percent raise, going from $85,418 to $67,277. Councilors went from $22,257 to $31,654, a 42 percent wage increase. In Port Coquitlam’s case, increases were calculated using an average of the salaries in neighbouring cities, some of which included Maple Ridge, New Westminster and West Vancouver.

Pietro Calendino, a councilor in Port Coquitlam, voiced his opinion that provincial ministers should not be interfering with municipal matters. Stewart plans to continue his examination of the issue.

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Wednesday July 21st, 2010 - Pacific Assistance Dog Society Is Seeking Foster Puppy Parents

Are puppies your passion? Do you have the right stuff to train, socialize and care for an animal and then have the gumption to let them go after 13 months? If so, the Pacific Assistance Dog Society (PADS) wants to talk to you. After an extremely prolific breeding year, there are more than the expected numbers of new four legged faces.

This organization is in need of foster families to take care of future service dogs. The animals, mostly labs, will be placed with screened homes starting this summer. Foster parents will need to travel to the centre to attend training classes with their puppy once a week. All food and health care needs will be taken care of by PADS.

After training, the dogs will be placed as assistance dogs with adults and children with disabilities. There is quite a waiting list for trained service dogs at the moment. The entire operation is run by volunteers with funds generated by donations and sponsors.

About 52 percent of the animals that go through the program graduate and go on to serve as hearing or seeing-eye dogs. Others are sometimes placed with police departments or are adopted out to families that have special needs children. Families who serve as foster parents have first choice for adoption rights if the animal they cared for is not placed with an agency or home.

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Tuesday July 13th, 2010 - Two Burnaby Men Receive Honours From Rome

Pope Benedict XVI has selected two Burnaby locals to receive the Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Cross for their long standing service to the community. One is Bill McCarthy, a local business person and the other is a retired priest, Rev. Francis Chang. Both will receive their medals in a ceremony on October 3rd at Vancouver’s Holy Rosary Cathedral.

Rev. Chang was a long time pastor, 37 years, at St. Theresa’s Church in Burnaby. He has been a priest for the past 55 years. Even though he is retired he still makes hospital and house calls to visit the infirm and the elderly.

Bill McCarthy is a member of Burnaby’s St. Francis de Sales Church. He writes a column on real estate and financial matters and used his knowledge to help the archdiocese with real estate related issues. McCarthy was visibly surprised at the award announcement.

Throughout British Columbia’s lower mainland 21 people will be receiving honours at the October 3rd Ceremony. Some will be receiving the same Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice Cross and others the Benemerenti Medal.

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Monday July 5th, 2010 - Laneways Bring Mixed Reactions

Vancouver’s initial answer to affordable housing and new residents in single-family neighbourhoods isn’t going over as well as planned.
Laneway homes are being built on lots, and many have gables, balconies and pitched roofs nearly as high as the main house. The houses are restricted to 1 1/2 stories tall and cannot be sold as a separate unit.

Many neighbours of the homes feel that the properties are changing neighbourhood character and are too different from original plans. Many laneway homes are now replacing garages and gardens, a policy approved by the city in 2009.

Brent Toderian, Vancouver’s planning director, has promised he would report to council after 100 applicants for the houses arrive. With 89 houses already approved, Toderian expects to report in mid-Fall and pointed out that the majority of the homes haven’t received complaints.

Some homes will be looked at again, however, and Toderian said there may be some rule adjusting to reduce the impact of larger laneways.

Still, many people are happy with the laneways. Builders have said the laneways are quite popular, and an owner of Zagross Construction, K. Bagheri, is building a large laneway house on West 16th Avenue and said due to high interest, she will be holding an open house in July.

Bagheri said residents should focus on the positive aspect of laneway houses in that they are cleaner and more attractive than they have ever been.

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