All about Kelowna, BC:
Little known to international visitors, Kelowna is situated close to the Okanagan Lake, in British Columbia, Canada. It is considered to be one of those places which offer a lot more than just houses. The homes for sale in Kelowna come with a specific lifestyle apart from the wonderful advantages of living in the area. Here are the things you should consider when moving to Kelowna. Kelowna real estate agents can offer the most useful information related to each aspect:

Weather – Kelowna is blessed with the most incredible climate which provides the possibility to enjoy the benefits of all four seasons as the mild winter complement the hot summer creating the specific charm of this area.
Activities – Kelowna can be described by diversity, versatility, and flexibility. There are specific activities to each season including sunbathing, skiing, golfing, and all kinds of water sports. Art and musical events seem to feel at home in Kelowna.
Specialties – Kelowna real estate agents will always emphasize this aspect when they present homes for sale in Kelowna. And the truth is that the wineries in the Okanagan Valley as well as the golf championships make Kelowna one of the most exciting places to live in.
Landscapes – People are really tired of concrete surroundings and look for peaceful and natural places. Kelowna is among those great locations where mountains meet valleys, hills come across depressions, and clear water lakes join the clouds. What more could you ask for?

Kelowna Neighborhoods:
The area has a lot of things to offer as far as homes for sale in Kelowna are concerned. The Kelowna real estate agents will show you the differences in price and lifestyle between the neighborhoods of Kelowna. Here is some basic information just to give you an idea in that respect:

Lower Mission is the place of old and well established neighborhoods with generous private lots.
Upper Mission is the region of award winning wineries, lake views, and breathtaking orchard views.
Dilworth Mountain is the place where two opposite generations meet in the middle of preserved natural surroundings.
South East Kelowna is the neighborhood of large homes and open spaces, scattered among gold courses.
Rutland is the growing area of Kelowna. Kelowna real estate agents will recommend it to people who wish to be close to amenities.
West Kelowna is a town of its own with west coast homes and splendid lake views.
Glenmore is like a nest in a valley with older homes, large open spaces, and great parks.
Downtown is where the action is as the name properly suggests. Old and new meet together in perfect harmony.

Ken Umbarger is a commercial Realtor at Realty Executives of Kelowna in BC. As a Kelowna real estate agent, he helps the buyer in making important decision and the opportunities related to homes for sale in Kelowna as a great investment.
Call Ken for your advice at 250-878-9111.

When friends of mine moved here in the mid ’90′s, they discovered
that there were so many retired “handy-men” offering services at next to
nothing that it was very difficult for them to make a living doing
kitchen renos. That’s changed with the booming population. However, the
last year has been hard on those in the construction industry.

As an internet marketer, I find that this is a great place to do
business simply because it is a great place to live, and in my line of
work I can work wherever I have a phone and an internet connection. But
my bread and butter is not (yet) flowing from the local area. I have
clients across Canada and into the States- with an unusual cluster of
them around San Jose, California for some reason- and I find that
clients from larger centers are more willing to pay what the work is
worth since there is often a shortage of good internet marketing
services in the larger centers.

But down here in the Valley, given that online work can be based
anywhere, I’ve discovered that a lot of people have decided to park here
and do their online work. And just as my friends discovered fifteen
years ago, there are a fair number of hobbyists, dabblers, and that pull
down the price that people here are willing to pay- until they have a
big expensive mistake.

But I expect that as with realtors in the past few years, the ranks
of online marketers will thin as those who can market themselves well
locally and internationally will generate the income they need to keep
going, and others will drift away into other work.

BCLocalNews.com – Kelowna scores high as a great place to do business

Kelowna scores high as a great place to do business
By Kathy Michaels – Kelowna Capital News
Published: July 27, 2010 6:00 PM

Thirty years after Jim and Karen Bates moved from Saskatchewan to open Fresh Air Experience in Kelowna, they still “pinch themselves” when they take a moment to realize the beauty around them.

You can read more below in the story from the Globe and Mail, as well as some very well thought out replies to the newstory.

The plan had already been approved by a previous council as well as the provincial ministry of transport, but new councillors often generate new decisions, especially when there is opposition as in the case of CD-21.

I found Mayor Sharon Shepherd’s reason for voting against the plan interesting: She thinks it would not move fast enough and is too complex as it now stands.

There is a lot of opposition in the Okanagan to various kinds of development, especially high rises that could block or alter “the view.” Well, I prefer a few high rises to the hundreds of homes or ugly little condo complexes that would have to be constructed to hold the same amount of people. High rises are a very good use of space, and well designed, well built structures actually add to the beauty of an area.

I hope that whatever goes forward with the downtown plans allows for taller structures than we now see.

Kelowna divided on scrapped downtown plans – The Globe and Mail

The City of Kelowna spent close to three years and hundreds of thousands of dollars coming up with a plan to transform the city’s unremarkable downtown core into a glittering metropolis with 27-storey towers.

But then the city council voted 6-3 to scrap the controversial plan, a decision that was panned by its supporters while opponents celebrated.

According to a Kelowna area media relations spokeperson, this type of publicity can get the city into people’s minds and motivate them to check it out. Whether this means more visits to the Kelowna website, Kelowna proper, and/or more property buying remains to be seen, but my guess is that it sure can’t hurt.

Imagine a family in Toronto who plays Monopoly heading west on a holiday. They see Kelowna on a map, or maybe even see signage. The kid says “Hey isn’t that city on Monopoly? Can we go see it? Please, please please…!?”

Now, the idea that anyone from anywhere else in Canada would travel into BC and NOT visit Kelowna is slightly mind boggling to some of us who live here, but it probably happens. Having Kelowna on the board will probably give a boost to visits, tourism traffic, and if that happens, it will translate into more housing sales as more people discover what many of us already have: the Okanagan Valley is not just a great place to visit- it’s a great place to live!

22 Canadian cities added to new Monopoly game

The community of Chatham-Kent, Ont., boasts the highest rent properties in Canada — if only on the board of the new Monopoly Canada game.

Twenty-two Canadians cities were officially added to the new edition of the game on Tuesday, after Canadians cast their votes for their cities of choice.

Cities big and small made the list, which includes Ottawa, Vancouver, Montreal, Kelowna, B.C., Kawartha Lakes, Ont., and Banff, Alta.

First of all, we got such a deal on our purchase that our mortgage broker told us we could flip it immediately for a nice profit if we wanted to. But we like the house, kept in, and within about 2 years we saw the value of the home double. In fact, if we had been even one year later, we would not have been able to afford to purchase it.

From that point on, the prices, and our home value, seemed to steadily rise until sometime in 2008, if I recall. Then the rumours of a slown began to make their rounds, and shortly thereafter, selling prices began to get a little lower.

At present, our home, which we bought for $170,000, and which was assessed at well over $00k, possibly sellable for $440k or so at the peak, would probably not sell for $400,000. But we are still sitting at over 100% gain.

In retrospect, if I could have seen the future, I might have considered selling at the peak, renting for a time, and reentering the market. However, the cost of rent is quite high here, and while I may have pocketed a profit on the sale of the home, I would be putting out over $1000 per month- significantly higher than our current mortgage- without any gain in equity. Unless prices dip down below that point where our house has doubled its value, I think staying put has been the best bet all around. But, let’s see what the next few months hold…