There’s nothing better than settling in to a camping chair by a fire pit underneath a beautiful starry evening at the end of a long day of family activities, sun and fun, good food, and great scenery. That’s camping in Alberta, and it is officially back on. At the beginning of June, the Alberta government…
According to Statistics Canada, in 2016 about 63% of Canadians held mortgages on their own homes, with 43% of those having managed to pay off their mortgages in entirety. Without an aging population who have had several years to rid themselves of their house debt, Statistics Canada estimates that number would have decreased to about…
At the beginning of June, the Calgary Herald reported that rental property vacancy rates are high in Calgary right now, which is good news for renters, but not so much for landlords. The fact that there are fewer renters is because of both COVID-19 and the economic downturn in Alberta, and is what experts are…
Calgary is the hailstorm capital of Canada, and we certainly proved that we’ve earned that moniker the evening of June 13. In the early evening, an intense storm hit the city, dumping half a month’s worth of rain on the city in less than an hour. Measurements of 48.7 millimetres of precipitation make up about…
Today is a cause for celebration. Alberta has officially moved into Stage 2 of the COVID-19 Relaunch Strategy one week ahead of schedule, due solely to the sacrifices made and diligence shown by the people of the province. We can be proud of the fact that the number of infections and hospitalizations are well below…
Did you know that the City of Calgary does not – as a rule – inspect residential roads for potholes? Road workers inspect major roads and collector roads once a month, but rely on community members and City of Calgary crews to inform them of the rest. Knowing this, and also knowing the kind of…
The unfortunate truth of the reality we are all living with right now is that thousands of Alberta businesses have been shut down for more than two months now, leaving thousands more out of work. This has severely affected the incomes of many families. Even more difficult is the fact that it seems that a…
Calgary’s normally strong housing market has been in a bit of a lull since the last economic downturn began in 2014, and the last few months of the COVID-19 pandemic have not helped. Anyone who is trying to sell their home right now is more than likely holding far fewer viewings than they would have…
At the end of April, 13,500 residents of Fort McMurray were evacuated from their homes as the Athabasca River began to breach its banks and flood the downtown area of the city. The cause was a massive ice jam of more than 20 kilometres in length at its initial point. The flood was horrible news…
Second only to the questions we have been receiving about business interruption insurance lately are from people wondering if pandemic insurance exists or is a possibility for the future. It’s a very fair question to ask, given that thousands of Alberta businesses have been completely out of operation for close to two months now, losing…