Forget that long commute and the structured 9-5 work day. Make it a thing of the past by starting up your own home-based business, where you can work at home and be your own boss. More and more people are leaving the office setting behind for the comfort of their own home.

Two types of home-based businesses allowed in Edmonton.

Minor Home-Based Businesses are those that are considered to have no impact on the neighbours and are basically invisible. Typical businesses would be consultants, computer programmers and other service-oriented businesses where the proprietor goes to the customer rather than the customer coming to the home.

Some regulations include:

• There cannot be more than one visit to your home each day because of your business.
• There cannot be any non-resident employees or business partners working on-site at any time.
• Your business cannot change the principal character or external appearance of the residential property.

Major Home-Based Businesses are those businesses that are visible and may involve the customer coming to the home or some other use of the property that is not typical of a residential area. Major home occupations will allow more business visits and also allow you to have employees. Typical businesses are hair dressers or lawn maintenance companies.

Some regulations include:

• There can be more than one visit to your home each day because of your business.
• There can only be two non-resident employees or business partners working on-site any one time.
• No outdoor business activity, or outdoor storage of material or equipment associated with the business is allowed.
• This type of business can not be located in homes that have a secondary suite.

Click here for more information.

Nothing is more Canadian than passing the time of a long, cold winter on a backyard ice rink. Sadly, there is a perception homemade rinks are difficult to make and even harder to maintain. Now with an array of products and how to videos available online, now it can be a simple project well worth a little effort for a ton of fun.

Before you begin, you’ll need to consider a few things:

How big of a rink do you want and where will you put it?

The bigger the rink, the more the materials and costs. Take measurements of your backyard and outline the shape and size you want. Check your slope and know for sure where your water line will be when you fill. This is the single most important step to building a rink. Even the slightest slope can lead to complications down the road.

Will you use a plastic liner?

You can flood your rink without a liner and you will get good ice with just a little more work. However, placing a plastic liner saves you a lot of time initially and later in maintenance. The liner holds the water so you can flood your rink as soon as the temperature permits with or without snow. A white liner is important as a dark colored one will absorb more sunlight/heat and melt the ice quicker.

Will you put up rink boards?

You can make a great outdoor ice rink surface without rink boards, but having boards makes it much more fun and it saves lots of time hunting for pucks that get lost in a snow perimeter. Rink boards also make flooding your rink easier with a wall to contain the water. Brackets and boards can be purchased from a backyard rink company or improvised from your local hardware store.

Sources of electricity and water?

Without lighting, the amount of rink use on short winter days is drastically reduced. Hang a string of Christmas lights or a couple of flood lights and extension cords. Make sure a water source is close by to fill the rink with water and maintain it through the season. Remember to drain the outdoor tap and bring the hose indoors after each use to prevent them from freezing.

Here’s a list of some better websites we’ve found that offer DIY step by step instructions or one-stop shops that supply complete kits for purchase.

- www.rymarrinks.ca - An Alberta based rink supplier
- www.howtohockey.com/how-to-build-a-backyard-hockey-rink - A DIY guide
- www.nicerink.com/top10/ - Top 10 questions about building a rink
- www.canada.ironsleek.com/rink-ideas - Install vs. build from scratch

Edmonton, January 5, 2016: Sales of residential property through the Edmonton Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) System in 2015 in the Edmonton CMA were down 9% from 2014 but up over 1% from 2013. This decrease was reflected across all property types except duplex and rowhouse sales which were up 6%. Single family homes were down 9% over last year and condos were down 13%. There were 17,298 residential sales reported in 2015 as compared to 18,991 in 2014.

Although sales were down, prices are up year over year, with single family homes finishing the year over 1% higher relative to last year at an average price of $437,569. For 2015, the average price of a condo was $252,954 (up 0.4% from 2014) and the average price of all residential properties was $372,511 (up 1.5% from 2014).

“2015 was a steady year for real estate in Edmonton. Edmonton and the surrounding areas experienced a decline in sales due to economic uncertainty, but we saw a slight increase in price that demonstrated that the market remained relatively stable. This began to cool in the fall months as inventory remained higher than normal.” said REALTORS® Association of Edmonton Chair Geneva Tetreault. “We continued to see home buyers take advantage of low mortgage rates. An influx of listings at the beginning of the year, meant that buyers had a larger selection of homes and were able to take more time selecting properties than in previous years. We continue to see a tight market in the popular $400,000 price range for single family homes.”

The all-year sales-to-listing ratio was 54% (down 16% from 2014) with average days-on-market at 51 days (up from 47 last year). An increase of listings was highlighted by a year-end inventory of 5,088 properties, up dramatically from the end of 2014 where only 3,059 properties were available on the MLS® System.

As is seasonally normal, December all residential prices dropped slightly by 0.9% from November. The price of a single family detached property dropped from $432,862 in November to $424,629 in December. Condo prices dropped 1.8% in December to $248,956 while duplex/row house prices increased by 10% from November to $374,217.

January Edmonton Events – Let’s have fun and welcome 2016! 

- Ice Castles – Friday, January 1 – Monday, March 14 2016

- Swing 'n Skate Sundays at City Hall – Friday, January – Monday, February 29

- The Motorcycle and ATV Show - Edmonton – Friday, January 15 – Sunday, January 17

- Ice on Whyte Festival – Thursday, January 21 – Sunday, January 31

- Snowshoe Adventure – Saturday, January 23

- The Lunar New Year Extravaganza 2016 – Saturday, January 30 & Sunday, Jan 31

Celebrate New Year in grand style!

- 2016 Edmonton International New Year’s Eve Gala

- New Year's Eve

- New Year's Eve Downtown

- World Waterpark's New Year's Eve Beach Ball

- Strathcona County New Year's Festival

As the holidays are bursting of school concerts, parties, visits to Santa and shopping trips to the mall, it is also festive. However, if your home is on the market this time of the year you can know the spirited buyers out there are serious. Seeing your home decked out for the holidays just might make them want to ring in the New Year there as their own home. 

Try these tips to get buyers in the buying spirit:

Pure and Simple.  Adding reindeer and snowmen figurines to an already cluttered home, will not transform it to inviting.  Before you start to add festive cheer, be sure to stage and clean your home first.

A Few of My Favorite Things. The pillars of home-staging might tempt you to avoid the adornment, but a few hints of the holidays like a fresh evergreen wreath, a vase filled with ornaments and pinecones and a candy cane or cinnamon scent diffused through the home can create a warm and festive feeling. Don’t forget to add carols playing softly in the background.

Silent Night.  Remember more is not always merrier when it comes to Christmas lights. Tone down any over the top displays and instead use simple string lighting or a few sparkling LED spotlights to draw attention to your home’s landscaping or architecture.

Happy Holidays. Opt for neutral winter and holiday decorations rather than items with religious themes.  You want to attract any type of buyer and not risk causing offence.

Oh Christmas Tree. A well-decorated tree can help you show off your home, but make sure it doesn’t overwhelm by taking up too much floor space. Resist the urge to hang the homemade kid’s ornaments and everything you own on the tree.  Have a color-coordinated theme such as blue and silver or red and gold.

Deck the Halls. Before you start untangling your tinsel, make sure your holiday collection matches your current decor. If your living room is platinum or blue, skip the clashing red and opt for white and silver candles, wreaths or snowflakes. If you’ve got an earthy color scheme, accent with rich tones and natural accents like cranberries and holly, forest greens and gold ribbons and bows.

Comfort and Joy. A few decorations can stir the holiday spirit, but don’t go overboard.  Adornments that are too large, crowded or bright can distract buyers from the home itself. The accents should make the buyers want to curl up with a cup of cocoa and stay awhile, not feel like they are looking at a store display.

Limit yourself to a few splashes of the season’s spirit and keep the rest packed away for now.  If you start to feel nostalgic for all your personal holiday items collected over the years, just remember with a little luck, next year you will be decorating your new home any way you please!

- Festival of Light - Saturday, December 5 to Monday, December 14

- Candy Cane Lane - Friday, December 11 to Sunday, January 3, 2016

- Southeast Winter Fun Festival - Saturday, December 12

- Hay Rides + Santa Photos - Saturday, December 12 & Saturday, December 19

- Edmonton Singing Christmas Tree - Thursday, December 17 - Sunday, December 20

- Miracle on 34th Street Food Bank Fundraiser - Wednesday, December 23