Kelowna General Practice Blog

Would-be purchasers of real estate always face the tough decision about when to make an offer on a property. Some British Columbia residents might think there is a best time to buy or sell real estate, but the truth is, the market doesn't really work that way. There will always be some uncertainty in housing markets and forecasts are just that -- forecasts. It is true there are times when prices ebb and flow, and if someone finds the perfect property for his or her situation, waiting to make an offer in case the price might fall is not necessarily the wisest idea.

Timing the market to buy low and to sell high is risky business. Experts say there is much more complexity to the market than pricing and when buying, much depends upon what is going on in a purchaser's life. Is the purchaser going from renting to buying? Is he or she looking for an investment property? The motivators can be different in individual cases.

One of the nation's leading lending institutions says the housing market is not in as rough shape as many people believe it to be. BMO's CEO said the bank has seen continual growth in British Columbia as well as in other provinces, territories and even Stateside, where it's expanding its footprint. When it comes to real estate, the bank has seen healthy growth in people seeking mortgages, despite the naysayers who believe market activity is declining.

Bankers, the CEO added, don't believe a recession is imminent since inflation has been on the modest side. He also lauded the federal government for giving the real estate market a positive injection in its recent federal budget by way of incentives for first-time home buyers. First-time buyers will now be able to use $35,000 from their RRSP savings to use as a down payment, rather than $25,000.

When divorced parents live in two different countries, decisions regarding children can be difficult. Family law judges in British Columbia have based their decisions regarding children's living circumstances on parental intentions and circumstances, but that may all be changing. The Supreme Court of Canada recently said that these cases should be looked at taking all relevant circumstances into consideration.

In a recent ruling, the country's highest court said that other factors should be considered when deciding on where a child should live permanently. Some of the factors include the child's ties to the country in question, facts pertaining to the movement between countries, length of time spent in another country and how often the child visits that country. The court believes taking a more well-rounded approach to its decision-making in these instances may deter parental abduction cases. 

Many parents don't realize that a family court can appoint a lawyer for their infant children. Under family law in British Columbia and other provinces in the country, a lawyer for children can be appointed when child protection is an issue. There are times when the parents' consent is not required, especially when the children are involved in contentious divorce or custody proceedings. 

Children have certain rights under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. Those rights include a right to life, health, development and education; to be treated fairly and respectfully; to have caretakers do what is in their best interests and the right to have their views respected and considered. A lawyer's job when representing an infant is to give a judge pertinent information, allowing a judge to decide what's best for the child.