Winter Wallop

I thought I would get some pictures after yesterday's storm. My favourite picture is the bird feeder in the back yard that is only a couple of inches off of the ground.

It's time to do your taxes!!!

I thought I would give everyone a heads up on doing their taxes this year. There is a good chance, if you are a friend of mine, you will have some tuition tax credits available and be entitled to a refund this year. Everyone likes a refund.

I mention this because, if you do your taxes now, that you would be able to get your refund soon because the government won't be as busy right now. There is a good chance that you are entitled to a nice little sum of money. There could be something you could do with that money that you did not expect.

You may have a chance to book a last minute deal and avoid this weather we've been having. For many, they live pay cheque to pay cheque, so when a refund comes in it becomes a nice windfall to help pay for things that you would normally not purchase.

I would like to recommend that people to try to do their taxes themselves this year. If you happen to owe, the good news is that the taxes are not payable until April 30. There is a good chance that your taxes are really simple, and you will not need my services. For those that are having some issues, I will be happy to assist you, but I would prefer that you approach me as soon as you can. When April comes, I do not know if I will be able to help very many of my friends.

Happy tax season everyone!

Reno Tips

I've been reading. I've been watching renovation programs. I've been contemplating my next move. I've decided to share some of the stuff that I have read and learned over the last little while.

Painting - Painting is probably the number one way to add value to your home, unless you are buying new of course. The trick is to remain fairly neutral, but contemporary at the same time. Colours that stick out can be a turn-off to potential buyers, so you want to make sure that you are not limiting yourself to buyers with your personal taste. There's a good chance that you're unique and it won't work.

For my house, this will probably be done before I move into the house. I will likely quickly paint the bedroom and then take my time to finish some of the common areas. I'm hoping to do most of this work myself.

Kitchen remodelling - For me, this is a very fine line to walk. Most websites suggest that you stay within the realm of your home. You do not want to put a $50,000 kitchen in a $200,000 home. There's a very good chance that you sell your home, but at the same time you will have wasted a lot of money.

The reason that there is such a fine line to walk is the fact that I plan on living in the home myself. I would like a nice kitchen, but I do not want to overdo it. Ultimately, this is an investment property and I would like to recoup some of my investment. This might be the most critical decision that I make regarding my home.

Bathroom additions - As my cousin would quickly point out, bathrooms are key. The number of bathrooms can be a huge selling point to potential homeowners. If there are similar homes in the neighborhood, the one thing that might quickly separate the house from the pack is simply the number of bathrooms.

I have another huge decision to make here. The upstairs bathroom is laid out very poorly. I've considered removing a bedroom in order to create a master bedroom that would be complete with a walk-in closet and an ensuite. This would make the upstairs become very elegant, spacious, and luxurious. On the other hand, I could work with what I have and upgrade to the point where I could rent out to young professionals. This would make for a very nice rental property as there still would be 3 bedrooms upstairs. The bathroom would likely still seem cramped, but it would look nicer.

Finishing unfinished space - If you create more living spaces, people are willing to pay you more for your home. There is a great opportunity for people to take the space they have in their home and make some very nice spaces.

The house I purchased is approximately 50% finished in the basement. The space does not really serve any purpose though. There is a full bathroom, which is nice, but the other areas are used as common areas as they are not quite complete. I'm sure, with a little creativity, that the area could add a lot of value to the home. The trick is to make sure that things are done properly in terms of design and to complete the space by adding the appropriate furniture and fixtures.

Finally, there is another option for my home that is not necessarily available to all homes on the market. My home is a semi-detached. One day, I hope to purchase the other half and be able to do more in terms of exterior work. There's a good chance that I make an addition to the home. The home has a flat roof. I hope that I would be able to construct another level to the home. By doing this, I can either create additional bedrooms for each existing unit, or I could create a completely new unit for rent. It would give me three properties. It's just a thought at this point though.

Gimme my RENT!!!

Not much news on the house these days, so I have not been updating my blog. I am officially the landlord as I went to collect March's rent. No troubles there, so hopefully everything works out fine until the end of August. I received some post-dated cheques, so hopefully I can slumlord it all the way until I am prepared to do some renovations and move in.

City of Ottawa Bonspiel

Next week, my curling team will be curling in the City of Ottawa Bonspiel. I don't know how well they update the website, but I assume that you can track our progress through the website. I will be curling with Michael Dean, Robert Dean, and Ryan Cox. Hopefully, we will do the HCC proud.

Lloyd Christmas Vs Alien Vs Predator (Trailer)