You have now reached an important point in your hunt for a suitable home. You have organized your finances, and in your preliminary search you have come fairly close to finding a house that meets your needs. You will now be approaching the major step of legal processes of making offers and completing the deal.

Before making an offer, however, you have to satisfy yourself that the house is in good condition and that it has no defects that would be noticed only in a professional home inspection. An inspection will show up any structural or roof concerns, plumbing problems or any other issues that may affect safety or trouble free occupancy.

If you are considering a new house after short listing, chances are that you will be reasonably safe on this point. In a new house there is very little chance of hidden damages. Moreover, the property will be covered by the builder’s warranty.

In case of an old house, however, there is always a possibility of defects or damages in the construction and in equipments such as heating, etc. that even the seller may not be aware of, or he may not have divulged them to you. There are two courses open to you:

• Commission professional home inspections to be carried out so that the condition of the house is known to you before you make an offer. The inspector will look at the structure and type of construction and mechanical systems. Depending upon the extent of the inspection desired by you, the inspector will inspect plumbing, waste disposal, water heating, electrical, heating and ventilation system, foundation, doors, windows, roof, floors and walls. He will also check for potential presence of infestations and pests. In case of repair work being required to be carried out you will know the defect and the estimated expenditure. You may then either not make an offer at all or may use this information to get the estimated cost of repairs taken off the price while making the offer.

• The second alternative is for you to make an offer subject to your approving the results of one or more inspections to be carried out after the seller accepts your offer. After the seller accepts your offer, you may then arrange for home inspections.

In any case, you have reached a point at which you have to discuss the matter with your solicitor and chalk out the next course of action which we shall deal with in the next part.

Cranes, excavators, loaders, and any other large equipment you might find on a construction site are considered construction equipment. While some of you might see construction equipment as hammers, saws, and other smaller items they are in fact construction tools. Are you looking for some construction equipment to help you with your next job? If so you need to know a little bit about the equipment available.

Cranes: You can have many types of canes from the all terrain hydraulic crane, to the boom truck. A boom truck is a piece of construction equipment that has a flat bed with a crane on it rather than a smaller cab for the crane with tracks. This crane system can be used to haul the material as well as move the crane about while hydraulic cranes tend to need a trailer and then roll off to be placed on the ground. These types of cranes tend to rotate 360 degrees.

Excavators: These are consider bobcats, and backhoes of the construction equipment. The size you will need is again dependent upon the job you will have. Most construction companies have a variety for the type of work and land they will have. Bobcats usually work out well when you have a little job, where as backhoes are great for digging larger holes.

Loaders: The are also many types of loaders from a front end loader to a wheel loader. Loaders are often seen used for road construction as well as other construction jobs. These are tractors that have a bucket on the front and use a hydraulic system to raise the bucket and dump the material either in a dump truck or off to the side.

There are four main reasons for this assessment.

The first of these is that British Columbia is enjoying period of unprecedented growth and prosperity. This period of economic prosperity forms the bedrock upon which the Vancouver housing market can consolidate its position.

In the February 20,2007 Budget and Fiscal Plan for 2007/08-2009/10 which was released by the Ministry of Finance , the outlook for the BC economy in general and the Real Estate Market in particular, is exceptionally bright.

The second item to consider is the influx of immigration that is expected to flood into British Columbia the years leading up to the BC Olympic Games. The Council projected that “total net migration” to British Columbia would continue to rise to unprecedented levels. In 2007 alone, projections averaged from a “low of 35,423 people to a high of 55,000 people”. The general expectation is that this trend will continue in to increase in the coming years with the anticipation that “total net migration to average about 47,000 people in 2008, rising to over 50,000 through the 2009 to 2011 period”.

The third area of consideration is the inflation of the Canadian Dollar and its effects on interest rates and the Real Estate Market. The expectation is that Bank of Canada will raise interest rates an average of “4.08 per cent” in 2007. Over the long term the rates should hold fairly steady or even come down slightly. The “Council's forecasts for the Bank of Canada's overnight target rate averaged 4.13 per cent in 2008, falling to 4.01 per cent over the 2009 to 2011 period”.

The last piece of information needed to navigate in the complex Real Estate Market, is the forecast for Real Estate Market movement in British Columbia and its implications for you as a home-buyer. The news is good, according to the bi-annual press release published by The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA). In the Housing Forecast Report, Cameron Muir, BCREA Chief Economist gives us this insight, “The market has shifted away from strong sellers’ conditions and is expected to operate in a band between a strong balanced and weak sellers’ market over the forecast horizon.

You might have a dream of building a lake home for retirement, for enjoying summers at the lake or for an investment. No matter what your reason for owning a lake home by starting out with a good builder and knowing some of the basics about home building, you will be able to have a positive experience during the home building process.

Start by looking in your area for a builder that suits your needs and has a good reputation in the area. Make sure that the builder is sensitive to your needs and will listen to what you want in a lake home. Notice whether promises are kept or broken. Some contractors are skilled at giving good impressions early but lack the character to do what they say. You can save yourself many headaches by learning to spot this deficiency early on.

Ask your builder the following questions:

1. How many years of experience do you have in building lake homes?
2. What special skills and qualifications do you have to offer?
3. What happens if the project goes over-budget?
4. What type of homes do you normally build?
5. How much input will we have into the design of the home?
6. Are you licensed and insured?
7. Who is responsible to get building permits?

Take your time when looking for a builder. Some of the best builders in the area may be booked up several months in advance, but they also may be able to fit you in as many times builders work on several homes at one time. For instance, as the concrete is drying and setting up at one location, they may be doing the framing on another home.

Have a one-on-one meeting with the builder and see if he/she is open to your ideas and suggestions. Does the builder give you his/her complete attention? Or is he busy taking phone calls during your meeting? If so, the builder might not devote his/her full attention to your project. Then ask to meet some of the key staff who will be working on the home. Do the employees seem professional and interested in their work?

By taking your time when looking for a builder, you will go a long way in the process of having what you want in your lake home. Make your dream home a reality by taking things one step at a time - and starting with a qualified builder.

Although London now ranks above Monte Carlo in terms of property prices, recent figures released by estate agents Rightmove show that London house prices rose at their slowest rate in five months, with the cost of a home falling in more than half of the United Kingdom's capital's boroughs.

While other regions across the country saw the average house price rise by 0.8 per cent in June, property prices in London rose by 0.7 per cent in comparison - half the rate that had been seen in May, prompting experts to predict a drop in property prices over the next few months.

A nationwide property boom, led by demand from rich foreigners and bankers in the city might be reaching its peak as interest rates reach a six-year high deter homebuyers with record debts. With another interest rate increase looming, it is widely expected by property analysts that another increase may crimp price growth.

The slowdown saw the cost of a home fall in seventeen of London's thirty-two boroughs, with Southwark, an area south of London's financial district showing the largest level of decline with prices falling 2.8 per cent. Hounslow, close to Heathrow Airport showed the next biggest decline with a 2.4 per cent drop.

However, property prices within London's upmarket boroughs continued to increase, with property in Kensington and Chelsea, areas popular with bankers, footballers and Hollywood celebrities recording gains of 3.4 per cent on the month and a staggering 73 per cent compared to the previous year with an average price of £1.4 million. Furthermore, the average time a property remained on the market rose to 69 days from 65 days in May. The average asking price in London is still 23 per cent higher than a year ago, with the prices rising from £315,224 to £387,898.

Property prices across the U.K roise by 13.2 percent in June to an average cost of £239,317, climbing in seven out of ten regions. The West Midlands showed the greatest level of gain with a 5.8 per cent increase, while East Anglia, the North-West and Yorkshire and Humberside all recorded negative growth. The increase in property values has highlighted the growing divide between homeowners and those not on the property ladder, with more than four4 million people expecting never to be able to own their own home.

If you’re considering constructing a new home, consider going green.

A lot of green construction initiatives are out there, which advocate building everything from pre- measured, pre-fabricated parts.

The savings for this are two fold – the first savings is in ease of construction. By building everything from pre-measured parts, you save on labor and assembly. You also save on garbage hauling fees.

The second place where you save is avoiding building waste in your local landfill. Most homes are constructed by bringing raw lumber on site and cutting it to fit over the course of construction.

The same (to a lesser extent) is done with flooring, drywall and siding.

Good green construction techniques use the mantra of "measure twice, cut once" to its logical extreme, and can eliminate construction waste (and the attendant fees) by as much as 80%.

Green construction also ties into how the house is designed as a home and living space, and how it uses energy.

A house can be precisely placed to maximize thermal warming in the winter, and shade placement in the summer.

Similarly, green construction helps with energy bills.

By building the houses out of precisely measured prefabricated components, the insulation effects can be greatly improved – most homes, when it comes to insulation, have the equivalent of two full sized doors open in terms of air flow.

Green construction, done right, solves this problem, and a well insulated home is less expensive to heat in the winter, and cool in the summer.

Proper heating and cooling design/installation methods are a major contributor to good green construction practices.

A more recent trend in green construction is photovoltaic cells as an integral component of construction, rather than as an unsightly add on to the home.

These can reduce utility bills (through net-metering) or provide cash flow to the home owner through an offset-tariff, and will, over the course of 20 years or more, pay off the cost of their investment.

Ultimately, doing a green home means doing a completely green home – you can’t do it part way. It doesn’t mean you have to "give up" the life style – but it does mean an initial investment in planning and a commitment to hold on to the home for a while to recoup your investment.