Who's ready to really celebrate the season?? Let's get the celebrations started with the best Christmas Lights to see before and during the holiday season.
Below we've put a list together of some of the best light displays to see in Ottawa this season and what to see and do for the New Year.

Magic of Lights at Wesley Clover Park
Magic of Lights at Wesley Clover Park is considered the #1 Christmas light display in Ottawa.

Lansdowne’s Ottawa Christmas Market 
If you're more of a Christmas market person, Lansdowne’s Ottawa Christmas Market is one place you won't want to miss. It's like being at a European Christmas market but right in your own city.

Parliament Christmas Light Show
If you want to see a light display on a grand scale then Parliament Hill is the place for you. The show runs for 15 minutes in a loop and you can bring a few lawn chairs if you like because you may want to watch it a few times.

We definitely couldn't leave out one of the absolute best neighbourhood light displays in Ottawa.
Taffy Lane is a street in the suburb of Orleans in Ottawa. The neighbourhood locals go all out every year to turn their homes into a Christmas lights street straight from the movies. 

Stanley Farm: This Christmas season the return of the ever popular Christmas Village! Plus a new experience for families and friends to enjoy: The Holiday Stroll. Enjoy a lovely walk through our maple forest decorated with beautiful holiday lights and decorations!

Ring in the New Year, Ottawa Style!
After missing out on a few New Years' celebrations and activities, we've found a list for you, your family, and your friends to celebrate the New Year. 

From family-friendly outings to fancy meals and chic VIP parties, you’ll find the perfect way to celebrate New Year’s Eve in Canada’s capital region. You'll also find free events, daytime gatherings, and outdoor activities! Ottawa Tourism gathered some of the great ways you can celebrate the Christmas Holidays & the New Year in the Ottawa region.

After being stuck in our homes over the holidays for the past few years, we hope you're able to get to enjoy some of these fun holiday season activities. 

Millers Farm & Market

Just outside of Barrhaven you can take a tractor wagon ride, play in the corn mazes, and pick-your-own pumpkins and other produce at Millers Farm & Market located n the village of Manotick. Your kids might see Petunia the bunny and Vinny the dog there too! They have a produce and garden centre to shop for farm-grown and local products, plants and décor.  Pick-your-own pumpkins are available or choose one already picked. 

Cannamore Orchard

Cannamore Orchard about a 40-minute drive southeast of Ottawa, you can usually pick your own pumpkins any day of the week. Be sure to check out dates for their Acres of Terror event running for the month of October. Picked and Pick-your-own available.

Ouimet Farms Adventure

Located in Vankleek Hill, an hour’s drive east of Ottawa’s downtown core. Ouimet Farms has a GIANT Corn Maze, and Pumpkin Patch. Jumping pillows, Pedal karts, Slides and more.Weekends only. Pick-your-own available (pumpkins only).

Log Cabin Orchard

At the Log Cabin Orchard you can pick-your-own apples and pumpkins any day of the week, Monday to Friday from 10 am to 5m    Saturday and Sunday from 9 am to 6 pm.  Wait for the weekend and enjoy baked goods, apple cider and their specialty churros (fried apple cider sticks) at the café! Not far from Ottawa’s downtown in the community of Osgoode. Pick-your-own is available for apples and pumpkins. 

Saunders Farm

The largest collection of full-sized hedge mazes in North America, Saunders Farm is a popular autumn attraction located just 30 minutes west of downtown Ottawa. Family-friendly hayrides, games and entertainment and at night they have their scary Frightfest. This 100-acre farm offers lots of pre-picked pumpkins for purchase, along with other goodies including local cider. Pre-picked pumpkins only. They have so much going on that you won't believe it. 

PROULX MAPLE & BERRY FARM

 The farm is transformed into a giant Halloween playground. Bring a picnic and come join us for a ghostly gathering in a country setting. Proulx Farm is just a few minutes from Orleans and 30 minutes east of downtown Ottawa in the Cumberland area. Pick-your-own pumpkin option with an event ticket.

Higher home prices mean Canadians are looking for ways to make buying a home more budget friendly for them. You may likely have heard of high ratio and low ratio mortgages. As you also may have found out,  applying for a mortgage comes with options and the mortgage ratio can determine how much you are going to pay. 

What is a mortgage high ratio?
When applying for a loan from a lender for financing, you are expected to have a down payment. 
The overall price of the home you want to buy, your loan-to-value ratio is the difference between the size of your downpayment and the amount of money you want from a lender.
In Canada, a down payment is 20%. This means that 80% of the home is paid upfront by your mortgage lender and then becomes the mortgage principal that you will pay off with interest.

Since homes are very expensive right now and down payments are harder to save for, homebuyers can decide to put up a lower down payment than the 20%. When this happens, these are known as high ratio mortgages because the loan-to-value ratio is higher than the conventional 20%. The opposite of this also becomes true this is considered a low ratio mortgage, where the loan-to-value ratio is less than 80%.

Mortgage ratios are not to be confused with another important mortgage factor: debt ratios, which measure how much of your income goes towards servicing debt.
Of course, a low ratio mortgage is your best option if that's possible, but if it's not, here are some things to watch for if you are applying for a high ratio mortgage. 

Why do people choose a high ratio mortgage?

• You can get into the home owning market sooner
• Choosing a high ratio mortgage does not significantly impact your buying choices and mortgage terms
• High ratio mortgages actually tend to have lower interest rates than a low ratio mortgage

Some other things to consider are:

• All high ratio mortgages are required to have a mortgage default insurance from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC).
• One very important aspect of CMHC insurance is that it is only available for properties below $1 million
• If you need longer than a 25-year mortgage, you won't be able to get a high ratio mortgage

Although high ratio mortgages cost less upfront, you could find yourself paying higher regular mortgage payments. 

If you think a high ratio mortgage is a good option for you. be sure, you should consult a mortgage broker who can help you go through which is the best option for you.
If you are considering a move soon, let's talk about how much your home is currently worth. And if are looking for a home, I can help you too. 

I'm not sure why most of us do this, but we do. We're shopping in a store for an outfit and see one we really love, but when the salesperson walks over to us we walk away to avoid them.  Or if they catch us before we can escape and the sales rep asks, “Can I help you find your size?” we say, “Oh, no thanks, I’m just looking”.
Why on earth do we do that??? After all, no one says we have to actually buy it even if they do show us our perfect size. Right??? 

Maybe, it's because we really didn't intend to buy anything and they might convince us why we should??
What we forget is we still have all of that superpower to say those two little words - "NO thanks".
 
Well, something similar happens in real estate. Let's face it, who hasn't checked out for sale signs as they drive through a neighbourhood they've always liked or newly discovered?  But, like most people, you'll just have a flicker of a dream and keep on driving without taking down any real estate agent's number to find out anything else.
 
That happens all the time, even to those who aren’t thinking about moving.
 
If you've loved a certain neighbourhood or discovered a new one you want to know more about what it's like living there, please don’t hesitate to ask me about it. I’d be happy to answer your questions about the area and give you a ballpark of what a typical home costs there. You can always say no thank you after that. I won't be offended.
 
When it comes to real estate, it’s smart to have a sense of what the market is doing and what homes are selling for in areas you like. That way, you'll be informed if the time should ever come that you want to find out more because you're ready for a change of scenery from your current neighbourhood.
Irene Bilinski:  [email protected] or Directly at (613) 858-1151