Let's talk Real Estate. 

For all purposes we are officially in our spring market season. Sales were up 16% in March for the Fraser Valley - compared to February of this year. As we have mentioned before this was an unusually quick start to the 2011 year for example, compared to the same time last year this February's sales were 42% more.

Overall there is strong demand in the Fraser Valley but not necessarily for all product types in all areas. Ie: Sales of homes in White Rock/South Surrey were up 150% in March compared to last year but down 7% in Abbotsford. Surrey has started to see some of the "investor frenzy" that has been shown in the media lately but not anywhere close to the same degree as Vancouver, Richmond and White Rock.

Regarding prices – despite demand we are not seeing large gains or losses - final sale prices also being more dependent on the product and the area. The benchmark price for a home in the Fraser Valley right now is $519,628 up 0.9% from March of last year. Townhomes are up 1.1% from last year to $327,328.

For the Surrey/Cloverdale area the benchmark price on Detached homes and Townhomes went down 1.2% and 1.8% respectively since the same time last year. This price flattening will likely continue until the end of spring due to the continual increase of new listings coming online (Feb – Mar was a 6% increase in new listings). Moving into summer analysts still predict prices will begin to soften as demand slows moving into the final quarters of the year.

If you want to chat about what all this means to you for buying or selling – call us anytime at 604-583-2000

Happy Spring Break! Wishing you well with tons of family time or maybe a vacation??

Have a margarita for us as Colin and I are going nowhere and pretty happy about it. Thanks to the early start in activity this year we have been going nonstop since January and expect to be working at this pace until summer. Many analysts concur what we have been experiencing - that the 2011 Real Estate Market will be "front loaded". Something to consider however - moving into what most would consider the spring market - the supply of detached homes in the Sullivan/Panorama area has been very low. Demand for the area is here but only for the homes that have been priced competitively. Any detached listings that have been positioned on the market even a little higher than that last comparable sales have not been selling as buyers have been looking to Cloverdale, Langley or South Surrey for better options.

Conversely, townhome listings are in very high supply for both new and resale. We expect this trend to continue as more new development sites in our area plan to come to market before the current ones have drawn down their supply. Even with a competitive price this saturation has been increasing our sellers days on market – sales are continuing - but at a much slower pace.

This same saturation is being felt in the Clayton and Whalley area condo/townhome market. This high supply is in contrast to the high demand being experienced in the Richmond and Vancouver markets - some of that demand being attributed to the Asian Communities but either way this "market specific" effect really highlights the importance of hiring a Realtor who understands how supply and demand is affecting your local area.

According to Central 1 Credit Unions BC Housing Forecast "upward pressure on pricing will be modest" due to the oversupplied conditions mentioned above. "This pattern will continue into 2012 ... well supplied markets and a dampening of demand in the latter half of 2011 will stunt price growth in 2012 maintaining price gains at just above 1% ... rising 4% in 2013 from higher demand." Central 1 also highlights the recreation and retiree markets in the Okanagan and Kootenays as "weak" moving through 2011 and into 2012.

If you want to talk economics and market conditions moving forward just give us a call at 604-583-2000. If you know of anyone looking to make a move we hope you will consider referring our services and please note we are also intimately familiar with the North Surrey, Delta, Cloverdale, Langley and South Surrey markets.

Having just come back from the 2011 Fraser Valley Real Estate Board Conference we are all fired up for a solid and stable year ahead.

One of our keynote speakers was Ozzy Jurock a local Real Estate Investor/Educator/Motivator who drilled home his take on Real Estate – mainly – it's never a bad time to buy. Showing us data going back to before the 1960's Ozzy was able to argue that over time Real Estate will always pay off. Whether we are in a rising market, falling market or confusing market it is completely irrelevant as over time (thanks to inflationary pressure) your investment will always grow. He went on to say there are no "good or bad markets" that real estate is and always will be cyclical " ... you can live in it, rent it out, borrow against it for reasonable rates and grow veggies on it ...".

Specifically related to BC some of Ozzy's comments on the current BC Real Estate conditions were as follows:

Canada is now out of a recession – particularly BC and Vancouver. Our high levels if inward migration and population growth are driving our Real Estate values up. Investors are continuing to invest in BC as the rental values to pricing ratio makes sense. Vancouver's stability rating is very high on the global financial scale. Historically low interest rates are maintaining a high level of demand for the 23-35yr demographic. Our recovery will continue but it will be at a slow-moderate pace while the worldwide/global volatility continues. Interest rates in Canada will rise faster than in the US but still at a slow pace with the Bank of Canada raising their variable rates ¼ point by March 1st.

In summary, the key point we have been able to take away from the 2011 conference is that BC is leading Canada in all factors of the economy. Ie: The books expected to be in balance by 2013 whereas Ontario is looking at no balance until 2018 - due to its manufacturing base. Major construction projects in BC are totaling 913 - large scale proposed projects at 563 with permits and housing starts all rising. Export growth up 10% at 2.4bill. Population growth rising with more and more Asian and European investors visiting due to our financial institutions being the strongest in Canada.

When looking at Real Estate – consider that over time down cycles have an average lifespan of 3 years and an average contraction of -17%. For 2011 some analysts are anticipating the Benchmark price of a home to generally rise over the course of the year but what we are experiencing on the ground is this value rise is tied strongly to property type and area.

So if you are curious about your investment and the best time to make a move – we would love to help give you the most current information possible to allow you to make the most informed decisions possible.

Don't forget to visit us at our Facebook page and become a fan for more local Sullivan/Panorama statistics and trends on a daily basis www.facebook.com/jennandcolinrealestate

Hi there clients, friends, family & colleagues,

Are you or anyone you know thinking of buying or selling in the near future? Let’s meet for coffee and chat about your best possible action plan. 

Call anytime 604-583-2000 and have a great summer!

jenn & colin

Hope you had a wonderful Easter holiday and are starting to make some plans for summer vacations.  Our dad recently bought an oldie but a goodie motor home so we are hoping to take it on the road this summer with the dogs.  Maybe Banff Alberta or the Okanagan area?  Should make for some interesting arguments over directions and parking … keep you posted!

Despite this “rush to market” pricing has remained relatively in line with where it was back in spring 2008 prior to the credit crisis.  We anticipate pricing to remain steady over the course of 2010 and into the first quarter of 2011 with slight fluctuations up and down between now and then.

As I sure you all have noticed, the Greater Vancouver and Victoria markets have been much more dramatic over the last couple months.  As we had mentioned earlier in the year … this is expected to be a temporary rush in these coastal markets – some say due to pent up demand from 2008-2009 combined with the low borrowing rates.  This trend is expected to slow considerably moving into the final quarters of 2010 and to follow the same slight fluctuating pattern noted above.

There have been many notable items of change recently that will be and have been affecting buyers and sellers and Real Estate … if you are interested there is a summary of these below:

This tax will also apply to realtor fees, legal fees, home inspection services and moving services. Re: Realtor fees - during the transitional period the taxed amount will depend on the amount of realtor services performed before and after to July 1, 2010.

Mortgage Rules:  Scheduled to take effect as of April 19^th, 2010 –

Clients wishing to buy a residential property but not live in it, will be required to produce a min of 20% instead of the 5% that is currently required.

Any specific questions re: rule changes and/or mortgage pre-approval can be directed to our Mortgage Specialist Tonia Jacobsen at 604-618-2406 or www.toniajacobsen.com

Strata Properties:  As of January 1, 2010 the Strata Property Act enacted new rules with regard to a strata complexes ability to limit rentals.  This means that developers can now create strata complexes that have no ability to limit or prohibit rentals at any time in the future. 

For more questions re: this change please drop us an email or give us a call at 604-583-2000.

As a side note we are currently coordinating a Sullivan/Panorama Community Garage Sale for May 15^th, 2010 from 9am – 2 pm.  All advertising and signage will be sponsored by us … if you would like to participate just drop us an email or call 604-583-2000 to see if your homes location qualifies.

Thanks for your time and we hope to have an opportunity to go to work for you, your friends and your family in the near future.