End of year update

Real estate sales in Kelowna, BC have seen a bit of a bumpy ride through most of 2011.  According to Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board stats, total sales were down through most of 2011 except for 3 months.  Inventory has remained fairly steady showing a slight increase over 2010 levels for most months.  The following video is from the BC Real Estate Associations Cameron Muir speaking about BC’s December housing market update as well as 2012 predictions for interest rates.

BC Real Estate and 2012 Mortgage Rates Predictions

Need more information?

Check out this report from Canadian Mortgage and Housing dealing specifically with Kelowna real estate activity this past year and call Paige Guernsey, an award winning Real Estate agent at Coldwell Banker Horizon Realty, direct at 250-862-6464 for all your home buying and selling needs.

Talk to you soon…

Paige

In tough times everyone tries to trim costs.

Canadians continue to be true to their roots and have kept aggressively reducing their mortgages year after year. The CAAMP (Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals) reports that over the last year:

• 22% of borrowers increased their payments
• 18% made a lump payment
• 9% did both
• 27% who renewed their mortgages did both

This is impressive stuff! The same report says that:

• On average Canadian homeowners have $222,000 in home equity and only 22% of mortgages include HELOC’s (Homeowners Line of Credit)
• Of the HELOC’s obtained, home renovations represent 36% representing the number one use of HELOC’s
• Investments replaced debt consolidation as the number two use of HELOC’s and sits at 28%

Even more impressive about the state of home ownership is that of the 9.45 million homeowners in Canada, 1.87 million hold a mortgage and about 3 million have no debt on their home!

If you’re thinking about buying or selling Kelowna real estate, call Paige Guernsey direct at 250-862-6464.

Talk to you soon…

Paige

News out this morning from the BC Real Estate Association says that the overall number of residential MLS (R) sales in British Columbia were slightly down in May.  Most of us have heard that the number of MLS sales have been down more than “slightly” in Kelowna, while at the same time most of us have heard that Chinese buyers are creating a housing demand unprecedented in the Greater Vancouver area.  The huge numbers coming out of Vancouver tend to skew the province’s stats, much like when a home sells on Okanagan Lake here in Kelowna, it causes the “average” house price to bump up.  BCREA reported that homes sales in Greater Vancouver jumped 70% between July 2010 and March 2011 but only increased by 12% across the rest of the province.  Cameron Muir, chief economist for BCREA says that  “average sales price statistics for Vancouver and the province have become increasingly problematic, with large year-over-year average price gains being interpreted by many organizations as a sign of an over-heated market with an inevitable and painful correction on the horizon. However, while the average home price in Vancouver and the province has the appearance of climbing out of sight, evidence on the ground suggests otherwise.”  Real estate is local in nature and what’s going on in one market area doesn’t define the entire market.  Kelowna has seen its bumps and grinds along the road to real estate prosperity and with our city and economy growing every day coupled with outside fascination for our diverse lifestyle options, you can be sure Kelowna real estate will be at the top of anyone’s list.

Wondering how your property is faring in this market? Call me, Paige Guernsey - a top Kelowna realtor for over 20 years, on my direct line at 250-862-6464.

Talk to you soon…

Paige

CMHC has some great predictions for our housing market through 2011 and 2012.  Could CMHC be right?

The report released yesterday, suggests that mls sales are expected to increase later this year due to low interest rates and strong price competition.  Also predicted is the demand for new housing to increase due to our strengthening economy. Now if we could just get our actual monthly stats to match up with these predictions! Sales will sadly be down again  for May when the Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board stats come next week. Bring on the sunshine!

Talk to you soon…

Paige

If the April statistics showing buyer profiles are any indication, the Kelowna real estate market should be in recovery mode over the summer. 

A full 33% of home buyers were “move up” buyers. This will hopefully give a boost to the $600-$800,000 price range that I was talking about yesterday. Also 33% was the type of buyer who bought in April - 2 parent families with children. That makes sense! Another stat that’s going to breath some life into the Kelowna real estate market is the growing number of those coming from other areas. 49% came from across Canada somewhere and of those 21% were from Alberta.  Suggesting responsible and healthy financial situations for our home buyers is the fact that 34% were cash buyers and 54% paid with conventional financing with more than 20% down.  Those are sure healthy stats - Bring it on!  If your thinking of buying, call me on my direct line at 250-862-6464. Want to check out some great listings? Click here.

Talk to you soon…

Paige

Could Kelowna real estate be heading towards a period of instability?  According to a report out by Royal Bank of Canada, Canadians are needing a huge portion of their income to fund their mortgages and related expenses.  In Vancouver, the Asian market is driving prices up at an alarming rate.  Usually our market mimics Vancouver, but not this time. Sales are still down – stats yesterday for one month previous show sales are off 21%.  Interest rates will start to creep up and nibble away at buyers bottom line of purchasing power.  With sales being down, inventory is rising in Kelowna and West Kelowna. Time will tell what that does to prices.  All in all, buyers and sellers are still optimistic about our market. There’s also a healthy number of out of town buyers making their way here to buy.  This segment of the market vanished when the economy fell.  The price range between $600,000 and $800,000 is taking a beating.  More homes in the $500-600K range need to sell before those move up buyers can make their purchase in that $6-8K range.  There has been a spike in the luxury home market over $800,000 with many that have been sitting on the fence making the move before rates move up. And last but not least, lot sales and new housing starts are still sluggish with the ongoing issues around the HST. Enjoy the long weekend!

Talk to you soon….

Paige

What’s going on? For the last 6 weeks sales have been way off.  In fact the last 24 hours goes something like this… 102 new residential mls listings, 50 price reductions, and 25 sales!!!  That’s pretty dismal considering it’s almost the middle of May.  January 2011 stats showed  sales were down over the same time year previous 31%, Feb was down 24%, March was 11%. With this trend we would normally expect April to be on par or at least only slightly down over last year BUT April 2011 sales were down a whopping 34% over last years April.  These kind of numbers are most likely indicative of the cold weather continuing into spring and the Federal Election.  On the upside, sellers are responding with price reductions on their overpriced property.  Buyers, however, are still taking their time.  I think most of us believe the mortgage rates are going up steadily now, and with that in mind, buyers and sellers who are serious are going to have to jump off the fence!

I’m your source for Kelowna real estate information. Buying? Selling? Just want to know what’s really happening out there? Call me on my direct line at 250-862-6464.

Talk to you soon…

Paige

The numbers are in for Kelowna real estate… total sales in the first quarter were down 21%.  979 sales in the first quarter 2010 compared to 771 in the first quarter 2011.  As inventory grows steadily each month - 861 new listings in January, 1,016 in February, and 1,122 in March we could see a buyers market emerge again.   The condo market lags behind single family residential with just over 5% of total listings selling in the first quarter vs. just over 10% of the single family listings securing a sale. With 99 days being the average time to sell, townhomes are almost on par with single family residential that took, on average, 94 days to sell between January and March this year.  Buyers are upbeat and are still enjoying low interest rates and ample inventory.  Sellers prepared to use facts to their advantage are selling while those “hanging on” for prices to rise are getting left behind. Check out March 2011 stats here.

For more information on buying and selling property in Kelowna, please call or text me on my direct line at 250-862-6464.

Talk to you soon…

Paige

Things are starting to gear up for Spring in the Kelowna real estate market.  Over the last 24 hours there have been 72 new listings come onto the MLS system and 14 sales.  February 2011 stats are out and although up over last month, total sales are down 25% over same time last year. Median single family house prices are down slightly from last year… $430,000 to $422,000. Kelowna waterfront property is off a noticable 15% and recreational property prices are down a whopping 80%!  First time buyers have been very busy buying up inventory for the last several months between $300-450K thanks to low interest rates and changes to the lending rules.  Those people that sold their homes to the first timers are now starting to look at purchasing with over 32% of the buyers out there making the move up.  Further changes to the lending rules coming March 18th is giving buyers an extra incentive to jump off the fence and buy.  These sale numbers mean that pricing agressively is critical to attract a buyer and with Kelowna’s economy predicted to grow slowly but surely in 2011 I predict the buyers will come and we can expect a balanced steady market to continue.

If you’re thinking of buying or selling, call me on my direct line at 250-862-6464.

Talk to you soon…

Paige

The Okanagan Mainline Real Estate board has been collecting information on buyer profiles… where they’re coming from and what they’re buying.  Serious buyers are taking advantage of the current market conditions while they last.  On average in the past 5 months, 57% of buyers are coming from within the Okanagan Valley, 14% from Alberta, 13% from the Lower Mainland/Vancouver Island,  7% from other areas in BC, 4% from Saskatchewan/Manitoba, 3% outside Canada and just under 2% from Eastern Canada. 

In January 2011 the shift went from predominantly first time buyers  to move-up buyers with 32% moving on up, and 27% buying for their first time. 8% downsized from single family to residential, and 8% were revenue or recreational property buyers. A small 1.6% of buyers in January moved to a Retirement Community. 

On the banking side of things the largest group, a healthy 54%, financed with a conventional mortgage and had more than a 20% down payment. 28% financed with high ratio insured mortgages and had less than 20% down and almost 19% paid cash!  Understanding where buyers come from helps form part of the big real estate picture. For instance, a change in entry level home buying can have a ripple effect through the market as many move-up buyers rely on first-timers to buy their existing homes. 

If you’d like more information on how buyer profiling can affect the sale of your home, please call me directly at 250-862-6464.

Talk to you soon…

Paige