It's hard to believe that the 2010 Winter Olympics start in just 12 days. How do you think Kelowna will fare when it's all over? Increased tourism? More business opportunities? Higher real estate prices?
It seems that everyone has an opinion and those opinions vary widely.
Approximately 5,500 people from over 80 countries will take place in 86 events for which there is an estimated global audience of THREE BILLION people! Thanks to the efforts of the Kelowna Chamber of Commerce and the Economic Development Commission our city is prepared to meet and greet whatever comes our way.
I believe that our economy will continue to flourish and grow and that the 2010 Olympics will have an effect on Kelowna and the Okanagan Valley. Only time will tell to what extent.
GO CANADA!!
Talk to you soon...
Paige
PS I saw this very cool video of Vancouver and wanted to share it with you.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
Thursday, January 28, 2010
Million dollar real estate in Kelowna
With all the talk about recovery in Kelowna's real estate market its interesting to see that the trickle up effect (see October 15th blog entry) has taken hold over the $1,000,000 mark. For the year between June 08 and June 09 there were a total of 38 sales. Between July 09 and today there have been already 56 sales. I'll be commenting on this trend again as it changes.
On a side note, 2010 is bringing a lot of changes to my career. After a long and successful business partnership, I've decided to grow my business in another direction on my own... and with assistant extraordinaire, Kimberly! I wish Al Boyle success as he winds things down and hope he reaches all his goals in 2010!
I'll keep you posted of changes coming in all my on-line marketing and websites.
Talk to you soon...
Paige
On a side note, 2010 is bringing a lot of changes to my career. After a long and successful business partnership, I've decided to grow my business in another direction on my own... and with assistant extraordinaire, Kimberly! I wish Al Boyle success as he winds things down and hope he reaches all his goals in 2010!
I'll keep you posted of changes coming in all my on-line marketing and websites.
Talk to you soon...
Paige
Thursday, January 21, 2010
Real estate and interest rates
Well the Bank of Canada meeting day came and went with a large sign of relief for most bank rate watchers.
The B of C indicated that they are in no hurry to begin raising it's benchmark rate, at .25%, until later this year, as was originally stated. This means the prime is unchanged and that mortgage lending rates will remain low as they gurgle around, up and down. While predictions for growth are more optimistic than originally stated for 2010 and 2011,the BOC still maintains that economic recovery continues to depend on exceptional fiscal and monetary stimulus. This also translates to the housing market.
The general feeling for Kelowna real estate buyers and sellers is that times are still very good but the end of these historically low rates coupled with low down payments and longer than normal amortization periods may be on the horizon. With this in mind a growing number of people are thinking about getting their homes on the market sooner as opposed to later to capitalize on this mini flurry of activity.
As a side note, to those wondering about how our countries borrowers of mortgage money fare out to our US counterparts... it's interesting to see that over 86% of 40,000 new Canadian mortgage holders in 2009 are in fixed terms and of those 70% are in terms of 5 years or more. Very responsible Canadians!
Talk to you soon...
Paige
The B of C indicated that they are in no hurry to begin raising it's benchmark rate, at .25%, until later this year, as was originally stated. This means the prime is unchanged and that mortgage lending rates will remain low as they gurgle around, up and down. While predictions for growth are more optimistic than originally stated for 2010 and 2011,the BOC still maintains that economic recovery continues to depend on exceptional fiscal and monetary stimulus. This also translates to the housing market.
The general feeling for Kelowna real estate buyers and sellers is that times are still very good but the end of these historically low rates coupled with low down payments and longer than normal amortization periods may be on the horizon. With this in mind a growing number of people are thinking about getting their homes on the market sooner as opposed to later to capitalize on this mini flurry of activity.
As a side note, to those wondering about how our countries borrowers of mortgage money fare out to our US counterparts... it's interesting to see that over 86% of 40,000 new Canadian mortgage holders in 2009 are in fixed terms and of those 70% are in terms of 5 years or more. Very responsible Canadians!
Talk to you soon...
Paige
Monday, January 18, 2010
New Disclosure Statements for Kelowna real estate
Each year our forms for buying and selling Kelowna real estate are updated and I see this year there is a new question on the Property Disclosure Statement that sellers would fill out when putting their home up for sale. The question asks if the home has a current "EnerGuide" rating. That's great to see that line of thinking.
People are becoming more and more green in their homes and I think a lot of people don't realize there are substantial rebates and grants available when looking to build and/or upgrade your home. Check out this link for information on how you can get your home rated and apply for some of these grants and rebates.
http://bit.ly/3ttR8a
There is also some other informative links at my Green Kelowna Real Estate Site.
http://www.greenkelownarealestate.com/
We installed geothermal heating when we built and received a rebate of almost $2,000 as well as a rebate close to $1,000 for our "EnerGuide" windows. There really are some great incentives to put green in our real estate! Are you considering going green as an option?
Talk to you soon....
Paige
People are becoming more and more green in their homes and I think a lot of people don't realize there are substantial rebates and grants available when looking to build and/or upgrade your home. Check out this link for information on how you can get your home rated and apply for some of these grants and rebates.
http://bit.ly/3ttR8a
There is also some other informative links at my Green Kelowna Real Estate Site.
http://www.greenkelownarealestate.com/
We installed geothermal heating when we built and received a rebate of almost $2,000 as well as a rebate close to $1,000 for our "EnerGuide" windows. There really are some great incentives to put green in our real estate! Are you considering going green as an option?
Talk to you soon....
Paige
Sunday, January 10, 2010
A change for variable rates for Kelownareal estate?
My last blog dealt with Finance Minister Jim Flaherty speculating what the federal government might do if real estate prices rise too high and too quickly. This week Mark Carney, the governor of the Bank of Canada, is trying to avoid raising bank rates before his U.S. counterpart for fear of further appreciation in the Canadian dollar. For those of us who have variable rate mortgages on our real estate now might be the time to start watching what's going on with interest rates. We all know that we can expect interest rates to rise from their historically low points... the trick is to know exactly when!
A variable rate mortgage or a floating rate mortgage is a loan where the interest rate varies to reflect the base rate of the central bank. The lender must hedge against potential interest rate changes; the borrower benefits if the interest rate falls and loses out if interest rates rise.
Many people, not only in Kelowna, but across the country have benefited for years by having a variable rate and some have opted for the more traditional closed mortgages.
I have a variable rate mortgage and will be watching to see when I think the best time to "lock in" will be. I'll keep you posted. Here's a link to my web page with the full article from the Financial Post on Friday Jan 8, 2010, called " The End of Free Money?"
Talk to you soon...
Paige
A variable rate mortgage or a floating rate mortgage is a loan where the interest rate varies to reflect the base rate of the central bank. The lender must hedge against potential interest rate changes; the borrower benefits if the interest rate falls and loses out if interest rates rise.
Many people, not only in Kelowna, but across the country have benefited for years by having a variable rate and some have opted for the more traditional closed mortgages.
I have a variable rate mortgage and will be watching to see when I think the best time to "lock in" will be. I'll keep you posted. Here's a link to my web page with the full article from the Financial Post on Friday Jan 8, 2010, called " The End of Free Money?"
Talk to you soon...
Paige
Wednesday, January 6, 2010
Keeping the lid on a Kelowna real estate bubble
As we've seen for the last several months, Kelowna real estate sales volume and sale prices have recovered in a healthy fashion. This has happened not only in Kelowna but other parts of the country as well.
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty has recently gone on record saying that if prices start to climb too high and too fast, the federal government will put a damper on by increasing minimum down payments and decreasing amortization periods. Right now the minimum down payment for insurable mortgages is 5% and the maximum amortization is 35 years. The Bank of Canada has vowed they will keep lending rates low until at least the middle of this year.
Some will say this is a bad thing. However, if you look at these possible changes and all the ramifications (the biggest being that some people won't get into the real estate market and be over their heads when rates go up, as we know they will) it will actually help contribute to a steady, stable, real estate market for everyone!
Full article: Cure for housing market carries risk
Talk to you soon...
Paige
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty has recently gone on record saying that if prices start to climb too high and too fast, the federal government will put a damper on by increasing minimum down payments and decreasing amortization periods. Right now the minimum down payment for insurable mortgages is 5% and the maximum amortization is 35 years. The Bank of Canada has vowed they will keep lending rates low until at least the middle of this year.
Some will say this is a bad thing. However, if you look at these possible changes and all the ramifications (the biggest being that some people won't get into the real estate market and be over their heads when rates go up, as we know they will) it will actually help contribute to a steady, stable, real estate market for everyone!
Full article: Cure for housing market carries risk
Talk to you soon...
Paige
Sunday, January 3, 2010
A fresh start for Kelowna real estate
Here we are at the beginning of 2010. What will kelowna real estate look like this year? Continued low interest rates, sale prices up, and inventory at a sustainable level could spell a very healthy and balanced real estate market.
I'm hearing from my fellow realtors that there are more and more buyers coming in again from other areas... particularly the lower mainland and Alberta. Also, the number of investors has remained steady, encouraged by low vacancy rates and better prices. First time buyers, who came back to the table in 2009, will continue to enter the market with the possibility of interest rates going up this year. Move up buyers are also busy upgrading their homes. The Olympics will shine a spotlight on our region as well. All in all... Kelowna is an amazing place to live and it's real estate should continue to thrive and prosper in the coming months.
Talk to you soon...
Paige
I'm hearing from my fellow realtors that there are more and more buyers coming in again from other areas... particularly the lower mainland and Alberta. Also, the number of investors has remained steady, encouraged by low vacancy rates and better prices. First time buyers, who came back to the table in 2009, will continue to enter the market with the possibility of interest rates going up this year. Move up buyers are also busy upgrading their homes. The Olympics will shine a spotlight on our region as well. All in all... Kelowna is an amazing place to live and it's real estate should continue to thrive and prosper in the coming months.
Talk to you soon...
Paige
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