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Extreme Green Home
The Endeavour Centre, a small non-profit trade school in Peterborough, is taking on the challenge of building a home according to the Living Building standard, one of the hardest green building certifications to achieve. No builder in Canada has done it yet. The Living Building Challenge is comprised of seven performance areas: site, water, energy, health, materials, equity and beauty. There aren’t any buildings in Canada that have been able to achieve all seven.
At the end of the program, the Endeavour Centre will have an entirely sustainable home to sell and its students will leave with a certificate in green building. The project is being funded by the 20 students’ $4,900 tuition and a private investor.
The house is expected to be priced at about 15 per cent above normal market value but it be much cheaper to run than a traditional home. It’s expected to cost about $250,000 to build.
The home will be located in Peterborough, a 2,000-square foot, two-storey home with three bedrooms, three bathrooms and a basement to house all of the systems that will make the home sustainable.
The composting system will convert toilet waste from foam flush toilets into fertilizer — without producing any odours. Bacteria, fungi, insects and compost worms in the system will break down waste into a material that looks and feels like topsoil and reduces its volume by over 90 per cent. The resulting garden compost can be collected every year or two and used in the large backyard that will have fruit trees and other plants. The house will also have solar panels on the front and south-facing roof and a rain water collection and treatment system. The house and windows will be positioned to make the best use of the sun’s energy and heat.
When completed, the home will use a fraction of the energy of a conventional home and have met stringent requirements for sustainable building materials, indoor air quality and construction waste management.
For more information http://endeavourcentre.com/ Canada Green Building Council http://www.cagbc.org
GTAR Press Release – Near record February for home sales in Georgian Triangle
The Georgian Triangle Association of Realtors provided a press release summarizing the February market.
Sales activity recorded through the MLS® System of the Georgian Triangle Association of REALTORS® remained very strong in February 2012, marking the fifth consecutive month of double digit year-over-year growth.
- According to statistics provided by the Association, home sales numbered 119 units in February. This was the second best February on record, and marked an increase of 18 per cent from February 2011.
- New residential listings numbered 399 units in February 2012, up 28 per cent from a year earlier.
- There were 1,367 active residential listings on the Association’s MLS® System at the end of February 2012, an increase of six per cent from levels at the end of February 2011.
- There were 10.8 months of inventory at the end of February on a seasonally adjusted basis, up from 10.5 months at the end of January. The number of months of inventory is the number of months it would take to sell current inventories at the current rate of sales activity.
- The value of all residential transactions in February was $34 million, edging down one per cent from a year earlier.
- Sales of all types of properties numbered 128 units in February, an increase of nine per cent compared to the same month in 2011. he total value of all properties sold in February 2012 was $38.7 million, down three per cent on a year-over-year basis.
The Georgian Triangle Association of REALTORS® represents more than 360 REALTORS® registered with its member offices. The geographical area served by the Association covers the area known as the Georgian Triangle region of Ontario, and includes Clearview Township, Wasaga Beach, Collingwood, The Blue Mountains, Grey Highlands and Municipality of Meaford.
Bank of Canada Keeps Interest Rates on Hold
The Bank of Canada kept its trend-setting Bank Rate at 1.25 per cent on March 8th, 2012. This marks the 12th consecutive policy meeting in which borrowing costs have been left unchanged.
The Bank said that the heightened uncertainty around the global economic outlook had decreased in the weeks since the Bank released its January Monetary Policy Report (MPR).
That said, the global economy is still expected to grow at a pace below its long-term average owing to deleveraging in advanced economies.
The Bank noted that U.S. growth was proceeding at a modest pace amid recent signs of life in the labour market, and that while Chain’s economy was slowing, its rate of growth is still high; however, commodity prices are currently higher than anticipated.
Specifically, the price of oil has been pushed higher by recent geo-political concerns. The Bank warned that if sustained, higher oil prices could ultimately dampen the aforementioned improvement in global economic momentum.
Focusing in on the Canadian economy, the Bank said that the outlook for the Canadian economy had improved, though only marginally, from the January MPR. The Bank expects Canadian household spending to remain high as households add to their debt burden. This was characterized as the biggest domestic risk to the outlook.
Net exports have seen some improvement from increased U.S. demand, although they are still being held in check by the persistent strength of the Canadian dollar.
The Bank said that inflation had been higher than previously expected owing to reduced slack in the economy and higher oil prices. That said, inflation is still expected to moderate in the second quarter of the year before returning to its two per cent target for the remainder of the forecast horizon.
“Financial markets still expect interest rates to be hold until well into next year, and today’s announcement confirms the Bank is perfectly happy to sit on the sidelines, and is no closer to raising rates now than it was in January,” said CREA Chief Economist Gregory Klump.
As of March 8th, 2012, the advertised five-year lending rate stood at 5.24 per cent. This is down 0.05 percentage points from 5.29 per cent on January 17th, when the Bank made its last policy interest rate announcement.
The Bank will make its next scheduled rate announcement on April 17th, 2012.
http://creastats.crea.ca/natl/interest_rate_trends.htm
CREA Updates Resale Housing Forecast
OTTAWA – March 5 2012 – The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) has updated its quarterly forecast for home sales activity via the Multiple Listing Service® (MLS®) Systems of Canadian real estate Boards and Associations in 2012, and extended it to 2013.
National home sales activity for 2012 and 2013 is projected to remain roughly on par with the 10 year average for annual activity, as interest rates remain low and further economic and job growth continue to support Canada’s housing market.
National resale housing activity is forecast to reach 458,800 units in 2012, representing an annual increase of 0.3 per cent compared to 457,305 sales in 2011. Rising demand in Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Nova Scotia, is expected to offset softer activity in British Columbia, Ontario, and New Brunswick.
“The continuation of low interest rates is good news for housing and for the economy,” said Gary Morse, CREA’s President. “Local housing market outlooks differ according to their respective economic prospects, so buyers and sellers should talk to their local REALTOR® to better understand housing market prospects in their area.”
In 2013, national sales are forecast to ebb by 0.3 per cent to 457,200 units, with modest gains in all provinces except Ontario as economic and job growth picks up later this year and builds into 2013.
Multi-million dollar sales activity in Vancouver caused the national average price to temporarily spike in early 2011. This phenomenon is not expected to recur in 2012. As a result, while prices are projected to hold steady near current levels, the national average price is forecast to dip by 1.1 per cent in 2012 to $359,100. Prices are expected to rise modestly in 2013, with the national average inching upward 0.9 per cent to $362,300 at the national level.
“CREA’s updated housing market forecast reflects recent & prospective trends for provincial home sales activity coupled with prevailing provincial economic outlooks,” said Gregory Klump, CREA’s Chief Economist. “Risks to the Canadian economic outlook remain elevated owing to the European sovereign debt quagmire, but the continuation of low interest rates is the silver lining. So long as the European debt crisis is contained and a global economic recession avoided, low interest rates will support Canadian home sales and prices. Recent trends are reassuring, but interest rates remaining low for longer will doubtless keep the Canadian housing market under scrutiny for signs of overheating.” CREA article
Georgian Triangle of Realtors February 2012
The Georgian Triangle Association of REALTORS® (“GTAR”) released February 2012 statistics indicating the Georgian Triangle real estate market is still on an upturn. The numbers for February mark the sixth consecutive month in which # of units sold for the month have exceeded those recorded for the same month in the previous year with 128 properties sold, a 10% increase to the 116 properties sold in February 2011.
The total sales volume was down 3% over February 2011 from $39,942,812 Feb 2011 to $38,710,901 Feb 2012, however still up on year to date by 13% . The decline for February 2012 reflects the fact that in February 2011 there was 1 property sold in the 1.5+ million dollar range and 1 sold in the 3+ million dollar price range. The largest increase in dollar amount sales for February 2012 was in the $150,000 to $300,000 and $400,00 to $500.000 price ranges.
The number of new listings for February increased by 17% over last February with 502 new listings compared to 430 last year at this time.
The average residential sale price in the Georgian Triangle decreased by 6% measured on a year to date basis coming in at $331,980 compared to $352,959 last year at this time. The monthly average single family residential sales price are down 20% from last February’s $401,595 to this year’s $321,631 although this figure reflects the high increase in the lower priced properties sold during February 2012 and the higher price point sales of February 2011.Collingwood showed the strongest growth in February where single family residential sales were up 77% from 13 in 2011 to 23 in 2012 and ytd up73%.
Blue Mountain single family residential sales are down 29% from 17 in Feb 2011 to 12 in Feb 2012 and ytd down 11.53%.
Clearivew single family residential sales were up 30% from 10 in 2011 to 13 in 2012 and up 15.8% ytd.
Market Snapshot February 2012
- Total Sales Volume for all real estate sales was down 3% ($38,710,901 Feb 2012 / $39,942,812 Feb 2011) and ytd up 13% over the same period in 2011.
- Total units sold in February was up 10% ( 128 Feb 2012 / 116 Feb 2011) and 21% ytd.
- The total number of unit sales was up 23% over January and sales dollar volume was up 69% from22,840,515 in January to 38,710,901 in February.
- Total # of Listings in the Georgian Triangle Association of Realtor MLS was up by 17% in Februry 2012, (502 Feb 2012 / 430 Feb 2011) and 10% ytd.
- Total # of expired listings was up 28% ( 1010 Feb 2012 / 919 Feb 2011) and 13% ytd.
- The total sales volume for all residential real estate was up 1.4% ($34,059,901 Feb 2012 / $34,539,912 Feb 2011).
- Residential unit sales were up by 40%, a total of 119 residential sales in February 2012 compared to85 in 2011.
Collingwood: February 2012
- The total number of single family residential sales are up by 77% from 13 in 2011 to 23 in 2012 and ytd up73%.
- The number of listings was up to by 67% from 49 in 2011 to 67 in 2012 and up 45.4% ytd.
- Average sale price was $268,270 in 2012 down from $334,838 in 2011.
Blue Mountain: February 2012
- The total number of single family residential sales are down 29% from 17 in Feb 2011 to 12 in Feb 2012 and ytd down 11.53%.
- The number of listings was up 50% from 30 in Feb 2011 to 45 in Feb 2012 and up 4.5% ytd.
Clearview: February 2012
- The total number of single family residential sales are up 30% from 10 in 2011 to 13 in 2012 and up 15.8% ytd.
- The total number of listings up 21.2% from 33 in 2011 to 40 in 2012 and down 4% ytd.
January 2012 CREA – National Residential Sales
The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) released their January 2012 statistics with the headline “Canadian Home Sales Fall Back in January”. This headline reflects that national resale housing sales activity (# of units sold) was down by 4.5% from December 2011, however in the next sentence CREA reported a year-to year 4% increase in seasonally adjusted residential sales activity in January 2012 compared to January 2011. The headline could have just as easily read “Canadian Home Sales Up in January.”
That’s certainly the case in the Georgian Triangle, as although comparing January 2012 to December 2011 sales activity shows a decrease of 18%, (compared to -4.5% nationally), comparing January 2012 to January 2011 shows an increase of 30% (compared to 4% nationally) and our residential sales dollar volume shows an increase of 52% (compared to 5.2% nationally) in January 2012 compared to the same period in 2011.
CREA also reported total residential sales dollar volume seasonally adjusted in January 2012 was down 3% from December 2011, however sales volume was up 5.2% in January 2012 compared to January 2011. At the same time new listings were down 1.4% nationally, and with sales down by more than new listings, the national market shifted further into balanced territory.
Overall, January showed the first monthly decline in national sales activity since August 2011 and returned the national activity to where it stood at the end of third quarter 2011. At the same time comparing year-ago levels in January, this month saw the smallest year over year national increase since last May.
CREA president, Gary Morse stated, ” The national housing market is stabilizing and remains well balanced. That said, forecasts for economic and job growth going forward vary widely for different parts of the country, suggesting a possible continuation of a softening trend in some markets, as well as the potential that demand will pick up based on strong fundamentals in others. All real estate is local so talk to your Realtor® to understand how price trends in your neighbourhood are shaping up.” Case in point. Our local market seems to be holding true to the second part of his statement whereas nearby markets are following national trends. We agree 100% and statistics prove that your local Realtor® provides you with the best advantage when buying or selling local real estate. Link to complete report.
January 2012 Stats – Georgian Triangle Association of Realtors
GEORGIAN TRIANGLE ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS®
Market Summary Results January 2012
Total Real Estate Sales Activity for the area:
- Total # of unit sales were up 36.8% from 76 in 2011 to 104 in January 2012.
- Total # of Listings in the Georgian Triangle Association of Realtor MLS were up by 4.1% in January 2012, from 489 in 2011 to 509 in 2012.
- Total # of expired listings were up 7.9% from 406 in 2011 to 438 in 2012.
- Total sales volume for January 2012 was 32,099,402, up 43% from 22,452,605.
Residential Real Estate Sales Activity
- The total sales volume for all residential real estate was up by 52% from 17,838,005 in 2011 to 27,257,902 in January 2012.
- Residential unit sales were up by 30%, a total of 87 residential sales 2012 compared to 67 in 2011.
- Average residential price was up 25.6% from $285,447 (2011) to 358,643 (2012).
Collingwood: January 2012
- The total number of single family residential sales were up by 73% from 11 in 2011 to 19 in 2012. This is the highest number of unit sales since January 2006 when 27 units sold.
- The number of listings were up to by 61% from 41 in January 2011 to 66 in 2012.
- Average sale price was up 4.7% - $316,416 in 2012 up from $301,429 in 2011.
- The 12 month average sale price was up 4.2% from $278,616 (2011) to $290,398 (2012).
Blue Mountains January 2012
- The total number of single family residential sales are up by 57% from 7 units sold in 2011 to 11 in 2012.
- The number of listings were down to by 26% from 58 new listings in January 2011 to 43 in 2012.
- Average sale price was up 16% – $551,591 in 2012 up from $461,458in 2011.
- The 12 month average sale price was up 7.6% from $517,159 (2011) to $556,689 (2012).
Clearview January 2012
- The total number of single family residential sales are the same at 8 for 2011 and 2012.
- The number of listings were down to by 29% from 41 in January 2011 to 29 in 2012.
- Average sale price was up 59% for the month, $414,781 in 2012 from $168,250 in 2011.
- The 12 month average sale price was down 11.20% from $305,822 (2011) to $344,395 (2012)
Staging for Rentals
Sellers are convinced staging properties works. But according to Canadian Real Estate Magazine, convincing landlords it’s worth the time and effort is a tough sell.
Here are a few low cost items which help with staging and can be left for the new tenants:
- A new shower curtain, clear for small bathrooms.
- Inexpensive blinds which may avoid new tenants nailing up sheets or blankets over windows.
- Paper towel on the paper towel holder.
- A new door mat.