March was Marching Right Along.

 Well, what a week and month it has been. It feels like we are starting April off just like last year with restaurant dine-in stopping for a while,but I do not want to go down that path with this email so let’s look at the positives of the past year. One of the main things that I have noticed is the amount of time families are spending together.We see it in our neighborhood every day. Families out for a bike ride, a walk or skating on Green Bay when it froze over this winter. It’s nice to see kids having some quality time with their parents. With the changes to the restaurant business this week hopefully everyone can help those businesses survive by doing a few more takeout dinners over the next 3 to 4 weeks. We all want those businesses to be open again. 

What has the real estate market been up to over the last 31 days? The market is continuing to be fueled by people moving to our community and first-time buyers entering the market. Every sector of our real estate market is up again this month except for days-on-market which are down by 47% to 33 days on average. The average price of a single-family home has increased to $967,452 this is a 34.74% increase from just a year ago. One of the most amazing stats to me is the number of homes priced over a million dollars selling this year compared to last March. We had 232 homes over a million dollars sell this month compared to 42 just a year ago.This is part of the reason that the average house price has increased as much as it has. 

Looking to buy or sell please give me a call.

Hope you all had a great Easter Weekend.

How's the Market you Ask?

The ski hills are busy and winter may not be officially over but the temperatures are rising and the sun is shining! Walking trails are also busy and bicycle riders are getting the cobwebs off their bikes as we speak.

I don’t want to jinx this trend but the weather reports are telling us warmer weather is on the way. With being cooped up all winter and no ability to travel for many, we see a continued surge in real estate activity.

If you thought recent numbers were high, take a look at these:

Total sales for February rose by 137% from last year rising from 315 sales to 749. The time it takes to sell a home has dropped to almost half the time from last year as prices continue
to rise.

By-the-way, listings also rose a good amount (905 properties or 16%) in February and for the first time in a while we had more new listings than sales.
The average and median prices are up by 23% and 24% year over year but don’t be fooled by this. The Home Price Index (HPI) is a much better gauge of where prices are going. The
HPI tells us what a home would sell for this year compared to the same home selling a year ago.

This is better than an average or a median price because those comparisons do not account for changes in volume in different price ranges.
For example, in Glenmore, January ’20 to January ’21 the HPI index had a rise of 16% whereas the average rose by 23%. If you care how the price of your own home has
changed in one year, the HPI makes much more sense to use. 

Out-of-town buyers continue to flock to our valley. Recent economic news indicates the Kelowna area will continue to show strong population growth in the decades ahead as
people make lifestyle decisions about where they want to live. Kelowna seems to be high on the list of places to move to in Canada for those now working from home.

Happy March everyone. It will be nice to spread out a bit outdoors so enjoy and be safe!

October Market Report

So here we are Halloween is done, Daylight Savings is a memory speaking of memories, it is time for us to remember those on Remembrance Day that served and gave their lives for us. Then it will be time for Christmas decorations in the stores and Christmas songs everywhere. Are you ready for this last part of the year? Will it be different from past years? It looks like we will all be trying to figure out how to approach it this year.

From a real estate perspective, as I have mentioned in several newsletters recently, it has been surprisingly busy the last 5 months. Things usually slow down in the winter months with fewer new listings and buyers. The Christmas season and the weather are major factors in this. What will we see this year?

If you are a buyer, stay engaged with your RE/MAX agent. Discuss the whole process from financing to insurance to style options and more. Be prepared for when you get a deal on paper. What steps will you need to take? Should you get legal advice? There are many moving parts to buying a home. Rely on your RE/MAX agent to help you get prepared.

For sellers, this may be a good time to begin the planning for listing and selling in 2021. Your RE/MAX agent can provide tips and hints to help reduce your stress. If you are thinking of doing some repairs or renos they can also give you good advice on what is worthwhile and what is not. Planning and preparation can go a long way to making the process of selling less stressful!

As we head into the cooler months, lets reflect on what happened in October. More startling numbers:  Total sales of all units rose 84% over October of last year. This is a similar rise to last month. 

Average house prices for the month rose significantly but this was more a result of more high-priced homes selling than the price of an “average” home selling. YTD, prices are up 12% on average and 10% with median home pricing. 

New Listings are up by 8% over last October. With sales up so much, such a small increase in listings means it is not surprising prices are rising. 

Days-on-Market have dropped to 59 from 69 at this point last year. 

Sales of homes over $700K are up significantly over last year with fewer homes under $500 even available for sale. The market continues to move at a brisk pace. We certainly do “live in interesting times!”

I’ll finish this month’s Newsletter with a few questions. Do you have your winter tires on yet? Washer fluid full? Snow brush and scraper in the vehicle? Do you see where I'm going with this? It's good to be prepared. Life, like real estate is best tackled when you are well prepared. Happy November!

September Real Estate Review.

 The real estate business just keeps on churning out deals. An unusual year, to say the least! The good weather we are having is certainly helping but who would have expected the current level of activity through the summer and continuing into October?

Low inventory seems to be one big factor, low interest rates is another, but beyond that, it becomes a guessing game. Local buyers are certainly active but we are seeing unusual numbers of Canadians from places outside of the valley buying property - in town and at Big White. The questions are, how long will this continue and what will 2021 bring?

We have had years where the market remained active right through the winter. Is this going to happen again? Because nothing happening recently was forecast and the influence factors are so varied right now there is no way to predict the future with any confidence.

With that in mind, lets look at what the numbers for September tell us. “Hold on to your seats!”

• Total units for all residential sales in September rose by 83% compared to September last year. Astounding! This rise was fairly consistent through all categories from SFD, Condos, townhouses and lots. • Average house prices rose significantly year-over year but the percentage increase doesn’t reflect the change in price of an individual home. Why? The number of sales of homes over $1M has jumped by over 104% which throws the average off. The median price is more realistic right now and it rose by 11% for September. Still significant.

• News listings in September are up by 18% compared to last September.

• The Days on Market is essentially unchanged at 66 days.

If  you have questions, call me. I can provide you specific facts on homes and properties that might affect you and your decisions. 

This home has the Location, Location, Location!

Great Family Neighborhood in Lower Mission. Nice 2 Story home well maintained home. 4 Bedrooms up with main floor family room. Walking distance to the lake, schools, shopping, Mission Creek Greenway and steps to Belmont Linear Park. One of the most desired areas of Kelowna. Ready for your updates! Please call or text Steve Higgins 250.864.7893 for more information.  Please leave Lights on and follow all required COVID Protocols.

3210 Broadview Road, West Kelowna

This 2360 sq ft updated home has 3 bedrooms and 3 bathrooms on almost 1 acre of privacy. Lake views and tons of parking for all your toys. Bright, open floor plan with easy suite potential. Backs on to ALR. Zoned RU4. There is development potential or perfect for your home based business. Half the garage is ideal for a home workshop. New Forced Air Furnace, ducts and air conditioning. New HWT, Windows, Kitchen & Bathroom Cabinets, Granite , Flooring, Light Fixtures & Paint. 

Please have buyers sign Covid 19 form for your file. Please wear gloves and masks and leave the lights on.

April Market Report.

How many of you felt like April was something like 287 days long? I know I sure felt it was. There were many quips like that on Facebook recently with lots of “LOL's . At times this does seem to be endless but as Dr. Bonnie Henry says, “It’s not forever but it is for now!” Are you feeling overloaded with news and reports about Covid-19? 

Let’s talk about some of the good things happening for a change. Are you spending less money on gas? Are your pets happier? Are you reading more? How about getting some fresh air, bike riding, walks or hikes? Time with your loved ones? In “normal” times it seems we spend too much money or find it challenging to find time for enjoyable pursuits. With some optimism on the horizon, this is a good time to make the most of the extra time right now and enjoy it. Yes, there are financial challenges, but we will come out of this. Let’s do our best to enjoy what we can and remember the good parts when this is all over.

Real estate! It’s a bit like the weather. Everyone likes to talk about it and most people have an opinion. It will come as no surprise to most of you that after a strong March, April was much slower this year. Sales are certainly down but they have not halted, by any measure. There are still people who need to sell and others who need to buy. This is the reason real estate is an essential service.

The good news is, there are fewer “tire-kicker” buyers and sellers. Those that are participating in this market tend to be very serious. Interestingly, new listings usually outstrip buyers at this time of year but the opposite is true right now. With fewer listings and serious buyers stepping up, prices actually rose by over 2.0% compared to April of last year.

The month ahead should be an interesting one. If, as predicted, the Provincial Government begins to lift some of the restrictions affecting the economy and people take small steps towards greater interaction, shopping, eating out and more, we believe real estate sellers and buyers will also begin to get more active too.

For everyone’s sake, a slow and steady opening of the economy will be best, but just knowing we are on that path will give everyone a shot of optimism. We anticipate the numbers for May will be up from April. 

February 2020 Market Report

With highs of +9C and some sunshine to mark a welcoming start to the first week of March. It should be safe to say the cold winter is behind us and the weather we are all used to is right around the corner.

On another positive note, housing is doing remarkably well in our marketplace. Units sold up 8.9%, number of sales YTD up 16.4%, residential house prices average up 9.8% and median up 6.5%  and units listed were all up February this year compared to last February.

Sales of properties listed below $440,000 declined but all price ranges above this rose significantly. February's total active listings also reflected the increase in sales with less inventory than we saw February 2019. If this trend that seemed to start in November last year continues, it looks like we are heading into a much more positive Spring for 2020. 

AVERAGE PRICE FOR FEBRUARY 2020

RESIDENTIAL - $734,799

TOWNHOMES - $503,487  

CONDOS - $351,814 

LOTS - $262,767  

UNITS SOLD -

FEBRUARY  2020 -316

FEBRUARY 2019 - 290

FEBRUARY 2018 - 367

FEBRUARY 2017 - 399

January 2020 Market Report.

What a way to be welcomed into February. A warm and rainy start thanks to a pineapple express that is making its way through the Okanagan. I have to say it’s better than the bone chilling start to February that we had last year. January has been quite the month, even though we seemed to have snow piling up everyday the real estate market continued to be busy and show signs of improvement.

Two notable things that have happened over the past few months are; inventories are down, and average and median single-family home prices are up. Good news for those wanting to sell.

Central Okanagan Inventories on all listing types have seen a cumulative decrease in January 2020 from 787 new listings in January 2019, to 655 new listings in January 2020, a decrease of 16.77 % year over year.

The average single-family home price in Kelowna for January 2019 was $688,886 and increased 5.15% to $724,367 in January 2020. The median price saw a similar increase from $642,500 in January 2019 to $674,450 in January 2020, an increase of 4.97%.

A couple of interesting stats to note are days on market and list to sell ratio. Central Okanagan Days on market for single family homes have risen for January from 77 days last year, to 84 days this year, an increase of 10.05% year over year. While in contrast, days on market for condos and townhomes have decreased dramatically in January 2020 compared to January 2019. The decrease for townhomes sales was 86 days to 68 days, a decrease of 21.14%, while condos saw a decrease from 78 days to 67 days, a decrease of 14.14%. The list to sell ratio of all unit types when comparing Jan 2020 to Jan 2019 remained constant with very little deviation from 96% mark.

I feel that these two stats show that we are continuing into a nice balanced market with homes that are well priced and in great condition attracting attention from ready and willing buyers. All in all, and with the above in mind, I believe the central Okanagan continues to be a place that everyone from the rest of Canada wants to call home. I hope you enjoy the longer and warmer days as we make our way into spring!

Oasis in Spring Valley!!

Oasis in Spring Valley! Kidney shaped pool with a outdoor kitchen, fountain a dream of a backyard. This home has updated hardwood floors, craftsman crown mouldings, sunken living room and 3 bedroom and 3 bathrooms. Fenced RV parking with S/dump. Great neighborhood! Call Steve Higgins RE/MAX Kelowna 250.864.7893

Beautiful Home For Sale in Upper Mission!

2011 TOMMIE AWARD WINNING HOME Incredible Lake & City Views. High end 5200 sq.ft. with 19ft. vaulted ceilings in Great Room, Designer Kitchen, Salt water pool, Astroturf Putting Green, heated floors, steam shower, incredible Media Room and more! Master includes steam shower in ensuite, private deck and incredible sunsets. House has Control 4 home automation system, programable lighting. Pool has key operated safety cover, illuminated deck jets and lighting. Triple oversized garage & RV Parking with  plug in & services. Call Steve Higgins RE/MAX Kelowna 250.864.7893

Great Location $369,900.00 Reduced to $359,900.00

This 970 sq ft condo is in Mint Condition, 2 Bed 2 Bath on the 3rd floor. Close to University and 2 Championship Golf Courses. Brand new Carpet & Stainless Steel Appliances. Pet & Rental Friendly. Enjoy the perfectly positioned sunny outdoor pool and hot tub and the indoor gym and recreation room! Walk to UBCO, golf courses or drive a short distance to the new shopping hub and Kelowna International Airport. Steve Higgins RE/MAX Kelowna 250.864.7893

How's the Market You Ask?

Happy Canada Day Okanagan! Summer officially kicked off with tens of thousands of people attending Canada Day Celebrations in downtown Kelowna, West Kelowna and all over the Valley. From a huge multicultural display of food at Prospera Place, to live music and a fireworks display, Canada Day Celebrations were a success.

Speaking of successes, June 28th kicked off the West Kelowna 2019 RE/MAX sponsored “Music in the Park” held weekly at the Annette Beaudreau Amphitheatre in Memorial Park located at 3737 Old Okanagan Hwy. If interested in grabbing a snack and watching Okanagan artists set against Okanagan Lake this summer be sure to ask your RE/MAX Kelowna agent for the summer schedule. Looking for Kelowna specific summer entertainment? Ask your RE/MAX agent about the RE/MAX sponsored “Parks Alive” featuring Concerts and art-based activities throughout many of Kelowna’s outdoor venues! As noted, RE/MAX Kelowna is a proud 2019 presenting partner supporting the Okanagan’s fine arts community. Tired of listing to music? Why not make your own! Founded in 2015 RE/MAX Kelowna is proud to present the 2019 season of Pianos in the Park. Whether playing “Chop Sticks” or “Flight of the Bumble Bee”, 8 free, playable pianos situated around Kelowna are waiting for you to tickle their ivories to an audience of your own making!

On a more serious note, we live in interesting times. It seems I have said that before, but it still rings true. Economic forecasts for 2019, overall, predict the Canadian economy to be slightly down from 2018 (1-1.5% growth vs 1.8%) given some uncertainties in the global economy including the USA’s ongoing trade wars with China and Mexico.

In addition, the Federal Government continues to be focused on curbing household debt to income ratios while also trying to deal with an inflation rate above it’s 2% target. With unemployment rates at record lows, it doesn’t look like there will be any interest rate relief in the near future. This may change in early 2020, however. Some risks to the economy may exist but nothing is currently having a particularly negative impact. Things look fairly good so positive thinking, everyone!

In terms of our local real estate market, more of the same seems to be the order of the day. One noticeable change is the apparent decline in the number of listings relative to sales. Arguably, the good news about this is it may lead to a more balanced market and prices may well stabilize. Here is what the numbers for June tell us: Sales are still down but there seems to be some improvements happening. In all categories, sales declined by 8.5% in June compared to last year. This is actually an improvement given the YTD sales are down 15%.

June felt busier and it is showing in the numbers. This is a significant improvement and something to embrace. Specifically, average residential house prices are down by 3.4% from June of 2018 to $692,246 and the median prices are down 3.9% to $644,000.

The Days on Market, or how long it takes to sell, has risen dramatically to just over 100 days on average from under 50 days last June. Not surprisingly, the price ranges either holding their own or even rising are between $300,000 (mostly condos) and $600,000. Other price ranges generally showing declines in numbers

New Listing 830 Princess Court

Stunning Property! Beautiful 3 Bedroom, 2 Bath Rancher on Quiet Cul-de-sac! Hardwood & Tile Floors throughout! Large Spacious Rooms, Stainless Steel Appliances, Wood Fireplace, Newer Furnace, Heat Pump and Roof! Attached Garage PLUS HUGE Detached HEATED WORKSHOP with Storage! 200 Amp Electrical Service, BIG Private Lot (.36 Acre) with BRIGHT SUNNY Southern Exposure. Parking for the LARGEST RV's and Toys! Call or text Steve Higgins RE/MAX Kelowna 250.864.7893

New Listing 1504 Woodridge Road.

Incredible Value. 

Wonderful Custom Built Family home backing on to a park in the great neighbourhood of Crawford Estates. School buses right at the door. .41 Acres offers complete privacy with room for your future pool. Loft Office could be made into a 5th bedroom or den. Lower level offers a pool table, card table and recreation room for the kids. Extra Large Double Garage with Storage. RV & Boat parking on the side of the house or at the rear of the house accessible from the park also room to put in a pool if you would like.
Many quality updates including granite and cork flooring make this home priced below assessed value! 

Market Report January 2019

HERE ARE SOME OF THE JANUARY 2019 NUMBERS:

• The average single-family home price in January 2019 decreased to $688,886 from $699,352 compared to January 2018.

• Residential days on market has increased by 3% to 77 days in January 2019 compared to 75 days in January 2018. It’s taking longer to sell now! We now have 9 months of residential inventory.

• The number of total sales has decreased by 40% to 216 units for the month of January 2019 compared to 363 units in January 2018.

• Number of units listed has increased 24% to 787 units listed in January 2019 compared to 636 in January 2018.

Supply vs demand is changing, and it is affecting our market now. It continues to show signs of a stronger and growing buyer’s market.

 I was thinking about how I was going to boast about our mild winter compared to the rest of the country. Then that idea ended rather abruptly when we too ended up in the deep freeze. At least there is one positive note from this blast of cold weather. The ice wine harvest is on! A week ago, there was discussion of a major loss of ice wine grapes. I’m sure the wineries are happy with this cold snap! 

Speculation Tax is Here.

It’s the end of January and we have all started to receive our speculation Tax envelope from the government. If you have owned a property in B.C. as of December 31st, 2018 a letter will be sent to the address on file with the B.C. Assessment Authority.

The letter is important as it will have your declaration code and letter ID included. Once you have received your speculation tax letter you are able to proceed to declare your position with the government. You have the availability to do this by either phone (toll free at 1-833-554-2323) or on line at www.gov.bc.ca/ spectax.

You will need to have on hand when you start the process your Declaration Code, Letter ID Code, Social Insurance Number and the property address. This is a very important task to be completed. If you don’t file your declaration prior to the March 31st deadline, you will have to pay the tax and then file for a refund and we all know how quickly the government likes to refund you your money.

The toll free number is there if you don’t have access to a computer or are uncomfortable with the forms. Also, use the number if you are unsure of exactly what to do. Just be prepared that it may take a bit of time!

Six Good Reasons to Play More Golf!

We often start our New Year with resolutions often include getting more exercise, spending more time with friends or taking breaks to relax and re-charge. What if you were told that golf was a good way to do all three? And there are endless choices for all skill levels.

1. Golf may not be the most physically demanding sport, but golfers walk on average six miles in an 18-hole round, some golfers even more depending how straight your shot is. Add in the various terrains available, think up hill, down hill, through the sand and rough, now that is good exercise!

2. Golf is a game in which good manners and respect are paramount however Sergio Garcia seems to have forgot that last weekend. Your foursome can be made up of friends, colleagues, family members or you can be paired up with other golfers and make new friends.

3. No round of golf is the same as the last, that is for sure my scores will prove that. Course conditions vary, weather changes, your company can change daily, and your swing is certainly never the same. Every single round of golf is already different and with different golf courses to choose from, the variety is endless.

4. You can eat and drink while you play. Pick up a coffee from the snack shack or enjoy a sandwich and a beer while playing your round. In what other sport can you do this and not be a spectator?

5. Golf can be played alone. If you just need some time and some space a twilight round might be just the thing. You never know, your next great marketing idea or new client could happen on the golf course!

6. Golf is a game for all ages. It's a fun, recreational activity. So let go of your worries for a while and take a walk.

 Who needs a reason? I sure don't but if you feel you do, these are 6 good ones!

Come Out for a Free Skate!

Hope you can make it.

August Market Report

Its hard to believe that the kids have been back to school for a week already! I’m not sure who has had the biggest smiles this week on Facebook, the kids or the parents. I believe it’s the parents. As a reminder, please make sure you pay attention to those school zone speed limits, you don't want a ticket.

At RE/MAX Kelowna we had a great summer. Along with all the summer activities, we had the pleasure of being the Title Sponsors of the Parks Alive in Kelowna and Music in the Park in West Kelowna. We got to help these two great organizations put on over 50 free concerts throughout Kelowna and West Kelowna this summer. We look forward to many more summers enjoying these great concerts. If you didn’t have a chance to see them or didn’t know about these free concerts, “like” our RE/MAX Facebook page so you don’t miss out next year.

One of the amazing things about the agents that work in our office is their generosity. I have mentioned in the past about the RE/MAX Realtors Legacy Foundation of the Central Okanagan. This foundation was started by the agents of RE/MAX Kelowna and West Kelowna. This year we were able to provide a $5,000 donation to the YMCA kids programs and a $20,000 donation to JoeAnna’s House. It was such an honour for RE/MAX to be part of helping build JoeAnna’s House.

As the Real Estate market changes, we are starting to see interesting swings in the stats, published by the Okanagan Mainline Real Estate Board. As the number of home sales continue to decrease and a more normal and stable market begins to emerge it becomes more and more important to deal with a full time professional agent who have the experience to truly understand these changing market conditions. Call me if you would like to talk about the market.

Stat Comparison      AUGUST 2017 vs. AUGUST 2018

Number of Sales by Month;       2017                        2018 

                                                    591                          449

Number of Sales Year to Date;  

                                                  2017                         2018   

                                                  4,673                        3,699                                            

Residential House Prices by Month;

                                                 2017                          2018                                                

Average                               $682,814                    $687,413

Median                                $648,000                    $640,500

Residential House Prices Year to Date; 

                                                 2017                           2018

Average                             $676,879                      $721,326

Median                               $624,950                      $668,950

Number of Units Listed;           

                                                 2017                            2018  

                                                   955                               993                                                                     

Days to Sell by Month - Residential ;

                                                 2017                         2018

                                                     46                             60

Days to Sell Year to Date - Residential; 

                                                 2017                          2018

                                                     47                              52

Single Family Sales by PriceYear to Date AUG 2018

Price Range                  2017                   2018

$0 - $239,999                     7                         7

$240,000 - $319,999         28                      22

$320,000 - $399,999         95                      71

$400,000 - $479,999        252                    168

$480,000 - $559,999        494                    374

$560,000 - $999,999      1,975                 2,275

$1,000,000 and Over        451                     638

Active Inventory Central Okanagan - AUG 2018

Residential       1,265

Condo                 554

Mobiles                 39

Lots                     416

Townhomes         359