Market Analysis

Salt Spring Island real estate in depth monthly analysis by Sea to Sky Properties’ broker, Li Read

June 2014, Market Analysis

Well, here we are at the beginning of June, a half-way point in our calendar year…yet only the beginning of our main sales window in our secondary home/discretionary marketplace.
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Our busiest viewings/potential sales timeline has truncated down to mid-May (two holiday weekends) to mid-October (Canadian Thanksgiving Weekend). The most active months are July/August/September.

These summer season months dovetail with the boating season in our beautiful protected marine environment.

It used to be that our Salt Spring Island & Gulf Islands destinations were seen as “seasonless”…people would pop in as visitors & as potential buyers throughout the year, although with summer obviously still being the busiest time.

Post-Internet, though, decisions as to tourism destinations are global & Hawaii, Mexico, Florida, Arizona, Palm Desert, the Riviera, Spain, Portugal are seen as winter season ports of call…plus New Zealand & Australia, with their summer in our winter.

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The entire Pacific Northwest Coast, then, has become this seasonally oriented tourist destination…late Spring, Summer, early Fall. I do believe that tourism drives real estate sales in all discretionary regions, & globally so. A shortening of a visitor timeline affects all resort-based area business.

Post-Internet, a potential property buyer also has huge choice as to where to buy that second home, whether for future retirement or recreational for now….

Choice. Too much choice means that it’s difficult to make a decision. An extra element of the post-Internet world.

Time lags for many reasons are a feature of all purchases in any secondary home/discretionary region…including on Salt Spring & the Southern Gulf Islands. Patience, then, is necessary on the part of both sellers & realtors. The buyer propels a market in any “by choice” area.

After a long six years of suppressed conditions, with price reductions between 29 & 45%, depending on property involved, with properties remaining on the market between 2 & 7 years, this year has so far seen a serious uptick in sales volume activity on Salt Spring Island.

Though still mainly busy in the entry-level property segment, the inventory in this category has also been “thinning out” & price points have thus been rising…it was the busiest March Break in six years. This early point in our ever shorter sales window usually foretells our main selling season…summer/early Fall. All good news, then, at this beginning of June moment.

June is often oddly quiet, until the final week. Until summer, it’s a weekend business. The Gulf Islands are recipient markets, buyers are not local, & a tourist visit often creates a real estate sales result.

To date, most sales remain below $800,000, mainly residential…with the majority of sales below $600,000. A scant handful of sales are over one million. These are early days in our short seasonal market, & a true picture of this 2014 “year of recovery” may not be clear until late August.

One marker of authentic market shift, in an upward direction, would be the resurgence of the undeveloped land category.

There are many societal shifts underway right now. A seeking of a safe haven might be the reason for a return of interest to the secondary home marketplaces…including in the Canadian Gulf Islands.

The ability to be self-sufficient, the proximity to major centres, the peaceful allure of yesteryear in everyday life, the sense of community with all the 21st Century amenities at hand, with a temperate micro-climate, & in the heart of the best protected boating waters in the world…Salt Spring Island & the Gulf Islands are practically perfect.

Looking for your dream Island property? Call me! Your best interests are my motivation. I work for you!

There are many stellar properties awaiting your discovery: waterfronts, oceanviews, farms, vineyards, building opportunities, commercial/business options, acreages/lots…call me, & let’s view. This may be the tail-end of the buyers market….

How may I help you to buy your Salt Spring Island or Southern Gulf Islands property?

May 2014, Market Analysis

May to October is now our main window of opportunity for real estate viewings/subsequent sales, in our specific secondary home/discretionary marketplace.

Perhaps the two May holiday weekends (Victoria Day & Memorial Day) are the busier May times…June is often a quieter month, until the last few days…the July 1 & 4 holidays begin our summer season…with mid-July to end of September being the busiest months for property showings.
Salt Spring Island
Offers may come in at other times, but it’s probable that the initial viewings took place in that May to October timeline.

A secondary home market is always about choice.

A secondary home market is always about choice. The buyer sets the pace. Sellers & realtors present, & try to attract the buyer side, but it’s the buyer who decides the “where” & the “when” of a property purchase in a discretionary region.

Globally, the secondary home/resort-based areas all suffered after the economic meltdowns of late 2008. In many such discretionary areas, the slow-down in sales actually began as early as 2006.

Certainly, on Salt Spring Island, & on the other Gulf Islands, sales volume lessened pre-2008 & prices began to soften dramatically. Sellers did not appreciate the downward signs…it was a slow & steady down trend…in the end, appraisers were stating that prices had reduced by 29% to 45%, with 2006 to 2008 as the start dates of this down trend, leading to the close of 2013.

It may be that 2014 will prove to be the year of recovery in the Gulf Islands & on Vancouver Island. It’s a slow pace.

At the moment, at this early May time, the busy segment remains the entry-level priced residential category.

As inventory “thins”, we may see a move into sales of raw land…one might be able to buy a lot/build a dwelling for less than a renovation of a dated entry-level priced home. That will signal an authentic market recovery.
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Some higher priced residential options are slowly finding interest, although they have markedly reduced in price point & have accepted a still lower price at the point of the offer. As inventory also begins to “thin” in this $900,000 to 2 million priced segment, we will see price stability build in…this may not be evident till late Fall.

In these beginning days of what has become our main (& very seasonal) sales window, in our specific secondary home/discretionary coastal marketplace, it can be noted that the recovery is softly underway.

Investment properties are also seeing interest from a Mainland Chinese buyer…Sunshine Coast & Vancouver Island communities have benefited from this buyer profile. To date, on Salt Spring, some waterfront residential options have sold to Chinese buyers, & interest in commercial/investment holdings has just begun.

So…poised for recovery, at the beginning of May. The true buyers market has ended.

In the upper tier priced residential properties, there will be “deals” short-term. The key is the inventory clean-out rate.

It’s not a sellers market by any means, but neither is it a buyers market. Transitional markets don’t last…a market rarely rests in equilibrium…it’s either going down or going up. It appears to be an upward trend.

Will be interesting to look back, after the activity of the next 5 to 6 months…my guess: low inventory, stable prices, slow price point uptick.

More information on the market & how you can benefit from the changes? Call me! “Caring expertise…knowledge for you”.

April 2014, Market Analysis

Here we are at the beginning of April, with Spring totally visible, & with a very encouraging consistent buoyancy finally appearing in the local secondary home real estate market. At last!

Our very seasonal Gulf Islands real estate sales market now takes place between March Break & Thanksgiving Weekend. March Break was the busiest I’ve seen it in almost six years. A very good sign.

A good foretelling …

March Break usually foretells the rhythm of the summer season. Yes, it’s still mainly active in entry level residential, but the action is steady & is clearing out a lot of inventory.

At this early moment in the sales cycle, the business always takes place in that entry level residential category. In the main, single family home properties listed between 300,000 & 600,000 catch the most attention…3 bed/2 bath, with rental options. Recreational cottage properties, even waterfronts, remain quiet. These buyers usually arrive later in the season…perhaps tied to the boating season.

As we continue along our market cycle, however, I think we will find sales volume occurring in all property prices & types, including in some undeveloped land opportunities.

I’ve always thought that raw land sales mark the turn into a true sellers market. Buyers are again willing to hold land as an investment, or to develop it? Then we’ve turned a corner into sellers market territory.

I think 2014 will be the year of total recovery in the secondary home marketplace, but it may take until late October to fully understand the dynamics…right now, we’re just at the beginning of the shift into better times.

Down markets have beginnings/middles/ends…transition markets also have beginnings/middles/ends…I think we’re at the end of the beginning of a transition between a down & an up market.

In a transition, everything is there at same time: price reductions, price stability, price increases…buyer insecurity & reluctance, buyer rush to secure a safe haven investment…downward worries, upward enthusiasm. It’s all swirling around at the same time.

Nothing remains down or up; a market is a wave pattern…the slide up the wave does seem to be underway, at last, in all secondary home/discretionary areas, & globally so. Two years ago, one couldn’t give away recreational retreat properties in Greece or Spain or Portugal. Now, these markets are hopping!

The Pacific Northwest Coast (including Vancouver Island, Salt Spring Island & the other Gulf Islands) has always been the tail of the dog: last to go down & last to go up. Finally the uptick experienced in other discretionary regions has arrived here.

As this season progresses, then, we can expect to see consistent sales volume. As inventory decreases, with little new coming onstream to replace it, we will see price stability. This will segue into price increases as that good old economic axiom kicks in: the law of supply & demand drives real estate markets.

It may be that a seeking of a safe haven is the motivating force behind the interest in the Gulf Islands. The buyer profile may have changed, but the desire to own beauty, privacy, with proximity to major centres, combined with an easy apartness & a cap on growth (Islands Trust), all ensures that the Islands will always find their special & appreciative buyer.

There are many societal changes afoot, mostly as a result of the internet’s broad brush scrubbing through. The real estate industry has changed & continues to do so.

The treading water inaction in real estate sales, though, in the secondary home/rural marketplace, over the past five to six years, is over.

It will be very interesting to arrive at early November & look back at the pattern of this clearly shift year. We have just started our season & the good news is that March Break was busy! Let’s see what April & Easter Break bring….

The uptick is not uniform in occurrence, every property & area sells in its own time, but eventually all sellers will have the opportunity to sell. Buyer desire is back.

Should a seller sell? Might it make better sense to hold an Island investment, if possible? Hmmm…that’s definitely a sellers market quandary!

Buyers interested in a Salt Spring & Gulf Islands purchase are seeking the opportunity to enjoy that yesteryear lifestyle, with all the conveniences of “now”. The Trust’s zoning/bylaws to control growth, in place since 1974, mean limited inventory over time. That seems to spell protected investment.

In change, lies opportunity.

More information on current market trend & how you can benefit from it? Call me!

Your best interests are my motivation.

March 2014, Market Analysis

A Market Recovery?

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March, 2014 – Salt Spring Island Real Estate Analysis
A recovery in the secondary home/recreational market seems to be underway…signs of slow sales volume momentum are globally visible. It has been a long five to six years of buyer inaction in all discretionary regions.

The second home/resort-based areas, globally, suffered hugely after the 2008 economic collapses. No one “has to” buy a vacation home or retire to a second home…it’s always a “by choice” decision.

Buyers decide outcomes in secondary home markets, & the decision to purchase a recreational or retirement property depends on consumer confidence.

Salt Spring Island, the Gulf Islands, & tourism driven communities on Vancouver Island all experienced a significant downturn between late 2008 & mid 2013. Some appraisers & realtors noted a slowdown in activity as early as 2006. The consistent loss in value was felt world-wide in such marketplaces over the past five years.

Values on the Gulf Islands & on Vancouver Island reportedly dropped between 29% & 45%, depending on location & type of property. In Spain & Portugal, it was reported that recreational properties dropped in value by as much as 70%.

Realty companies/realtors kept reducing prices, in a search for “the bottom”. This price cutting does not work in a recreational region…if a buyer does not want to buy, then nothing will happen.
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Fear has various faces. After little action in 2009 & 2010, there was a flurry of specific activity in 2011. Rental properties began to find buyers…these were not end-users. Family homes, older dwellings, excellent rentals, found investor-buyers. The action was only in the entry level residential category. Was this a move into real estate out of concern that the stock market was too volatile & interest rates too suppressed by banks? Investors were the main movers of sales action from early 2011 to mid 2012.

In 2012, it remained softly active in the same entry level residential segment, but end-users began to reappear. Also, as sales consistently occurred (without many properties coming onstream to replace the slow “solds”), the price ceiling of entry level began to rise.

In 2011, most sales were below 400,000. By 2013, the bulk of sales were below 800,000.

Each year, there were random & scant sales between one & two million…mainly residential oceanfront. In most cases, they had severely reduced in price before selling. Undeveloped land opportunities & commercial/business options remained flat throughout.

January & February usually continue the November/December pattern of the previous year…2014 has been no exception.
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Our market region has become ever more seasonal…the grid of sales activity now falls between March Break & the Canadian Thanksgiving (early October). The busiest months within this timeline might be May, July, August, September.

We are just beginning the 2014 rhythm, then, at this beginning of March moment. It’s still an optimum time to be a buyer…

Projections are calling for renewed interest in undeveloped land…either as a holding property or as a building opportunity. I have always seen land sales as a marker of a buoyant market. Sales of raw land are a strong signal of recovery.

It also is being projected that 2014 is the time of a resurgence in action in the upper tier priced residential properties. The affluent global investor is looking for special properties in special places…with a safe haven aspect to the region. Perhaps a concern over currency instability is driving this higher end property segment…a safe haven seeking, both personally and as a preservation of capital move, can be a strong motivator to real estate activity in the luxury property market. Inquiries on properties between two & five million are occurring.

Tourism, in the secondary home/recreational regions, does encourage real estate sales. People visit, fall in love with an area, buy a home or a lot, & suddenly all other businesses thrive…designers, contractors, restaurants, soft furnishing providers, etc etc etc…it’s like a train, & it starts with tourism & real estate sales.

Slowly, tourism is recovering on Salt Spring, on the Gulf Islands, & on Vancouver Island. All good news, then.

A concern over B.C. Ferries, & its decision to cut costs by cutting service/raising fares on smaller coastal routes, is being fought by affected communities. These route cuts/fare hikes might hamper tourism. If you’re an islander, get in touch with your Chamber of Commerce, & be involved in this important matter.

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So, with the spyglass of projection up to the eye, at the beginning of March, it does appear that sales will be consistent in the secondary home markets. It may be that sales volume will rise, but prices remain stable. Inventory in all property segments will have to clear out before prices rise. The close of 2014 should show strong signs of a recovered discretionary marketplace.

Looking for specific sales information for Salt Spring & the Gulf Islands? Vancouver Island recreational communities? Call me! In a transition period, it’s important to keep up to date. No rear view mirror thinking!

Looking for a Salt Spring Island or Gulf Island property? Call me! I look forward to bringing my knowledge (of inventory & of trends) to your benefit. My motivation is your successful outcome.

Call me for full information on all listed properties & all “solds” statistics…regardless of real estate board involved. Salt Spring & the Gulf Islands are in a “grey area”, which means three boards overlap…I offer full information regardless of which board a particular realtor chooses to affiliate with. I have access to all boards. Don’t miss out…call me! You will discover the entire listing inventory with me.

Residential, farms, vineyards, building lots/acreages, estates, private islands, commercial/investment, oceanfront, lakefront, recreational…it’s all here, in all price ranges, & I look forward to introducing the island & all its fine properties to you.

February 2014, Market Analysis

February, 2014. Salt Spring Island Real Estate

We live in such an interesting time! Change is its mantra.

Some early February “thoughts”:

Salt Spring Island

Salt Spring Island


Although the eraser of the Internet began to disturb existing business models around 1996, it initially seemed “business as usual”, with some small modifications, might prevail.

In those beginning moments of not really well understood change, we were all trying to get former successful options to fit into new venues. Suddenly, for example, everyone had a website…as if that was “it”.

It’s normal, though, in the early days of a serious societal shift, that the old and the new intermingle…perhaps for 20 years or so? Then the hybrid moment is over…I think that’s where we are now.

The profound nature of the shift into consumer driven outcomes, combined with continuing & dramatic technological inventions, have totally reconfigured our lives.

5 Issues Facing Salt Spring Island & The Future of The Gulf Islands

Locally, in our just slightly apart Gulf Island region, we have some serious issues facing us, in 2014:

1 Salt Spring Island is going to choose, in the November civic elections, whether to continue with the Islands Trust & CRD governance model or whether to go forward with a Gulf Islands Municipal structure.

The Trust document, in place since 1974, with its strict land use zoning/bylaws, would remain in place in a Gulf Islands municipal model.

The CRD (Capital Regional District) function would be replaced by an elected local mayor & council (the two trustees would be designated from the locally elected council).

All taxes raised on Salt Spring would remain on Salt Spring. Current grants from CRD would disappear. The other Gulf Islands would no longer benefit from monies raised on Salt Spring, a change that is bound to have implications for less populated Gulf Islands.

There will be many public meetings on this issue, during the run-up to the November elections…be informed!

The “preserve & protect” mandate, from 1974’s Trust inception, did preserve the park-like status of the Gulf Islands.

Evolving over time from summer places to retirement choices to year-round communities relying on tourism, the Islands were all seriously affected by the severe economic downturns between 2008 & 2012.

Younger families found it difficult as jobs erased (no construction if no real estate sales if no tourism…& around the wheel goes).

Aging retirees were rethinking country living…downtown city life, in a condo, with no need for a car, & close to medical options, suddenly had allure, as the aging process continued.

Demographic shifting was underway, & happening at the same time as all other changes.

If Salt Spring does vote for a Gulf Islands municipal structure, will that allow for creativity in decision making? Will it be possible to re-energize the community? Big questions! Certainly, the status quo does not seem possible in any venue, including in governance models.

Your voice is important. It’s your Island! Take part in the discussions.

2 The B.C. Ferries decision to cut service on some routes (coastal ferries, not interior ones), & to raise fares significantly, & to cut the seniors free fare for pedestrians or driver, on non-weekend days, will affect all Gulf Islands & Vancouver Island.

Tourism drives business on Vancouver Island, on the Gulf Islands, & on the Sunshine Coast…the very coastal communities that will be affected by Ferries decisions.

A tourist visits, falls in love with an area, buys a property through a realtor, & then every other business enterprise follows in activity: contractors, excavator operators, building inspectors, designers, plumbers, electricians, well drillers, soft furnishing providers, landscapers, gardening services, cleaners, restaurants, marine facilities, golf courses, service clubs, fitness gyms, hospitality options…you name it, if it’s an item or a service being provided to a consumer, then the process in any secondary home region initially had its start with tourism. No different on our coastal region!

On the coast, Ferries had (until recently) been considered as part of the B.C. Highways system. They were not meant to be cruise ships. After the economic collapses of late 2008, the tourism industry also suffered a downturn. One can see that lower ridership for 4 to 5 years, due to reduced tourist activity in the severe downturn, would result in shortfalls at B.C. Ferries. 2013 saw a renewal in tourism in most coastal communities. Perhaps the natural swings of market conditions should be allowed to re-create growth?

The Chambers, for all the coastal communities, are getting together to lobby the provincial government to hold off on proposed changes to Ferries scheduling & fares for 2014…& to have workable solutions in place by 2015. All parties recognize the need for change.

Although affected less adversely, as it has 3 ferries & 3 different routes, Salt Spring is joining with all coastal communities (Vancouver Island & Sunshine Coast, plus Haida Gwaii & northern coast, & all other Gulf Islands) in working for a pro-community & pro-tourism outcome. Stay tuned…get involved!

3 The local weekly newspaper on Salt Spring has been printing a real estate supplement, in some form or another, for my entire career (since 1989!). A couple of years ago, some realtors lobbied the paper to drop the monthly presence to seven issues. This reflected the lack of sales activity during the downturn & the continuing high costs of print advertising. Now, the same realtors would like it reduced to 4 (possibly 5) issues. This is certainly all a result of the suppression in real estate sales between 2008 & 2013.

Real estate is totally about the rhythm of “now”. It’s definitely driven by immediate & current information. A supplement that right now (7 issues) remains in place from mid-November to end of February, & then again from end of February to end of May, is already meaningless. To go to 4 or 5 issues is the description of a tourist brochure, not a real estate catalogue.

If the Driftwood paper has relied on realtor ads, to date, as the largest advertising segment, what outcome will result if there is a further reduction in numbers of supplements?

Certainly, we all accept that almost 100% of real estate searches start on the Internet…however, it can take a good 2 years before such casual searching solidifies into a decision to buy. Is print, at the community level, still helpful in creating a local presence?

In a discretionary area, it can take much longer than a 2 year timeline to choose a specific community…a lot of window-shopping & region interviewing goes on before that specific decision is made (often decided in 4 weeks, after that slow 2 to 5 year identifying search).

If the real estate print supplement disappears, no longer a current marketing medium, then what will happen to the weekly community paper? Will jobs be lost…staff perhaps leaving the island…another example of changed business models and the need to be where the consumer is? Outcomes, outcomes….

4 Many storefronts throughout Vancouver Island & Gulf Islands & Sunshine Coast have disappeared from their retail locations. Absence at streetside or in a mall does not necessarily mean a business has gone under…it might mean the owner chose to go online as soon as the lease on the physical space was over. What does this portend for real estate investment in commercial plazas? Small shopping centres? Rental income from storefront tenants may no longer be a landlord’s guaranteed investment outcome?

5 We’re hearing a lot about 3-D printers right now. Manufacturing, storage facilities, shipping of products, handling of same…these are business segments that will all change & possibly disappear.

Good outcomes are being reported: a design for a prosthetic limb for a child wounded by an unexploded bomb in an African field is emailed & a 3-D on site printer creates the item for the specific need. Along with this humanitarian outcome, there are other aspects to the demise of manufacturing & supply opportunities.

If those who lose the old jobs have no other option, does that mean the age of jobs is truly over?

It’s being projected that within two years most people will have affordable access to this 3-D technology.

So many more things are being invented, constantly, daily, all capturing the real gift of the Internet…the ability of a consumer to achieve an individual need, in a cost effective way, without the need for a middle segment handler.

This innovation is a good sign, I believe, and this spirit of discovery could benefit any region. Change can come from anywhere, post-Internet. You might have the answer….

Hmmm…what does all this shifting mean for real estate sales? Particularly in the secondary home/discretionary regions?

I think the perception that Ferries are too expensive may harm business success in all coastal communities. I do think tourism is the igniting engine of a discretionary region’s community growth.

Perception can be taken as reality in this instant Internet age. A bad impression of Ferries travel may be difficult to recover from. Get involved with the coastal ferries communities initiatives.

An aging population on the Gulf Islands, with the lack of opportunities for younger families, means a potentially less vibrant lifestyle on the Islands.

The final outcome of the 1974 Trust document, without any change to the mandate, may end up being the creation of enclave areas, where seasonal global owners either bring their own with them or are serviced by off-island centres. That means a ferry connection or perhaps even a bridge.

Hmmm…in preserving the park & ignoring people outcomes, over the many years between 1974 & now, is this the law of unintended consequences at work?

On Salt Spring, pay attention to the public meeting debates pre-civic election: stay the same or do a Gulf Islands municipal structure of government? Choice, choice, choice….

Real estate sales numbers and values of properties are directly impacted by outcomes. Why move to Salt Spring? (or Galiano, Mayne, Pender, Thetis, Gabriola, Denman, Hornby, Quadra, Cortes?…or even to Tofino/Uclulet, to Parksville/Qualicum, to Courtenay/Comox, to the Cowichan Valley?). An important question.

Right now action? Join the local Chamber, if you’re on Salt Spring. If you offer an item or a service for sale, then you’re in business.

At the moment, the Chamber is the only voice on the Island to be able, legitimately, to lobby the provincial government, on behalf of the community’s business interests.

Advocacy, information, support, education…important options offered by your Chamber, a non-profit, working for your best interests. Get involved!

A thoughtful & caring population can figure out solutions to issues that are suddenly everywhere…it’s about fitting into the true script of the 21st Century. Technology is just the expediter of a mind’s solution. The first step? Get involved.

2014 may be the year of recovery in the secondary home/discretionary regions, and globally so. It’s not an even-handed recovery pattern…faster in some areas & slower in others.

For real estate seekers, I think the interviewing an area moment will precede any purchase. Each area is in competition with another. Why you? Why here? Why not there? Important to have an answer! Sellers need to visualize the buyer point of view more intensely than ever.

A community’s health is dependent on the intangible of the desire to live there. Hmmm….

In change lies opportunity. Let’s not forget that!

Salt Spring Island & the Southern Gulf Islands offer beauty, a temperate climate, the ability to be self-sustaining, with a thoughtful & environmentally aware resident population. The Islands are in the heart of the best protected boating waters in the world. They are close to major centres & yet offer that safe haven “apartness”…definitely a recipe for an enjoyable & year-round lifestyle.

Property prices have reduced, over the 5 year downturn, between 29% & 45%, depending on your start date for the flattening of action. A soft uptick in sales volume in 2012/13, in the entry-level residential segment, has meant a diminished inventory. A rise in consumer confidence has created renewed buyer interest in a second home/recreational purchase.

If 2014 is the year of the discretionary real estate market recovery, then right now is the optimum time to finally be a buyer. Low asking prices, low interest rates, good inventory choices, & motivated sellers. I call that the tail-end of the buyers market of the past 5 to 6 years.

January 2014, Market Analysis

January 2014, Market Analysis

I find that January in particular, & perhaps the first half of February, often carry forward the specifics of November/December of the previous year, when it comes to real estate activity. An overlap Winter Season rhythm, thus.

Salt Spring Island

Salt Spring Island

In our secondary home & increasingly seasonal marketplace, we now seem to be focused on a March Break to Canadian Thanksgiving (early October) timeline for viewings/sales. The busier months would perhaps be May, July, August, September in our particular discretionary region.

Economic global trends might make themselves more clearly felt by mid-February, too. It’s very difficult, at these opening days of January, 2014, to make any projections about real estate market outcomes for Salt Spring & the Southern Gulf Islands.

My decision this time, then, is to report in at month’s end, instead of at the very beginning.

During January, I will be reading various economic projections, local & global, & will be attending significant economic think-tanks, & will also be keeping in touch with real estate sales outcomes throughout the Gulf Islands & on Vancouver Island. A month of assessing….

On the Coast, the recent B.C. Ferries decision to both cut numbers of sailings/& to raise fares on some ferry routes, may have a substantial impact on the Gulf Islands. It’s a key issue for all coastal communities & local Chambers are connecting to deal with this…including Salt Spring’s Chamber.

Look forward to reporting in to you, at month’s end, with my various findings.

It does appear that secondary home markets are seeing a slow uptick in activity, after a good five years of inaction on the part of a buyer. Sales volume did improve throughout 2013. Price points were still mainly in the entry level residential category.

Is it a sustained growth pattern, though, & will it now encompass all property types & price categories? Will 2014 be the visible face of an authentic real estate recovery in our “by choice” Islands environment? More later!

We are so lucky on Salt Spring Island & on the other Gulf Islands to enjoy a temperate climate, with the ability to be self-sufficient, & yet with proximity to major centres…apart & yet connected. The definition of a pleasing 21st Century lifestyle?

If you are thinking of a property purchase on Salt Spring Island, or on another Gulf Island or on Vancouver Island, please contact me. I look forward to bringing my knowledge (of both inventory & of trends) & expertise (managing broker’s licence & strong negotiating skills) to your benefit. Call me, & discover the difference that does result in connections between a seller & a buyer. The successful outcomes for you, the client, are my motivation.

How may I help you to buy your special Island property?