Tag Archives: market

March 24th – Market Update – Times Colonist

(Here is another opinion on Bill 7…this one from a former premier of B.C. Printed in today’s Times Colonist newspaper (Victoria’s paper, and available throughout B.C. There is also an online version).

March 24, 2025

 

“Opinion: B.C.’s Bill 7 an ‘unnecessary power grab,’ says former premier”

“To stand up to the U.S., we must first stand up for democracy and against autocracy at home,” writes former B.C. premier Gordon Campbell.”

We live in troubling times. People are frightened and feel vulnerable. Taking advantage of that David Eby’s Bill 7 tries to establish autocratic rule for the next two years in B.C. It’s the move of an aspiring autocrat. Now is the time for measured, thoughtful action. Taking away democratic rights weakens us and destabilizes our future.

Eby decries President Donald Trump’s actions while copying him. He wants to rule, not to serve, the people of B.C. He is trying to set aside democracy for more than half his term. His claim that this is necessary to address issues that may arise due to Trump’s tariffs is, put bluntly, nonsense.

This is the same premier who reneged on his commitment to call the legislature back right after the election. The election was Oct. 19, 2024. He did not call the legislature back until Feb. 17, 2025, well after President Trump declared his intentions regarding Canada. Eby delayed when it fit his political needs. Now, he introduces Bill 7 not to meet the province’s or Canada’s needs, but to serve his political wishes.

Mr. Eby says he wants to remove all trade barriers between provinces. Fine. Lead the way. Table legislation that removes all barriers B.C. imposes on other provinces. Get on with it. He does not need to usurp the democratic authority of the legislature to get that done immediately. Mr. Eby, take down those walls!

All people of B.C. deserve to be represented in these times. Any action should take place only with proper public scrutiny.

Democracy is messy. It can be frustrating, but it is a necessary check on autocratic power.

The best, and constitutionally correct, way to fight Trump’s action is not by suspending our democratic institutions, but rather by fully and carefully considering our response to U.S. actions in our constitutionally enshrined parliamentary system. There is no need or reason to give Eby the dictatorial power he seeks. We should exemplify how a properly functioning democracy makes policy decisions through its legislative assembly in accordance with the rule of law. Eby engages the legislature despite his proclivities to do the opposite.

Every MLA, from every party, has an obligation to uphold our democratic institutions. The legislature can and will act quickly when needed. With Bill 7, Mr. Eby takes away our rights and our elected representative’s responsibilities. We must hope that some New Democrats in his caucus remember they were elected as New Democrats, not New Autocrats. They should not acquiesce to the most autocratic bill ever tabled in B.C.’s legislature.

The legislature can be called back within 24 hours any time to properly debate, scrutinize and decide on any actions Mr. Eby dares propose. These are not, and should not be, personal decisions. Important decisions of this magnitude should be decisions where MLAs from every part of the province, from all parties, are included and held accountable.

All members of B.C.’s legislature are obligated to stand for Canadian democracy and due process, not to bow to autocracy.

We are Canadian. Our parliamentary principles and practises define our public institutions regardless of party. Canadian responsible government requires that the premier and his cabinet account to the legislature. That’s the critical democratic link between a premier and cabinet and the people of the province.

Mr. Eby’s Bill 7 is a power grab, pure and simple. It gives Eby the sole power to amend any law, change any regulation, change any tax, use your personal information and ignore the legislature for more than two years. No checks. No guardrails. No recourse. That is simply wrong for all of us regardless of political affiliation or what is decided in the U.S.

Mr. Eby’s Bill 7 undermines your rights and the governing principles of Canada.

We are smart enough, strong enough and creative enough to withstand powerful changes. But we will fail, if we follow Eby’s desire to undermine the democratic foundation upon which we stand.

MLAs should be against this unnecessary power grab. Even if the NDP MLAs cannot find a democratic conscience, then all opposition MLAs must.

To stand up to the U.S., we must first stand up for democracy and against autocracy at home.

Write, call, email or text your MLA. Tell them to stand for Canada and for our democratic values; tell them not to support this unconscionable power grab of the New Autocrats in Victoria.

As always, Stay tuned!!!

Market Update – Election Day to be April 28th

 

Vote – Election Day to be April 28th

Federal Uncertainty is Over… for now…

Salt Spring Island

So, finally, the federal uncertainty is over…Trudeau stepped down in January and prorogued parliament. This left a void at the federal level, at the very time the U.S. tariffs were initially being considered.

A new Liberal party leader (Mark Carney) was chosen on March 9th, and then he assumed the role of Prime Minister. Today, he has advised the Governor General that he is calling a federal election…Election Day to be April 28th.

The Conservatives, the NDP, the Bloc, and the Green Party will be fielding candidates and running in opposition to Liberal Party candidates.

Mark Carney had advised Justin Trudeau since 2020, and this bid to remain in power is being described by opposition parties as a fourth term for Liberal policies.

It’s important to vote on April 28th…everyone’s voice counts. Be involved, check out the candidates in your riding. It is not a time for apathy.

The real estate markets across Canada have been in “pause mode” in the past two months…markets do not like uncertainty. With a decision as to who will be in charge, at the federal level, and whether in a minority or majority position, is essential to unfolding developments for our more local real estate markets.

At this time, inventory here remains low, and prices remain relatively stable. A desire for rural lifestyles and a sense that a real estate purchase in unique areas is a preservation of capital decision (which is about our bottoming dollar value) also continue to drive activity in secondary home areas.

It will perhaps take until mid-May to see a specific market direction locally for 2025.

As always, Stay tuned!!!

Salt Spring Island, April 2024, Market Analysis

Springtime on Salt Spring Island and the Gulf Islands

The very beginning of April brings with it the beauty of authentic early Spring. The end of the month is more like May. This chameleon month is also the first month when one can start to understand the tone of the real estate market for this year.

Fulford Valley 42+ Acres

Although buyers pop in anytime, on Salt Spring and the Gulf Islands, it is generally accepted that most tourism (and resulting real estate activity) falls between March Break and the Canadian Thanksgiving (October). Low inventory continues, most of the listings below one million are strata properties (townhomes). Single family homes are mostly between one and two million. Land listings are also showing extremely low inventory. Most owners are not wanting to be sellers, unless they have to. In 2022/most of 2023, buyers were in pause mode…inquired, sometimes viewed, then paused. So many global uncertainties may have created this pause period. This year, buyers are acting again. The desire to leave urban for rural remains a factor. A desire for safety is another reason to consider a country home/more self-sufficient outcome. Preservation of capital is a further reason to consider a real estate purchase in a secondary home/recreational marketplace. These are also reasons why owners are not interested in being sellers.

Fulford Valley 42+ Acres

At this very beginning of April, there are:

approximately 86 residential listings, not separating out waterfront, view, farms, lots, acreages, townhomes.

    • 28 are between 234,500 and 999,999.
    • There are 30 residential listings between 1,020,000 and 1,985,000.
    • There are 17 between 2,100,000 and 2,995,000.
    • Seven are between 3,285,000 and 3,875,000.
    • Two are in 4 million range (one at 4,295,000 and another at 4,875,000).
    • One listing at 5,250,000 and one at 11,975,000.

there are 29 land listings, not separating out lots, acreages, view, waterfront.

    • 20 are listed between 135,000 and 845,000.
    • Five are listed between 1,100,000 and 1,995,000.
    • Three are listed between 2,150,000 and 2,350,000.

At this very beginning of April, there have been approximately 32 sales to date.

  • 24 sales were between 128,000 and 850,000.
  • Six sales were between 1,185,000 and 1,750,000.
  • One sale was at 2,560,000 and another sold at 9,990,000.

Fulford Valley 42+ Acres

By late May/early June, enough sales will have taken place to allow definitive thoughts on a 2024 trend. Projections are calling for continuing low inventory and price escalation. The busier sales months are always July, August, September. To own on a Gulf Island, with the Islands Trust governance cap on growth, at same time that the market has low inventory and buyer desire, it may be that new potential buyers might want to explore shared ownership models. Ownership may require serious thinking out of the box.

Fulford Valley 42+ Acres

So, inspiring April is here. ArtSpring is celebrating an important anniversary. The Saturday Market is open. Hastings House has reopened for the season. Boaters are back and marinas are busy. Galleries are showcasing new works and the studio tour welcomes you. Wine tastings, cider tastings, craft brewery. Farmgate stands, orchards in blossom, hiking/walking trails to encourage getting out and about, beachcombing, new restaurants and coffee stops to try. It’s April…wash those windows and let the light in. Lighten up…it’s real Spring!

Salt Spring Island, July 2023, Market Analysis

July, 2023.

Canada-wide Celebration

Canada Day introduces delectable July…a Canada-wide celebration on the 1st. Happy Birthday!

Lots happening on Salt Spring and the Gulf Islands: artist studios are open, the famous Saturday Market and Tuesday Farmers Market on Salt Spring, Ganges galleries showcasing their amazing artists, ArtSpring events, ArtCraft at Mahon Hall, patios and decks at restaurants and coffee places (al fresco is the gift), wine and cider tastings, hiking trails, swimming in lakes and ocean, kayaking, sailing, live music venues…it’s all here…just waiting for your enjoyment and summer ease.

How’s The Salt Spring Market

The real estate market? It’s the same continuing tune: lack of inventory and stable pricing.

There is a sense that prices will rise. It may take until late August to have clarity on this definite possibility. Lack of supply (combined with strong buyer desire) is the reason. Most owners do not want to be sellers. Further, Canada’s immigration policy is set to welcome 500,000 immigrants a year and the lack of available housing will keep prices higher.

The Islands Trust effectively capped growth on the Gulf Islands when the provincial government created it in 1974. This is apart from real estate trends over time. Basically, it’s a “this much, and no more” item. Another reason for price stability and price increases, though. Questions? Call me. (liread33@gmail.com).

Short & Sweet Days of Summer

Summer is both a sweet and a short season. Already we see shorter days (by seven seconds a day). Time to “take five” as the great Dave Brubeck played. In our on/off, on/off binary world, it’s important to breathe life into our editing function. Yes, we do have a pause button. Yes, we do have the ability to close the screen and simply “be”. Summer is the perfect time to simply rediscover “ease”.

Try sitting beside the sea, calm, high tide, late afternoon light shimmering, reflections softening our thoughts. See? Real summer approaches. Be still and enjoy the peacefulness. Real reality is here. The gift of summer is with you.

Salt Spring Island, December 2022, Market Analysis

The first of December is considered meteorological Winter, although the calendar says it begins on the 20th. The great Pacific Northwest Coast experiences shorter days (dark by 4:30 p.m.) and every year is slightly different, weather-wise. This year promises snow and arctic cold. I prefer the usual rain that has our west coast location often described as “the famously wet coast”. (I am allergic to snow at sea level).

Salt Spring Island

Things To Do on Salt Spring Island This Winter

Lots of art gallery openings and receptions in December, plus the annual WinterCraft at Mahon Hall until the 23rd, the annual Beaver Point and Fulford Hall craft fairs (December 2 to 4), and other loved pop-ups…closed for two seasons due to covid closures, these displays of artistic flair are welcomed. ArtSpring offers choral/seasonal concerts…check out the website for dates. Enjoy the lights in the Village, and the decorated shops. Tasty special menus at coffee stops and restaurants…decorated farm gate stands encourage a jaunt around the island. Live music venues (Moby’s, the Legion) are fun. Check out the Christmas on Salt Spring events (the Chamber of Commerce website or Visitors Centre). Does Santa really arrive by floatplane?

Close to major centres and yet wonderfully apart…a visit to a Gulf Island/to Salt Spring Island can be a restorative and peaceful experience at this softer Winter season.

Real estate at this end of the year

Real estate at this end of the year time is still consistently chugging along. Buyers remain interested and active. Snow storms mean some delays for some viewings, but Winter does not last long in our region. Inquiries remain strong. Winter is often a weekend business in a secondary home market. The lack of inventory remains a factor. The desire for a buyer to leave the city and to live in the country is still the main reason for activity. That authentic internet connectivity allows this profound lifestyle change. A softer gentler lifestyle seems to be the goal. A very human need: to be safe.

Housing Supply & Purchase Taxation

The governments (provincial and federal) are attempting to solve the lack of affordable housing supply through taxation (offshore purchase taxation, empty home (speculation) tax, moratorium on non-Canadian buyers, interest rate rises), and yet the federal government is also looking for 1.5 million immigrants by 2025. CMHC has forecast that 22 million housing units would need to be in place by 2030, to solve this “lack of housing” crisis (not including immigration pressures).

First time buyers are affected by the series of interest rate rises. Some experts are forecasting more rate rises to come…others think not (possibly fearing societal unrest?).

Affordability is tied to supply…instead of taxing existing options, which does not grow supply, governments need to encourage construction…an entrepreneurial answer to supply and demand issues.

Real Estate – Still A solid hard asset investment

Meantime, real estate remains a solid hard asset investment (especially during currency fluctuations) and keeps pace with inflation.

December is a time to be thoughtful, a time to acknowledge traditions and to practice the art of gratitude. A time to create new traditions and to include those on their own in our celebrations. It’s fun to research other seasonal events and definitely important to have lots of candles, have a fire in the hearth, and to invite light into our homes. Maybe a year to reread Charles Dickens’ classic: A Christmas Carol?

Feasting is allowed. A pause is encouraged.

December…a time of joy. Good to partake.

Market Analysis, December 2018, Salt Spring Island

December 2018, Salt Spring

Here we are, starting into the last month of this haphazard 2018 market year.

The weeks between January 1 and February 20 did promise continuing brisk real estate sales…inventory was diminishing in residential offerings and prices had solidified…undeveloped lots/acreages were catching interest…higher end properties were being shown…and a seller’s market was in play.

Provincial Government Policies

The coalition provincial government brought in a budget (February 20) that specifically targeted Vancouver, Victoria, Nanaimo, and Kelowna…seeking to suppress the buoyant real estate markets in these areas. Several measures were introduced…the speculation (vacancy) tax being a key one.

Between February 20 and March 27, the Southern Gulf Islands/Salt Spring Island were included in the vacancy tax. The government used regional district boundaries to delineate where this tax would be applied. The government agreed that the Islands Trust (formed in 1974) had created a recreational ownership-resort based region and so all Gulf Islands were finally excluded.

Since the slow recovery on Salt Spring (began in mid-March 2016), inventory in place, due to the economic meltdowns of late 2008, had slowly cleared out. Fall 2017 & up to late February 2018 saw consistent sales and in all price ranges. Then the February 20 budget…..

Were the policies effective?

The point of the taxation measures applied to Vancouver was to suppress the real estate market…the theory being that prices would drop and affordability would rise. It might have been a better idea to open up opportunities for construction of affordable rental and purchase units. Sales did shut down in Vancouver, but affordability may not have been addressed.

Salt Spring, like other secondary home markets, is dependent on buyers from elsewhere. The recovery on Salt Spring, after the almost nine-year economic meltdown, was driven by Vancouver people who had sold in Vancouver…and were looking to relocate. The suppression in the Vancouver marketplace, after February 20, caused a corresponding pause in action on Salt Spring, for most of 2018.

Inventory still remains low. During spring/summer there were viewings. Fall saw more sales…not just showings. Sales were mainly below 800,000, and residential, not lots/acreages.

Visiting Salt Spring Island is the Key

Some projections are calling for a bounce back in the Vancouver marketplace by early spring, 2019. This is an unknown. What is known is that Salt Spring and the Gulf Islands are dependent on a buyer from elsewhere.

Before the economic downturn, the main buyers were from Alberta and the U.S. The 2016 beginnings of a recovery on the Islands came out of Vancouver. There may be an upcoming reappearance of Ontario buyers, looking for retirement destinations.

To Preserve & Protect

Although Salt Spring and the Southern Gulf Islands are beneficiaries of the Islands Trust’s mandate of “to preserve and protect”, which controlled growth through strict zoning/density bylaws, the Islands are not unaffected by changes and stresses globally. The Islands are affected also by the current provincial government’s various measures to suppress real estate markets elsewhere in B.C. Pauses in market cycles, no matter the cause, are always a feature…it’s never a straight line up or down.

Lack of inventory, however, seems to imply a buoyancy beneath these many government restrictive measures. Those measures, designed to suppress a real estate market, may be being digested. In the end, consumers set the pace. The guru projection advisors may be right about a resurgence in the Vancouver market, by early 2019. Hmmm….

So…at beginning of December, there were approximately 296 sales on Salt Spring, which can be broken down as follows:

Some Sales Data

  • 11 sales between 138,000 & 195,000
  • 14 sales between 207,000 & 290,000
  • 11 sales between 320,000 & 398,000
  • 22 sales between 405,000 & 492,500
  • 28 sales between 500,000 & 595,000
  • 24 sales between 600,000 & 686,000
  • 25 sales between 705,000 & 795,000
  • 18 sales between 800,000 & 898,000
  • 13 sales between 900,000 & 999,000
  • 25 sales between 1,005,000 & 1,950,000
  • 4 sales between 2,025,000 & 2,850,000

The above numbers relate to the sale figures…they do not show the tracking down of pricings, on the way to that sale figure. For example, a property selling at 730,000 was listed at 774,000. One listed at 2.8 sold for 2.383. Price reductions at the point of an offer can be quite common on listings over 800,000.

Over half the current listings (approximately 106 residential listings, between 309,900 & 4.8, and approximately 57 lots/acreages between 159,000 & 2.495) are priced over a million, if in the residential category. (In a “normal market”, listings might run between 380,000 & 425,000, in total). Listings are not plentiful right now…particularly if below 800,000.

If the water moratorium (put in place by 3 volunteers on the North Salt Spring Water District board) could be resolved, then 255 units (approved and funded), re affordable housing/work rental, could be built.

Those business enterprises that cannot find housing for proposed staff are also recognizing that vacation rentals are required. The visitors staying at airb&b are the buyers of their local products. Both types of rentals are needed in a secondary home/discretionary area, reliant on a tourist based economy.

Last Fall, the current provincial government canceled the fixed tenancy option on a lease, under B.C.’s Tenancy Act. In areas such as Salt Spring, this might be a reason for the reluctance to engage in a regular rental process.

The provincial government is in charge of Improvement Districts (water is under this jurisdiction). The government has transferred Improvement Districts to municipalities. Salt Spring is not a municipality. The CRD (Capital Regional District) would have to assume the Salt Spring water districts…or the unfortunate moratorium will not be resolved. There is no water shortage on Salt Spring. The issue is one of capture & distribution. The 255 ready to build affordable housing/work rental units await the outcome.

The changes to the Real Estate Services Act of B.C., enacted on June 15, 2018, are in place. Questions? Call me.

Celebrate!!!

December is a traditional time of celebrations. On Salt Spring there are many craft fairs (Beaver Point and Fulford Hall craft fairs, WinterCraft at Mahon Hall, pop-up events), plus ArtSpring presents seasonal music and theatre to enjoy. Volunteers create the Shop Local events clustered under the Christmas on Salt Spring label. Santa arrives twice: once by floatplane and later via a Carol Ship. The Village sparkles with Light Up. Lots to see and to enjoy.

Be re-inspired by your personal traditions…take time to remember others…take advantage of the fallow field moment of calm. That’s where the creativity lives.