Tag Archives: salt spring island

March 2013, Market Analysis, Salt Spring

In like a lamb, out like a lion…

love those weather lore quotes. Always said with firmness, as if weather is a known quantity, unchanging, to be counted on.

March hovers between winter’s grey and Spring’s allure. This might be the year where we are gifted with one of those delectable Pacific Northwest Coast early Spring moments…fingers crossed.

A change of seasons is always welcome. Other changes may not be so pleasing. Attitude decides, perhaps?

Our moment in time seems to be about nothing but change, where suddenly what used to work no longer does.

The eraser of the Internet just keeps brushing through all of society, wiping clean earlier solidities.

That search engine eye never sleeps. Anyone anywhere (if governments allow it) can seek and find. Suddenly the seeker of information is in control of the process.

We can buy cars via an Internet search. We can buy stocks through Internet trades, do our banking online, purchase gifts and groceries and household items online, discover real estate choices via Internet marketing, make travel arrangements and accommodation bookings online, pay bills, meet significant others, and take part in online delivered education choices. Medical appointments dealt with virtually, books and music purchased and enjoyed online, business webinars held in lieu of flights to meetings in central locations…there is no aspect of our business and personal lives untouched by the impact of the Internet. Retail storefronts are abandoning their fixed locations and easing into online versions. What does this mean for commercial malls? What about the disguises offered by virtual worlds?

Two realities are meshing…face to face and virtual meet-ups. Isn’t that what social media is all about? Is one encounter better than the other?

Hybrid pre-Internet beings are betwixt and between, able to speak both Twentieth Century dialect and Twenty-First lingo. Post-Internet inhabitants don’t understand what all the fuss is about…it’s all just the surround sound of our time…the wallpaper, if you will, and not to be paid attention to.

So, a table of diners in a restaurant are observed flowing between texting those not present on that ubiquitous smart phone and chatting to each other…often at the same time. People walk along texting or checking emails or making calls. Laws are passed to prohibit driving and texting or using a cell phone, at the same time.

That smart phone blurs the physical and the mind’s eye, floating us between here and there, and effortlessly so.

Neither good nor bad…just what is.

Language is an elastic communication device, and as Marshall McLuhan reminded us: “the medium is the message”. So what if twitter and texting prescribe short-hand symbols? As long as the messaging is understood by the recipient, does it matter?

We live in a time when everything is still available to us, pre and post Internet styles seemingly evenly weighted. The terrain continues to quickly evolve. Still a brief time left to enjoy this moment of shift, between two world views.

Oh, yes…all you hybrid beings out there: how long did it take you to figure out LOL?

Laughter, remember, is essential at the cellular level. Out loud is just fine with me.

May 2012, Salt Spring Island Real Estate Market Analysis

Copyright, Li Read, 2012

May, 2012.

It’s Spring in more ways than one…the slow uptick in the real estate market continues. Is this the renewed market everyone has been seeking?

Beginning days of improvement are underway, after the severe three year “Fall & Winter” flat/inaction in the hard asset investment choices…now there is a re-emergence of sales volume…are we in year 7 of a 7 to 10 year cycle? Perhaps.

If so, it’s a natural progression towards stability & growth. All markets follow cycles, and the feedback from all regions is that sales volume has jumped up in the entry level priced residential property category. Prices are still volatile.

This entry level pricings segment always improves first…in our local region, we have seen a sales volume uptick of around 30%, although the majority of sales to date are below 700,000…& most sales still fall below 500,000.

Prices are not stable and there are still serious price reductions at the point of an offer, in spite of earlier reductions en route to the offer.

Action in the upper tier priced residential category remains very spotty/flat…undeveloped land options & the commercial segment remain without interest.

Nevertheless, an increase in sales volume of around 30% in the first quarter is a sign of an emerging market. And in our specific area, this renewed activity is fully there at the beginning of our traditional “season”: May to early October. Good news, then, to have seen the first quarter busy when it should be & in the price level it should be. Timing is key to all markets.

Throughout North America, strong sales & thinning inventory are the outcomes of this first quarter activity, & this is now the case in secondary home/discretionary regions, too. Something new! Yes, the strong sales action is mainly in entry level priced residential properties, but this activity is seen across the board.

By July, all media options (they are always behind a market trend, as have to rely on statistics from past months) will be reporting this shift into renewed buyer action.

Why now? Perhaps the fear that cash is eroding as a means to preserve capital is making buyers reappear? Currencies are suddenly perceived as insecure, & there’s a growing desire for a safe haven, a seeking to be self-sufficient, a fear of the stock market’s volatility?…these all might be some reasons for the return to hard asset investment choices, & a resurgence in interest in discretionary properties. Suddenly, a purchase of a unique property in an area like the Gulf Islands is perceived as a good holding.

With huge uptick in entry level sales, which brings strengthening of prices & thinning inventory, and at the time of year this traditionally happens (first quarter), we are positioned to now welcome upper tier priced property buyers, & investors in land. May, July, August, early September are the key months, traditionally, for that investor buyer to appear.

The property market in secondary home/discretionary regions slowed in 2006. Sales volume decreased & a pause was very evident by 2007. The economic collapses of 2008 afflicted all regions, globally.

Primary residence/city markets saw a soft uptick in entry level sales by 2010…the secondary home/resort based marketplaces remained sluggish. Low interest rates never seem to jumpstart action. Buyers set markets, not sellers or realtors. When a buyer is “on hold” (& no one “has to” buy a second home or retire in any particular timeframe), then nothing will happen in a discretionary marketplace.

Price reductions don’t drive action. Those sellers who had the option to do so, and did remove themselves from the market, were wise. Pressure from companies to reduce prices (without an outcome) was perhaps understandable, from the company’s point of view, but it was not reflecting the buyer voice. When a buyer says: “I don’t know…I”ll think about it”…they mean it!

Now, the buyer is back, for the first time in the past three year period. The secondary home marketplace is busying up. By late Fall, we may see action having occurred in upper tier priced residential, in undeveloped land opportunities, & in commercial/investment options. We may be approaching year 8 of a 7 to 10 year cycle, and so should see thinning inventory/price stability/some multiple offer situations for unique & irreplaceable property options. Those owners who waited it out were wise; not always possible to do that, though.

The real estate industry itself continues to shift dramatically, in our post-Internet world. Change is the wallpaper of our global village. Thales was right that we never step into the same river twice. Now, as we enter May & the beginning of our “real” (& very short!) season, the buyers are back in our kind of market-by-choice, & the uptick is here. More info? Call me!

Don’t be looking in the rear view mirror…time for that down the highway vista!

Sales volume + thinning inventory + stability of pricing = movement to a sellers market.

And your thoughts are? Always welcome!

How may I help you to buy your special Salt Spring Island or Gulf Islands or Vancouver Island property? Call me!

How?

How?

First, call me.

Suggestions on places to stay, routes of arrival.

Information on events, things to do & to see, free maps & full real estate information (of course!), plus background lore of the Gulf Islands & of Salt Spring Island. The historical perspective is always fun!

You can fly in to Vancouver International Airport, take a 10 minute cab ride to the “south terminal” and catch one of three floatplane companies that service directly to Salt Spring Island…these are year round/regular scheduled flights:
Harbour Air, Seair, & Salt Spring Air. It’s about a 12 minute flight from Airport to Ganges Village on Salt Spring.

Harbour Air & Salt Spring Air also go from Salt Spring to downtown Vancouver Harbour…approximately a 25 minute flight.

Salt Spring Air also connects with the Victoria Airport (Patricia Bay connection) and with Maple Bay (on Vancouver Island).

There is a ferry from Vancouver’s Tsswassan terminal direct to Long Harbour on Salt Spring Island. Another ferry links Victoria’s Swartz Bay terminal with Fulford Harbour on Salt Spring. A third ferry links Crofton, a mid-Vancouver Island terminal with Vesuvius on Salt Spring. These three connections are regular year round scheduled ferries.

Arriving from the U.S.? Take the Washington State ferry’s international sailing from Anacortes to Sidney…drive ten minutes to Swartz Bay and drive onto the Fulford bound ferry. Or, come via the Blackball ferry from Port Angeles to Victoria, and make your way to either Swartz Bay or to Crofton terminals.

Coming from Lower Mainland? Along with that direct Tsswassan route, you could catch the ferry from Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay, at Nanaimo, & then a short drive south delivers you to Crofton and the ferry to Vesuvius, on Salt Spring.

Check the B.C. Ferries website for further schedule information.

Easy to enjoy a visit to Salt Spring and the Gulf Islands from anywhere in the world.

Discovery is always the first step in any new adventure.

Not from Canada? Easy to enjoy property ownership on the Islands, on a seasonal basis. Want to move here and never leave? Call me, and I can put you in touch with appropriate advisors, including immigration lawyers, to discuss landed immigrant potential.

These peaceful and beautiful Gulf Islands, including the jewel of Salt Spring Island, shimmer gracefully in the Salish Sea (the historical name for Georgia Strait).

I look forward to helping you to discover them. Call me!

How may I help you to buy your Salt Spring Island or Gulf Islands property? Look forward to your call.

liread33@gmail.com

Who?

Who?

Hmmm…the interesting thing about Salt Spring Island and the Gulf Islands is that there is something for everyone.

A strong artistic community calls forth a like-minded audience response, I think.

There are over 100 writers who call Salt Spring Island home. A publishing company, with several award winning books under their label, also is located on Salt Spring.

There are several painters, fabric artists, sculptors, actors (live theatre is alive & well & living on Salt Spring), musicians (blues, folk, rock, fusion, classical), and there are over 400 people involved in choral presentations…imagine that many people, in a small community, singing!

There is a Buddhist monastery on Salt Spring, plus an Ayervedic based centre. The Island has a reputation as a healing place…zen sitting group, several yoga groups, plus meditation groups offer their individual paths. Alternative medicine opportunities abound, along with mainstream medicine (hospital, seniors for seniors facility, assisted living options, plus extended care unit).

An interesting retirement option then? Yes.

With 3 elementary schools, a middle school, a senior school, plus adult education opportunities, the Island will also work well for young families.

In our post-Internet world, if one inhabits the digital universe, then one can live anywhere.

Summer/seasonal places, of course…this entire area is a recreational paradise. The Southern Gulf Islands & Salt Spring Island are in the heart of the best protected boating waters in the world.

Retirement opportunities to fit all financial comfort zones…call me about some stellar options that will appeal to you.

Arable land for hobby farms, horse properties, vineyards, or orchards…the 10 K diet is also alive & well on these Island beauties!

Family lifestyles are rich experiences, here. A slower and more sustainable living pattern is possible.

A thoughtful, interesting, connected and environmentally aware “who” will feel right at home on Salt Spring Island & the Gulf Islands. Remember, “everyone” is here…a diverse population, meshing ages and lifestyles…with the arts as the background rhythm of the Island experience.

More information? Call me!

How may I help you to buy your special property on Salt Spring Island or on another Gulf Island? Look forward to your call!

liread33@gmail.com

Why?

Why?

Well, for starters, Salt Spring Island & the Gulf Islands are “safe havens”.

They are close to major centres (Vancouver, Victoria, Seattle), and so benefit from all nearby amenities offered by such cityscapes.

They are also wonderfully “apart”, and suggest a sense of what life must have been like, say in the 1950s/60s/early 70s…the visual vibe of space & slower time still lingers here.

Everything necessary for a pleasing lifestyle in our 21st Century post-internet world is available on Salt Spring Island, the largest & best serviced of the Southern Gulf Islands grouping.

A strong sense of community, a caring & artistically motivated ethic, a scenically beautiful region, located in the best protected boating waters in the world, and enjoying a temperate climate…it really doesn’t get any better.

Seeking a place that offers an interesting and sophisticated lifestyle with a casually elegant rural flair? This is it…tucked away & beautifully serene, yet with the ease of living one requires.

More details about this hidden gem? Call me!

How may I help you to buy your special Salt Spring Island or Gulf Islands property? Look forward to your call.

liread33@gmail.com

Where?

Where?

Well, on the Pacific Northwest Coast of Super Natural British Columbia, in Canada, of course!

The Gulf Islands are nestled into the east side coastline of the very large Vancouver Island…this puts them in the rain shadow of this huge island, and so delivers an exceptional micro-climate known as “cool Mediterranean”.

All of the Gulf Islands, whether ferry accessed or water access only options, and regardless of whether located on Vancouver Island side or Lower Mainland side of Georgia Strait, are “governed” by the Islands Trust.

This is a provincial government mandated body, and it has been in place since 1974. Its mandate is to “preserve & protect” the environmental beauties of the Gulf Islands, for the benefit of all B.C. residents.

This control of growth is achieved through strict zoning/bylaws…the Trust is about land use/bylaws. More info? Call me!

The Pacific Northwest Coast is exceptionally beautiful…mountains, ocean, islands. The Southern Gulf Islands are in the best protected boating waters in the world. This, plus the enviable micro-climate, offer a jewel of a location.

Salt Spring Island is the largest and best-serviced of the Southern Gulf Islands, and enjoys an inspiring year round lifestyle. Close to everything, easy to get to (3 ferries, 3 floatplane companies) from Vancouver, Victoria, & Vancouver Island…plus Seattle. Yet, wonderfully apart…perfect for a family, or as a retirement opportunity, or as a seasonal retreat…a gem to savour!

More details? Call me!

How may I help you to buy your special Salt Spring Island or Gulf Islands property? Look forward to your call.

liread33@gmail.com