There was an interesting article in the Globe and Mail recently that discussed the several options available to buyers who want to buy their own home, but don't have any or all of the minimum 5% down payment.  

Although zero-down mortgages are officially gone, it seems that there are a variety of realistic options available as long as the buyer has a good credit rating combined with a good income.

Click here for the Globe and Mail article:

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If the approval of this new development keeps moving along as smoothly as it has so far, View Royal will soon have an entirely new commercial, retail, and residential centre right next the Victoria General Hospital.  

At the Preferred Homes Team we have been following this project for some time and have met with Omicron, the developer, to offer feedback and suggestions in relation to the residential component of their development.  From what we have seen, we believe strongly that they are on the right track.

Right now, there is very few amenities in the immediate area.  Homeowners who live nearby have to travel to Colwood or to Saanich for groceries and other needs.  With the large hospital next door, and many great tenants already signed, this project has the ability to transform the area in a very positive way.  We believe that it even could have a positive effect on traffic by creating more good paying jobs outside of the core.  

All in all, this is probably one of the best planned and most needed retail, commercial, and residential development proposals that we have seen for some time.

Click here to read more:

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The Bank of Canada today announced that it is maintaining its target for the overnight rate at 1 per cent. The Bank Rate is correspondingly 1 1/4 per cent and the deposit rate is 3/4 per cent.

The global economic outlook is slightly weaker than the Bank had projected in its October Monetary Policy Report (MPR).  At the same time, global tail risks have diminished. The economic expansion in the United States is continuing at a gradual pace, restrained by ongoing public and private deleveraging, global weakness and uncertainty related to fiscal negotiations.  Despite a marked improvement in peripheral sovereign debt markets, Europe remains in recession, with a somewhat more protracted downturn now expected than in October. Growth in China is improving, though economic activity has slowed further in some other major emerging economies. Supported by central bank actions and by positive policy developments in Europe, global financial conditions are more stimulative.  Commodity prices have remained at historically elevated levels, though temporary disruptions and persistent transportation bottlenecks have led to a record discount on Canadian heavy crude.

In Canada, the slowdown in the second half of 2012 was more pronounced than the Bank had anticipated, owing to weaker business investment and exports. Caution about high debt levels has begun to restrain household spending. The Bank expects economic growth to pick up through 2013. Business investment and exports are projected to rebound as foreign demand strengthens, uncertainty diminishes and the temporary factors that have weighed on resource sector activity are unwound. Nonetheless, exports should remain below their pre-recession peak until the second half of 2014 owing to a lower track for foreign demand and ongoing competitiveness challenges, including the persistent strength of the Canadian dollar.  Consumption is expected to grow moderately and residential investment to decline further from historically high levels. The Bank expects trend growth in household credit to moderate further, with the debt-to-income ratio stabilizing near current levels.

Relative to the October MPR, Canadian economic activity is expected to be more restrained. Following an estimated 1.9 per cent in 2012, the economy is expected to grow by 2.0 per cent in 2013 and 2.7 per cent in 2014. The Bank now expects the economy to reach full capacity in the second half of 2014, later than anticipated in the October MPR.

Core inflation has softened by more than the Bank had expected, with more muted price pressures across a wide range of goods and services, consistent with the unexpected increase in excess capacity. Total CPI inflation has also been lower than anticipated, reflecting developments in core inflation and weaker-than-projected gasoline prices. Total CPI inflation is expected to remain around 1 per cent in the near term before rising gradually, along with core inflation, to the 2 per cent target in the second half of 2014 as the economy returns to full capacity and inflation expectations remain well-anchored.

Reflecting all of these factors, the Bank has decided to maintain the target for the overnight rate at 1 per cent.  While some modest withdrawal of monetary policy stimulus will likely be required over time, consistent with achieving the 2 per cent inflation target, the more muted inflation outlook and the beginnings of a more constructive evolution of imbalances in the household sector suggest that the timing of any such withdrawal is less imminent than previously anticipated.

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We all know that having a suite in your home is an excellent way to help build equity very quickly.  For example, a suite renting for $900 per month can pay the equivalent of nearly $200,000 worth of mortgage.

But, as a landlord you also take on a significant responsibility.  In BC, tenants have a lot of rights and once they are in, they can be very hard to get out - even if they don't pay the rent.  

Click here for a very scary story about a landlord with a terrible tenant!

We recommend that all landlords become members of ROMS, The Rental Owners & Managers Society of BC.  ROMS can help you learn your rights and responsibilities, and can help you get the right tenant.  It is inexpensive, and definitely worth every penny.

Click here to visit ROMS website to learn more.

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We were talking with one of our mortgage broker friends this morning and found that there has been a slight change in a few popular mortgage interest rates.  These are best rates, your rates may vary.

* 4-year mortgages have increased slightly to 2.99%

* 5-year mortgages have increased slightly to 3.04%

* 7-year mortgages have dropped to 3.55%

The 10-year fixed mortgage is still available at 3.89%.  This is a great way to control your mortgage costs for the long term.

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If you are looking for a great quality new house in the Langford area we have awesome news for you.  We were down to our last 2 lots at Homes at Hazelwood, but have been able to buy eight additional lots from the developer next door. Their loss is your gain!

We are already busy building 3 bedroom houses, all of which will be complete on or before March 31, 2013 and each will be sold for only $389,900 including net sales tax.

Real detached houses, no strata fees, and your own back yard!

By the wayt, if you are a first time buyer, this March 31 date is critical as it means that you may qualify for the bonus $10,000 income tax refund as well as skipping the property transfer tax!  That's a big savings.  Even if you aren't a first time buyer, you will love the Limona build quality and great neighbourhood.

And there is more...  If don't have a down payment, but have good credit you can still buy that dream home that you have been waiting for.

Visit www.HomesAtHazelwood.ca for more details!

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Now is the time of the year that our local real estate market typically wakes up and comes back to life after the lull through the Christmas season.  When we look back, we see that each year, January is the slowest month with the lowest sales volume.  This year is no exception to that rule.  The volumes that we are seeing right now are low, lower than last year, but that makes sense considering that we went through December with lower volumes.

The single family home market continues to be the relatively stronger part of the market. Although sales volume is down, selling prices are relatively similar to where they were last year at this time.  However, if the volume stays low, I would expect prices to soften as an increased number of motivated sellers bring their houses to market.

The condo market, unfortunately, is experiencing more challenges from a sellers point of view.  Like houses, the volume of sales is quite low.  But, unlike houses, the median selling price is well off from last year.  If you have a condo that you must sell, you will need to price your unit sharply to generate interest. 

One very important point to keep in mind is that when selling prices are down, it also means that buying prices are down - obviously.  The saying that I use is "The ocean floats all boats!"  In short, don't worry too much about selling in a down market as you will recoup it in the purchase.  

Here are the stats from the last 30 days:

Over the last 30 days, 91 single family houses were sold, down by 20 houses from last week.  The median price is up $5,000 to $540,000. The average house was on the market for 72 days.

In the same time period, 50 condos were sold, down by 7 condos from last week.  The median price is down $7,825 to $235,175. The average condo was on the market for 63 days.

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Good morning everyone and welcome to 2013!  We would like to wish you all a very happy & prosperous new year.  

In terms of real estate, I think it is going to be quite an exciting year as there are lots of changes coming up.  The biggest, of course, is the cancellation of the HST.  Before we go any further, I want to take a minute and clean up one major misconception...

No, houses do not get less expensive when we switch back to the GST only model!

Here is the detailed explanation:  Right now, and until March 31, 2013, new houses include GST + 2% (of the 7% of the HST) as long as the house is under $850,000 - this is the HST.  Once the HST goes away, the same houses only include GST but the builders cost goes up because the builders cannot write off the 7% PST like they can under the HST.  The net result is that all of their building materials cost 7% more after April 1, 2013, than they do now.  On most houses, 7% of increased cost in materials ends up increasing the total build cost of the house by just over 2%.   I'm sure that you can see where I am going...  The net result, is that new houses priced "including net HST" will cost the same after the HST goes away, as before.  You will also read about a transition tax of 2%.  This is taken into account in my calcuations as well.  Do the math, and you will see this for yourself that new houses prices wil not go down after the HST goes away.

Of course, resale houses do not include HST anyway so they do not change in price.

If you have any remaining questions regarding HST, feel free to give us a call and we would be happy to go over the math with you.

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