Sales declined by 102 from July’s 527 to 425 sales this month. That difference is comparable to the change in last year’ July-August of 169sales ( 933-764), and is in keeping with the usual summer trends when many people are away on holidays.

The number of properties listed for sale on the Victoria Real Estate Boards MLS System® sat at 4,356 at the end of August 2010, up from 3509 available this month last year, but still below the 2008 levels of 4657. See how the Active Listing count has fluctuated over the past few years here

It seems that prices were artificially raised in the fall of 2009 and the early part of 2010, mostly due to a low inventory level and many buyers entering competing offers for the same property. As the number of properties available for sale has increased, prices have begun to drop back to their previous levels from the year before. The average sale price for August 2010 was $586,676 down from last year’s average of  $596,498. The median price of $548,500 for this year is still higher than last years median of $540,00 and is usually a better tool to gauge the market because average prices can be skewed by the sales of one or two multi-million dollar properties. See the graph of Average Sale prices in the Victoria Real Estate Market.

What does this mean for you? Well, the market has proven that it will not support overpriced listings and you should be wary of Agent’s that try to “Buy” your listing by promising you a higher price than what the market is telling you your home is worth. We all think our home is special, but the truth is buyers have a lot to choose from out there and if you want your home to be noticed in the crowd, you must price it at or near it’s sale price if you want to succeed. With half of all sellers leaving the market unsuccessfully, make sure that you price your home appropriately so that you can move forward with your goals.

Real Estate has always been a long-term investment, and if you manage your credit wisely, and don’t overspend what you can afford, you will reap the long-term benefits. See how Victoria’s Real Estate Market has performed over the last few decades and judge for yourself.

Sat June 12 & Sunday June 13, 2-4pm

Cute condo alternative, complete with mortgage helper self contained one bedroom suite that rents easily for market value of 850. Close to amenities and Haultain Village Jubilee Hospital and bus routes. Studio/Workshop in a picturesque backyard makes a great place to get away or recreate whatever inspires you. This home has been lovingly remodelled with great care and attention to details, with an artistic touch. Custom kitchen large living room, skylights and detailed ceilings make this home one of a kind. Few homes in this price range offer additional accommodation

820 St. Charles St

Sunday May 16, 11am-1pm

2430 Alpine Cres

Sunday May 16, 2-4pm

AMAZING NEIGHBOURHOOD! This great 3 or 4 bdrm home requires some TLC to make it perfect for you & your family. Featuring hardwood floors, coved ceilings, a cozy gas fireplace, plus an energy efficient gas furnace. Bonus features include a full height unfinished basement, single garage, carport, and a huge patio for summer entertaining. All located on a mature 10000sqft level lot near bus routes, parks, great schools, and just a flipflop walk to the beach.

443 Kipling St

Saturday May 1, 2-4pm

Click HERE for more information

2644 Cadboro Bay Rd

Saturday April 24, 2-4pm

Take a walk-through with me: http://www.youtube.com/user/victoriahomesales

820 St. Charles St

Saturday April 17, 1-3pm

107 – 932 Johnson St

Sunday April 11, 2-4pm

More listing information

4 – 1030 Meares St

Saturday April 10, 2-4 pm

405 – 300 Waterfront Cres

Sunday March 28, 1-3 pm

203-991 Cloverdale Ave

Saturday Mar 6, 2-4 pm

605 – 160 Wilson St

Sunday February 21, 2-4pm

405 – 300 Waterfront Crescent

Saturday Feb 6, 2-4pm

1632 Hollywood Crescent

Open House Sat/Sun Jan 23/24,  2-4pm

I have included a link to a slide show put on by the Mayor of Victoria to discuss the secondary suite issue, which has all the guidelines in it. It refers to an incentive grant program that has run its course, so unfortunately that is no longer available.
Mayor Dean Fortin’s Secondary Suite Presentation

The 2 most important rules for a legal suite in the City of Victoria are:
1. Basement height has to be 7 feet or higher
2. The total square footage must be 1615 sqft or greater, and the suite
can only be 40% of the total floor space to a max of 968 square feet. If
the floor plan is smaller than 1615 sqft, you can add-on to make up the
extra room.

The City of Victoria has come to the conclusion that homeowners’ adding secondary suites is a great way to provide more affordable housing in the city at a much lower cost than if the city was to build affordable housing units on their own. Essentially, if you find a place in Victoria that meets the criteria, they will work with you to get it done. In January 2009, city council passed a resolution changing the Bylaw to make adding a secondary suite even easier. Read the Summary here 

The City of Victoria has an excellent website full of information about secondary suites and all the rules and regulations here:
City of Victoria and Secondary Suites

Keep in mind that this applies only to the municipality of Victoria. Langford, Colwood, Saanich, Esquimalt and Oak Bay all have different rules and many of these municipalities have unauthorized suites. While Langford is known for its active promotion of development, Oak Bay is notorious for investigating and shutting down unauthorized accommodation. Before you purchase any property with the idea of developing it further, check the local municipal regulations.

If you are unsure where to find information in your municipality, contact me here Shamus@secretagentsells.com and I will be happy to help you find what you need.

This means that buyers are better informed about local market conditions than ever before, making it more important for seller’s to price their homes realistically if they want to be noticed in the above-average inventory levels we are experiencing today. We are seeing a 97% Sale Price to List Price ratio across the real estate board, meaning buyers are willing to pay when the price is right, but only about half of what is listed is selling. If you want your home to be noticed it has to be priced right.

Curious what average selling prices have been?

There were 527 sales through the Victoria Real Estate Board last month, down slightly from the 625 sales in June. Although higher this year than July 2009, inventory levels are beginning to decline with only 4477 properties for sale at the close of the month, compared to the 4730 properties available at the end of June. It’s widely believed that this is the beginning of a return to a balanced market, as those sellers who were “testing the waters” with unrealistic prices become discouraged and leave the market.

Overall, there is still excellent selection for buyers out there, and with the global economic situation still unbalanced, interest rates have remained very attractive. As buyers shop around and compare properties, the average days on market for a home to sell is beginning to lengthen, but it is an exciting time for Victoria’s market, and if your home is marketed appropriately, you can still get a fair price in a reasonable period of time.

See the Total number of Listings and Sales for July here

Sat Sept 4, 11am-1pm,  Sun Sept 5, 2-4pm

5-106 Aldersmith Place

Sat July 17, 2-4pm

Open House Saturday July 17th 2-4 Stunning Bright Open end unit in sought after complex, a true home with large wide open spaces but the flexibility of lock it and leave on your holidays without worry. This sunny end unit is flooded with natural light large rooms and even space to accommodate a workshop. If having the space of a single family home, without the worries is something you are seeking then look no further this is the one. Walk to any amenity, Gorge Waterway, and dining, this home is ideally located with everything right at your doorstep.

Sales may have slowed down a little when compared to the pent-up demand of last year following the price drop in the wake of the recession, but prices are still holding firm across the Victoria Real Estate Board.

There were 625 sales over the month of June, which is down from the near-record 946 sales in June 2009. Although this is also down a little from the May 2010 numbers, there is still plenty of activity on the Victoria market and a large inventory for buyers to choose from.

The big story has been the growing inventory as new listings continue to outpace sales. with a total of 4730 properties availble for sale at the end of June.

See the number of Active Listings and Total Sales

With the high inventory levels, many sellers are becoming frustrated with the length of time it takes to sell, especially if they were expecting to see multiple offers on the first day on market like we saw so often in the spring. Today’s market is very price sensitive, and those sellers that are unrealistic on their pricing will have a hard time generating any interest. There is a 42% sell/list ratio across the Victoria board, and with more than half of all people not being able to reach their goals, expect many to become discouraged and not relist their homes. When the johnny-come-lately’s realize that they are not going to quickly pawn off their house for a huge profit, many of these over-priced listings will disappear from the market and we should return to balanced market conditions.

The high inventory level has kept prices relatively stable and it seems we have reached a plateau. Historically, Victoria’s market goes through a 5-7 year alternating cycle of price increases followed by plateaus while the consumers’ purchasing power catches up. We’ve had our growth period and it looks like the plateau is here. Victoria will always remain one of Canada’s most desirable places to live, and as the baby boomer generation nears retirement age, the migration westward should keep our market fairly active compared to many other Canadian centers.

Victoria’s historic pricing cycle

One sector that will see an immediate increase in pricing is in New Home Construction. Where before, only 5% GST was added onto the sale price, now you will see a whopping 12%! Although it’s not quite that simple. Where there were rebates and tax benefits with the GST, the same thing applies to the HST with certain price levels getting maximum rebates or tax credits. I am not even going to try to explain all the different criteria that one must meet in order to achieve certain rebates, but know that the rebate maxes out at a sale price of $525,000. Anything over that is going to be subject to the remaining 12%.

The majority of confusion lies around properties that are only partially completed right now, where some of the property has been constructed with PST built into the price, and the remainder is completed under the HST. There are a number of rules and tables set aside to deal with these particular properties, and if you are purchasing a property that was started before July 1, but completed afterwards, you will want to talk to your lawyer or accountant about how to calculate the tax payable.

For the most part, if you are interested in purchasing new construction that is completed after July 1, the simplest solution is to include HST into the net price. This has two major benefits: 1) By writing the tax into the purchase price, it can now be financed and included as part of your mortgage payment instead of having to pay all the tax in a lump sum at completion. 2) Typically this deal would be written with all rebates and tax benefits going back to the developer, then they can deal with the headache and hassle of trying to figure out what to file. Just for the record, one law office confided that they have not even received the forms from the government that they would need to file an HST rebate yet. I guess the government is going to send them out on Canada Day?

 Look for a surge in nearly-new construction sales over the short term (where the tax has already been paid) until people get a little more comfortable with what the HST is going to mean to their everyday spending. In theory, as the PST is removed from construction costs, the developers will pass that savings on to the consumer, which should then counter-act the short-term price increase that we will see with the HST implementation. In theory. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.