Real estate growth Barrhaven and Ottawa
Increase year over year 2016So, you live in the GTA or the Golden Horse Shoe area of Ontario. You have a family and you want to get into a first home or larger home. Well, good luck!
For those of you already home owners you must be thinking that you have hit the jackpot. The value of your home has been increasing by leaps and bounds. It’s on the news every day. Why not sell your home now and reap the profits? Well, you still need somewhere to live don’t you? So if you think in a booming market you’re going to sell high and buy low, you might want to re-think that.
Ottawa offers a great place to live and work. Remember that dream; work, life, balance??
Click the link for a PDF view. Increase year over year 2016
As this recent newspaper ad demonstrates, the real estate market in Ottawa has been stable and growing over 60 years. In that time, (1961, 1962, 1994, 1995 & 1996) only 5 years have shown negative growth. There have been the few odd years in the early 1970’s that growth in value was explosive but for the most part, Ottawa is stable and steady with very few booms and almost no busts. It’s like blue chip stocks, not overly exciting but good, steady and safe growth.
Want more info on the Ottawa market, send an email to homesbyhartman@realtyagent.com and we’ll be happy get you the information you want and need.
Hot market statistics are in the news again as they are every Spring. The good news for sellers is that so far this year it has been a seller’s market, for the most part.
Simply, it’s a dangerous assumption to think and act like these news bits and stats are a sure thing that your home has gained in value and demand. It may be hard to believe but even in a city the size of Ottawa (as compared with much larger centres such as Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal) that section of the city only a few kilometres away can have a different real estate market.
A perfect example is the Glebe and lets say Barrhaven. Yes, there is a large spread of housing in between but for this example it highlights our thoughts.
The Glebe is always a hot market. Close to downtown, Parliament Hill and trendy living style. There is a shortage of housing as the neighbourhoods in and around the Glebe have already been built up. Westboro has been referred to as the NEW Glebe. It also offers trendy shopping, desirable housing and closer to downtown than the suburbs. But, like the Glebe, the amount of new construction is limited. Barrhaven is family oriented, affordable, lots of choice in housing, lots of land for continuous building and a great place to raise a family with lots of schools and shopping. The amount of housing available from resale and new construction can generally service the demand.
So, when we hear that the Ottawa market has had an overall increase in real estate values, caution must be taken. Price can rise dramatically in the Glebe & Westboro yet fall in Barrhaven. There are many reasons this can happen but without getting into a long discussion, supply and demand is the core reason.
The moral of the story?? Have a professional REALTOR® who knows your neighbourhood do an in depth Comparative Market Analysis or CMA. This is the process in which we search our vast data base and pull actively for sale properties and those recently sold that come as close as possible to matching your home. We look at several criteria when producing your customised CMA. Location, size, number of rooms including number of bathrooms and bedrooms, amenities such as finished basements, hot tubs, swimming pools, fencing and others, age of home, improvements, upgrades, updates, renovations and other factors.
Don’t rely on news reports and overall stats. Call or write us today for your FREE CMA!
613-825-9710 or homesbyhartman@realtyagent.com
“Spring market primed for a competitive season ahead!”
FEBRUARY 2016 MARKET HIGHLIGHTS:
- 1010 Residential properties were sold through Ottawa MLS® (including 233 in the Condominium class and 777 residential properties)
- Average Sale Prices: $417, 374 (Res +8.5%) and $258,397 (Condo +4%)
- Increased number of residential properties selling in the $750K-1Million resulted in a higher Average Sale Price.
- 2066 homes listed, up almost 25% over January 2017
- Most active price point was in the $300K-$399K range, followed by the $400,000 to $499,999 range, accounting for 54.6 per cent of the market (combined)
Information below taken from OREB
OTTAWA, March 3, 2017 – Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 1,010 residential properties in February through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service® System, compared with 908 in February, an increase of 11.2 per cent. The five-year average for February sales is 872.
“Numbers continue to indicate a positive trend for Ottawa as a whole,” says Rick Eisert, President of the Ottawa Real Estate Board. “Even with the additional day in February last year due to the leap year, sales this year are up in both the residential and condo property classes. Keep in mind though, that all real estate is local, and that prices and conditions will vary from neighbourhood to neighbourhood.”
“A total of 2,066 homes were listed this month, up almost 25 per cent from January, while inventory on hand still remains low compared to last year,” explains Eisert. “Now is a great time to list your home in anticipation of the increase of buyer interest in the spring that will pick up as early as March.”
According to the meticulous reports on https://mirvishgehry.ca/about-projectcore/ , February’s sales included 233 in the condominium property class, and 777 in the residential property class. The condominium property class includes any property, regardless of style (i.e. detached, semi-detached, apartment, townhouse, etc.), which is registered as a condominium, as well as properties which are co-operatives, life leases and timeshares. The residential property class includes all other residential properties.
The average sale price of a residential-class property sold in February in the Ottawa area was $417,374, an increase of 8.5 per cent over February 2016. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $258,397, an increase of four per cent over February 2016.
“This month revealed a larger average price gain in the residential property class than usual due to an increase in the number of properties sold in the $750,000 to $999,999 and over $1 million price range, similar to what occurred with condo prices last month,” explains Eisert. “For example, in the over $1 million price range alone, there was a significant increase in sales over last year; 20 units sold in 2017 versus 6 units in 2016. It is important to note that dramatic changes in the average sale price is not indicative of all property values. We encourage buyers and sellers to talk to a REALTOR® for more information about the housing market outlook where they live, or want to live.”
“In the residential market the most active price point was the $300,000 to $399,999 range for the month of February, followed by the $400,000 to $499,999 range, combined accounting for 54.6 per cent of the market. The condominium market was most active in the $150,000 to $249,999 price range, accounting for 54.9 per cent of the market,” says Eisert. “In addition to residential and condominium sales, OREB members assisted clients with renting 392 properties since the beginning of the year.”
As the Spring market gets started and more and more properties come on line “For Sale”, you’re bound to start seeing a growing number of “Coming Soon” signs or banners on these homes. It’s suppose to get buyers excited and move fast. It lets the buyer believe that once this property hits the market it will go fast as demand must be building!
In order to have a “For Sale” sign on a property that is on the MLS® system, there must be a listing agreement between the seller and agent. This simply means that the home is listed under contract but the seller has decided to not allow the public in for various reasons. There can be legitimate reasons for not wanting buyers through your home just yet. Maybe the home isn’t ready and needs repairs of painting. maybe new carpeting or hardwood floors have been ordered but not yet installed. OR, maybe the listing agent has his/her own motive.
AGENT MOTIVE
A few months ago, CBC’s Market Place did a story on the real estate industry and the subject of “Coming Soon” and other tactics like this were explored. Buyers, using their own agents to represent them would try to get into a listed property only to be told that there were no showings yet or the property was “Coming Soon”. It turns out that the listing agent actually sold the property to someone he was working with and “double Ended” the sale (meaning he was able to collect both the listing and the selling side of the commission). The other buyer was shocked. Not only did the sale take place during the “Coming Soon” period but sold for less that the buyer, who really wanted that home, was willing to pay. This is not an isolated incident. Many of the agents secretly interviewed by Market Place boasted that they double end up to 80% of their listings. We’ve been in the industry for almost 30 years and we can tell you that even 50% of sales by one agent (the listing agent) is a staggering number. In the hotter markets such as Toronto, it seems to happen often but this practise is catching on in other markets including Ottawa.
WHO BENEFITS?
Who benefits really is the key. The client, in this case the Seller, should benefit fist and foremost. We believe that the agents should not benefit at all except for the commission that the seller and agent have agreed to in a written listing contract. One primary pillar of our industry is to work in the best interest of our clients. Another is to be fair to all whether they are our client, another agent’s client or just members of the public.
The benefit of “Coming Soon” can benefit the seller by creating excitement and potentially multiple offers but does that out-way the benefit of exposing the seller’s property to hundreds of potential buyers and their agents? The evidence is no! Keeping a property on the QT offers no benefit to the seller. Why? Because without MLS® exposure, the number of prospective buyer who will see that a specific property is available will be extremely limited to the listing agent’s own contacts. The more exposure, the more viewings, the more activity the better the results. This is why the MLS® system was developed, to give access to all buyers and agents in order to create the highest demand.
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ARE ALL AGENTS ALIKE?
The simple and clear answer is no. Just because an agent uses “Coming Soon” does not mean that there intentions are questionable. They may believe that this tactic works, and in some cases it does. The seller may request that the agent use this tactic and as long as it’s done properly, legally and within our Board’s rules, we have no issue with it. But be cautious when hiring an agent that pushes this tactic on you. Make sure that the representative explains exactly how the tactic works and what he or she is and is not allowed to do. Make sure they explain the pros and cons. In other words, make a smart and informed decision.
We are always here to answer your questions on this or any other subject. Please write us at homesbyhartman@realtyagent.com
Just drive around Barrhaven these days and you’ll see tons of construction both residential and commercial real estate. And of course they are all welcome signs of the area’s amazing growth. Costco is under construction now, the new Toyota dealership has been open for a while and three more dealerships are under construction on the West side of the 416. The Greenbank underpass looks like it is nearing completion and another new shopping area will be started near that location soon. Barrhaven real estate values grow with the times.
And that’s not all! ProSlide Technology Inc., a designer of water park attractions around the world and owner of Cantley’s Mont Cascades, has been busy acquiring land around the 100 acres it already owns at the corner of Bankfield Road and Brophy Drive, filing new site plan approvals to the City of Ottawa and meeting with city councillors from that area as the company begins to turn its focus back to opening Alottawata Ottawa in time for summer 2019.
And don’t forget the hundreds of new homes that are being built in the area. Now you can live in Barrhaven as a child and continue living here as a senior citizen with many existing and some new senior living facilities. This will allow Grandma and Grandpa to stay close to their families for many years and live in Barrhaven real estate.
What does this mean for your home? It means that if you live in an older home you have got to keep it up to standards. With so much competition in real estate sales and changes to the way homes are designed, keeping your older home up-to-date and modern can be expensive and a challenge. In order to keep your home up to date, you must also look into the condition of your windows and shutters. Look up plantation shutters Melbourne to choose from their wide range of shutters and windows.
Want large commercial fiberglass planters that can house trees, all sorts of plants, etc? They are made with expert craftsmanship and also you get to customize them, do follow the above link.
Start with the basics. Windows, doors, roof, furnace, central air, paint and landscaping. Get those items repaired or replaced and half the battle is over. If your bathrooms and kitchens are looking old and tired, no one else will find them attractive and when selling, a buyer will hit you harder in the wallet than the actual cost of bringing those room up to a modern look.
There are so many website and brick and mortar stores to look at when it comes to updating your home. It might be worth it to engage a designer to help you with this. And do these updates well before you want to sell so you can at least enjoy a few years of your investment.
Source: H2 Real Estate.
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