Manitoba

We've all heard of FSBO (fizbo) sellers -- For Sale By Owner. Agents tend to feel that it doesn't make much sense for people to try and sell their homes without the help of an expert. Yet many agents fall into the same trap in their selling...they become PhSBAs! (insert scary music here...dum, dum, dum!)

That's right. Photos Shot By Agent -- PhSBA (fizba). And a very scary sight it can be, too. Photos that are on a slant (I didn't know the Leaning Tower was for sale!), dark, fuzzy, or just plain odd.

This one is a triple threat - fuzzy, dark, AND crooked! By the way, please pay $400,000 for this house.

Now, to be fair, many agents take fine pictures, and some even take fantastic pictures...kind of like some homeowners do an excellent job of selling their homes privately.

But if you are a PhSBA agent, don't worry. There are lots of great real estate photographers out there, and they charge very reasonable rates. It is probably a worthwhile investment to spend a few hundred dollars to make or save a commission of a few thousand dollars.

Now, if you are one of those agents who likes to take photos, but has not been able to devote a lot of time to learning photo techniques, I'll be writing a few blogs with some tips and tricks to get you living off the lens. It's great fun and a wonderful outlet for your artistic creativity...you know that stuff that gets stifled due to the cut and thrust of the real estate business!

So polish off those lenses (with a lens cloth, lens cleaner and a gentle motion moving from the centre towards the outside, for goodness sake!), and get ready to be the best PhSBA agent ever -- or else expect a call from your friendly neighbourhood real estate photographer!

Well, this year appears to be started off with a bang here in Winnipeg! While total sales are down by 8%, the total dollar volume for sales has set a new record for January.

The real success story this year appears to be a 43% increase in condominium sales. This is a welcome change as they seemed to be a little more sluggish last year than was hoped. The number of listings has also increased this year from last year by 13%.

Only 26 % of homes were sold at or above list price this January. This is quite a change from the busy market that Winnipeggers were seeing most of the last few years. It just goes to show that even in a slowing market, if your house is exceptional, you have a good chance of getting what you are asking for and maybe even more this year.

As you can see from the below chart, the most active section of the market is still the $100,000 - $199,000 market with 45% of the total sales.

Winnipeg remains a very affordable city to live in with a strong economy and job market. Our rental vacancies are still among the lowest in Canada, which is putting some upward pressure on property values and rents.

Statistics were provided by Winnipeg Real Estate Association.

Perusing book store shelves recently had me coming across the section on Ernest Hemingway. I stopped short at one book entitled: "To Have and Have Not". While this book doesn't focus on real estate, it does bring to mind some sound advice I wanted to pass along to all my favorite buyers out there.

Let me pre-face by saying that I do not begrudge you your dreams, I want the amazing restored character home on the river with the re-done hardwoods and brand new kitchen too! While most savvy home-buyers make a wish list and stick to a budget, some buyers have a dangerous tendency to lean towards that mindset of having it all, whether they can afford it or not.

Often I find myself in the situation with a buyer who has fallen in love with a type of home or home "ideal" that they simply cannot afford. It happens! They are out for a Sunday stroll to the cafe and happen upon an open house featuring a restored brick beauty from 1920, or maybe they visit a friend who just built a brand new home full of light and space, or the chic warehouse condos on the waterfront. Some buyers can view these places as homes they will have one day, or simply wonderful pieces of art, architecture, and dreams. Then they can continue on with life and regular home hunting with positive gusto, never once comparing the home they can afford to the one they could not.

That is group one.

Now group two. Another story... Not that I don't love the zest for life, and the visceral appreciation for amazingly beautiful homes that I get from this camp, but often a painful reality check is in the works for these wonderful home buyers. Its not an easy thing to do, convince someone that if their budget is $200 000, homes that would otherwise be worth more are simply not a viable option. Value is value, and while wiggle room can exist, its best not to count on it.

My advice for you: Don't look at what your friends have, or what your parents think you should have, or the pretty house down the street that you really want but won't work in your budget. Its a tempting thing to think you are willing to sacrifice Tim Horton's coffee, football tickets and shopping trips just to have that brand new kitchen you are drooling over. But just stop!

Remembering what is truly important in life should be a daily venture, never living to regret something should be another one. So in this instance, appreciate beauty and dream homes for what they are, put owning one on your to do list for sure, but make sure to remember to live in the here and now. There is nothing wrong with just starting out somewhere, working your way up in the world.

Remember that owning a home that needs some work, or is not "perfect" is one of life's adventures all on its own.

For those of you unfamiliar with the fable of "Chicken Little" I will give you a brief re-cap: an old fable about a Chicken (or a Hare in early versions) who believes the sky is falling. The phrase, "The sky is falling" has passed into the English language as a common idiom indicating a hysterical or mistaken belief that disaster is imminent.

So, I ask, is the sky falling in Canada? Will we have a repeat of the 80's when mortgage rates rose so swiftly seemingly overnight that people were losing their homes in the blink of an eye? Will home values crash?

One of the more common themes in the media over the last few months is the progression of the mortgage meltdown debacle in the United States, the "economic crisis" and how that has parlayed into a Canadian recession that we have yet to feel the real brunt of here. Its a disconcerting thing to read all those reports isn't it? Yet for every doomsday report on a National level, there is one detailing how Winnipeg's housing market is still holding strong. I do not discount we are heading into financially trying times, however I think we are living in a unique city in that we seem to be "bucking the national trend" as media outlets have put it.

The most recent report released by Royal LePage echoes the one released by RE/MAX. The report suggests that Winnipeg is holding strong entering 2009. How is this possible some people ask? Well, Winnipeg's home prices have risen dramatically over the last half decade or so, however comparing our statistics to those of other major city centres such as Vancouver, Calgary and Toronto we are still way below the national trend. This fact is helping us avoid a major crash in our market. What you can buy for $200k here, will most likely cost two to four times that in other major cities. So, what you can buy here in Winnipeg, with all the comforts, services and benefits of a major city, we are not doing too badly!

So this is my challenge to you home buyers and sellers on the Manitoba home front. Try to think critically about what facts the media is presenting to the public as a whole. Remember that a lot of those articles are spin offs from the associated press in other provinces, and are also often national reports that don't focus on our unique situation here at home. Read the local reports, talk to local agents and brokers to see their thoughts on the market. Make up your own mind as to what is going to happen. We do not deny that we are facing economically trying times, that we will feel the squeeze eventually is inevitable.

Lastly, don't put off buying a home if you can afford it. If you want or need to move, there is no sense letting anxiety take over; fearing that we will all be thrown out into the streets because of an impending recession will do nothing for your current quality of life and sanity. Are bidding wars over? Most likely. Is the market headed for a balance? I think so.

Here is to happy house hunting and selling for everyone! Cheers!

Winnipeg, Manitoba Outlook for 2009

Winnipeg remains one of the hottest markets in the country for residential real estate, reporting record setting sales for the first nine months of the year.

The market, however, pulled back in the fourth quarter due to rising economic concerns. As a result, an estimated 12,900 homes are expected to change hands in Winnipeg by year-end, a modest decrease from peak levels logged in 2007.

Housing inventory was relatively tight through 2008. With a limited supply of listings for most of the year, values smashed all previous records with the average price up 22 per cent over one year ago from $170,502 to $207,882. Many purchasers experienced frustration with bidding wars but there were fewer than in 2007.

Multiple offers are still occurring and will continue in isolated situations but not nearly as frequently.

Inventory has increased in the last quarter and what was previously a seller's market has become more balanced. As a result, average time on market required to sell a home will increase from 29 days in 2008, to 35 days or more in 2009.

Spurred by move-up buyers looking for bigger homes and better amenities, the most active price range has been in the mid-range from $160,000 to $199,000. First-timers, including new immigrants and children of baby boomers, fuelled activity in the $130,000 to $159,000 range. With even greater demand from retirees, the condominium market is playing a bigger role than ever before. New buildings geared to retirees are underway in The Forks and on Waterfront Drive.

More affordable warehouse conversions are also springing up, thanks to incentives from the city to invigorate the downtown core. Luxury homes were also coveted in 2008, with a record number of $1million+ homes changing hands. Despite consumer uncertainty created by volatility in the stock markets and the global economic crisis, Winnipeg's local economy remains healthy. New home construction is expected to continue at a breakneck pace with 5,200 new units projected. Net migration will be a dominant factor driving demand. International migration will be among the highest levels on record, owing to Manitoba's successful Provincial Nominee Program. With one of the best employment rates in Canada, the loss of migrants from Manitoba to other provinces will also remain

low by historical standards. A robust labour market continues to be both a sign and source of vigour for the Manitoba economy. The province is benefiting from a softening Canadian dollar and high commodity prices for grains and base metals supporting provincial income growth.

Th e market for 2009 will be balanced as slow, steady growth continues. Inventory levels are expected to

increase by 10-to-15 per cent over 2008. Values will remain stable with minimal increases. The average

selling price is forecast to appreciate two per cent to $212,000 by year-end. The number of homes due to change hands is forecast to match 2008 levels.

Remax Western Canada Hosing Outlook 2009