The weather has turned into the summer we didn't have -- supposed to be 30C on Sunday! The Fall Fair (this has been going for well over 100 years, now) is a two day event, this Saturday and Sunday. Last year, over 6000 people came to the Fair (it's an easy day trip to Salt Spring, from Victoria, mid-Vancouver Island communities, and from Vancouver), and it's expected that this year's event will match that interest. It's a fun event, with a blending of the original rural past and the interest in crafts and organic gardening, plus the "new". Horse events take place, plus live music, the pie ladies will be there with that delicious blackberry pie, the 4-H Club events, etc. If you're on Island, don't miss this gem!
Tonight, at the Lion's Hall, renowned poet Peter Levitt is presenting his latest work. See you there! (Reading starts at 7:30).
Have you done the Sculpture Walk at Hastings House's garden, yet? Presented by Salt Spring Woodworks, this is something to take in -- it runs through to end of October, but a weekend like this one is the perfect time for a meander through the Hastings House grounds. You will be very impressed with the sculpture work on display, here!
The last weekend this month will showcase the 9th annual Apple Festival on Salt Spring. Until the 1930s, the apples for the B.C. marketplace were grown on Salt Spring Island & on Mayne Island. Over time, people have brought back the old orchards, and many varieties lost to other areas are flourishing on Salt Spring. Enjoy!
Interested in photography? Catch Larry Melious' work at ArtSpring's Gallery, this weekend, too. A very evocative show!
Wander the galleries in Ganges Village: Jill Louise-Campbell Gallery, across from Tree House Cafe; Steffich Fine Art Gallery & J. Mitchell Gallery in Grace Point Square, and remember that many of the studios, dotting the Island landscape, are open throughout September. Salt Spring Woodworks showcases fine wood furniture and accessories, at their Churchill Road location.
With this weather, remember all those Al Fresco dining choices -- Calvin's, Salt Spring Inn, Moby's, Harbour House Hotel, Rock Salt Cafe in Fulford, Seaside Kitchen in Vesuvius, Mix on the Boardwalk, Bocado's Bistro, Auntie Pesto's, Piccolo's, and tables in the sun, for snacks/coffees, at Cafe Italia, Rendezvous Cafe (across from Moby's), TJ Beans, Tree House Cafe. Take advantage of the high pressure system, and enjoy the best of B.C.'s coastal september-still-summer mode!
Looking for some real estate, while you're here? Please give me a call, and I will do my best to connect you with "your" special property on lovely Salt Spring Island!
email: liread33@gmail.com
Thank you!
September 11, 2008.
Let's remember, today, the horrific events of September 11, 2001.
People simply going about their daily business, saying goodbye to
families, going to work, flying from one city to another to visit friends,
relatives, return to school, on business...a simple day,
like any other, and the weather was a superb
September-still-summer morning....the victims
of the terrorist acts committed that day were simply
living their lives, and none of them
could foresee the tragedy about to erupt.
Cell phones had already altered the landscape of communication,
though, and the victims were able, in many cases, to call loved
ones. People on the second plane may therefore
have known about the first plane crashing into the World Trade
Center.
There's a shot, in the film Moonstruck, of Cher walking down
a street, kicking at a can, and in the background those two
towers are reaching into the sky. Whenever I watch a rerun
of that film, it makes me sad.
Life does go on, and one doesn't "remember", on a daily basis,
"anything", whether global or personal, with that kind of immediate
aftermath intensity. Maybe that's why humans need
specific dates, for that kind of large picture "remembering"
(Thanksgiving, Remembrance Day, etc.).
Wherever you are today, and whatever you are doing,
take a few moments to remember the
brave acts of human courage and kindness that occurred
that day.
Although there may have been warnings, with earlier events,
the 9/11 events cut the 21st Century off from any vestiges
of the 20th, and we were pushed into a renewed sense of
life's fragility. Decisions since have been different than those
taken before, even at an individual level.
In understanding the fragility of life, and its impermanence,
it makes one more aware of the importance of living each
day to its fullest, & the importance of letting those near
and dear to us know that we value and love them.
Maybe today one could buy a rose, and keep it on a desk
at work, or on a table at home, and with this emblem
remember the bravery and the sadness and the fear and
the kindnesses of that day. A remembering as
"homage" to those most deeply involved....
Here's a great view taken from the "south end" of Salt Spring Island, looking
over the other Southern Gulf Islands, towards Mt. Baker, in Washington State.
The B.C. Ferry in the view plys Georgia Strait between Vancouver and Victoria,
and links Vancouver Island to the Lower Mainland of B.C. The Canadian
Gulf Islands are under the jurisdiction of the Provincial Government, & growth
is severely limited on all these lovely islands (the government mandated body
that looks after same is called the Islands Trust, & its mandate is "to preserve
and protect", for the benefit of all B.C. residents, the enviromentally beautiful
Gulf Islands. I live and work on Salt Spring Island, which is the largest
and best serviced of the Southern Gulf Islands, and I sell real estate (since
1989) on all of the Southern grouping (Galiano Island, Mayne Island, Saturna
Island, Pender Island, & the "water access only" ones in between -- Wise Island,
Parker Island, Gossip Island, Secret Island, etc.), as well as on special Salt
Spring Island. More information? Check out my website, at: www.liread.com
& give me a call. "See Li for Successful Solutions!" is my promise to my client base.
Look forward to hearing from you!
Things to do list:
1. know your inventory. If someone enters your floor day, and asks for specific property information, do you know, immediately, what properties would fit the potential buyer's criteria? Do you have to do a search, right then, for same, or can you sound like "the expert", and suggest 3 to 5 items, immediately? If the answer is "no", then you need to use some of this supposed "down time", and do some drivebys/do some random searches for a "mythical buyer", just so you will "be prepared", and be able to respond without a lot of computer or paper time. Don't you think that would instil confidence, in any buyer, that they've lucked out and contacted the "local expert"?
2. keep clutter at bay. I don't know who thinks this is a paperless world, but it's essential to keep that desk surface "clean". Try sitting in the buyer's seat, sometime, and look with a critical eye at your office space. Maybe stagers could take a look at realtor offices for a change, and not just at their listings!
3. have a day, at least twice a month, weekly if possible, for "yourself", but not just to "goof off". Instead, do something to improve your mind. If all you think about is real estate, how to sell a house, get a buyer, you will be putting up shutters around your mind. We're in a people business, and that means connecting with people in a very personal way. Have something else to talk about, other than homes, so that you come across as an interesting person, in your own right -- you're not "just your job", are you?
4. don't be afraid to hire someone to make sure that you're totally in the digital world. Even baby steps are key, here. It's just a communication device. At the end of the day, you still have to be knowledgable about point # 1, and be doing something about point # 3.
5. if you have a family, remember to include them in your business, even in small ways, so that the business is seen as a shared responsibility and successes are a "team effort". There are no successful prima donnas, but there are a lot of failed relationships in this "always" business of communication and connection. Bring your "nearest and dearest" circle along for the ride. Inclusion, not exclusion!
6. your thoughts? Always welcome!
So, all my life I've been driving station wagons, and then SUVs, it seems. You know how it goes...the kids have to be transported, then while teaching there were teams to be driven around, in extracurricular work, and now, in real estate, in the rural area I work in (only one paved road, and lots of dirt driveway style roadways!) it needs a 4 X 4. Of course, you've guessed it -- my daydream is a Porsche Carrera, preferably red with black interior, or "black on black". I once followed a Porsche down the highway, en route to a real estate board seminar, and enjoyed the daydream (it was silver, though). I also heard, at a real estate convention, that a city realtor would meet people at his office, for showings, and then say "follow me" -- he would lead the way, in his Porsche Boxter, and the clients would follow. In my area, people get off a floatplane or a ferry, and they're in my life for the day -- they've come specially, and so the realtor is the driver, from one end of the Island to the other, for the duration. Wouldn't work, then, this "follow me" routine, but I did like that realtor's style! If I don't do something about this daydream soon, though, I'll start to look ridiculous, like those people who still maintain a pony tail, even though their hair has receded in their forward "view". Meantime, I enjoyed the lead article in today's local newspaper's Home Section -- it's about a Poggenpohl kitchen called Porsche Design Kitchen P'7340. It looks very very cool. Doesn't have that throaty roar of a Porsche, though! And your dream is...???
 |
|
|
Successfully connecting buyers & sellers on Salt Spring Island & on all Southern Gulf Islands, since 1989. I offer superb market knowledge & work for the best interests of my clients. See Li!
I love my career, and have been a real estate agent on Salt Spring Island, also selling on the adjacent Southern Gulf
Islands (Galiano, Mayne, Pender, Saturna, & water access only options, in between (Wise, Parker, Secret, Gossip, DeCourcy,
Phillimore Point), since 1989.
Living & working on a Gulf Island is very different from a "city scape". Boats & floatplanes are also a part of one's
work life, not just cars & highways (although the sea is just a highway, really).
I now work under the Vancouver Real Estate Board, and achieved Gold Award MLS recognition for the past ten consecutive years, while at the Victoria Board (MLS President's Award for same). In the various companies i've worked for, since 1989, I was always a 'top producer', and connected many sellers and buyers. Sales awards (at company levels, MLS/Board levels, & internationally -- references upon request) are an indicator, from one's peers in the industry, of excellence in customer service.
By the way, "Li" is a nick-name for Liane, and it rhymes with "see". Thanks!
Say hello to Bobbi, my "unlicenced assistant"! Jack Russell Terriers are "smart cookies",and Bobbi
is also a calm one (yes, it's true!). When you view property with me, she's sometimes along for
the ride -- I supply the cookies!
Salt Spring Island and the Southern Gulf Islands are "governed" by the B.C. Provincial Government,
under the Islands Trust.
The Trust came into being in 1974, with a "preserve & protect" mandate, to keep the Islands as these
pristine and park-like enviroments, for the benefit of all B.C. residents, "forever". Two trustees per
Island (not representative of population, then) are elected every three years, in the B.C. civic elections,
to manage the Trust bylaws/official community plan, on each Island. These strong zoning/density bylaws
control (& effectively "cap") growth. Limited supply, and a strong buyer demand, usually result in higher prices, regardless of market trend in play at any given time. There will always be a low inventory of properties for sale, then, on any Gulf Island, due to this Islands Trust mandate.
There is no industry on the Gulf Islands. Salt Spring Island is the largest and best serviced of the Southern
Gulf Islands (Gabriola, Thetis, Galiano, Salt Spring, Pender, Mayne, & Saturna Islands are the ferry accessed
options), with a year round lifestyle, and all the amenities required in the 21st Century.
One doesn't "have to" leave Salt Spring Island for anything, but it's easy to go to Vancouver or to Victoria or to
mid-Vancouver Island locations, on day trips. There are three separate ferries that service the Island, plus
three regularly scheduled (year round) floatplane services, so it's very simple to do daytrips to major centres,
and to return easily to the Island's charm. In the "season", there's also a floatplane service from Seattle to
Salt Spring Island.
Low supply coupled with high demand, though, often results in price escalation. The internet erased geography,
and so the buyer profile for this area is mainly from out of province, and often from out of country.
Although the Islands Trust wasn't set up to create an expensive "enclave" area, it has had this result. As soon as
one "caps" growth, for whatever reason (in this case, for environmental protection reasons), and the buyer
profile is a global one (post-internet), which means more buyers than inventory, regardless of real estate market
trends, at any given time, one has an expensive buy-in locale.
Sellers and realtors do not set a market; only buyers do that. The Islands Trust, however, is responsible for a
no-growth policy that guarantees an escalating price point in the real estate marketplace.
I have the knowledge and the expertise and the strong negotiating skills to help you to have a pleasing experience, whether selling or buying.
This is a magical Island, and I look forward to introducing it to you.
Please ask for me, by name, when you visit Salt Spring Island. I have an office in "downtown Ganges". A quick call to my cell (250-537-7647) will allow us to connect. My office is located at: # 4 - 105 Rainbow Road, across from the Harbour.
P.S. "Li" rhymes with "see"! "See Li for Successful Solutions" is my promise to my clientele.
Look forward to meeting you!
Toll free: 1-866-405-9229
liread33@gmail.com
It's definitely different than selling in a city enviroment.
For one thing, I work in what is known as a secondary home or discretionary market. No one "has to"
move to Salt Spring Island or another Southern Gulf Island -- it's all by choice!
In a primary residence (city) area, there might actually be "comparables".
In a discretionary/secondary home marketplace, though, it's full of "custom" homes and even
undeveloped land will be its unique self, without any "comparable".
Difficult for an appraiser, then, as there is so much that is specific to each property, with no real equivalent
anywhere else on the Island, plus, with a limited inventory "ever" (there's that Islands Trust, and its cap on
growth), it means the listing inventory is never very large, and so the "solds" statistics aren't very informative.
Time lags are a part of all sales, too. First, the prospective buyer has to hear about this area and
then they make plans to travel here, to view.
The entire Coast is very appealing, and so often the Island gets "interviewed", and then so do
other coastal communities. One has to sell the Island, first, thus, before one can get around to selling
a particular property on it.
Two visits, then, if not three, become the pattern, and since the buyers aren't
"local", the time between trips can be as long as 5 to 7 months!
It can take, then, between one and four years to sell any property on a Gulf Island, including on Salt Spring
Island, and the main reason for this is because the buyer isn't "local", and the decision to purchase is a "choice",
both in the "where" and in the "when".
This time lag feature makes a "days on market" tag on an mls listing irrelevant.
In my area, there's a weekly local paper, and a monthly real estate supplement. Neither of these
are seen until the buyer arrives on Island, and so they do not offer an advertising vehicle that "brings"
a buyer. No one googles Salt Spring Island, or the Southern Gulf Islands, unless they're encouraged to
do so.
Print ads, then, in targeted venues, where the buyer profile lives, are still important in a
non-local/discretionary marketplace. If you think you saw an ad by me, in your area, you probably did!
I hope you responded, and went onto my principal website (www.liread.com).
We all do "floor duty days", but open houses don't work here, as the buyer isn't local. We're getting our
own radio station, but it's not up and running yet, so there's no t.v. or radio media spots, either. Signage
on a lawn (or up on a tree, if you're going by in a boat, and would see that more easily) is apparent, but,
again, not viewed until the buyer physically arrives on Island.
People don't move around on the Island; they arrive, they're here, then, if they have to leave
(usually only for personal reasons), they list. Then comes the search for the buyer,
who lives somewhere else in the world!
This non-local aspect to the buyer profile means that a realtor has to keep an eye on market
conditions in those buyer areas, as the B.C. market outlook won't have much relevance.
I wouldn't live anywhere else, though! This is an exceptional lifestyle choice!
If you drop into Salt Spring, please ask for me by name -- I'm the Managing Broker, of Sea to Sky Premier
Properties (Salt Spring), and I have an office in "downtown" Ganges Village (in the Clement, Murphy, Woodward law
office building, at the corner of the main road (Lower Ganges Road) & Rainbow Road. There's parking behind,
off Rainbow Road. My office (# 4 - 105 Rainbow Road) faces onto the main street, and enjoys a Harbour view. It's
adjacent to Stone Walrus Gallery). A quick call to my cell (250-537-7647) will connect us.
I look forward to meeting you, and to offering my expertise and my superlative market knowledge
and my strong negotiating skills for your benefit, during your search for your special Island gem.
Looking forward to your call!
P.S. Here's one of those "differences":
Selling real estate on Salt Spring Island & the Southern Gulf Islands is not like it would
be in a city or a town marketplace.
I was driving up a roughed in roadway, on a heavily forested acreage, recently, and
there, at the side of the roughed in driveway, were two baby racoons. The clients took
these photos, before we bundled them into my dog's car bed, wrapped in towels that I keep
for wiping off a muddy dog, on rainy days, so that we could deliver them to the Salt
Spring Wildlife Rescue Centre.
That was an interesting visit, too! Looking for a place to give a charitable donation?
Think of the Wildlife Centre -- on Lang's Road, it's not open to the public, and they have
a unique project there. Saving abandoned wildlife is one of them. (Yes, we did check with
the Wildlife Centre before we brought the babies in. Sometimes the mother is just off
foraging for food, but in the case of these racoons, they really were abandoned).
It was an adventure!
liread33@gmail.com
www.liread.com
Large list of satisfied clients upon request. Privacy is an important concern, especially in a small
community; I can supply references, but I prefer not to place same in this venue. Thank you!
With twenty years in the business, successfully connecting sellers and buyers on Salt Spring Island
and on the Southern Gulf Islands (Galiano, Mayne, Pender, Saturna & water access only islands
in between: Wise, Secret, Gossip, Parker, DeCourcy, Hudson, etc.), I bring to each sales transaction:
enthusiasm, expertise, superb market knowledge, strong negotiating skills, and a sincere desire to create
a successful buying or selling experience for you, the client.
Referrals are welcomed and are cared for.
"See Li for Successful Solutions" is my promise to my clientele. ("Li" rhymes with "see").
P.S. No one wants the cell tower near them, on this beautiful and quirky Island, and so when you call my
cell (250-537-7647), you might get the voice mail Please leave me a message. I do return all calls, asap, & will
find a cell zone to do so!
Appreciated!
liread33@gmail.com
Toll free: 1-866-405-9229
ActiveRain Corp. is not responsible for the accuracy of the site's content (which is written by members of the ActiveRain Real Estate Network) and does not endorse the views of the real estate agents, mortgage brokers, and others listed here.
Powered by the ActiveRain Real Estate Network
© 2009 ActiveRain Corp. All Rights Reserved
