The City of Winnipeg has just added to the cost of purchasing/selling a home in Winnipeg. A city council committee has approved a plan that will require homeowners to prove all additions, sheds, decks and other work complies with zoning regulations before properties are sold. The bylaw requires home buyers to obtain zoning memorandums within two months of purchasing residential properties.

In effect, home sellers will wind up paying for the memorandums, which will cost $100 for new homes or $180 for existing homes. The city plans to spend $301,000 to hire five additional inspectors to ensure the memoranda are processed quickly enough to ensure property sales are not affected. Some Real Estate experts have expressed skepticism five new inspectors will enable the city to keep up with demand. They also claim the real cost to people selling their homes will be well over $180, as some will be required to obtain surveyors' certificates at an additional cost of $300 to $500.

Some other changes to the Real Estate market were announced earlier this month by the finance minister Jim Flaherty. After determining earlier this year that it was not a good economic decision to increase interest rates the finance minister recently announced the following changes to mortgage lending.

• Borrowers will be required to meet the standards for a five-year fixed rate        mortgage. The maximum amount that Canadians can withdraw when refinancing their mortgages will be lowered from 95 per cent to 90 per cent of the value of their homes.
• Minimum 20 per cent down payment for government-backed mortgage insurance on non-owner-occupied properties purchased for speculation.     

I am available at anytime to discuss the Real Estate market. Get the FACTS. Whether buying, selling or if you just have questions, call me. I would be pleased to assist you, your friends or your family with your Real Estate needs.

Winnipeg’s Real Estate market shook off early year recession concerns and another major flood to post a much better second half and end the year with a strong result. It is a reflection of strong market fundamentals and the continued strength of the local economy which is supporting increased population growth.

MLS Real Estate sales numbered 12,182 in 2009, off only 7.4% from the record setting year of 2007. The average days on the market for sales was 29 days in 2009, 33% of all sales sold for greater than list price, 10% sold at list price and 57% sold for less than list price. Most impressive was the fact that the dollar volume of sales was 2.5 billion dollars, a new record for Winnipeg.

Resale housing transactions generate significant economic activity in and of themselves. For every house sale, it generates $40,000 worth of economic spin-offs. If you put MLS residential sales in 2009 at 11,382 allowing for removal of vacant lots, commercial properties, mobile homes and rural properties, you arrive at a total economic impact of over $450 million. Direct and indirect jobs are created as well.

In December the Bank of Canada had floated the idea of raising interest rates to cool off Canada’s hot Real Estate market. On January 11th in a speech in Edmonton, bank official David Wolf ruled out increasing interest rates to discourage mortgage lending. That would mean cooling off all economic activity. Wolf said “We would, in essence, be dousing the entire Canadian economy with cold water, just as it emerges from recession."

It appears with sustained low interest rates and consistent demand for housing 2010 will be yet another strong year for Real Estate sales in Winnipeg.

I am available at anytime to discuss the Real Estate market. Get the FACTS. Whether buying, selling or if you just have questions, call me anytime. I would be pleased to assist you, your friends or your family with your Real Estate needs.