It’s an interesting time in real estate with so many different factors to consider when trying to speculate what will happen next, will prices continue to rise, flatten or fall. Many of the media reports we see speak very generally of national market conditions and price movements which we know vary substantially provincially, regionally and even within various property types, price ranges and neighbourhoods in individual cities.

It makes simple economic sense that the recent mortgage rule changes will have a negative impact on consumer demand and slow the market, as intended. The borrowing power of first time buyers and those with less than 20% down was immediately reduced by more than 15%. The result is that many of those buyers have put their plans

The total number of sales for the Victoria Real Estate Board in September this year declined for the fourth consecutive month to 781 down from the record setting peak 1,289 sales in May 2016 but are still historically high and up 10% from just 704 sales in September of 2015. The Neal Estate Team has been on fire and we have maintained record levels of sales continuing to average a sale a day for the past few months.

The total number of listings available for sale remains very low at just 2,061 at the end of September. This is 40% lower than the 3,478 available at the end of September 2015 and is as low as I can remember in my 25 years in the business since 1991.

The continuing strong demand combined with low inventory has continued to pressure

New rules announced today in Ottawa for mortgage qualifying significantly affects qualifying for home purchases. In short, up until today a borrower could qualify on the best rate they can find, currently as low as 2.19% for a 5 year term. Now the qualifying must be based on the posted 5 year rate which is presently averages 4.64%.

They are also going to crackdown on foreign investors presently using the loophole for tax exemption as principal residence. Will they target speculators and flippers who avoid taxes with this next?

See the Finance Minister's Press Release and the story as reported by CBC News below.

It will be interesting to see the impact of these measures on our superheated market. Please post and share your thoughts! We welcome

Every day I reflect in appreciation for my good fortune and feel very blessed for the opportunity to help others and to give back. Those with generous giving hearts know exactly what I mean when I say that "it feels selfish to give", for the feeling of joy that accompanies giving. It's euphoric and addictive. We can't give too much, it will always come back to you and more.

The spirit of giving extends throughout the RE/MAX organization internationally and I have the awesome good fortune to call thousands of kind and generous spirited colleagues "friend".

One such friend is Bruce Johnson from Wasaga Beach, Ontario. I first met Bruce at conference wiping away tears following him sharing his story on stage in front of a few thousand RE/MAX Agents.

Following the introduction of the new 15% tax on foreign buyers in Metro Vancouver there has been much discussion and speculation on the impact, if any, we were likely to see in Victoria. From my personal observations we have not seen an increase in foreign buyers coming to Greater Victoria. We have seen a decline in the number of inquiries from residents of the lower mainland.

The reality in our marketplace is that we are continuing to experience record sales with upward pressure on prices due to the lack of properties for sale. We have the lowest inventory we’ve had in 20 years with just 2,094 active listings at the end of August 2016 down 43.2% from 3,688 listing at the end of August 2015. There were 883 properties sold in August, up 19.2% from 741

There is much controversy around the new tax on real estate purchased by foreign buyers in Metro Vancouver. There is widespread public support based on the notion that it will make real estate more accessible and affordable to middle class Vancouver residents. There is also much skepticism over the reality of it actually having any positive impact in that regard.

The implementation and imposition of the tax on existing sales agreements that had not yet completed has reportedly directly compromised more than 400 transactions where the purchasers are finding themselves now short of funds and unable to close. This in turn leads to a domino effect of those home sellers having already committed to new purchases also being unable to complete. We will most

The trend of increased sales, fewer listing and record breaking sales continued in July 2016 for Greater Victoria with 972 sales in July, 22% more than the 796 sold in July 2015. The number of active listings also remains low with 2,161 active listings at the end of July 2016, down 45% from 3,942 at the end of July 2015. The ratio of sales to listings remains tipped in favour of sellers with just a 2.2 month supply!

The trend over the past year of fewer listings and increased sales continues to apply upward pressure on prices. The Home Price Index of single family homes in Victoria’s core increased 23.6% from $599,800 in July 2015 to $741,100 in July 2016.

It will take time to tell how our Victoria market may be affected by the new legislation

With the reduced supply available for sale as expected there was a 9% decline to 1,174 sales last month compared to May 2016’s record setting 1,289 sales. This remains historically high and 29% higher than the 910 properties sold in June of 2015.

It seems certain that there would undoubtedly be more sales if there were more available, however, supply is short with only 2,289 available listings at the end of June, down 43% from the 4,003 available at the end of June 2015. This equates to slightly less than just a 2 month overall supply and is continuing to result in upward pressure on prices from many competing buyers.

Year over year from June 2015 to June 2015 the overall MLS Home Price Index Benchmark for homes in Victoria’s Core is up 22% from

I welcome recent measures announced by our Premier to improve the level of professionalism and consumer confidence in BC real estate.

The current consequences for unethical and incompetent agents have been too weak and have led to an erosion of our professionalism giving us all a bad name.

Most agents are good, hard working, ethical, experienced and provide valuable trusted service to their clients. The bar needs to be raised to ensure that all are measuring up to acceptable standards.

A huge and rapidly growing problem that I haven't seen mentioned or discussed is the expanding number of part time agents which was forced on us to accept by the Federal Government Competition Bureau. The result is many casual, inexperienced, under-trained,

It’s an exciting time to be in real estate in Victoria. It can also be stressful, especially for home buyers who are competing for a very short supply of listings. Our team has developed and engaged new strategies to assist both buyers and sellers giving them maximum advantages in these unprecedented market conditions.

With 1,289 sales in the month of May, 42% more than May 2015 and an inventory of active listings at the end of the month at only 2,406, down 40% from May 2015, the supply has dropped to just a 1.9 month supply. Furthermore, many of those listed as available are already under contract but not yet reported sold waiting for condition removals.

The spring is normally our busiest time of the year for new listings and sales. This year is