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        <title>Gerry Thomasen's Blog</title>
        <link>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/</link>
        <description>Various Nanaimo-related posts ranging from history and outdoor adventures, to real estate and current events.</description>
<item>
    <guid>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/on-lowballs-making-offers-in-nanaimos-current-real-estate-market.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/on-lowballs-making-offers-in-nanaimos-current-real-estate-market.html</link>
        <author>gthomasen@460realty.com (Gerry Thomasen)</author>
        <title>On Lowballs: Making Offers in Nanaimo's Current Real Estate Market</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 
This post talks about some of the issues around writing low-priced offers, and then at the bottom of the page I've posted some hard data that is relevant to the Nanaimo real estate market during the spring of 2025.


***


Let's face it – everyone wants the lowest possible price when they buy property, and it's their real estate agent's job to help make that happen.


But this creates tension when the buyer is unrealistic about what kind of deals are available, and they view any pushback from their agent as disloyalty or laziness.


I often have these conversations:




Buyer: “I will offer $640,000 (final offer) on this home that’s listed for $700,000.” Me: “The seller’s own agent will advise them that, rather than taking your lowball, they might try a price reduction first, to see if that attracts people willing to pay more than $640k.”


Buyer: “Did you see that new place that was listed for $50,000 above my max price? Can we see it right away?” Me: “Let's wait a week or more – they certainly won't be accepting any low offers out of the gate”


Buyer: “That 1950s home we viewed, with the roof that needs replacing; let’s offer $20k below asking price because that’s the cost for the new roof.”Me: “It's an old house and they didn't say the roof is new – that's why it’s listed for $700,000 instead of $850,000. We can talk about the roof as we present our offer, but we shouldn't assume they forgot about that defect while pricing the home.”




Not every buyer appreciates my sober perspective. I was once fired by a client who had called me on a Sunday evening, wanting me to write an offer for $500k (final offer) on a home listed for $600k. I explained that this was a doomed scenario but to my credit I agreed to at least “give it a try” because I liked this client and thought maybe they just needed to learn the hard way, even though it would be a waste of several hours of my time, and an insult to the sellers and their agent. My client initially agreed to give it some time, but called me the next day and said he was going to work with an agent who “Had his best interests in mind.” (That house sold a few weeks later for $581,200.)


But I’m happy to report that most buyers are willing to accept my expert opinion I had a good experience recently with buyers who were thinking along the lines of the imaginary buyer quoted in the bullet points above. For example, wanting to make very low offers (low for our current market), wanting to see newly-listed places they couldn't afford, and wanting to discount an offer price according to a list of defects we had noted.


I wanted to manage their expectations so that we didn’t waste a lot of time and emotions, but I was also really worried about annoying those clients because they were great to work with, and I could sense they just needed to be TOLD in the right manner. So, I pulled the data, which I will show below – it states unequivocally what I wanted to demonstrate: Sellers don't accept offers that are much lower than their current list price.


Here's the data – it's a list of every single-family detached home currently in pending status (i.e., the price was negotiated recently) in Nanaimo, listed under $850,000. I also omitted listings built after 2015. 


The sales with a blue background sold above asking price and the salmon pink background shows properties that sold at least $40,000 below the original asking price (but see the days on market for those). For those wondering, the average sale-price-to-list-price percentage was 98.043 which means a home listed for $750,000 likely sold at a discount of about $15,000 which is probably what most people might expect if they've been involved in our market in recent years.




 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Mon, 14 Apr 2025 13:11:00 -0700</pubDate>
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    <guid>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/summary-of-the-real-estate-conveyancing-process-in-bc.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/summary-of-the-real-estate-conveyancing-process-in-bc.html</link>
        <author>gthomasen@460realty.com (Gerry Thomasen)</author>
        <title>Summary of the Real Estate Conveyancing Process in BC</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 
Congratulations - the conditions have been removed from your real estate contract of purchase and sale, and your deal is now firm Unless something dramatic happens, your deal WILL complete on the contracted date.


It's time to engage a legal professional. (This can be a notary or a lawyer, but I'll just say &quot;notary&quot; here for brevity.) They'll handle the &quot;conveyancing&quot; of the transaction, which means coordinating the exchange of money and title to complete the deal. While there may be many weeks or months before your sale is scheduled to complete, it's best to contact a notary now, in case there are roadblocks which could affect timelines.


What to Expect


As part of the intake process, the notary is required to collect some personal information, as well as your purchase contract and the name/info of your agent. Tell them about any power-of-attorney agreements or other such matters affecting who is signing; note this can delay things and must be discussed as early as possible.


For buyers: The notary needs to know about your lender (if you're borrowing money to finance the property) and your insurer. Further, if multiple people will be listed on title (i.e., if you're buying with your partner or others) you'll need to decide which type of ownership will take effect. For example, will you be listed as joint tenants or tenants in common? Joint tenancy is the more common type for a romantic partnership (the survivor becomes the sole owner if their partner dies), whereas with tenants in common, your share passes to your estate if you die, instead of transferring to the surviving owner(s).


For sellers: Assuming you still have a mortgage(s) listed on title, the notary will need information about that.


While You Wait


The next steps involve some diligence on the part of the legal professional, gathering relevant documents relating to property taxes, title charges, insurance info, strata information if appropriate, and any corporate ownership. They'll also do a &quot;personal property&quot; search to ensure there are no roadblocks relating to the seller's ability to dispose of the property - such as liens. This process also identifies possible encumbrances to a clean transfer of the property such as tax deferment or mortgage payout matters.


As the date of completion approaches, the notaries prepare &quot;closing documents&quot; which may include mortgage-related security documents for a buyer or the &quot;statement of adjustments&quot; for the seller. This latter document aims to clarify any final corrections to the purchase price; for example if the seller already paid for the year's property taxes, the buyer needs to compensate them for the portion of those taxes which apply to the end of the year in which the buyer owns the house. Adjustments may similarly apply for pre-paid utilities.


Final Days


There will be appointments with both the buyers' and sellers' notaries, almost definitely in-person, to explain and sign the final documents. This will take place 2-5 business days prior to completion. If you are unable to meet in person for this, it should be mentioned as early as possible to prevent issues.


Once the seller's notary has reviewed the closing documents prepared by the buyer's notary and the seller has signed them, those documents are sent back to the buyer's notary who will register the transfer of ownership and any mortgage documents at the Land Title Office on completion day, and will ensure that the net proceeds of the sale are handed over to the seller's notary to be made available to the seller.


Buyers: Just because the notaries have reported everything is done, it doesn't mean you have the legal right to enter your own property During negotiations, a specific day and time was negotiated for &quot;Possession&quot;, the day/time that you have full authority to enter the property and to treat it as your own. For example, in many cases the seller keeps the exclusive right to be on the property until 9am on the day after completion.


Sellers: Just because your property has transferred to a new owner, the money may not yet be available for you to access. Because the buyer's notary was required to move the funds to your notary, there may be a delay in those funds actually being accessible in your own account. Plan accordingly, i.e., expect to have your money the following day unless you specifically discuss the timing with your notary and bank
 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Wed, 05 Feb 2025 12:14:00 -0800</pubDate>
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    <guid>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/nanaimo-1966-dashcam-photos.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/nanaimo-1966-dashcam-photos.html</link>
        <author>gthomasen@460realty.com (Gerry Thomasen)</author>
        <title>Nanaimo, 1960s | Collection of Photos from a 1966 Dashcam Project</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 
Buckle up if you like Nanaimo history, especially the history of its PLACES.


In the spring of 1966, the Ministry of Transport took &quot;dash-cam video&quot; of many highways in BC, including through Nanaimo. The videos were released on YouTube in 2016 and I've linked to the Nanaimo one below. I have also taken SEVENTY still frames from the video and posted them below with some of my commentary and supplementary images from Streetview and other sources.


If you watch the video, I recommend a desktop computer so that you can pause the video and use the &quot;,&quot; and &quot;.&quot; keys on the keyboard to navigate frame by frame. But my photos might be easier for you - see down below.


The Video: Driving through Nanaimo in 1966


Starting at the Haslam Creek Bridge: https://youtu.be/y_vzliLaZOg?si=4Y5g4ReWwzJgW8aG&amp;t=238


Photos Taken from the Road Trip Time Machine Video:


Haslam Creek Bridge - This has now been twinned; the bridge seen below is now the north-bound lanes.





The Cassidy Inn is thought to have been built around 1914 - it burned to the ground in 2016.





This service station and store and home(?) was just north of the Cassidy Inn, near where the rest stop would later be built.





Moving north - this is the intersection with Morden Rd. The Ruckledge store (still open today) is seen at left - it would have been built just a few years prior to this, in 1960.





This photo shows the descent from where the Duke Point turnoff is now. The outcrop to the right is recognizable in the modern Streetview photo below this one. It's amazing to see how much the highway was widened in later years.








This photo shows the driver entering Chase River; nowadays this would be just north of the overpass at the Cedar Rd intersection.





Here we see Chase River again - the buildings on the right occupy the space where the RONA store would later be found.





This overpass for the Wellcox spur of the railway still stands 70 years later. It famously had the &quot;Kiss Me, Pierre&quot; graffiti on one of its posts, for years.





The guardrails seen at the side of the road show how the Chase River flows beneath this spot. The building at right is now the Bold Knight Restaurant.





We have now passed Petroglyph Park and we are entering old Nanaimo at the south end of Nicol St. A Mladen Zorkin sign is visible at left - he was the Croatian real estate developer who is responsible for many Nanaimo landmarks including Terminal Park Mall.


This is roughly where, many years later, a concretion in the rocky outcrop was painted to look like the head of an orca emerging from the rock.





We are now closer to where the old Hunt Estate stood near the top of the bluffs - it was a grand manor and later shared the property with a convent. Both are now gone, with a new subdivision (Harbour View St) being built as of 2024. Wooden stairs can be seen at left, climbing toward the old house perhaps.





The Beverly Motel and Auto Court, seen at right and down below, was a fixture in the middle of the twentieth century.








These were the first houses one would encounter on the road in - many on the left are still present today. These next several photos show how Nicol St was quite pretty before it was widened in later years.





That tree on the left is roughly where Alice's Restaurant sits today. That large house to the right is still there. If you compare these images to the modern landscape (see the Streetview image below) you can see how the road was built UP; those houses at right sit further below the road's grade, today.








This is the intersection with Robins St, which is now gone (blocked off). The gas station at left was still used for the purpose until the 2000s when it was decommissioned and sat vacant for years; now it's the site of the Samaritan Place women's shelter.





Moving north - such a nice neighbourhood, really. Television was still inferior to playing outside.





Here is the intersection with Needham St. Today there's a car wash and oil change place on the right side, and the Jolly Miner Hotel (which would have been the Columbus Hotel when this photo was taken) has only recently been demolished (November 2024) - it would be just out of frame to the right.





In the next block north of Needham, there was an iconic Fish'n'Chips place called Bond's. Before my time, but the older locals have great memories of bringing home fish and chips wrapped in newspaper.








Moving further north - that would be Pine St seen at left (which would turn into Fifth St and enter Five Acres/Harewood).





This photo shows the intersection with Farquhar St - the Diplomat Motel at right is still there today, and the construction seen at left is for the Dairy Queen, which opened soon after this photo was taken. I don't know anything about the store seen at right. 





One more photo showing how pretty Nicol St was.





This is the intersection with Milton St - McDonald's now stands on the right side.





We are starting down the hill toward downtown. That building at right (another Zorkin sign) is the Arbutus Books store with the iconic arbutus mural painted on the side (Streetview photo below for comparison).








This next photo shows a little further down the hill, where the Gallazin Locksmiths building is now. The retaining wall seen at left is still present today.








The next photo shows 42 Nicol St at left (the white building, built in 1911) which still stands today next to the Caprice Theatre. The firehall's south tower can be seen, still with the pointed pinnacle which was removed somewhat recently.








Here is the intersection with Cavan St. The elaborate pink building at left is the fire house. The big sign at top right says &quot;British Columbia Ferries to THE MAINLAND&quot;. The building at center in the background was originally a Sears building, then a Safeway, and is now the casino.





This photo shows the Esplanade St intersection.








The camera is heading toward what would be Harbour Park Mall - the Italian Fountain was still fairly new and can be just barely identified at left in this photo. 





This 1960 aerial photo shows the Sears/Safeway building at center, with the Italian Fountain below/left of it. The rocky bluff below/right is &quot;Scotsman's Bluff&quot;, so nicknamed because it was a place to watch the action in the Central Sports Ground (replaced by the Sears building) without paying admission. The next few photos show that the car with the dashcam video in 1966 followed the road which passes through what is now Port Place Mall, toward Cameron Island.











Approaching Cameron Island - the rubble from the Scotsman's Bluff is visible at right - it was blasted apart in 1965 to allow for the mall to be developed. A rock from the bluff is in Bowen Park with a plaque to identify it (just west of the duck pond amphitheatre).





Ticket booth for the Gabriola ferry terminal.





Turning left onto Cameron Island (hadn't been an island for many decades by this point). This was the Canadian Pacific Steamship Service terminal, later a bus depot, and nowadays it's the site of the Cameron Island condos.





We have now doubled back from Cameron Island and are back on the highway, approaching the intersection with Commercial St. All of the buildings in this photo are now gone, other than the small building at far left (in-print graphic design and sign shop), the &quot;A&amp;B Sound&quot; building, and the Galloway Block (site of Boo Streetwear/Guava).





A closer look at the intersection with Commercial St. The building at right was &quot;Lindsay's&quot;, a department store perhaps? The building with the Nabob sign was Edwards Tire, which burned down sometime later. The building to its right would become the A&amp;B Sound building, which still stands.








This view is interesting because it shows how narrow &quot;the ravine&quot; was at this time. The yellow building at right is Nash Hardware, which was later to be Literacy Nanaimo. 





I'm not sure what the building is at left, on the hill. But beneath it is the store that is now the Man Lee store (385 Terminal) which was built in 1933.





This photo doesn't look much different from how this view would be today. Except, instead of AVIS there is a trucker convoy &quot;FREEDOM&quot; mural on the side of that building in 2024.





We are just crossing Comox Rd, about to get onto the Pearson St Bridge - the Civic Arena is just out of sight to the right.





Mid-span on the Pearson St Bridge. To the right you can see how the Queen Elizabeth II Promenade walkway hadn't been constructed yet.





Exiting the bridge at the north end; an old home stands where the Husky gas station would later sit.








Here is the Castaway Motel at left, which is still in business today. To the right, just past another motel, is the old home that would have a great fish and chips restaurant in the 2000s.








This is the intersection with Rosehill St - the Galloway Building at left was built sometime in the very early 20th century and remains a landmark today. The building at right (and the big home behind it) would be replaced by the buildings that now house Midland Tools.








This intersection with Townsite Rd looks quite different today. The stretch of the highway between Townsite and Cypress St was very pretty at this time





The home seen at left is still standing (it's blue now) - this is Cypress St.








We are now at the intersection with St George St, where there is now a Petro Canada and a Subway, among others. 








Heading north past St George St - the house at right is roughly where the Petro-Can or McDonald's is now.








Here is Terminal Park Mall at right - the building we see is now a BC Liquor Store.





Approaching what would have been called Northbrook mall at the time. The sign at right shows directions to Parksville, Departure Bay, and BC Ferries. The little rocky outcrop at left is easy to identify as it's still there today.





Believe it or not, you used to be able to turn right onto Northfield Rd at this intersection





Here is the intersection with Bowen Rd at what is now Country Club Mall. Traffic must have been a lighter back then, as this crossing was controlled by a single flashing light?





This photo shows the stretch of highway heading down to the Norwell Dr intersection where there is now a Chevron. These homes at right are no longer there - it's neat to see how they had those steps down to the road.





Here is the Norwell intersection and the old pedestrian overpass. There is an overpass there today, but it's much newer and not as chunky as this old one.








Here is a glimpse of Long Lake on the right. I suspect that was a hotel/resort of some kind - the rest stop is there now.





This intersection with Rutherford Road looks very different today. North Town Centre mall is now in the location shown at right.





This is the intersection with Turner Road. Picture Cactus Club at right, or think of Dot's at left...





This is the stretch approaching Hammond Bay Rd - the mobile homes at right appear new and ready to be shipped out That might be the location of the Brick, now.





The photo below is on the curve of the highway adjacent to where Costco is, now.





This final photo shows the approach to the Lantzville turnoff (not visible here) - the land to the right is roughly where Cabela's stands now.





I would appreciate comments below, especially if they have information to fill out what I've written on this page. Thanks for reading
 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Fri, 22 Nov 2024 18:30:00 -0800</pubDate>
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    <guid>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/the-protection-island-mine.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/the-protection-island-mine.html</link>
        <author>gthomasen@460realty.com (Gerry Thomasen)</author>
        <title>The Protection Island Mine</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 
When you're down at the waterfront and you look across to Protection Island - what do you see? Maybe you see only a pretty little island with homes and forests on it. But it's seen a lot more action than you'd think


I could relate many historical anecdotes about Protection Island (e.g., the people hanged there in the 1850s, or the Kanoo Pavilion and Happyland, or the 1913 explosion of the Oscar) but this post is just about the Protection Island Mine itself.


This was the deepest mine in Nanaimo, which isn't surprising when you consider the coal seams trend downward as they move east underneath the ocean.


The workings under this area were originally started from the Number 1 mine shaft, located near the ocean just south of downtown (bottom of Milton St basically). That mine was reaching out way under the harbour toward Snake Island, and in 1891 they sunk the Protection Island mine as a shortcut to some of the furthest tunnels. This was especially handy in the early 1900s when they started having to pay the miners from the time they went underground, instead of when they arrived at the coal seam.


The miners didn't live on the island, so they would cross to the mine each day on a scow pulled by a small tugboat. If you missed the boat home at the end of shift, you had the option of coming home via the tunnels underground. One time there was a dance in Nanaimo and everyone was going - but one guy had to work late in the mine and someone said, &quot;I hope he doesn't wear his hobnail boots if he comes by way of the tunnel&quot; because the nails could create sparks that ignite the gases in the tunnels. Sure enough, a deep explosion was heard - it turns out this hapless fellow did indeed blow himself up beneath the harbour.


Note, the photo below shows the miners on their scow - at upper left are the bluffs which still exist on Cameron Island - in the background is seen a track which brought coal to shipping wharves - the track is roughly where Front St passes the Port Place parking lot outside Thrifty Foods today.


Another accident happened in 1918 when a group of miners were being lowered by hoist into the 640 foot deep shaft. The cable snapped - salty air is killer on metals - and were so mangled that they needed to be identified by their personal effects, including a watch that stopped, showing the time of the accident. That watch has been held by the museum for years, and even mysteriously went missing, and was returned again, in the 2010s.


The mine closed in 1938, and the large decaying wooden pithead loomed as a popular landmark especially for boaters, until its final hurrah when, after the end of WWII, the coal company gave permission for the citizens of Nanaimo to set the coal tipple and buildings on fire as a celebration of the war's end. It was a spectacular bonfire, but unfortunately it ignited the coal slack piles, which burned uncontrollably for an extended period of time, becoming quite a problem.


Some concrete forms still remain at the mine site near the Gallows Point lighthouse, but otherwise, it's all just a memory for those who know.




 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Sun, 04 Aug 2024 20:49:00 -0700</pubDate>
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    <guid>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/nanaimo-real-estate-market-update-summer-2024.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/nanaimo-real-estate-market-update-summer-2024.html</link>
        <author>gthomasen@460realty.com (Gerry Thomasen)</author>
        <title>Nanaimo Real Estate Market Update - Summer 2024</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 
A Balancing Out


The most recent peak of real estate prices was in the spring of 2022. In the two years since, things have been un-dramatic; prices dropped up to 15 in some areas especially nearing the end of 2022, but they have recovered some of that value, since. There have been brief periods of very sluggish activity followed by little rallies that don't last very long.


Overall the trend has been toward MUCH more inventory than we have seen in other recent years, giving buyers a chance to be choosy, to negotiate on pricing and other terms. But it's not a bloodbath; while some sellers have taken big hits if they had an urgent need to move and were spooked by several weeks without offers, it is still considered a sellers' market in the sense that homes are still moving within a month or so in most cases. This may be about to change, however.


The July 2024 market update from the Vancouver Island Board of REALTORS® (VIREB) notes that the NUMBER of sales in July were down about 7 from the same time in 2023 (which was itself a flaccid market) along with a 30 increase in the number of listings.


Some of the swell may be attributable to builders and developers who made big plans during the heyday years of 2020-2022, and whose builds are starting to get occupancy. It certainly appears, in Nanaimo at least, that a lot of rental apartments have completed in a short time span and must be absorbing much of the demand for real estate properties.


Townhome sales represent an anomaly; while the sales of detached houses and apartment condos were down about 10 compared to last July, the sales of townhouses were UP about 15. I assume this is related to affordability - more people who would LIKE to buy a detached house are forced to get a townhome as an interim step. And maybe some people are moving out of condo apartments and into townhomes, because gardening is more in vogue? (If indeed it is)


I've been watching for a wave of purchases, maybe from &quot;Vancouver investors&quot;, of detached homes with room for additional density on the lot - because of the announcement this year of relaxed zoning/density regulations - it is now much easier to build additional dwellings on many city lots. This is ideal for the older, larger lots we have in many parts of Nanaimo, especially in areas with high rental demand. Perhaps the investors are cautious because the tradespeople may not be available to work on carriage houses and basement suites.


Looking ahead: It's expected that further interest rate cuts in the next few quarters will prompt more buying activity. New surges in immigration may also increase demand, whether it's international or just the usual Canadian migration westward, often pulsing according to job flows in Alberta or ageing patterns in Ontario. Regardless, I am confident we will continue to have upward trends (punctuated with intermittent lows/slows) as the mid-Island inevitably develops to support a growing population. 
 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Fri, 02 Aug 2024 15:05:00 -0700</pubDate>
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    <guid>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/happy-65th-birthday-to-the-italian-fountain.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/happy-65th-birthday-to-the-italian-fountain.html</link>
        <author>gthomasen@460realty.com (Gerry Thomasen)</author>
        <title>Happy 65th Birthday to the Italian Fountain</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 
It was this day in 1958 that the &quot;Italian Centennial Fountain&quot; was unveiled in downtown Nanaimo. 





A lot of people are underwhelmed by this sculpture - probably because of its location, which does nothing whatsoever to highlight the fountain's beauty. Moreover, the fountain has been fenced off with ugly temporary fencing in recent years, presumably because of vandalization and sanitary concerns related to people without homes.





But really, especially when you consider that this was done on a small budget, mostly by volunteers, and that the granite blocks were mined from a boulder that was left in Yellow Point by a glacier - it's a pretty cool installation. Its story involves a local couple who came back from a vacation in Italy - they suggested to Pete Maffeo, the Italian mayor of Nanaimo, that maybe we could do a fountain too? Ultimately, two Italian service clubs (lodges) stepped up with fundraising and volunteer labour to present this gift to the people of Nanaimo. Hence the &quot;Italian&quot; fountain


So why is it called the Italian &quot;Centennial&quot; Fountain? 


In our City's &quot;Public Art Inventory&quot;, it's said that the fountain was designed in 1958 and took three years to build. But it also says the fountain &quot;was given to the City of Nanaimo in 1958 to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the establishment of the crown colony of British Columbia&quot;. (Perhaps it didn't actually take 3 years? Something's amiss.)





By the way, some readers may be confused by the topography in the old photos, because they show a bluff in the background. That bluff was blasted away when they built the mall - a piece of it remains in Bowen Park, near the duck pond, commemorating &quot;Scotsman's Bluff&quot;. 
 ]]> </description>
    <pubDate>Wed, 07 Jun 2023 11:38:00 -0700</pubDate>
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    <guid>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/nanaimo-real-estate-market-spring-2023.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/nanaimo-real-estate-market-spring-2023.html</link>
        <author>gthomasen@460realty.com (Gerry Thomasen)</author>
        <title>Nanaimo Real Estate Market - Spring 2023</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 
In my last market report (Nov 11, 2022) I outlined how the market had peaked in March and declined through 2022. My post ended with &quot;Will be interesting to see what spring 2023 will look like.&quot;


It is now April 17th, 2023 and I can say that there is nothing very &quot;interesting&quot; (dramatic) to report - the price decline has certainly SLOWED, and has even started to reverse in some of the markets on the Island. &quot;This could indicate that they’re bottoming out, and when the market shifts – and it always does – it usually happens without much of a warning,&quot; said Kelly O'Dwyer, chair of our real estate board.


The optimism seems well-founded. Sales volume of (detached) homes on the Island increased by 73 in March compared to the previous month. People are definitely buying homes But there continues to be a tension between (some) sellers who expect too much for their properties, vs. (some) buyers who think they can &quot;lowball&quot; after hearing sensational news reports about general decline.


While there continues to be speculation about recession, the Canadian and BC economies are both performing better than some analysts had predicted; the interet hikes ended, inflation is slowing, employment rides high, and immigration is strong despite concerns about whether there will be housing for newcomers (that may help to keep prices buoyant, fortunately for some and unfortunately for others). The Island certainly continues to be a destination.


In terms of supply: More properties are being listed than in 2022, but there is still too little inventory to constitute a balanced market.


On Property TYPES: Detached vs. Attached


There are a lot of new strata developments happening or proposed in the Nanaimo area, although many of them have been sitting somewhat idle during the recent slowdown. For example, some developments with preliminary approval from the municipality appear to have slowed their builds, and partially-built stratas are holding off on listing their inventory, apparently preferring to list when prices have increased. I think we might see condo prices rise more slowly in relation to detached homes in the next couple years, owing to the sheer number of apartment buildings under construction in Nanaimo - whereas large-scale detached home developments are less active at this time. (I should note that the biggest drops in prices in the past year (as much as 15 in some cases) have been in the single-family-detached market, whereas the drops in strata prices have been closer to 5 - so there is much more room for growth in the SFD market.)
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    <pubDate>Mon, 17 Apr 2023 11:49:00 -0700</pubDate>
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    <guid>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/nanaimo-real-estate-market-the-shape-of-2022.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/nanaimo-real-estate-market-the-shape-of-2022.html</link>
        <author>gthomasen@460realty.com (Gerry Thomasen)</author>
        <title>NANAIMO REAL ESTATE MARKET – THE SHAPE OF 2022</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 
(Written in November 2022)Real estate values in Nanaimo were on a consistent incline from at least 2014, building momentum at the end of the decade and continuing with intensity into the first months of 2022. There was at least a 3 price increase from the final months of 2021 into Feb 2022.


Then suddenly in March, people stopped asking to view the listings. I remember it well because I had just listed a house and there was very limited response, and my seller clients were disappointed to say the least But, it wasn’t my fault – agents across town were saying “Suddenly it’s crickets out there…”


Explanations usually focus on the war in Ukraine, continued supply chain issues, and the aggressive interest rate hikes that characterized 2022. There is also a lot of talk about an expected recession. Whatever the cause, the effect has been that there are far fewer buyers, and/or that buyers are FAR more cautious.


Despite this, prices continued to increase somewhat in some markets and for some types of units (strata) until about June 2022. Since then, they have trended downward, losing perhaps a year’s worth of growth - which means that prices are still high in comparison with 2020.


Another big factor is the flood of listings since mid-2022. A lot of sellers are competing for a reduced pool of buyers; price expectations are reduced drastically from just a few months prior


So what is next?


Predictions are that we will continue to see downward trends in the broader economy, especially as there appears to be no end in sight for the labour shortages, and energy disruptions. I would argue that Canada continues to be well-positioned globally, and Nanaimo continues to be a destination – so I certainly don’t predict doom and gloom for our seaside community – quite the contrary in fact.


Will be interesting to see what spring 2023 will look like.
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    <pubDate>Fri, 11 Nov 2022 00:39:00 -0800</pubDate>
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    <guid>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/listing-your-home-when-there-is-nothing-to-buy.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/listing-your-home-when-there-is-nothing-to-buy.html</link>
        <author>gthomasen@460realty.com (Gerry Thomasen)</author>
        <title>Listing Your Home When There is Nothing to Buy</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 
This post was written RIGHT before the market turned downward in March 2022. It was relevant to the seller's market of the time, which had very limited inventory relative to buyer demand.


“I can sell my home easily – but where will I live?”


I hear this from homeowners all the time. They see lineups of buyers with subject-free offers in hand, offering the highest prices we've ever seen. But what's the use of selling your home if you aren't certain you'll find a new home?


It's a very real concern. I've worked with a lot of buyers who took many, many months before being successful with getting an offer accepted. It wasn't because they were doing anything wrong; they made competitive offers, above the asking price and usually without conditions. But the reality is that there are many other buyers able to do the same.


Renting may seem like a good interim option, but the rental market is similarly squeezed. You will see similar lineups for those units.


So, it's a fact: If you sell your home, there is no guarantee that you can find a new place to live before you hand over your keys to a buyer. (This is part of why there isn't more inventory – people are afraid to sell.) Let's discuss this situation and see if we can offer any advice to homeowners who need to move.


A False Solution: Find a Home, then List


A lot of people have contacted me about this situation, suggesting that they would like to have their home READY to list on MLS, but not actually listing until they have found their next home. This looks like an easy solution, but it's a “chicken and the egg” scenario for most people; they can't actually commit to buying a home, without already having a deal to sell their current one.


The reason is financial. Before committing in writing to purchase a home, you need to have confirmed that you ABSOLUTELY WILL have financing in order to purchase the new home on completion day. Most lenders will not provide you with that guarantee until/unless they know 100 that you will already have the money from your current home. In other words, you can't safely commit to a purchase until you have a “firm” (no conditions) offer on your current home.


(Many lenders offer “bridge financing” which allows you to access funds to purchase the new home before you have the money from your current home's sale – but most lenders require you to already have a firm contract to sell your current home before they will offer bridge financing – talk to your mortgage broker)


Subject-to-Sale Offers


I can hear the savvy people already: “No problem, if I find a home I like, I can just make an offer that is ‘subject to the sale’ of my current home. If my home fails to sell in time, I can escape the purchase contract – it's risk free.”


It is certainly true that this would remove all risk of your becoming homeless. However, you will never get that offer accepted in the current market. 


To understand why, imagine you are a seller and five offers have been submitted to you. When there are multiple offers, it is typical for most of the offers to have no subjects. Some of them will be “subject to inspection” or “subject to financing approval” and those are sometimes acceptable especially if their prices are acceptable. But imagine how you would feel about receiving a “subject to sale” offer. Even if the price is highest, how confident can you be that your deal will fall apart when your buyer’s home fails to sell quickly? Or, your buyer may collapse the deal if they don't get “the right offer” for their home.


In my experience, a seller will prefer a subject-free offer even when a “subject to sale” offer has been made for $20,000 more.


Solutions


It's not hopeless There are plenty of people listing their homes under these circumstances, because the following options are available.


Creative Financing


Some people are able to commit to a purchase without any assurances about the sale of their current home. This is something you might discuss with a mortgage broker.


Long Completion


This is the most common workaround, but it does carry some risk. It involves listing your home before finding a new one, but you indicate to all interested parties that you won't accept an offer that completes in the next few months. In other words, you would maintain a buffer period so that you have X months to find a home, increasing your chances of being successful at getting an offer accepted for a new home.


The problem with this solution of course, is that you aren't guaranteed to find a new home, even if you allow yourself a large buffer period. This method is most acceptable to people who tolerate some risk, or who have a plan B.


Find an Interim Home


You can find a temporary place to live, even if that means going somewhere else (a town with more rental vacancy, or even an inexpensive vacation destination). Of course this is not an option for most people especially if they are working locally or have kids in school.


Limit Your Search to Distressed Listings


As stated above, a seller will not consider a “subject-to-sale” offer if they have other offers or if they expect to get them soon. It stands to reason, then, that a buyer with a less appealing offer should restrict their activity to only those homes which are not currently competitive.


For example, they could ignore any listings that have been on market for less than two weeks. In the current market, a well-priced home will nearly always sell in the first week, barring major defects. Even if a full week elapses without a sale, the seller still has reason to expect that an offer WILL materialize soon, even if that offer will (probably) be a little bit under the asking price, or may have financing/inspection conditions. They will usually not be so desperate as to consider a “subject to sale” condition until at least 2-3 weeks have elapsed.


It's important to keep in mind that you will not be able to offer “subject to sale” AND with a low price in the current market. If the seller is open to a lower price, then instead of accepting your low-priced “subject to sale” offer, they will reduce their listed price (drawing renewed interest from buyers who do not need to sell their home first).

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    <pubDate>Mon, 07 Mar 2022 12:14:00 -0800</pubDate>
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    <guid>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/carriage-houses-in-nanaimo-detached-suites.html</guid>
    <link>https://www.nanaimoinformation.com/blog/carriage-houses-in-nanaimo-detached-suites.html</link>
        <author>gthomasen@460realty.com (Gerry Thomasen)</author>
        <title>Carriage Houses in Nanaimo (Detached Suites)</title>
    <description> <![CDATA[ 
When looking at houses, my clients will often ask me, “Would we be allowed to build a carriage house on this property?”


A “carriage house” is a detached garage with a dwelling unit above it, but the term is also used more loosely to refer to any secondary suite in an accessory building (a building that is DETACHED from the main dwelling).


In this article, I will go over the BASIC requirements needed for adding a carriage house in Nanaimo. This should obviously not be used as a definitive source for evaluating how the regulations will apply in any specific case


General


No secondary suites (detached or not) are permitted to have more than 2 bedrooms or more than one kitchen. A manufactured/mobile home may not be used as a suite.


Suites in accessory buildings were only legalized in Nanaimo in 2008, via an addition to the zoning bylaws. According to the bylaw, detached suites are only permitted when:




No secondary suite exists within the principal dwelling (lots over 1 acre MAY be exempt) (this rule was obsolesced by the 2024 changes to zoning bylaws by the BC government); AND


A minimum of 30 square meters (323 sqft) of private outdoor space is provided for the suite; OR


The lot is a corner lot, OR is accessed by a laneway, OR is greater than 800 square meters (8611 sqft) in area.




You are also not permitted (usually) to have a secondary suite (detached from the main house or not) if your property is already being used for a secondary purpose (e.g., home based business, bed &amp; breakfast, etc.). (May have changed in June 2024)


Parking


In order to have a secondary suite, a dwelling must include additional off-street parking for the purpose. Two parking spaces are required for the principal dwelling, and another space is required for the suite. The parking space for the suite is NOT allowed to be included in the 30 square meters of private outdoor space allotted for the suite.


Size


There is also a requirement that, if the suite is in an “accessory building” (buildings separate from the principal dwelling), it is only permitted if the total size of all accessory buildings on the lot will not exceed 13 of the lot area – to a maximum of 90 square meters (969 sqft). In other words, if you already have a 10x10 shed on the property, then the accessory building containing your suite can not be larger than 869 sqft. (Or even smaller, if your lot is less than about 7350 sqft in area.)


However, if your suite is part of a carriage house, you can have an additional 42 square meters (452 sqft) of floor area if it’s used for parking, IF there is no garage or carport within the principal dwelling.


Siting


The foundation of your accessory building (with the suite) must be at least 3 meters from the foundation of the principal dwelling.


The 30 square meters of private outdoor space allotted for the suite CAN be within setback areas.


The front porch of the detached suite MAY project into setback areas (but not two such porches).
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    <pubDate>Thu, 07 Oct 2021 16:40:00 -0700</pubDate>
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