Parksville-Qualicum Beach Real Estate News from TeamW - Rudi & Trish Widdershoven August 2018
Posted on
August 20, 2018
by
Rudi Widdershoven
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Vancouver Island Real Estate News from TeamW - Rudi & Trish Widdershoven |
August 2018 |
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Hi,
CHANGE is Inevitable!
We hope that everyone is well and that the summer has been as wonderful for you all as it has been for us so far. This weather is been simply amazing! We have been going in the ocean almost every day since the first of August! My only question is, how can it already be August 2018?? Time certainly marches on.
We also wanted to let you know personally that our lives are evolving to a new stage, you are going to see a different “look” for “TeamW” in the coming months.
Trish has retired as of August 1! This is true retirement and not a leave of absence for a medical reason like last time, which is wonderful. We have had this in our long-term planning for a while now, but we didn’t want to leave until we found someone to take over the responsibility of “TeamW” and you, our wonderful clients and friends. We searched long & hard to find REALTORS® that we feel would be a “good fit” with our clients, and searched for someone who treated people by the “golden rule” always. We were on the lookout for people, who are careful, caring and honest (and community minded).
Our primary goal is always to put you, our clients first, so we wanted to make sure we got it right. We also wanted someone who would be around for some time (i.e. younger than we are!), and who has the energy to deal with real estate and its demands plus all the coming changes in how the business is conducted. We needed someone with enough experience & background to know they can do the work.
We believe we have found those people in Susie Mattner and Karen Hayes, please see more about Susie and Karen below.
The other big change you will see in “TeamW” is that Rudi is also going to retire in the next couple of months. We will both still be around as consultants and mentors for the coming year, and will be a liaison for “the girls” while the transition takes place. We are not “going anywhere”, but after almost 30 years in Real estate, it is time to take a break and enjoy life differently. Trish will still assist with staging consultations and input as needed.
Real Estate has been a “calling” and not just a job for many years and the biggest challenge has been finding someone who would care for our clients the way we want them cared for. There are lots of great REALTORS® out there, however we hope that your faith in us would extend to Susie & Karen as we did not make this choice lightly. We wanted someone that you would continue with as REALTORS® and that would earn your faith and confidence.
We all feel "irreplaceable" but we know that isn’t true and we believe we have found a good fit for you.
Our wonderful administrative support person, Irene Holland, and our technology support person, Paul Widdershoven will continue to be part of “TeamW” and support Susie and Karen.
If you would like to meet Susie & Karen personally just let us know and we will arrange for that to happen. Also watch for TeamW’s event in October….don't buy a pumpkin this year for Halloween as the four of us will be giving them out in late October!!
Thanks for your faith and confidence in us throughout the past 29 years! We will miss the people most of all, but we are quite sure that you will be extremely pleased with the service that Susie & Karen, the new & improved “TeamW” will give you.
Please feel free to call if you have any questions, and please keep in touch as we are not going anywhere.
Your friends in Real Estate Rudi & Trish W.
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Susie & Karen Greater Parksville Qualicum Beach Area Real Estate Market Update Evolving Real Estate
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SUSIE & KAREN
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Susie Mattner & Karen Hayes
Susie Mattner has been on the Island for 3+ years & always wanted to relocate here as she vacationed here for years with family. She came from the South Surrey/Whiterock area of Vancouver. Susie’s background is in sales marketing & training for Wella Canada. She was an award-winning sales & service rep & also worked as a legal secretary. She brings all those skills to her real estate career.
Susie lives on a lovely 2 1/2 acre parcel right in Qualicum Beach with her mother (who she helps to care for) and her West Highland White Terrier and some visiting semi-resident deer. Susie also has a 2 bedroom “Air B n B” as well. How does the saying go? "If you want something to get done “ask a busy person”. That's our Susie! Susie loves decorating & has bought & sold a number of homes, done renovations and also owned a commercial piece of real estate with her brother in Vancouver. She is passionate about serving her clients by being empathetic and caring. Susie is excited about the opportunity to help you and being part of the new "TeamW"
Karen Hayes has called Qualicum Beach home for over 25 years, after immigrating to Canada 28 years ago from England with her husband Mike. TeamW clients will be able to take advantage of her 20 plus years in banking and her favourite part of that work, which was the planning process with customers. That is a huge part of Real Estate. She is also passionate about design and has a staging designation. Karen & her family decided it's "her turn to follow her dream of becoming a REALTOR" after raising a family & supporting their dreams.
Karen & Mike live on an acreage just north of Qualicum Beach with their dog, more semi-resident deer and a lovely swimming pool. Mike has his own business Hayes Heating. They have owned other businesses plus they have bought, sold and renovated homes as well. Karen & Mike have 2 adult sons. Liam who has just written the bar exam to become a lawyer and their other son Callum has his own excavating company. Karen is very proud of both her boys!
Karen and Susie are both excited to become the new TeamW! We will continue to work behind the scene as consultants to both the "girls" as they transition into the primary realtors of TeamW.
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GREATER PARKSVILLE QUALICUM BEACH AREA REAL ESTATE MARKET UPDATE
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Shift Continues.
The shift in the market certainly continues. Certainly fewer sales and increased inventory seems to be the trend. For Single Family Homes in the greater Parksville Qualicum Beach area the number of sales for July 2018 were down 30% compared to July 2017 (66 versus 94). Number of homes for sale at the end of July is up 54% compared to July 2017 (186 versus 121) however it is interesting to note that the average number of days to sell has changed slightly, July 2018 was on average 27 days while last year was only 24.
Year to date the number of sales or the first 7 months of the year is down 25% in comparison to the same period last year (397 versus 526). Average sale price is still higher than last year, up 17% ($621,305 versus $529,786).
These numbers vary within various sub-regions in the area however the numbers are considerably smaller. Click here to access the latest graph stats.
Housing demand in the VIREB area has shifted lower so far in 2018, likely due to stricter mortgage qualification rules (Guideline B-20) for conventional borrowers and rising interest rates that are taking their toll on household purchasing power and affordability. However, because many of our buyers are retirees, who do not typically need mortgages, the VIREB market has been somewhat sheltered from the effects of Guideline B-20.
In its 2018 Second-Quarter Housing Forecast, the British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) anticipates that MLS® residential sales in the province will decline by nine per cent to 94,200 units this year from 103,700 in 2017.
“B.C. housing markets have benefited from the provincial economy expanding well above trend growth over the past four years,” says BCREA chief economist Cameron Muir. “But economic growth is expected to slow and reflect the long-term average this year.”
On a local level, BCREA predicts that over the next several months, VIREB’s long-term sellers’ market will begin shifting towards a more balanced one. In fact, an interesting development in the VIREB area is that the market seems to be splitting into two in some communities: one that favours sellers for homes $600,000 and under, and a buyers’ market for more expensive properties.
However, even with the high demand for lower-priced properties, sellers still need to price their homes accordingly. “Sellers need to be realistic when it comes to price,” says Kaye Broens, 2018 President-Elect.
If you would like to additional details or wish to discuss your situation contact us at team@teamw.ca or 250-468-1498
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EVOLVING REAL ESTATE
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Evolving World of Real Estate.
We have had many changes in the Real Estate industry in B.C. since June 15 of this year. I am sure most of you are aware that the Provincial Government, via the Superintendent of Real Estate has announced new rules for real estate licensees that will change the way a real estate professional can provide service to consumers. Under the new rules, real estate licensees are required to:
- give consumers more information about commissions and fees — in particular, how the commission is to be divided between a listing brokerage and cooperating brokerage, or when there is no cooperating brokerage, retained by the listing brokerage;
- before working with consumers, inform them of the duties and responsibilities owed to clients and unrepresented parties;
- inform unrepresented consumers of the risks of dealing with a licensee who is representing another party to the transaction;
- only work for either the buyer or the seller in a single real estate transaction. Under the new Rules, dual agency, the practice of acting on behalf of both the buyer and seller on the same trade, will be prohibited except in extremely limited circumstances.
The new rules came into effect on June 15th. REALTORS® can no longer establish “agency relationships” with you as clients without having to explain the whole process in advance. We have always explained the process to everyone well in advance but did not have documentation that provides proof that we have done so. It also means that business has to be conducted a bit differently by you and by all REALTORS®. What this means for you as a consumer is that you shouldn’t tell a REALTOR® any of your personal & confidential information without them giving you a full explanation of how the whole process works, & of course filing out the forms required. We agree with consumer protection always, however the objective and the process are a bit cumbersome and we are working through that & learning the new process. Unfortunately we are without a lot of guidance from the “powers that be” in government. Ah well, such is life and we must move forward and work with it.
Because of the expanded confidentiality rules & requirements we will all need other REALTORS® to assist us with contracts and customers when we run into a “conflict of interest” as it is now prohibited to represent a buyer & seller simultaneously. We have always put the customer first & foremost in all of our dealings, but it would appear that is not the case everywhere unfortunately.
We believe it is a classic example of the “2% rule”, which states that rules & laws are created for the 2% of the population that are rule breakers. We believe disclosure is extremely important, as we always have, but this process is taking away your right to choose how you want to work with a REALTOR®. We want you as consumers to be well informed and dealt with fairly & honestly, no matter what REALTOR® you are working with. If this process makes all REALTORS®, province wide, more professional then that is a “win -win”. There are many great, honest, hard working REALTORS® in the province, unfortunately a few bad apples are making things more complicated for everyone. We will have trusted, licensed, real estate colleagues, who will be available to assist any of our clients who decide to pursue a property that does surface a ‘conflict of interest’ and ensure that everyone is represented fairly & impartially.
The Council has developed answers to a number of questions that real estate consumers may have about these new Rules and they can be viewed here.
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