Paula Gaul - Blog

Rossland Real Estate Statistics 3 years Sep 2009-2011: Lower sale pricing, slow at the top end

paula.gaul@century21.ca — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 00:00:00 GMT

I've just created a couple of interesting graphs (below) using KREB data to show Rossland real estate trends over the last 3 years. The trend shows general decline in sales prices (ie if you could have sold it for $310,000 in 2009, you should think more in the $280,000 range now). Of course, it is a small market and individual properties may perform differently than the overall market, if they are a special property. As expected, we have also seen that the LIST prices of the properties which actually sold has also dropped. The list and sale trends pretty much parallel each other, with an average 4% difference between list price and sale price.

What is interesting though, is how that compares with the trend in the list prices of ALL properties - including the properties which have NOT sold. The list price trend has INCREASED during the same timeframe - and the 3 year average of all listed properties is about 8% higher than the average list price of the properties which sold. Some sellers just aren't sellers; they may think that they're sellers, but they're speculators, and their properties are languishing on the market for months.

What does this mean for sellers? You have to get realistic about your asking price, or you property just won't sell. You may have heard stories about increasing housing prices in Canada, but let's be clear: that is NOT the case in Rossland. If the average sale price in Rossland in the last 3 years was under $260,000, and dropping, and your house is "worth" over $500,000, it will take longer to sell - because the market isn't there. You may have to re-evaluate what your property is really "worth" if you really want to sell it. Want to keep your prices up and "wait for the market to come back"? Good luck with that. That said, if you have a large, beautiful, and modern home, of course you don't list it for $260,000 - but be prepared to be patient, because there aren't a lot of buyers at the high end at the moment, and there are other options for them.

What does this mean for buyers? Clearly, some sellers have their heads in the clouds, but there are still plenty who are willing to be reasonable. There may be some pricier homes which have been listed for a while, and you may be able to make some low offers and negotiate aggressively. At the very least, their salesperson will be happy that you're giving them a reality check. At best, you could get yourself a nice property which other buyers thought were out of range.

Rossland Sold List vs Sale Price, and All List Price, 3 years ending Sep 2011:

Rossland Sale Price Trend, 3 years ending Sep 2011:

(Blue is house prices, Red is unit prices, including Red Mountain units. Trend line is for houses, as there is insufficient data for a reliable unit trend. Houses in Rossland are very different from each other, so some months may be comparing apples to oranges - the trend line only measures sale price, not what you can get for that price)

*disclaimer: Rossland is a small market, and the value of one or two "outliers" (expensive or cheap) properties can skew the average. For this reason, I used the "median" list price for all properties rather than the average. The median is a bit lower, because it isn't pulled up as much by the million-dollar homes on the market.

If you would like access to the raw data in order to study in more detail, or in information on a particular range of properties, contact Paula Gaul at paula.gaul@century21.ca

Rossland Real Estate Statistics

paula.gaul@century21.ca — Mon, 14 Jun 2010 00:00:00 GMT

One of my clients asked me for some statistics for the Rossland real estate market, so these are the stats for the last 12 months (ending 27 May 2010):

Selling Price of Single Family Detached Homes sold in last year:

below 150K: none

150-174K: 4 homes

175-199K: 4 homes

200-224K: 7 homes

225-249K: 5 homes

250-274K: 5 homes

275-299K: 6 homes

300-324K: 4 homes

325-349K: 2 homes

350-399K: 1 home

400-449K: 3 homes

450-500K: 4 homes

500K+: none

A pretty even distribution, with most in the 200's. Below 150 is almost certainly a tear-down shack.

32 homes now on the market , average days on market so far : 96

43 homes sold in the last year, average days on market: 110

Another 30 listings expired in the last year WITHOUT SELLING, after average days on market of 161

That means that 41% of listings have sold in the last year (though some are new listings, and some solds were listed the previous year).

59% of listings did NOT sell. MAKE SURE TO PRICE APPROPRIATELY AS BUYERS ARE NOT DESPERATE

Of homes sold, the average price reduction was $22,474, or 5%.

Of sold homes above $400K, the average price reduction was $66,300, or 11%

Of homes sold between $275-375K, the average price reduction was $18,015, or 6%

Of homes sold between $175-275K, the average price reduction was $17,375, or 5%

Of sold homes listed between 300-350K, the average days on market was 86

More homes were sold between May and August than in other months.

The above data does not include the condos at Red Mountain, where sales and prices are both significantly lower than previous years because the low US dollar and weaker US market has reduced the number of buyers of ski property at Red, and many transactions aren't trackable as they were direct sales from the developer.

Living in Rossland

paula.gaul@century21.ca — Mon, 19 Apr 2010 00:00:00 GMT

If you are wondering what it is like, living in Rossland, I'll give you a bit of info.

First of all, the natural beauty and clear mountain air is breathtaking. As long as you make sure to get out of the house or office regularly to get out and enjoy it, you won't be bored of it. The skiing in winter is world-class. The terrain at Red Mountain is as good as it gets, and the snow quality in most years is fantastic, with temperatures cooler than the coastal ranges, and warmer than the Rockies, for really comfortable winter activities most of the time. My kids are all in the Nancy Greene Ski League, race training and free skiing starting from age 5, and the Red Mountain Racers have a fantastic reputation for creating really competitive racers who compete nationally and internationally - as well as building solid skills and solid friendships. The Black Jack nordic ski centre is very well groomed and offers lots of trails, as well as a large community of outdoorsy people to spend time with. Big Red Cats (which I also own), provides fantastic off-piste adventure, though admittedly most of the locals who ski with us are people who either work for us or volunteer for us, because they get so much great untracked skiing at the ski resort after every storm anyway. Other winter activities of course include hockey (as we are in Canada), and swimming, recreationally at the Trail Aquatic Centre, just 15 minutes down the hill, or with the Trail Stingrays Swim Club.

As soon as the snow starts to disappear, the mountain bikes come out, and riders are enjoying the lower elevation trails even before the skiing has stopped up high. The Trails Society has created a huge network of groomed, mapped, and signed biking trails -all marked intermediate, advanced, and expert, just like ski runs. The Seven Summits ride is the most well-known, but there are tons of great rides, many of which can include car drops and downhill pickups. Rossland has its own outdoor swimming pool in summer, and Nancy Greene Lake is only 20 minutes up the road. For a larger, warmer lake, Christina Lake is 45 minutes away, and many locals also have cabins there, where they spend much of the summer. Check out www.christinalake.com for more details. I also have a house there, and sell real estate in Christina and Rossland. There are about half a dozen good golf courses within an hour's drive, including kid's programs, ladies and men's nights, and lots of tournaments. You name the sport, and you can play it around here. Between Rossland's own sports, and what Trail offers, there is nothing you can do in larger cities that you can't do here.

What are the schools like? Really good, I think. My kids go there, and I have no complaints. The teachers are really supportive and my girls have learned a lot in a caring environment. Not only that, but they have a fantastic playground with equipment donated by the Nelson & District Credit Union. While budget constraints periodically threaten K-12 in Rossland, and someday it may be reduced to K-9 in Rossland and a beefed up senior curriculum at Crowe in Trail, let's put it in perspective: it is just 15 minutes away. At the moment, we have a K-5 elementary school called MacLean, as well as middle school and high school in Rossland Secondary, and it's fantastic to have all of our children in our community. The schools consistently perform well in rankings, and RSS also offers a Ski Academy and Dance Academy.

We are lucky to have a regional hospital only 15 minutes down the road in Trail. I've been down there countless times with various family members, and have hardly ever had to wait more than 20 minutes to be seen. The building may not be new, but the people inside it are what makes the difference, and they have always treated us well.

I've lived in a lot of places, and I can honestly say that Rossland and Christina Lake are a couple of my favourites. While I do sometimes miss the beaches of Australia, if I left here, I know I'd miss this wonderful mountain town, with its family-like community.

Canadian dollar now at par, best deals in Rossland are at the ski hill

paula.gaul@century21.ca — Tue, 06 Apr 2010 00:00:00 GMT

It wasn't long ago that I was writing about Americans getting great deals on Red Mountain property because of their stronger dollar, but now that situation has completely flipped around, and they are making money by selling their properties and taking their strong Canadian dollars back to the U.S. In one year, the Canadian dollar has increased by about 30% - so even if your property value has dropped, you could be making a profit if repatriating money to the US.

That means that the best deals on real estate in Rossland at the moment can probably be found from American owners, most of whom are at the ski hill.

It is now possible to get some new and nearly new luxury 2 and 3 bedroom condos for under $299,000 at Red Mountain, and many below $350,000. Much nicer than most similarly priced properties only 5 minutes away in town. Hopefully, this will encourage more local residents to purchase and live at Red Mountain. At the very least, this could be a good opportunity for Canadian buyers, and a reason for some American sellers to see if their place will sell, and repatriate their cash at a very favourable exchange rate.

Be aware, though that most properties at Red incur the 5% GST, which will be rising in July to 12% HST. NOW is the best time to look at property at Red Mountain.