The Vulcan Real Estate Market 2015 - my point of view

2015 was another interesting year in the local real estate market. The first almost half of the year was slow for the residential market sales. July and August, as well as part of September, is when the market was busy. October started to see a slow down, and November and December, while seeing a few sales, still was traditionally pretty quiet. Residential lot sales did not see much action. There are still several lots by the golf course for sale, most of which were for sale at the beginning of the year. We did see, however, a few residential lots in the older part of town get houses moved on to them, and one other with a house in the process of being built. There are a couple of residential family lots for sale within the older part of town, but not as many as years before. Moving in previously lived in homes seems to be a trend over the last couple of years (since the bylaw was changed in 2013). There are two new houses being constructed in a new part of the subdivision by the back nine of the golf course. One of the houses has already been spoken for. The interesting part about this part of the subdivision, is that it is not part of the homeowners association, nor part of a condo association. It is for single family homes. Places where people can have fenced yards, and a little more freedom, unlike the other areas of the Whispering Creek area.

Houses are still selling

Traditionally, this is the time of the year when the residential market slows down. It has a bit, but over the past week or two, we have seen a few offers on properties. Perhaps, this is because I was away for a week, and I should leave more often??? There are currently 14 houses for sale on the MLS system within the Town of Vulcan. Surprisingly, only three of them are listed below the $200,000 mark. One of them I have a pending offer on. This is a bit of a shock in that our average house price this year so far has been under the $170,000 mark. It is not like we are seeing house prices go up. The fact is that we are seeing the affordable properties sell, leaving the higher priced inventory to sit. It should be interesting to see what happens for the remainder of 2015, and the start of 2016 in the residential marketplace.

Summary of Residential Sales so far in 2015

This year started off slow as far as sales go in the residential section of the Town of Vulcan. However, July and August have picked up in activity. From the period of January 1, 2015 to July 31, 2015, there were a total of 25 residential sales, according to the Alberta Land Titles system information. July had nine sales alone. That means that 36% of the residential sales took place in the month of July alone. This shows how slow the first half of 2015 was for sales. The numbers for August are not in yet. This puts a bit of a damper to those theories that nothing much happens in the summer as people are away on holidays, doesn't it?

Rain and other scheduled events...

Well this rain that we are getting is a nice breath of fresh air! I know it may not be what the campers wanted, but for the farmers and those who are battling fires across the province, this is heaven sent. Plus, it is supposed to be nice for the weekend. Just in time for the Show n' Shine tomorrow in Vulcan. Plus, there will be the tractor pull and demolition derby! And, next weekend, is the Vul-Con Convention!

Crawling into the summer months

As I review the sales for last month within the Town of Vulcan, I have noted that there were two sales priced over the $200,000 mark. Everything else sold below $180,000. We are still behind last year's numbers for sales, and I know that July has been a slower month too. I am working with a few buyers now, but there is no urgency to make a purchase. There is not much for competition among the buyers in the area. I have some good listings that I am disappointed that they are still on the market, but these are properties priced over $200,000. There is nothing wrong with these properties. We just do not have the demand for them at this point in time. It is frustrating for me, and many times more frustrating for my clients and other sellers, I am sure. I have two open houses this weekend. Hopefully, we will generate some good quality interest from these!

To Panic or Not to Panic? I guess that depends...

There is do doubt that the residential resale market in Vulcan is slow compared to last year. I have pointed this out to a few people - in January 2014 there were 6 residential sales within the Town of Vulcan. From January 1st to April 30th of this year, we have had 10. Once we have the stats for May, I think the stats will be a bit more on the positive side. However, for those people looking to sell their homes, it can be frustrating. I lost a listing this past week to a client that I have been dealing with for a few years now. I do not blame this client, as I have had the property listed off and on for a couple of years, but the interest is just not there. So, that client listed with another brokerage, reduced the list price by $100, and is hoping for the best. I hope for the best for that client too. Nice property, just not the interest right now for that type of buyer. One the other hand, however, over the past six months or so, the commercial market in Vulcan has seen some very positive changes. One business bought a building, has renovated it, and moved it. When they left their location, another business renovated and moved it. The local furniture store who built at a new location, now has a tenant in their old location, and that business seems to be doing quite well. A couple of other businesses have moved around, and those that have, are improving their new locations. Commercially, there is plenty of activity in town. There are still some vacant buildings in town, but there does not seem to be as many as in the past. Plus, businesses are spending the money to improve their properties. This means more money being spent locally. Does this mean more local jobs? One would assume so, but I do not have those statistics. I think that it is going to be an interesting next year or two. Not listening to the doom and gloom on the TV, or reading it in the big city newspapers, we seem to be doing quite well. I am not ready to panic yet. In fact, I am feeling a bit optimistic....but don't tell anyone yet.

Sales numbers are down so far in 2015

Residential sales in the Town of Vulcan are down in 2015 compared to this time last year. For example, in January 2014, there were 6 sales recorded on the Alberta Land Titles Registry. This year there were 2 sales recorded. There were no residential sales recorded for February 2015. March, however, has already had a couple of sales close, and will have a few more closing at the end of the month.

Vulcan Real Estate Market for 2015

The price of oil has dropped significantly, as we have all heard about on the news. Some experts say that the Calgary real estate market is going to take a huge hit, people are panicking, and there is a flood of listings on the market now. Other "experts" say that there will be a drop in the average price, but the market has been doing so well for so long, it is due - so really the doom and gloom is exaggerated. Well, we have seen an increase in listings in the Calgary market, but, really, that is there. What about here in Vulcan? I was at a real estate conference in Banff at the end of January, and I spoke with many real estate agents from across the province, and across the country. I could go on and on about the different markets, but for this blog, I will stick close to the two major markets that surround Vulcan - Calgary and Lethbridge. Speaking with a commercial real estate agent from Calgary, I told him that I always see his signs, whether I am coming into Calgary from the east or the south. So, I said, things must be going okay for you? He told me that during the past month, he has had more deals collapse due to the price of oil. He said that it was a good thing that he saved his money through the good times because he is expecting tough times ahead. Meanwhile, I sat down and chatted with agents from Lethbridge. Lethbridge is more agricultural based so the drop in the price of a barrel of oil has not really hurt them. In fact, their market is doing quite well. So what does this mean for Vulcan? Does it mean that if you live on the north side of town that you may be hurting, but if you live on the south side of town, you will be fine? I don't really think so. Here is what has been going on so far in 2015 - I started off the year writing listings for residential properties, and I have been showing properties to potential buyers properties that are listed under the $125,000 mark. Yes, I have had some potential buyers who are no longer looking because they are from the city and they are going to just sit tight for now. I have some people from the city who own recreational property and are dropping their list price because they are worried about a recession. What do I think is going to happen? Well, all I know is that I am busy helping clients buy and sell properties and until things slow down, I am going to enjoy being busy.