The Importance of Hiring a Certified Professional - Property Assessments - Halifax Real Estate 2022

When you are buying a house in the Halifax Real Estate Market, we recommend doing a house inspection - even if you think you know exactly what house you are walking into. Hiring a professional, like a general contractor will see things that we just don't see. In this particular case, the inspection report changed our view of the property, and saved our clients a lot of money and headache.

Have you had an experience like this with a home inspection that changed your mind about a house? Let us know in the comments below.

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What the hell was that and can you please make it stop?

2021 was breathless from the outset. It seemed that overnight, people’s patience snapped and an overwhelming urgency took hold.  Competition exploded and the lid flew off offer prices like a cat flies off a cucumber. While the penny dropped quickly, it was a problem that had been building for months. For some shocking perspective, look at the number of homes for sale in the Halifax Regional Municipality over the past four years:

  •        December 2018 | 2,055
  •        December 2019 | 1,298
  •        December 2020 | 626
  •        December 2021 | 214

This represents an inventory decrease on a scale larger than a blue whale. That’s big. What’s more, the number of sales has…

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Buying a House By Accident | A Thing of the Past in Nova Scotia

Up to this point, you could accidentally buy a house in Nova Scotia if you forgot to tell the Seller otherwise.  That’s because your Buyers conditions (like financing or home inspection) would self-waive.  Meaning, if you failed to inform the Seller you were not comfortable “firming up” by the condition date, you would be legally obligated to purchase the property.  The old system also made it very scary for a Buyer to submit a written request for items like a repair that resulted from findings from the home inspection.  While the Seller did not have to sign or accept the request, they were also at liberty to “interpret the request as notice of dissatisfaction” which would then permit them…

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Happy Holidays!  It’s December and we are getting into the festive spirit down at Coldwell Banker Maritime Realty.  We’ve decorated our windows for the annual North by Night display and the Christmas tunes are filling the air.  We’re still working hard while we’re having fun, although sales have dropped by more than 31% from this time last year.  This is because inventory is down by almost 60%, now pushing the average price above $500,000 for the first time.


We’re also in our final month of #LiveLoveLocal where we get to feature the Fireworks Gallery – Halfax’s choice custom goldsmith, repair shop and source for beautiful designer jewellery.  We’ll be giving away $1000 to the Fireworks Gallery before Christmas, courtesy of Coldwell Banker Maritime…

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2nd Quarter Market Update | A Price Plateau

Before I tell you why we are having a difficult time explaining the numbers, we’ve got to talk about the numbers. Average price in the second quarter only went up by 0.8% in comparison to 12% in the previous one. Total sales in the 2nd quarter were 1,960 in comparison to 1,466 in 2020.  In the past year, the average price increased by 32% driven by low supply and high demand.  However, back in 2020 we had more than double the inventory – 1,079 homes for sale versus 470 in 2021.  So why has the average price plateaued?

Making Sense of the Numbers

Based on the numbers alone, there is absolutely no reason why the average price is not continuing to increase.  Market value is based on supply and demand. We…

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COVID and the real estate market so far

Real estate markets across Canada have been experiencing unprecedented price growth since the pandemic started.  Record low interest rates and travel restrictions meant more people shifted their attention to homeownership.  Some of the sale prices we’re witnessing in the Halifax area are shocking, even for someone who looks at prices every single day.  A Bedford townhouse that sells for $735,000.  A Hydrostone Row house at $750,000.  While we in Nova Scotia baulk at these prices, those from other areas of the country like Ontario still see our little province as affordable.  Those who own a home and are looking to upgrade at least have solace in knowing their house has appreciated as well.  However, I feel…

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Generally, when I look at real estate stats, I use data based on 12 months of activity - where each point measures 12 months of data.  The more data we use, the better we understand trends.  However, things are changing rapidly in Halifax and the only way to properly demonstrate that is by using monthly sales data.

In the first quarter of 2020, the average sale price of a single family home in the Halifax Regional Municipality was $344,644.  In 2021 at time of writing, that number has skyrocketed to more than $475,000.  This represents a 39.5% increase.  The most significant jump occurred from December  to January  where the average monthly sale price increased from $426,705 to $468,548.  Low inventory is not a new problem.  It was a challenge in March…

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This week, we were on location at Duggers Menswear on the corner of Spring Garden Road and Brunswick Street. We sat down with Karl who's been with Duggers for 10 years doing a variety of different tasks while helping customers look their best. This June marks 50 years of Duggers in Halifax!

 

Buy or sell a home in 2021 to win one of 12 great prizes!

Buy or sell a home with Coldwell Banker Maritime Realty in 2021 to support local businesses. We are giving away $12,000 in prizes including golf, glamping, furniture, cooking classes, clothing and so much more!. Learn more about #LiveLoveLocal here. 

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Halifax Real Estate Market | Year in Review

The real estate market became increasingly competitive throughout 2020.  Inventory saw a persistent decline while sales quickened their pace.   Historically low interest rates and a sub one percent vacancy rate in the Halifax area compounded the problem.  Rent got more expensive while the cost to borrow money was lowest I’ve seen in my 14 year career.  These factors had a significant effect on our single family statistics.

The Single Family Market

The average price of a single family home in the Halifax Regional Municipality increased by 14% in 2020.  This represents an average increase of approximately 1.24% in a month, meaning a house worth $300,000 would gain $3,720 in 30 days.  This is…

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