Fall Rebound…
After a brief dip in August, the real estate market is moving well again. By my count, September sales at 35 are right back to “Spring Market” levels. The fall market is generally as brisk as the spring one and this looks like no exception. Westview was the predominant location for purchases, but sales south of town were strong with 6 buyers choosing lower taxes and in two instances, waterfront. It’s a good time to buy after a lengthy period of dropping prices and we appear to be at the end of that drop. Call me to view any of the homes you see listed in the Powell River area.
Tax Sales…
You may have noticed the properties for sale at unbelievably low prices advertised in the Peak by the City a week or so ago. Every year, cities are entitled to auction those properties in their area on which the taxes are delinquent on the last Monday in September. The sale is a public auction with the successful bid being the highest bid above the “upset price”. The upset price is the total of:
- the amount of delinquent taxes, taxes in arrears and interest to the first day of the tax sale for which the parcel of land and the improvements are liable for sale;
- the taxes, including penalties incurred, for the current year on the land and improvements;
- 5% of the amounts under paragraph (1) and (2); and
- the fees prescribed under the Land Title Act.
If a property is sold by auction, the owner has 12 months to pay the amount that’s owed to the City to redeem the property.
At this year’s auction in Powell River, only one of the properties advertised was sold. All the others had their taxes paid up by auction day and that one property won’t change hands until the 12 month “redemption period” expires. According to the person I spoke to, most properties that come up for tax sale are redeemed by the owners prior to the auction itself.
New Home Warranty Tool
As a bit of a do-it-yourself kind of guy, I found this guide from the Homeowner Protection Office to be interesting even though I don’t own a home under warranty. The purpose of the guide is to help those with new homes under warranty to find out which defects are covered under warranty, but it also provides lots of tips for ongoing maintenance and the type of repair to be expected under warranty. This is the part I find interesting because it tells me which little concerns I should do something about and which ones are relatively minor.
It’s a monster resource of about 340 pages, but I found it very easy to navigate online and if you like to “putter” around with construction projects in your spare time, you might find it interesting too.
Check it out at http://www.hpo.bc.ca/residential-construction-performance-guide
Well-kept Westview Home
- 3 bedroom/1 bath; 1694 sq ft
- Nicely landscaped, fenced backyard
- Garage/shop; brand new roof
Powell River Real Estate Tid-bits 