Ottawa Market Update

In the month of February, members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 983 residential units, compared to 1,029 in February last year, a decrease of 4.5%.

The average price of a residential sale in February increased from February 2007 by 5.3%, going from $288,000 to $304,000 (approximate figures). Condominium sales in February saw an even larger average price increase, going from $188,000 to $206,000 - an increase of 9.5%.

Reflecting on these figures, the Board President opinioned that "we see these numbers as part of a trend towards sales figures similar to 2006's... and that was a record breaking year beaten only by 2007.”

Interest rates update
Citing an export slump caused by a slowing U.S. economy and a high Canadian dollar, the Bank of Canada dropped the overnight lending rate by 0.50% on March 5th. It was the second consecutive drop to the rate, following a 0.25% decrease back on January 22nd and brings the rate down to 3.5%. It’s reasonable to expect further reductions to the rate, since the Bank of Canada also indicated that additional stimulus will likely be needed.

So why aren’t our borrowing rates dropping?
The big banks have kept rates on fixed-rate mortgages at multi-year highs, even as the overnight lending rate comes down. The posted five-year mortgage rate at big banks has in the past been an average of 2.5% higher than the five-year Government of Canada bond yield. Today, the spread has grown to over 3.5%. You’re also not immune to the bank’s inflated rates with a variable rate mortgage either. Whereas variable-rate mortgages used to come with a discount of 0.9% off prime, today you're usually looking at 0.6%.

Some are calling it an example of collateral damage from the problems in the U.S. subprime mortgage market. It’s now costing banks and other lenders more to raise the money they use to finance mortgages, and they're passing the cost on to people buying homes and refinancing existing mortgages.

ecoACTION home retrofit

—go Green!

The Government of Canada has established a goal of reducing green house gas emissions by 20% by the year 2020 and by 60%-70% by the year 2050. In order to accomplish this goal they have implemented an integrated, nationally consistent program under the Office of Energy Efficiency. To be successful, reductions are needed from industry, the transportation section, and from homeowners. Did you know that 17% of all energy consumed in Canada goes towards heating and running our homes?

As part of its ecoACTION program, the federal government is providing financial incentives to property owners to retrofit their homes in order to help limit air pollution andgreen house gases. Since its inception in 1997, the program has performed 270,000 energy assessments, and if the recommendations of those assessments had been implemented, each home would have saved an average of 4.7 tonnes of green house gas emissions every year.

Although the potential benefit for newer homes is not as great, homes over 25 years old (built before 1980) have the potential for a 35% energysavings.

How big is the rebate/incentive?
The maximum grant that can be obtained under the program is $5,000. The average amount is $1,000, and the average annual energy savings is 30%.

So why would people want to have an energy assessment performed?

• You save money – and not just by getting the grant. On average, participants in the program save an estimated 30% of their annual energy costs, so over the long run many upgrades pay for themselves.
• Help provide for better air quality by reducing airborne pollutants and by limiting green house gas emissions.
• For home sellers, it provides documented proof of upgrades and quantifies their effectiveness.

Taking part in the program is very easy. Here are the steps to follow:

1. Have an energy audit performed by an approved technician. They will provide a report of potential upgrades.
2. Review the list of potential upgrades and decide which ones you’d like to have done.
3. Have the work completed within 18 months of the audit.
4. 4. Schedule the follow-up energy audit to measure the effectiveness of the improvements.
5. Wait for your rebate cheque!

Great News!!
The Ontario government is currently giving a rebate of up to 50% of the cost of the initial energy audit to a maximum of $150. In addition, they are matching the ecoACTION grant to a maximum of $5,000.

An Initiative We Want to Share With You

Last month the top one percent of Royal LePage realtors from across Canada met at the annual National Chairman’s Club retreat in Nassau, Bahamas. Patrick was 12th nationally out of almost 13,000 agents. We were a part of a newer component of the retreat, a philanthropic event where we gave back to the community that welcomed us.

Our group visited the Ranfurly Home for Children, an orphanage with 36 kids ranging in age from 5 to 18 years old. Together we voluntarily contributed $10,750. The money is going toward a new bus for the home. Individually we brought linens, toiletries, clothing, sports equipment, even iPods. We hope we inspired some awareness of the cause in the local community so that donations and support might continue. Those happy young faces are fixed in our memory.

Our first retreat experience (2007) helped a women’s shelter in San Juan, Puerto Rico. The windows in the shelter were cut-outs with no glass and no screens. We combined finances with our moving partner, Atlas Van Lines, to equip the shelter with new windows and screens.

Locally, we’ll continue our years of support to Ottawa’s Harmony House Shelter for Women and Children.

Patrick and Susan.