After writing about 500 posts over 3 years on my "other" blog connected to my personal website,  I decided it might be fun to shake things up a little. Over 3,000 people a month are reading that blog now and I'm sure some are getting a little tired of only hearing or seeing my point of view!

A while ago, I read about something called The Disposable Memory Project in which the originator sent out disposable cameras around the world.  It struck me as a GREAT idea and a creative way of seeing things through other people's eyes.  Then I got thinking... why not try it in my own marketplace of South Georgian Bay?

Over the past few weeks, I've released five, Kodak disposable cameras.  One was released in each of Collingwood, Meaford and Clearview, Wasaga Beach and Blue Mountain.  A clear, plastic ZipLoc bag contains the simple instructions that asks people to take a picture anywhere in the Georgian Triangle that they think reflects life in the area.  Within 24 hours after, they are asked to pass the bag and it's contents, which includes a record log, to a total stranger or to leave it where it is likely to be picked up.  The person who snaps the last picture on the film is asked to mail it back to me in the pre-paid enclosed envelope that is in the bag.  It's really that simple.

I am so curious.  Will the cameras ever find their way back to me?  How long will it take until one arrives back?  What kind of pictures will we see?  Will some of the photographers drop me a line to tell us their part in this story?

As cameras are returned, I'll post the pictures on my blog. I'm sure my readers and I will enjoy seeing some other points of view.

Everyone has surely heard about the fall from grace of our local MP for Simcoe-Grey, Helena Guergis so we won't even go there.  One of her last acts before being expelled from the Conservative caucus though was to bring some very good news to our area.

Georgian College will receive an investment of $4 million for a new Collingwood Campus through the Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario).  While Georgian has had a presence in Collingwood for many decades, it has been a part-time campus more or less with locations spread out around the town.  In a recent media release, Brian Tamblyn, President and CEO of Georgian College stated, "This investment in a new, permanent home for Georgian College serving Collingwood, Wasaga Beach, Clearview Township, Meaford and Town of the Blue Mountains, will go far in helping to address short and long-term economic needs of the entire area. A new consolidated campus will allow Georgian to continue to expand its enrollment by as much as 20 per cent annually."

I've also heard that the College will have degree granting capabilities through its University Partnerships Program.  For a very long time now, Collingwood has identified the need for a full-time post-secondary education facility in the community.  Mayor Chris Carrier and Collingwood Council are to be congratulated for their significant efforts in bringing this about.   While the location has not yet been announced, rumour has it that it will be located in the new Industrial Park at the south-east end of town.

P.S. Ski Season Passes On Sale
You can save the PST on your 2010/2011 ski pass for Blue Mountain if you hurry.  The 5 x 7 ski pass allows you to ski 5 days a week, Monday to Friday from 9 am to 4:30 pm and 7 nights a week too from 4:40 pm to 10 pm.  If you buy your pass for next season before April 30th, the cost if just $169.00 plus GST (no PST).  Check it out at www.bluemountain.ca

I once listed a house for sale in Collingwood where a suspected murder had taken place.  I consulted with two lawyers about disclosure requirements and got two answers:  one was to follow the instructions of my client and the second was more of a question:  would want or need to know this and, then make my decision from there.  I'll tell you what happened later.

In an interesting seminar that I attended earlier this year, the instructor neatly categorized property stigmas into three categories:

1.  Pure Stigma where a property has been psychologically impacted by a suspected or actual event such as haunted homes or, properties where a murder, suicide or death occurred
2. Physical Stigma where a physical problem has affected the property such as UFFI, mold, asbestos, lead-based paint or oil tanks and,
3. Neighbourhood stigmas when the house is located in an area known for a high crime rate or in a neighbourhood where a suspected or known criminal resides.

REALTORS® have a duty to discover and disclose facts about a property that could affect a purchaser's decision to buy a property.  Our Standards of Practice lay-out our obligation to discover facts and to the avoid error, misrepresentation or concealment of those facts.  We can also not exaggerate or advise on matters outside the scope of our real estate license or, break rules of privacy and confidentiality.  It's a tricky area, especially in Ontario where rules of disclosure of stigmatized properties are not clearly spelled out in any legislation.

The question comes down to, what is a fact?  If a house contained lead-based paint and it was removed, it is a fact and there is no question it should be disclosed.  But is a haunted house a fact?

My own policy is to always disclose all known stigmas and to let the potential buyers decide if it matters to them or not.  For Sellers, I doubt they'd like to endure the pain and expense of a lawsuit where a judge can decide if it matters or not.  For buyers, it is important to ask the questions and, to deal with a local REALTOR® who knows about local issues, stigmas and their effect on property values. By discovering and factually disclosing pertinent stigmas, I sleep well at night knowing the right thing has been done.  My reputation relies on it and so do my clients.

About the house I mentioned.  We did disclose the stigma and the house sold.  Sadly, there were two suicides and a fire in the house in later years.  Maybe the house was cursed.  Maybe not.  No matter what, I have always been thankful that the buyers were fully informed.

The month of March proved to be strong start to the spring market and potentially a sign of having put the recession fully behind us - at least for now.

Sales in the Georgian Triangle last month reached the highest level on record for any March since 2004 with a total of 200 MLS® sales in all areas serviced by the Georgian Triangle Real Estate Board for all types of properties.  Of the 200 sales, about 135 were single family homes and 24 were condominiums.  There were also 25 vacant land sales.  The number of new listings also climbed sharply with 614 new listings in March; a level not seen since May, 2008.

The 12 month average, residential sale price has returned to 2008 levels in most areas and is now at its highest level ever in some areas.  Condominium sales continue to show a sharp rise compared to the previous two years and they have now returned to peak 2007 levels.  65 condos sold in the first quarter of this year with an average sale price of $237,000.  These sales occurred across our area in all price ranges and follow the pattern of buyers moving to condominium living being reported in larger urban centres.  We've also seen a return of recreational buyers and investors for this type of property. Only Thornbury has been slow to absorb the existing inventory of condominiums in that community.

In Collingwood, the sales-to-listing ratio hit 50% for the first time in years signaling a return to a sellers market; particularly for properties priced under $300,000.  There was a resurgence in the higher-end market as well with 16 sales reported over $500,000 with two sales exceeding the $2.3 million dollar mark. Clearly, all signs point to a continued strong spring market.
 
The following information was obtained from the MLS® statistics provided by the Georgian Triangle Real Estate Board.  It covers all areas serviced by the board. The first number is for March 2010 with March 2009 and 2008 results in brackets:

Total Number of Sales in all areas reported:  200 (106, 133)
Total # of new listings in all areas reported: 614 (500, 413)
# Active Listings as of March 31st: 1964

The following data is limited to  Collingwood, Clearview, Grey Highlands, Meaford, Blue Mountains and Wasaga Beach areas only and, reports MLS® data for the first quarter of 2010:
 
a) March only Single Family Residential Sales:  123 (56, 91)
b) First Quarter Totals:

YTD Single Family Residential Sales 240 (134, 248 )
12 mos. Average Sale Price:  $311,159 (262,243, 292,140)
Note:  Even if sales over $999,999 are removed, the average sale price is still up by about 10% over last year).
YTD Sales-to-Listings Ratio: 29.16% (18%, 36.16%)
YTD Condo Sales:  65 (42, 56)
YTD Farms Sold:  2 (1, 6)
YTD Vacant Land Sold:  32, (16, 32)
YTD Commercial Sold: 8 (9, 10)

Statistics can be helpful but also misleading when not applied to a particular scenario.  If you are looking at buying or selling in the Georgian Triangle area, it is important to consult with a REALTOR® to obtain detailed information about the statistics as they apply to your particular interests or needs.

If you are looking for such information in our area, send me an email or give me a call and I'd be happy to provide you with the latest sales data for your neighbourhood and property type.

My favourite photographic contributor is at it again.  E.H. Scott,  a client of mine who lives atop the Niagara Escarpment to the south of Collingwood, sent these two photos he took on March 27th.  The first was taken at 20:53 in the middle of Earth Hour and, the second at 21:45, after Earth Hour had finished. You can clearly see that after Earth Hour, the glow in the sky from Collingwood - Blue Mountain is much greater.

According to the president of Collus (our local utility provider), Collingwood's consumption dropped 5.6% compared to 9% last year.  This could be due to a number of factors since the same trend was seen across Ontario.  For example, it was cold that day.  It could also be due to lower consumption patterns become a norm on a regular basis thereby lessening the impact of of turning things off or down during Earth Hour.

I had a most interesting chat with Collingwood's Mayor, Chris Carrier, yesterday about the many cutting-edge and exciting new opportunites that are emerging around environmental opportunities for municipalities, home owners and builders.  Things like energy cooperatives, geothermal or solar installations for entire developments, use of land-fill methane to fuel generators and trucks... there is a great deal of innovation out there and exciting times ahead.  Ontario's new Green Energy Act has certainly accelerated this trend to a surprising degree.

As an Accredited Green Broker™, keeping on top of "green" trends is a passion for me.  If you are thinking of buying a new-to-you home, let's talk about how you can minimize that second price tag of utility and comfort costs.

After allocating an extra $80 million to this popular, energy efficiency retrofit program in the budget on March 4th, the Tory government has suddenly announced yesterday that it has been cancelled without warning.

In a media release this morning, Kerri MacDonald from the Collingwood Environment Network said, "With over 85,000 home retrofits conducted since 2007, this proves that homeowners were willing to make the changes necessary to conserve energy and improve energy efficiency of their homes. The announcement of the end of this program is a real setback for the environment and the economy." 

Over the past several years, The Environment Network has helped hundreds of local residents save money and make their homes more energy efficient through the ecoENERGY Retrofit - Homes program. Since the start of the program in 2007, homeowners in the Simcoe County and Muskoka area received over $1 million in direct grants as part of this program.

Homeowners who already had an a pre-retrofit evaluation booked are able to continue with the program, and those who are in the midst of completing retrofits and energy efficient upgrades must complete the work and have their post evaluation by March 11, 2011 to qualify for grants under the program.

If you are thinking about relocating to the Collingwood-Blue Mountain area, chances are you might also be embarking on a job hunt.  Where do you start? 

You can begin by searching online at well known sites such as Workopolis, Monster and Local Work.    You can also check the Service Canada Job Bank and of course, the local newspapers in the area which all have online editions.

You might check in with a local service such as TRACKS or the Career Access Centre.

You can look at more local and aggregator websites such as Job Serve, Jobs Open, Wow Jobs and  Indeed.

Some local employers, such as Blue Mountain Resort post available jobs on line.  The same would apply for many of the local municipalities, health care services, military bases and engineering firms among others.

If you are earnest in your job search, you might want to start by researching the businesses that exist and then, details about them.  An excellent source can be found at Community Connection. 

If you are interested in self-employment, there are some excellent resources to assist you in the area including the Small Business Enterprise Centre and, the Centre for Business.  Of course, we are always happy to help in this area as well with local information, lease rates, business opportunities and such.

I've saved my best tip for last.  Use Google Alerts.  If you enter for example, Collingwood, ON or Meaford or Wasaga Beach, you will receive alerts that may include job postings, notices about new businesses and other information that could trigger a new idea or direction for you.

If you are contemplating buying a condominium in the Collingwood - Blue Mountain area, you owe it to yourself to visit Lighthouse Point.

This very popular development sits on about 100 acres with a mile of Georgian Bay shoreline on the west edge of Collingwood.  Construction began in 1989 with the last of the roughly 500 units completed last year.  In 2002, developer, Rupert Bronsdon was named builder of the year by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation - an award well deserved for this quality project that elevated the standard for all such projects to follow.

Lighthouse Point is beautifully landscaped right from the appealing entry complete with waterfall through to the 10 acre nature preserve with boardwalk and the variation of trees and vegetation through-out the area.  Over the years, it has been so well-maintained.

Aside from it's location and quality, Lighthouse Point offers residents the widest range of amenities available in such a project with access included in the condominium fees through shared-facility agreements.  In addition to the trails, there are two beaches, a children's playground, 9 tennis courts, 3 heated, outdoor pools, a putting green and the best of all - a 16,000 square foot recreation centre with an indoor pool, social rooms, games room for the kids and exercise centre.  There is also a 275 berth, private marina that accommodates boats up to 45 feet.

There are a variety of prices and floor plans available in the project ranging from small, stacked ski condo's to garden homes complete with garages.  There is a 3 storey, low-rise apartment with elevator and underground parking as well as spectacular waterfront units with prices that have topped the $1 million mark.  Older, one bedroom condo's on the resale market have been around the $140,000 mark.

This week, I listed a terrific two bedroom garden home.  Coincidentally, this is the second time as I sold this same unit years ago - I AM getting old!  It is an upper level unit that has a party sized deck spanning over two garages below.  The current owner installed gorgeous hardwood floors, upgraded fixtures in the two full baths and installed great appliances such as a Bosch dishwasher and stainless steel fridge.  One of the things I found rather interesting is that she had an ecoEnergy audit performed and the rating was excellent for a condominium and especially one built prior to the current building code.  The unit includes a garage, air conditioning, a wood-burning fireplace and it overlooks trees and beautifully landscaped areas; a good value at $254,900.  It's perfect for a week-end getaway or, as a full-time home for one or two.

Generally, there are 25-40 resales each year.  Units that are properly priced and well presented almost always sell n this development and on average, have sold at about 97% of their asking price.

I have to tell you, the Lighthouse Point development in Collingwood is one of my favourites.  I know it very well because over the years, I've had three family members live there and, have had many clients purchase, sell, trade and upgrade there.  I'd love to show you why.

As many people know, the Competition Bureau has challenged the real estate industry's MLS® rules.  I could say A LOT about what I think of this however, this clip does it much better and is well worth a listen if you are interested in the topic. 

It is an interview with a non-partisan, consumer and real estate investor whose comments mirror my own feelings.  He also raises a number of very good points to ponder and clarifies many misconceptions that exist.  It's a bit long at just over 16 minutes but explains the issue very well.

The features that home buyers look for reflect the changing realities of the world we live in.  For example, as the average age of the population rises, so does the demand for one storey homes.  With environmental issues reaching our collective consciousness, so does the demand for "green" features increase.

I spent some time this morning reading various reports and studies to find out the trends home builders and renovators might want to pay particular attention to.  What I found was not surprising at all.  Buyers are placing increased importance on:

 Open concept floor plans
 One level living
 Main floor master bedrooms
 Universal design
 Energy Efficiency

Recently, the Ontario Association of Home Builders held their meetings here in Collingwood and some of the newer trends they identified were:
 
 - McMansions are being traded for better quality homes
 - People want to age-in-place and are looking for homes that are easily adapted for accessibility
 - People are expanding their living into the outdoors with a greater demand for 3-season living spaces such as covered patios and  porches, sunrooms

They also specifically noted that buyers are demanding greater energy efficiency in their homes and are willing to pay for it to a certain point.  Some of the features they are looking at include:

*  Homes that are pre-wired to be solar ready
*  New products and building techniques that will address the fact that homes built under the new building code in 2012 will be more air tight
*  Kill switches to easily turn off appliances using phantom energy
*  Home automation systems for multi-media
*  A movement away from stucco to things like stone and hardiboard
*  Kitchens with walk-in pantries, solid surface countertops, specific task lighting and energy efficient appliances.

If you are buying a new home, it's a good idea to incorporate as many of these elements as possible because they are likely to become the norm when you one day face resale of your property.  For people renovating their homes, it's also a good idea to consider these trends both for resale and for efficient and healthy home operation.  Remember, the cost of operating your home (heat, hydro, water) are the second  price tag of ownership.