The Condos in Halifax sales for January are in. The pending condo sales ratio to active listings
have never been higher. I've tracked the data for 3 years now and it's usually below
10% . It peaked last year at 11.5 %.  41 Pending  sales / 260 actives = 15.7%!

The inventory is a bit low for this time of the year, but this is unprecedented!  - Data date - Feb 05/12 

The MLS(R) sales for homes is fairly healthy at 254 Homes sold in HRM (Halifax
Regional Municipality) . They are up marginally over last year.

I had a look at peninsular Halifax just to see if that made a difference but 
that too remained even.    All data from Condos Nova Scotia Blog 

The interest in condos is real and it's been affecting Halifax since Mid- October
when they announced the Irving Shipyard Contract. At first we thought it was
just a spike in the data, but on-going condo in Halifax sales seem to tell the story!

Investors are scooping up $200,000 to $300,000 condos! The interest rates
are super low. People just wanting a safe place to put their money are making
close to 10% ROI on their money. When investors get to be a certain age
they get a bit more careful with their money.

Halifax has always been slow and steady ,but always going up. The rate was always
2 - 3 % every year. This was why during the global recession that occurred in 2007
2008 we never missed a beat!

In areas like Lakeside, Spryfield etc: the returns can be even higher but there are
no condominiums in those areas.

http://condosnovascotia.ca  is the property of Stages Real Estate

Paul Viau is licensed to sell real estate in the Province of Nova Scotia.
Condos in Halifax

A new feature! I got this idea from an article on blogging!
A compilation of some of the blogs direct from Condos Nova Scotia.

Halifax ,Nova Scotia is a vibrant city.  recently we won a Canadian
shipbuilding contract worth 25 Billion over the next 25 years. Basically
enough jobs for 1000's of workers - with job stability to boot!

Since November 17th -when it was announced we have had a pretty
good run on the condo market . The first two Blogs -    1-Description of the Market in Jan.

     2 As first reported in December

The 3rd Blog reports on      3  The Trillium - Halifax.

The 4th is Bishops Landing -    4  Halifax's own waterfront condo!

For info on Condos - This is the place to come.  Condos Nova Scotia is the most visited condo
website in Nova Scotia.  We currently get over 100 visitors per day!  Why not contact us if your
thinking of a condo purchase in Nova Scotia. No better internet visibility for your condo as well!

Paul Viau has been licenced to sell real estate in the province of Nova Scotia for 18+ yrs.

It`s A Formality......Serve festive meals in the formal dining room of this 2-story
Exceptional Hammonds Plains home in White Hills. You will have room to roam on this
3.24 acre lot that boards a small brook. 

This welcoming floor plan delivers 4 bedrooms, 3.5 bathrooms, comfortable family room,
master suite with walk-in closet, distinguished main floor family room with hardwood floors

, gourmet kitchen with built in dishwasher, custom cabinets, breakfast bar, first-floor laundry.

View this exceptional Hammonds Plains home       and all its photos here.  

 Compliments -  Novascotiabiz Photography

You love the mud room as you enter the home and the cozy rec room is the perfect place
for movie night with the kids! With 2 single car garages there is enough room for all the toys.
Enjoy the benefits and the savings of a dual oil & wood hot water baseboard furnace.

Houses like this one don`t last very long. Call Today!              Contact Jeremy Cowan

View the home's video.

177 Royal Dornoch - Exceptional Hammonds Plains home.
 

This Lower Sackville home is a must see!

Welcome to your own Oasis with 5 bedrooms in prestigious Riversides Estates in Lower Sackville.
This home is listed by John Foster at Exit Realty Citadel.   MLS(R) #  40418089

Backing onto a greenbelt this home features a 40x20 in ground pool with a new heat pump and a new hot tub in a completely fenced private back yard.

Entertain friends in the large gazebo in the pool area or cook for them in the newly renovated kitchen, featuring solid maple cabinetry with huge pantry cupboards.

This Lower Sackville home features new windows and doors throughout and has new hardwood flooring on the main floor, main floor laundry and a formal dining room with a fire place!. You will enjoy 2 ½ completely rebuilt bathrooms with soaker tubs on the 2nd floor and 4 large bedrooms. The finished basement features new subfloor, a new 5th bedroom and walkout access to the hot tub and pool. A gas fireplace in the rec room will keep you warm in the winter. A $1000 allowance so you can pick your own flooring in the new bedroom. You must see this home.Immediate Possession available

All the pictures may be seen at Flickr

Youtube video

Lower Sackville Home 
Paul Viau is Licensed to sell real estate in the Province of Nova Scotia 

Between photo shoots I went to Hemlock Ravine Park with Cosmo - my dog.
We had about 2hrs to kill. I never realized how big it was. It is 197-acres ! It
was home to John Wentworth, Nova Scotia's lieutenant governor in the 1780s!
There is a big heart shaped pond down at the entrance.

Trails wind through the woods for ever! It is truly a gem amugnst residential neighborhoods
and very popular condos.

It is dog a friendly park with off-leash trails. It can be quite wet .... well its a ravine park.

Here is a shot of my dog - enjoying the the trails!

The newest tool unvailed just a week ago available for Nova Scotia real estate agents.

Unveiled by Novascotiabiz's MLS(R)  -  Nova Scotia home photography Services.

The photo service includes full flickr services - We make it easy to show clients the photos!

It also includes a Youtube video of the property. Here is one of my clients properties.
Includes an easy link so you can post it where ever you like!

It also includes a wordpress blog on Localbiznovascotia.com of the listing highlights.

And as of last week -  it includes a blog on Active rain! 

Both - are highly optimized and perform well on google!

You help pick the keyword phrases.

Both blogs have links to your websites.

This is a sample photo.

600x400 ready for immediate upload to MLS(R)

Nova Scotia home photography        902-293-1113  or  prviau@gmail.com

Paul Viau is licensed to sell Real Estate in the Province of Nova Scotia.

It all started in November of 2007. It was a typical busy weekend.
I had 3 clients on the go - Two out of town buyers and an unexpected
call from a client I had worked with before. It all happened Friday 
evening. I went to bed with a splitting headache.

I woke up and there was some extra ringing in my ears. It was like
white noise I had heard nothing like it before. I went downstairs and tryed
to log in to the computer. I couldn't do it. I could not get my hands to
respond. All I knew was that people were counting on me, and that what -ever
was wrong with me would pass.

I rushed to the car and proceeded to my first appointment. My wife had already left
with my kids. I soon found out that I could not seem to get a word out. when I spoke
it was all garbled. I told my clients that I had a cold and was not able to speak with them
and to write down questions and I would get back to them.

By the time I got home I knew that something was majorly wrong with me .... i just had
no idea what it was. I mumbled something to my wife. And she said I looked like a ghost!
then as I sat at the computer  she came over and said the right hand side of my face was droopy.
I knew then that I had a stroke because I had managed to type in droopy face. The result was stroke!
 I told my wife and she nearly fainted. We had both been coming and going with the kids and my schedule was full.

Anyway - 2 weeks later. I got out of the hospital. My blood pressure had been 200/120! I was a walking
time bomb! Took me 6 months to fully recover. But in the mean time -I became right brained.

Web sites and photography were all of a sudden in the for-front. I still kept my licence but the luster
of the deal faded further and further.

Fast forward to 2011. I operate 2 condo websites. Put together they are the most visited real estate
websites in Atlantic Canada.  www.condosnovascotia.com and .ca .   I refer all the deals to my 2 
buddies at Stages real estate.

I operate a website www.localbiznovascotia.com , I've got a photography company that takes pictures
of homes on the MLS(R).

What a transition! Who could have called it?

And my active rain - I actually started posting listings that I photo as part of my service!

Today I took a drive down past Kentville to Hall's Harbour to see the low tide!

As part of the Bay of Fundy they enjoy the world's highest tides.  I had my camera with

me and could not help but to grab these spectacular shots.

The tides are 53 feet in the bay of Fundy!  That's about 9 times the average tide on the other side of 
the province in Halifax; where I'm from. It's really quite a site to see the boats on their side!

Here is a view from on top of the wharf looking at the shore line.

The Bay of Fundy has been nominated as one of the seven wonders of the world.

 The Swiss-based non-profit New7Wonders Foundation was established in 2001 by the Swiss-born Canadian filmmaker, author, and adventurer Bernard Weber.

Vote for the Bay of Fundy as one of the seven wonders of the world.

The Hall's Harbour website has more pictures and info.

The weather is getting progressivly better - especially for the past 2 weeks.
We had rain it seemed for the months of May ,june and July and the first week
or so of August.

 Halifax has always depended on tourist traffic . I hope people when they arrived in July expecting 
sun were not turned off too bad. We get 30 + plus Cruise Ships in our port each year. Many arrive
from such ports of call as New york.

I suppose -people have to expect martime conditions like fog. But even I'm saying july

was too much!

Hurricane KATIA had better bless us by staying offshore next week!

Paul Viau is licensed to sell real estate in the province of Nova Scotia. 

This is a `MUST SEE` Executive custom built home in Kingswood North  is perfect for the couple that likes to entertain. Featuring a custom designed kitchen with high end fixtures. Main level boasts beautiful Cherry hardwood floors, wrought iron rails, cove moulding throughout, 2 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms.

This fine property in Kingswood North is listed by Dan Lomas at Century 21 - Trident.

 Wait until you see the Master suite that looks like a luxury hotel room that includes large walk-in closet and a stunning ensuite.

 When you see the custom glass shower, jacuzzi tub & double vanity you will be impressed. Outside you can watch the deer from your large two-level deck. Many other upgrades to see in this home. Come see for yourself....

All the photos can be viewed at flickr.

The youtube video !

These photos , video , and Blogs  are all courtesy  Localbiznovascotia.com Photography service.

Kingswood North
Paul Viau holds his real estate license in the province of Nova Scotia