I am always trying to bring information and tools to any one that will listen.  Things that will help them make their housing and even, money, decisions.  Sometimes they are video, often they are articles.  But this particular article caught my eye:  Globe and Mail:  Housing market correction “appears to be under way’.

Let me be the first one to thank you for stating the obvious.  This happens every time.  Most media outlets are about 6 months behind reporting and sort of real estate market information.  Whether they don’t get the stats until months later, or their sources have no clue, I am not sure.

In my opinion, in BC, there has been a slow “Cooling Off” for the last 18 months for everywhere in BC except North Shore, Vancouver and South Surrey/White Rock.  As many of us know, a lot of the demand in these markets was driven by foreign investment.  These markets, not immune to the current economic climate, have slowed to some degree now as well.  Now I know this is a generalization of our real estate market, but I think it gets my point across.

Although the new mortgage rules have had some effect, this slow down has been happening for a while.

Here is what I think you need to know.

1)  The people that needed to put less than 20% down, and now can’t qualify for anything with a 25 year amortization, is very small.

2)  If you want to refinance your property, be aware of the current value.

3)  It is all relative.  Know that if your townhouse is 10% lower in value than it was last year, so is the house you are buying too.  As always, just be careful if you are moving downsizing.

4)  Real estate is a long term investment.  When buying, plan for the long term.