June 28 2017

Kitchener Waterloo Real Estate News Update

The cauliflower effect

The central bank’s job is to keep inflation at about 2%. Spikes in vegetable and gasoline prices make that job difficult, as they push the Consumer Price Index up. Media coverage of those spikes complicate matters by creating an impression that inflation is rampant. Data released by Statistics Canada on June 23 put the average of the central bank’s three core inflation measures at 1.3%. That creates an argument for lower interest rates, not higher.

Doing arts responsibly

The plan to set up a creative hub for the arts in downtown Kitchener has failed for financial reasons. Someone has got to pay for it, right? Hell. I’m still mad about the Grand Social fiasco.

Shifting down

The game has changed. The market has shifted. Most real estate agents have never gone through what we just went through and what we are about to go through. How can we cope with a radically shifting market? Here are twelve.

Same circus, different moneys

Old school fights new tech platform in B’nB market. Traditional bed and breakfast businesses are upset with Airbnb operators stealing their business. Airbnb accommodations are cheaper and easier to use but many are unlicensed. I predict the end of the traditional bed and breakfast business model as they become Airbnbs.

Same monkeys, different circus

The largest price gains—in Canada and around the world—are predominantly in the largest cities. Over the past four years, prices are up 47% in Vancouver, 54% in London, and 75% in Auckland. Since 2015, prices in Hong Kong have risen a whopping 236%.

Safety Village turns 25 years old

Over the past 25 years, more than half a million students from around Waterloo Region have visited Waterloo Region Children’s Safety Village and participated in the popular police and fire education programs about the fundamentals of traffic, bicycle, pedestrian and online safety.