Commercial Projects Brighten Construction Picture for Kamloops

This article appeared in the Kamloops Daily News on July 6th, 2012.

New Construction Kamloops BC Real EstateCommercial and institutional construction is keeping builders in Kamloops busy while residential work is lagging slightly from last year.

City acting chief building inspector Bruce Barclay said Friday the first half of this year has seen construction values surpass $100 million. Last year at this time, those values were at $84 million.

The main driver behind that is business and institutional projects, he said.

For example, there’s a new $12.2-million seniors’ residence going up on Tranquille Road in Brocklehurst.

Single family construction is at $20 milion halfway through the year, while it was at $21.3 million at this point in 2011. Multi-family is down a bit, too, but expected to move upward as demand in that market rises.

Barclay said by the end of the year, he expects the construction-value total to be around $175 million. Pretty good, given an average year in Kamloops is between $120 and $140 million, and that the economy is still considered to be relatively flat.

“We’re on for a very strong year,” he said.

There are still some big-number projects expected to come through City Hall for permits this year, including Telus’s $30-million data centre, $6 million for Walmart’s expansion and $6.5 million for Target’s renovations to its Zellers location.

Kamloops has always paced itself well where commercial and residential construction is concerned, Barclay said.

“We’ve never done a Kelowna or a Vancouver to build it and they will come,” he said.

Instead, the buildings have been constructed as they’ve been needed.

“That’s the way most of our builders work. They’re not going to build without there being something there.”

City community development manager Randy Lambright said the numbers are encouraging, especially given the economy is being described as sluggish to recover from the 2008 recession.

“It’s all good and it can only get better, depending what happens with new industry coming into town with or without Ajax mine,” he said, adding there’s interest from other businesses in coming to town.

“It’s a manageable rate of growth.”

Housing prices are driving a growing interest in multi-family housing, which is raising more questions at City Hall about density and what should be encouraged for infill.

But, overall, all the construction figures for this year are positive, even on the housing side, he said.

Home Buyers Scramble Before Mortgage Rules Change

This article appeared on CBC.ca on July 7th, 2012.

The clock is ticking on Canada’s mortgage rules.

Come Monday, insured 30-year amortizations will be a thing of the past, and the shift means many buyers are scrambling to find a home and seal a deal this weekend, before time runs out.

As part of an attempt to cool the housing market and reduce household debt, the maximum amortization on government-backed mortgages will be 25 years.

“It will mean some people will not be able to buy into the market, some people will buy less into the market,” Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said in announcing the new rules last month.

Bruce and Denise Perrett, of Port Coquitlam, B.C., got married last year and wanted to buy a house, but they weren’t in a rush.

That all changed when the couple heard Ottawa was tightening mortgage rules.

For the Perretts, locking into a 30-year term as opposed to 25 years meant an extra $300 a month that could go to strata fees or property taxes.

They sprang into action and called their mortgage broker.

“She was right on it, she got us the approval and the next day we were rolling,” said Denise Perrett. “Then we found out we had to have an accepted offer by [July 9] and then we panicked and called our realtor.”

The new rules limit buyers’ purchasing power, said mortgage advisor Milka Lukacevic.
Deadline stress

For every $100,000 it’s about a $60 difference, and in an expensive market like the Lower Mainland, every penny counts.

But Lukacevic says the rush to take advantage before the rules change can carry a lot of stress.

“You can’t necessarily — because the rules changed in a matter of weeks — go out and find something just to try and get it on a 30- year.”

The Perretts spent 48 hours looking at homes and put an offer that was accepted last week on a property in Maple Ridge that has everything they want.

The best part is that they qualify for a 30-year mortgage.

“We probably wouldn’t have been able to afford to mortgage a house, or at least not the house we wanted, if we hadn’t jumped on it,” Bruce Perrett said.

Open House Weekend: Saturday, July 7 and Sunday, July 8, 2012: Aberdeen and Westsyde, Kamloops

On Saturday, July 7th and Sunday, July 8th, 2012 open houses will be held in Aberdeen and Westsyde, Kamloops.

Aberdeen Kamloops Home For SaleSaturday, July 7th, 2012: 1:00-2:30: 33-2030 Van Horne Drive, Aberdeen, $359,900

Very well kept Aberdeen home in popular gated bareland strata. This home features 2+1 bedrooms and 3 full bathrooms, a large kitchen with centre island and lots of counter space, huge living and dining room area with nice gas fireplace and mantle. more

Westsyde New Construction DevelopmentSunday, July 8th, 2012: 1:00-3:00:2240 Grasslands Boulevard, Westsyde, $458,000

Brand new rancher with a superb river and mountain view! The perfect family home featuring maple kitchen with island, tiled backsplash and Samsung appliances, 5 bedrooms, 3 full baths, family room and rec room. more

To view all homes for sale in Kamloops click here.

Kamloops Home For Sale: 20-1836 Greenfield Avenue, Brocklehurst, B.C. $304,900

Riverstone Bare Land Strata Brocklehurst KamloopsFully finished rancher style home in desirable RiverStone bare land strata. Finished to the highest standard, nice open great room floor plan with maple kitchen, stainless steel appliances and custom raised eating bar. There are 2 bedrooms on the main floor with the option to have laundry on the main (hook ups in the closet near the bathroom).The basement features a spacious recroom with custom wet bar, a full 4 piece bathroom with soaker tub, large bedroom, den and laundry room. There is also a lot of storage. Other features of this home are a large private deck in the back great for entertaining and low maintanence, a heat pump (central a/c), central vac, u/g sprinklers, Drycore subfloor and engineered hardwood in basement, sub panel in basement, single car garage and one spot in the driveway. Bare land strata is $75 and one small pet permitted, no rentals. Steps to bus and schools, minutes from shopping, recreation and more. New home warranty remaining. Great home in a quiet area, this one won’t last.

To view all homes for sale in Kamloops click here.

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