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Demand for luxury homes intensifies amid rising Canadian and global wealth

Demand for luxury homes intensifies amid rising Canadian and global wealth

Mississauga, ON (May 18, 2011) – Improved financial standing among high net worth individuals is the major factor driving strong sales activity at the top end of Canadian housing markets, according to a report released today by RE/MAX.

RE/MAX Ontario-Atlantic Canada and RE/MAX of Western Canada examined 12 major centres from coast-to-coast and found that luxury sales have surged in close to two-thirds of housing markets between January 1 and April 30 of this year, compared to the same period in 2010. Leading in terms of percentage increases over the four-month period were Greater Vancouver (118 per cent) – where foreign investment has also played a major role – Ottawa (59 per cent), Calgary (51 per cent), Halifax-Dartmouth (27 per cent), Winnipeg (24 per cent), Hamilton-Burlington (13 per cent) and Greater Toronto (nine per cent). Six of the seven major cities – with the exception of Calgary – are poised to set new records in top-end activity by year-end. Several are just short of peak levels reported in 2010, such as Victoria, Regina, and London-St. Thomas.

Right now in Kitchener Waterloo there are 92 homes for sale between $600,000-2,100,000

The areas of these homes are, Lincoln Heights(Kiwanis Park), Colonial Acres/Eastbridge, Bridgeport, Stanley Park/Centreville, Grand River North, Idlewood/Lackner Woods, Hidden Valley, Doon/Pioneer/Wyldwoods, Uptown Waterloo, Beechwood, Upper Beechwood and Laurelwood. As you can see there are luxury homes spread right across the city so if you want to be in a particular area, you should be able to find something that suits your taste in the area that you prefer. In addition to the luxury housing there are many luxury condos as well. Some of the new developments are offering condos upwards in the million dollar range. We also have some pretty nice luxury townhomes as well.

Here are a couple of maps showing the locations of all the luxury homes in the different areas around Kitchener Waterloo.

For a complete list of all of these luxury homes or condominiums and other unique properties in Kitchener Waterloo and surrounding areas, please visit our search tool.

Thanks for reading!

Warren & Melanie McNeil | Sales Representatives, Team McNeil
RE/MAX Twin City Realty, Brokerage ( 519.579.4110 | 519-498-8118

Connect with us on the following social networks

Facebook: www.facebook.com/TeamMcNeilRemax

websites: www.TeamMcNeil.com, www.ClickThatHouse.com,
www.KitchenerLofts.com, www.ElmiraRealEstate.ca

Filed under: KW Real Estate,Remax,Uncategorized — Tags: luxury homes, remax luxury homes for sale in kitchener waterloo, remax luxury homes in canada — wmcneil @ May 19, 2011 12:47 am

Comments (0) 470 views

Realtors back rail transit plan

Here is an interesting article I read regarding the rapid transit plan that we are in the midst of. Realtors in Waterloo Region are pro-lightrail.

WATERLOO REGION — Local realtors lean to supporting an $818-million rail transit plan meant to help redevelop neighbourhoods near stations, a survey suggests.

The Kitchener-Waterloo Association of Realtors surveyed its members and found 71 per cent support light rail transit, 14 per cent support rapid buses and 15 per cent support upgrading roads without rapid transit.

Association president George Patton said realtors are “naturally interested in any issue that stands to have such a profound impact on how the community is shaped.”

Realtors were also asked if trains are the best way to encourage investors to build homes and workplaces in central neighbourhoods. The results: 64 per cent said yes, 23 per cent said no and 14 per cent said maybe.

Original article: http://www.therecord.com/news/local/article/534254–realtors-back-rail-transit-plan

Thanks for reading!

Warren & Melanie McNeil | Sales Representatives, Team McNeil
RE/MAX Twin City Realty, Brokerage ( 519.579.4110 | 519-498-8118

Connect with us on the following social networks

Facebook: www.facebook.com/TeamMcNeilRemax

websites: www.TeamMcNeil.com, www.ClickThatHouse.com,
www.KitchenerLofts.com, www.ElmiraRealEstate.ca

Filed under: Waterloo Region — Tags: grt, kitchener waterloo light rail transit, light rail, rapid bus, rapid transit — wmcneil @ May 18, 2011 11:55 pm

Comments (0) 345 views

GO Trains Coming to Kitchener in December – Travelling to and from Toronto

By Warren McNeil

First we got buses and now we are getting trains. GO trains are coming to Kitchener in December 2011. A one-way ticket to Toronto will cost around $15 and travel time will be 2 hours. 2 trains will be travelling each morning Monday thru Friday. No weekend service.

Construction is underway to build a layover station to park the trains overnight between King and Park St. The project will cost 5 Million dollars.

I believe this will be great for commuters who don’t want to drive the 401 to go to and from Toronto everyday. The train will take 2 hours but I am sure there are days that if you drove into downtown Toronto, the drive would take 2 hours anyway. Just another example of the growth we are seeing in Kitchener Waterloo.

References: http://www.therecord.com/news/local/article/533355–go-train-ticket-to-toronto-15-for-one-way-trip

Thanks for reading!

Warren & Melanie McNeil | Sales Representatives, Team McNeil
RE/MAX Twin City Realty, Brokerage ( 519.579.4110 | 519-498-8118

Connect with us on the following social networks

Facebook: www.facebook.com/TeamMcNeilRemax

websites: www.TeamMcNeil.com, www.ClickThatHouse.com,
www.KitchenerLofts.com, www.ElmiraRealEstate.ca

Filed under: Uncategorized — wmcneil @ May 17, 2011 10:26 pm

Comments (0) 669 views

Kitchener Waterloo Real Estate Board Statistics for April 2011

By Warren McNeil

The Table below shows the most relevant Kitchener Waterloo real estate data for the Month of April 2011 and compares it with the same month in the previous year. This information is for single detached only in all areas.

Kitchener Waterloo Real Estate Board Statistics for April 2011

Single Family Detached Homes only

WATERLOO REGION (ALL Areas, Single-Detached Only)	Apr 2011	Apr 2010	%CHANGE 10/11	Mar 2011	%CHANGE Mar/Apr
UNITS SOLD	280 SOLD	341 SOLD	-17.9%	265	+5.7%
AVERAGE PRICE SOLD	$354,906	$328,859	+7.9%	$345,336	+2.8%
AVERAGE DAYS ON MARKET	53 DAYS	43 DAYS	+25.6%%	43	+25.6%
MEDIAN SALE PRICE	$324,000	$295,000	+9.8%	$305,000	+6.2%
SALE PRICE TO LIST PRICE RATIO	98.8%	98.5%	+0.3%	98.4%	+0.3%

The above information is believed to be correct errors and ommissions accepted

April sales were down and it could have been related to buyers being pre-occupied with the Federal Election, Royal Wedding and the wet weather. We will have to see what the rest of May brings. The weather so far has been great and we are getting busier with our clients. We will have to see how the rest of the month goes.

Here is the Kitchener Waterloo Real Estate Board’s press release for April.

APRIL SHOWERS WASH AWAY SOME OF THE BUYERS

KITCHENER-WATERLOO, ON (May 4, 2011) –Sales of residential properties via the Multiple Listing System (MLS®) of the Kitchener-Waterloo Association of REALTORS® (KWAR) were slower than usual for April.

There were a total of 614 residential properties sold last month, a 14.4 percent decrease compared to April of last year, and 47 sales shy of the previous five year’s average.

“Given the record breaking wet weather that dominated this past April, it is probable that this had the effect of slowing the start of the spring selling season,” says George Patton, President of KWAR. “Add to this the distraction of the royal wedding and people’s attention being given to the federal election and you have ample reasons for buyers lowering their home searching priority.”

April’s sales included 416 detached homes, 120 condominium units, 45 semis and 30 townhouses.

“Once again we are noting a shift in where the activity is taking place on the price scale,” says Patton. “Last April 35% of the home sold for more than $300,000, this past April the number of homes selling above that price point made up 43% of the total homes sold.

The average sales price of all residential sales increased 5.6 percent to $310,704 compared with April 2010. While single detached homes sold for an average price of $350,442, an increase of 4.9 percent compared to last year. In the condominium market the average sale price in April increased 11.3 percent to $214,113 compared to the same month a year ago.

The KWAR cautions that average sale price information can be useful in establishing long term trends, but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. Those requiring specific information on property values should contact a REALTOR®.

What is Median Sale Price? (Reference Wikipedia)

The median home price is one of the most common measurements used to compare real estate prices in different markets, areas, and periods. It is said to be less biased than the mean (average) price since it is not as heavily influenced by small number of very highly priced homes.

If we take 7 houses that were sold and sort their prices from lowest to highest in 1000s of Canadian Dollars.

225, 250, 275, 280, 300, 330, 350

Median price is 280, because it is right in the middle of the range – there are 3 prices that are lower and 3 prices that are higher.

How median price is different from average price?

To calculate average price we have to sum all of the prices and then divide by the number of units sold, therefore

Average price = (225 + 250 + 275+ 280 + 300 + 330 + 350) / 7 = approximately 287

What median price shows?

It shows who rules the market in a certain place (suburb or area) at certain time (i.e. 3 or 6 months or a year): if there are more people buying expensive houses than cheap ones, it will go up, but if there are more people buying cheap property than expensive – it will go down.

Kitchener Waterloo Real Estate Statistics April 2011

Thanks for reading!

Warren & Melanie McNeil | Sales Representatives, Team McNeil
RE/MAX Twin City Realty, Brokerage ( 519.579.4110 | 519-498-8118

Connect with us on the following social networks

Facebook: www.facebook.com/TeamMcNeilRemax

websites: www.TeamMcNeil.com, www.ClickThatHouse.com,
www.KitchenerLofts.com, www.ElmiraRealEstate.ca

Filed under: kitchener real estate statistics — Tags: Kitchener board stats, kitchener real estate, kitchener real estate statistics, kitchener waterloo active listings, kitchener waterloo average days on market, Kitchener Waterloo home sellers, kitchener waterloo real estate board, Kitchener Waterloo real estate statistics, kitchener waterloo unit sales, Kitchener-Waterloo Real Estate, kitchener-waterloo real estate agent, KW Real Estate, KW Real Estate Board Statistics, kwreb board statistics, month of march, Waterloo Real Estate, waterloo real estate statistics, Waterloo Region — wmcneil @ May 11, 2011 8:02 pm

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[FOR SALE] 35-28 Underhill Cr, Kitchener On – $189,900

35-28 Underhill Cr, Kitchener On Spacious 3 bedroom, 2 bath multi-level condo in desirable complex near Chicopee.
Features include: freshly painted main floor, eat-in kitchen, generous dining room and living room with walk out to yard. One of the largest floorplans in complex, finished recroom and carport. Dont miss out!
- View Listing