They just don't get it?

by Contributed - Story: 81688
Oct 12, 2012 / 5:00 am

I was more than a tad frustrated reading a recent Globe and Mail article...

“B.C. property prices a lesson for provinces

The slump in British Columbia’s real estate market serves as a cautionary note for other provinces that are bracing for bumps in economic growth.

When homes slip in price, consumers rein in spending, producing a ripple effect on local merchants and slowing down the broader economy.

Jacques Marcil, senior economist at Toronto-Dominion Bank, points to British Columbia as a signpost that the rest of the country should pay attention to because the province’s average resale home prices have fallen this year – the only province experiencing a decrease from last year’s average.”

Where were all these incredibly smart economists like Jacques Marcil before the worlds financial markets collapsed? Hindsight is a very valuable tool to any economist it would seem.

Is Mr. Marcil another example of someone who never leaves their ivory tower and extrapolates Vancouver’s downturn across the whole of BC, somewhere roughly four times the size of Great Britain?

Can Mr. Marcil read a column of figures and see the variance between Vancouver metro, Northern BC and the Okanagan or does he not know that anything outside of Vancouver exists.

Sadly it is this type of ignorance that creates exactly what Mr. Marcil is suggesting will happen. In fact, it is a self fulfilling prophecy because the armchair real estate investor will read the Globe and Mail, look past BC and perhaps invest overseas. Is that the solution that Mr. Jacques believes will put our country firmly on it’s feet?

I think not. But what I do think is that it is time for these “newsworthy” headlines to disappear and for us to continue with the hard work and re-establish what normal is going to be in the future.

We have all read the headlines, that personal debt is higher than it should be, and guess what, if it is today, it will be next month, there is no miracle cure. We all read the articles over the past two years that Vancouver’s market was on an artificial roll, so it comes as no surprise that it is taking a short term dive at the moment.

What the Okanagan offers is a recovering market (ask your local REALTOR® to show you the stats that support the statement!), a beautiful place to live, and incredible value for money when compared to other resort destinations which we will get into again next week as we take our annual fall look at other parts of the world and real estate values.

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About the author...

For the past twenty years Mark has been involved in real estate development and consulting and is currently a REALTOR with Realty Executives in Kelowna.

His column, brings a unique perspective on what may be important to us in the future as we come to grips with fast paced change in a world that few people barely recognize.

His influences come from the various travels he undertakes as an Adventurer, Philanthropist and Keynote Speaker. More information can be found on Mark at his website www.markjenningsbates.com

The views expressed are strictly those of the author and not necessarily those of Castanet. Castanet presents its columns "as is" and does not warrant the contents.

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