I just ran a search of active listings on the Saskatoon Real Estate Board’s MLS ® service. This morning, there is a total of 256 active listings including single-family homes and condominiums within the Saskatoon city limits.

Area 1 – East of Circle Drive East – 57 listings.

Area 2 – West of Circle Drive East to the river’s edge – 52 listings.

Area 3 – Downtown Saskatoon to the far North end – 28 listings.

Area 4 – Idylwyld Drive to Circle Drive West – 103 listings.

Area 5 – Circle Drive West to the West edge of Saskatoon – 16 listings.

I’m going to guess that some 40% of these listings are under contract, leaving approximately 150 homes available to be purchased. I have never seen such low levels of inventory in the 14 years I’ve been in the real estate business. Last year, at this time we had around 500 properties for sale.

This is bad news for buyers and much better news for sellers. If you’re planning on offering your Saskatoon home for sale you may have a golden opportunity to break some price records, I would think.

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra 

Murray Lyons, business editor of the Saskatoon Star Phoenix wrote an excellent story in today’s edition titled, “Rollin right along: Saskatoon’s economy poised for further growth in ’07. (No longer available online)” Lyons points to several indicators that Saskatoon is truly on a roll with tremendous momentum behind us as we move into the New Year.

Potash Corporation of Saskatchewan and Cameco Corp. are booming, GDP growth is predicted at 2.9 percent which should be easily accomplished, the Saskatoon labour force grows from 126,000 to 131,600 in the last year and big growth is experienced in natural resources and science sectors.

You’ve heard the old adage, “The three most important things in real estate are location, location, and location.” A location is of utmost importance because it’s essentially the only thing about real property that can’t be changed. You can buy new carpets, add a coat of paint and even improve a floor plan but you’re definitely limited when it comes to improving the location of your property. You can’t take a home which is in a poor location and move it closer to schools, or further away from negative influences. It is where it is, and it always will be.

Location is of equal importance in the world of “virtual real estate” and the criteria that we use to judge the quality of a “location” is very different. When purchasing residential real property, we tend to associate quiet, low traffic locations with quality. When you market real estate online, you look for locations that boast high levels of traffic. You want your home to be situated in a busy place to maximize the level of exposure to active home buyers and having your home marketed “on the internet” doesn’t necessarily mean that it is being seen.

Every real estate agent will market your home on the most predictable online real estate websites. The real value that an agent brings to the process is found in what they do differently. The real question is; what will you do to make my home stand apart from all others which are for sale.

Unfortunately, many real estate websites exist is a baron wasteland. They attract few visitors, and those that do come, never return. They are little more than an electronic brochure promoting the services of an agent. They can be boring and irrelevant at best; definitely not the kind of location that brings you much value as a home seller.

Anyone who knows me will tell you that my passion is online marketing. I’ve worked hard to build a website with quality content, which is well-positioned in the major search engines. Each month, thousands of people visit the Saskatoon Real Estate Resource Centre. We recently joined the Point2 Network, the largest real estate network in the world. For the fourth week in a row, our website has ranked in the top 100 of over 100,000 real estate websites in the network. Our association with Point2 also provides us with the opportunity to syndicate your listing and send it to some of the highest traffic locations available to web marketers.

If you’re looking for a quality location to market your Saskatoon home, our website is hard to beat. I’d love to show you how we can expose your home to thousands of potential buyers.

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra

A number of my clients have asked me how homes in their neighbourhoods have appreciated relative to the Saskatoon real estate market in general. The question sparked an idea for my neighbourhood profiles page. I have prepared and posted a graph for each Saskatoon neighbourhood that shows the average house price trend for that area over a ten year period and compares it to the average house price trend for Saskatoon.

Are you curious about how values are changing in your area? 

Visit our Neighbourhood Profile page and click on your neighbourhood.

I am always looking for ways in which I can improve our website. If you have ideas or suggestions which I might use to provide prospective home buyers and sellers with information about Saskatoon, or the Saskatoon real estate market, I would love to hear them. Please, drop me an email at the link below.

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra

I have completed my updates to the TeamFisher’s neighbourhood pages for 2006. Each neighbourhood page includes details on sales of houses and condominiums in the area including the low sale price, the high sale price and the average sale price for 2006.

I did something a little different this year in that I also included the average selling price of houses and condominiums for the last six months. I plan to update those numbers on a monthly basis so that a more accurate reflection of what’s happening in the Saskatoon real estate market, and within your neighbourhood can be seen at any time. With the sharp increases in our market experienced through 2006, the annual average from the previous year was almost useless as we approached the close of the year. The averages shown didn’t really give an accurate picture of current Saskatoon real estate values.

We get a lot of visits from people who live outside of the province, who are considering a move to Saskatoon so these updated profiles are helpful in determining which areas meet their price objectives.

Another feature which will be added soon (hopefully before the New Year) is a graph which shows the change in average selling prices for each area over a ten year period. I have the data put together and we just need to prepare and post the graphs.

Do you know someone who is moving to Saskatoon? Why not refer them to our website? They’ll find it a great resource in their search for Saskatoon real estate.

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra

They say, “all good things must come to an end.” However sad, it’s true. On the front page of this morning’s Star Phoenix, an image of the smiling Mr. Hinitt appears with the headline, “Bob Hinitt Hangs up His Hammer. (story now removed)”

The announcement marks the end of what became a Saskatoon Christmas tradition. For the past 59 years, Bob Hinitt gave us all a gift that brought us joy year after year. Thousands have driven by his Adelaide Churchill area home to enjoy the fabulous Christmas displays which he has constructed on his front lawn faithfully since 1947. A Bug’s Life, 101 Dalmatians, The Lion King, Winnie the Pooh and 54 other magnificent displays of this man’s magical spirit of giving all brought a smile to our chilled faces as we stood and marveled at their brilliance; his brilliance.

According to the Star Phoenix, Mr. Hinitt, who is 80 this year, realized that he could no longer manage this challenging project following a knee replacement surgery this year. “I’m depressed and blue, because, to me, that’s what Christmas was” he is quoted as saying. “What I feel bad about is that (the organizations) won’t have that money this year. The animals need that. They need someone to fend for them.” Mr. Hinitt’s yard display always contained kettles for voluntary donations which were contributed to the Saskatoon Zoo and the SPCA. Last year, he managed to raise $3,000 for the two organizations; another year saw $12,000 land in the kettles.It occurred to me this evening that a donation to one or both of these fine causes would be a beautiful gift to Mr. Hinitt; kind of a fitting way to say “thank you for what you’ve given us.” Can you find a few dollars to give in Mr. Hinitt’s honour? I think I can.

Mr. Hinitt, thank you for all you’ve given this community. Merry Christmas sir!

Saskatoon Zoo Society

Saskatoon SPCA

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra

My day to day work takes me in and out of a lot of homes. If there’s one thing I’ve learned it’s that many people struggle with organization. A terribly disorganized home might feel homey to you, but it does little for showings at your property. In fact, many home buyers have difficulty looking past clutter. Often, their eyes dart back and forth from one pile of stuff to the next and completely overlook what’s most important; your home. Clutter robs your home of space, which everybody needs and it creates a feeling of chaos in many people, not an ideal feeling when you want them to feel at home.

Disorganization will not only have a negative impact on your Saskatoon real estate sale. For many people, being disorganized causes stress. Perhaps you’ve felt it yourself. Is 2007 your year to get organized? If so, I’ve found a website that could be your best friend. Life Organizers is all about helping you get your stuff together. It’s packed with great ideas on organizing almost every area of your life.

• Your home
• Office or home office
• Clutter
• Finances
• Time management
• Mind, body, and spirit
• Cleaning
• School and family
• Wires and cables
• Moving
• Weddings

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra

I’m sure you’ve heard it before. Saskatoon is rapidly becoming a force to be reckoned with when it comes to leading-edge work in natural and applied science fields. There’s the National Research Council’s Plant Biotechnology Institute, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada’s research centre, Vaccine and Infectious Disease Organization, and of course, the Canadian Light Source. All of these exciting ventures promised to give Saskatoon a reputation as an outstanding “science city.” It seems that those promises are being delivered on.

A report released this week by the Scotiabank Group shows that Saskatoon has the strongest annual percentage growth in its science workforce so far over the last ten years. Only Kitchener-Waterloo managed to match the growth seen here. The report, Smart Cities: High-knowledge Industries and Regional Prosperities show that Saskatoon is in fact ahead of the national average when it comes to the percentage of the workforce that earns their income from natural and applied sciences. In 1996, only 4.4% of Saskatoon’s population worked in science-related fields. Today, 7 % of our population or 8,900 people do just that.

You’ve got to hand it to Saskatoon people. They can typically be counted on to do things with a sense of pride that yields positive results.

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra

I came across a website while visiting the blog of Maureen Francis, a Michigan REALTOR® and I thought it was kind of cute. It gave me a smile or two anyway. The site is sponsored by the National Association of REALTORS® in the United States and it’s targeted at the “Do-it-yourselfer,” specifically those who might be considering selling a home without professional assistance. It’s really just a fun approach to promoting the services of a REALTOR®.

The Don’t-it-Yourself Website is here (no longer active).

Sneak Peek – Top 10 Things You Might Not Want to Do Yourself

1) Buy or sell your own home

2) Cremation

3) Laser surgery

4) Root canal

5) Septic tank cleaning

6) Hair plugs

7) Asbestos removal

8) Defend yourself in court

9) Build your own swimming pool

10)Heart Transplant

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra

The Saskatoon and Region Home Builders Association is arguing that the City of Saskatoon is not making enough new lots available for single-family detached homes and that argument rings true to my ears.

Alan Thomarat, executive director of the association points out that while housing starts in 2006 are clearly ahead of last year (37%) they remain 15% lower than those achieved in 2004. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) reports 1,384 housing starts including 886 single-family detached homes for the Saskatoon region over the first 11 months of the year. Thomarat says that the Saskatoon area should be able to build 2,000 homes a year and that the market could handle as many as 2,500 to 3,000 per year “within the decade” if the land is available.

City land branch manager Rick Howse expressed skepticism that Saskatoon could support 2,000 lots saying, “Any CMHC report I’ve seen doesn’t indicate that kind of growth.” However, he did explain that the city fell short of its lot servicing objective for 2006 due to wet weather in the spring and a lack of capacity for Saskatoon construction companies to meet objectives.

Thomarat points to the fact that 35% of new single-family home starts are now happening outside of the city as an indication that the city is not making enough lots available. Significant residential developments are currently underway in Warman and Martensville; others are planned for Corman Park and Clavet. Are people actually turning to bedroom communities because of a scarcity of lots in Saskatoon? It is apparently so. November saw 91 new starts for each Saskatoon and Regina. In the Saskatoon area, only 52 of those starts were within city boundaries while Regina captured 76 of the 91 stars in that area.

Thomarat links the lack of city building lots to the increasing prices of existing residential real estate in Saskatoon. “These price increases will have the largest impact on entry-level homes, reducing affordability for populations within Saskatoon that can least afford it.”

It’s hard to argue with his logic. Resale prices have risen as much as 15% in some neighbourhoods over the past year and resale inventory continues to shrink. As of today, there are 309 active residential listings available within the city limits. 265 of those are single-family homes and 44 are condominiums. This is the lowest number of listings which I have seen in 14 years of business. At the same time, demand continues to remain strong and you don’t have to be an economist to understand that these factors together mean increasing prices for Saskatoon real estate. Without more development in new housing, resale inventories are likely to remain low, pushing prices higher. People are not going to sell their existing homes if they don’t have a place to go.

Meanwhile, the Saskatoon economy is strong with many small business owners indicating an appetite for expansion. The only real problem is finding people to help manage the growth. My colleagues and I have a sense that the people want to come home but we’ve really got no place to put them. I can’t help feeling that Saskatoon isn’t in an ideal position to fully capitalize on a growing interest in our fine city. Somebody, find us a way to build some houses or hang the no vacancy sign.

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra

Most Saskatoon real estate practitioners are keenly aware that home buyers are flocking to the internet to search for Saskatoon homes. Some surveys indicate that as many as 85% of prospective home buyers start their search online. Next to the awesome power of the Multiple Listing Service® to expose a listing to agents, the Internet is now the single most important marketing venue for real estate. Naturally, photographs are an important part of the internet and MLS® marketing plan. Many times, buyers will decide if they’ll visit a house, and agents will decide if they’ll show a property based on the strength of the photos which accompany the listing.

With that in mind, I can’t help but be amazed at the substandard work which agents and sellers seem to be prepared to accept when it comes to photography. If you’ve spent any amount of time looking at homes on the internet, you’re already aware that there are far too many lousy and useless images out there. This afternoon, I spent just thirty minutes on a real estate website and found enough awful photos to prepare a virtual tour titled, “The Unbelievably Bad Real Estate Photography Hall of Fame.” You might check it out, just for fun. I actually found a photo of a living room with an old man apparently sleeping in a recliner. I wish I was kidding, but I’m not.

Good quality photographs are difficult to achieve and it’s very clear that a real estate agent can’t be expected to have professional photography skills. They should however be able to recognize a completely terrible image and keep themselves from posting it where the whole world may see it. Common sense should tell us that some routine tidying up will enhance our images, that proper lighting is essential for good exposures and that we shouldn’t take pictures of rooms that can’t adequately be captured with the equipment we’re using.

I purchased my first digital single-lens reflex camera approximately 18 months ago. Since that time, I’ve invested in a super wide-angle lens and a high-quality flash. I’ve invested hundreds of hours in studying photography and image processing. I’m starting to feel pretty good about the images I’m able to capture.

If you’re thinking of selling your home, here are a few things to keep in mind.

• Ask prospective agents to show you samples of their photographic work and understand that what they show you probably represents their best effort.
• Insist on reviewing images before they are posted to the MLS® or the Internet.
• Demand retakes of images that don’t show your home professionally.
• View my report, “Preparing for a successful photoshoot.”
• Hire me! I will do a fine job of presenting your home to agents and home buyers.

I’m always happy to answer your Saskatoon real estate questions. 

Norm Fisher

Royal LePage Vidorra