Real estate a hot commodity
C.B. Realtors see sales increase during pandemic
SYDNEY — Property sales in Cape Breton continued their upward trend for 2020, partly driven by the pandemic.
Roger Burns, a Realtor who has worked in Cape Breton for more than 25 years, said that he's been busier than ever over the past seven months.
"I can give you examples of raw land. In the subdivision in Westmount, I've sold two or three lots in two years," he said from his home-based office.
"I've sold, I believe, somewhere around 15 in the last two months. That's vacant lots.
"Usually I run 25-35 listings. That's homes, not lots. Currently, I have two."
When he gets a property to list, Burns said, it's gone within a couple of days. People no longer have the luxury to wait before making an offer on a property because they are sold that fast. And prices are increasing.
"I don't think there's a Realtor around that can't say the same thing. . . . It's great for our industry but not so great when you've got nothing to show," he said.
"I had a lady call me a couple of days ago looking for a $100,000 property on the Mira. That's not going to happen. Those are all now $150,000 and there's nothing out there."
Burns has seen an increase in inquiries from Western Canada, as well as Ontario and the United States, many citing the pandemic as their reason for wanting to move to Cape Breton.
"They tell me it's because of our situation, being so safe or safer, that they want to come here."
UPWARD TREND
Alexis Rudderham and Terry Campbell sell properties across the island and operate the Cabot Group, which is a part of Remax Nova. They also noticed an increased number of inquiries from buyers in Ontario, British Columbia and the United States after the first two months of the partial lockdown in the spring.
"These people are welleducated working professionals, usually under 40. A lot of them work for these big entities . . . who, with COVID, ended up working from home," Rudderham said.
"These people then realize they don't need to stay in the more populated cities, trapped inside their $300,000 condos. They can come here and buy oceanfront property and work from home . . . and the mortgage is less."
However, this only adds to the current market trend that has seen property sales on an upward swing since at least 2018.
Campbell said part of this is due to investors in rental properties, who can lease for the same money as in Halifax but purchase for a third of the price of properties in the province's capital.
"They are money-making buildings," said Campbell, who has been a Realtor for more than 20 years.
Rudderham, who has been selling properties for four years, said the foreign buyer tax in British Columbia and Ontario has also made property more appealing in Nova Scotia.
With this increase in demand, property sales have risen. Data from the Nova Scotia Housing Association indicates a 9.4 per cent increase in single-family home sales prices from 2018-20.
COVID EFFECT
The Realtors say the pandemic also helped boost the local buyers' market for reasons besides the island being attractive due to low COVID case numbers. Mortgage rates are low, sometimes under two per cent, and some renters have more money because they haven't been able to travel.
"Younger people are buying homes," said Burns.
"They're not going on vacation, they're not spending 7,000-10,000 (dollars) down south. Now they have the down payment for a new home."
Others are benefitting from the property sales boom in the region. As properties are bought, renovations need to be done and contractors are hired. Supplies like paint, furniture and wood have to be purchased, which means small businesses can benefit when the real estate industry is doing well.
"There are cranes in our skies . . . multiple cranes in Cape Breton," said Rudderham.
"That's exciting."