Keeping a weathered eye on this event. The ship building contracts fate is intertwined with Halifax and Nova Scotia commerce;

"Canada's chief shipbuilding official has announced an update, nearly a year after the federal government chose the Halifax Shipyard to build warships and arctic patrol vessels worth more than $25 billion.

The Irving Shipyard will start the project by building between six and eight arctic patrol vessels. It is still in what is known as the "project definition" stage.

Commodore Patrick Finn, director of the National Shipbuilding Procurement Strategy Office, told participants at the Canadian Defense Security and Aerospace Conference Friday he realizes people think the government should be moving faster on contracts to design ships, so that materials can be ordered and workers trained.

The first steel isn't scheduled to be cut for another three years.

"If we were cutting steel right now it would not be a good thing because we would be cutting it against an incomplete design," said Finn, "and that's pretty much a guarantee for waste and rework."

How many arctic vessels get built will depend on the cost and final design. Irving engineers are now reviewing the government's preliminary design as part of a process to avoid skyrocketing cost overruns plaguing projects like the Cyclone helicopters.

Getting the patrol vessels started will require another contract to finalize the design and drawings from which the ships will be built.

"Right now our broad target would be to have the more detailed definition contract in place next year," said Finn.

As for the second set of ships — the 21 combat vessels — Finn said Ottawa is in the early boarding stages of determining how big the ships will be and what type of equipment they will carry.
Reported by CBC news"

Halifax (HRM) Residential Market Statistic Update For Week of July 5th to July 12th 2012

New Listings:  508 (460, 488, 511, 507)
Sold:  185 (161, 186, 206, 195)
Sale to List Ratio: 36% (35%, 38%, 40%, 39%)
Expired/Cancelled/Withdrawn:  82 (224, 81, 114, 87)
Active Single Family Home: 2959 (2938, 2997, 2968, 2982)
Average Single Family Home List Price:  $308,187 ($298,840, $292,136, $290,506, $291,325)
Average Single Family Home Selling Price:  $299,319  ($287,605, $284,278, $284,057, $285,079)
Average Days on  Market Single Family Home: 72 (84, 69, 92, 79)
Active Condos:  276 (272, 265, 267, 259)
Average Condo Listing Price:  $230,070  ($291,935, $243,605, $281,089, $276,180)
Average Condo Selling Price: $224,458 ($279,786, $233,500, $265,200, $267,952)
Average Days on Market Condos:  64 (50, 91, 101, 37)
*Halifax/Dartmouth Absorption Rate (weeks):  26.2  (25.6, 25.5, 25, 25.5)

Some good news this week with the defence minister visit and announcement to commence the Halifax shipyard billion dollar contract (Read below). We should start seeing some marginal market activity changes in the short term and more noticeable effects a few months down the road as the contract gets into full swing. With the confirmation of the contract start, this could be the tip that investors, speculators and property owners/buyers needed to gain confidence in the market to fuel their next decision. Nothing out of the ordinary as far as stats are concerned this week. Single family home values tipped over the 300k mark (list) and almost broke the 300k mark in selling prices for the second time this year...almost. There was a gain in inventory this week and the absorption rate increased a little to reflect that fact. Keep a weathered eye on the Halifax real estate blog as I continue to to bring the latest news reports, statistics and information on the current state of the Halifax real estate market.
 
Have a question about the Halifax Real Estate market? Thinking this might be the time to purchase or list your property? Contact me to advise you on your best plan of action for your real estate transaction and get the most advanced real estate system working for you. Feel free to leave a public comment or question below. Follow me on Twitter to keep up to the minute with all things Halifax real estate @HalifaxRealEst


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An article I thought was pretty interesting and coincides with what my predictions have been thus far;


Local investor to sell market's merits at national conference

"Local real estate investor Richard Killeen-Payne isn’t holding his cards too close to his chest.

Instead, the co-owner of Invicta Property Investments will be flying the flag for Halifax and promoting the municipality as a hot real estate market that investors coast-to-coast should consider when he addresses the national membership of the Real Estate Investment Network in Toronto next week.

What the local real estate market has going for it is a long track record of modest growth, even before the shipbuilding contract came to town, Killeen-Payne said Wednesday.

“The number of multi-unit apartment blocks that have started over the last two years show that it’s not just about the shipbuilding contract,” Killeen-Payne said. “That contract has been a wonderful shot of adrenaline for the market and it promises more jobs ... and with more jobs comes (gross domestic product) growth.”

A recent Canada Mortgage Housing Corp. report shows there are currently 2,282 apartment buildings under construction in Halifax, one of the highest levels recorded in 50 years. About 1,000 units are expected to come on the market before the end of the year.

The construction of single-family homes was up 42.5 per cent in February over the same month last year and the corporation expects the construction of single-family homes will be robust in 2012 with about 1,100 starts.

The average sale price of single-family homes climbed to $396,622 in January, up from $383,329 in the same month last year, the report says.

Meanwhile, a report released by Colliers International last week put commercial sales volumes at $11.8 million, more than three times the amount transacted in 2010. The most sought-after assets were multi-family buildings, representing one-third of all sales volumes, followed by industrial and then retail properties.

The steady, upward-trending track record the Halifax real estate market boasts and the pending boon the $25-billion shipbuilding contract promises, is music to real estate investors’ ears, Killeen-Payne said.

“It follows the fundamentals of real estate investing, ..... which are population growth and job growth and, eventually, GDP growth,” he said. “Even in the days of the recession, property values in Halifax didn’t decrease.”

The shipbuilding contract has pushed prices higher in Halifax as savvy buyers make speculative purchases, Killeen-Payne said. But even with the increased market activity, there will unlikely be a so-called real estate bubble to burst.

“We will definitely see a cooling off in price but I think it will be more of a gentle exhale, to use the analogy,” Killeen-Payne said. “There is speculation taking place and the market is certainly busier at this time of year than it typically is but Halifax is still a sure place to invest. ... Unless you buy the wrong property, in the wrong area, there will be a return on your investment.”"

COLLEEN COSGROVE BUSINESS REPORTER

Newest blog post HERE

New Listings:  544 (513, 520, 563, 632)
Sold:  183 (194, 193, 199, 292)
Sale to List Ratio: 34% (38%, 37%, 35%, 32%)
Expired/Cancelled/Withdrawn:  162 (130, 104, 65, 69)
Active Single Family Home: 2962 (2924, 2964, 2950, 2897)
Average Single Family Home List Price:  $271,865 ($311,580, $291,706, $296,277, $293,401)
Average Single Family Home Selling Price:  $265,392  ($303,709, $286,217, $288,607, $289,016)
Average Days on  Market Single Family Home: 78 (73, 76, 79, 60)
Active Condos:  261 (263, 256, 252, 240)
Average Condo Listing Price:  $256,640  ($246,963, $256,963, $284,242, $254,110)
Average Condo Selling Price: $226,373 ($237,642, $237,642, $280,175, $250,032)
Average Days on Market Condos:  80 (57, 123, 84, 144)
*Halifax/Dartmouth Absorption Rate (weeks):  25.3 (22, 25.5)

Instead of my usual market analysis rant this week I wanted to share an article with you. If there was any doubts about the upcoming economic surge and the effect it will have on everything from growth, availability and housing, this should be another nod to confirm the buzz. The real estate market has already seen a change (read all my posts since the irving ship building announcement) and is expected that this is the "calm before the storm." As we edge closer to the build dates, speculators, property owners and purchasers alike look for "their time" so they don't miss the bus. Or in this case, miss the ship.
"The Canadian PressDate: Wednesday Jun. 6, 2012 10:41 AM ET

HALIFAX — A Halifax-based think-tank says Atlantic Canada is experiencing a surge in major project investment that it expects will continue for years to come.

The Atlantic Provinces Economic Council has released its annual inventory of major projects in various stages of development in the region.

It says the 357 projects account for a record $100-billion worth of investment, up 39 per cent over last year's inventory.

The council says most of the growth is due to the awarding of the federal shipbuilding contract to the Irving shipyard in Halifax, which it expects will have a big impact on investment in coming years.

It says Shell Canada's plan to spend $970 million in offshore Nova Scotia, the possibility of a second potash mine in New Brunswick and new housing developments have also contributed to the increase.

The council says current-year spending on major projects in Atlantic Canada is up about eight per cent to a record $12.8 billion.

Newfoundland and Labrador leads the pack with spending, up by 29 per cent to $8 billion this year because of a strong market demand for oil and minerals.

Major project spending is down for this year in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and P.E.I. in part because federal stimulus dollars have stopped flowing."

Read more: http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/Canada/20120606/atlantic-boom-will-continue-think-tank-says-120606/#ixzz1x7iC0til


Have a question about the Halifax Real Estate market? Thinking this might be the time to purchase or list your property? Contact me to advise you on your best plan of action for your real estate transaction and get the most advanced real estate system working for you. Feel free to leave a public comment or question below. Follow me on Twitter to keep up to the minute with all things Halifax real estate @HalifaxRealEst


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