You’ve read it, you’ve heard it and many of you have felt it…Many areas of Kingston are full on experiencing symptoms of a Sellers Market!  Similar to February, Kingston Area Real Estate Association’s headline for March was ‘Kingston and Area home sales post best March in over a decade’. 

In fact, KAREA states that “More homes traded hands in March 2017 than during the same month in any other year going all the way back to 2004,”, but at the same time, the number of listings on the market is down by almost 1/3 of what it was a year ago.  As of April 30th, there was approximately 3.5 months of inventory in the area covered by our local Board. 

Sale prices are still up moving upwards in some neighbourhoods for quality homes.  Now it goes without saying, this price increase is greatly affected by the lack of inventory for quality homes in some areas and many Sellers are getting multiple offers on their home.  Even houses that have been on the market for over a year have entertained multiple offers in 2017.  It is a great time to sell in Kingston!

To our Beloved Buyers – the right one should be out there for you, and we’re going to do our best to help you get it!  Our ask is that you get a hold of us as soon as you’ve received or seen a listing that you think might is in your top three of possibilities.  Then we’ll get you the information you desire and/or set up a showing to check it out in person.

Want more local stats???

http://creastats.crea.ca/king/

Also, the new Housing Affordability measures for Ontario were released late April and can be found here;

https://news.ontario.ca/opo/en/2017/04/making-housing-more-affordable.html

For the Birds

If you haven’t already, now is the time to get your Hummingbird feeders out!  Experts suggest you boil 4 cups of tap water in a glass or stainless steel pot or pan and add 1 cup of table sugar and stir until sugar is completely dissolved (do NOT use honey or artificial sweeteners).  Let the mixture cool and then pour it into a well-cleaned feeder.  This concoction will last up to 2 weeks refrigerated, however, if it becomes cloudy, absolutely discard it.

Another suggestion so as not to waste in early spring, is to only half fill feeders until your Hummers are actively draining the feeder within a few days.

It’s very important to drain and clean your feeders twice  a week (or every 3 days) with a mild white vinegar solution and a curved bottle brush or pipe cleaners, particularly in hot weather, as mold, mildew and harsh cleaners (such as bleach) can be toxic to these sweet little creatures.

The rule of thumb is about 3 feeders per yard and where you can, put feeders in the shade, also, a few smaller feeders are better than just one large one.

The first of your feeders should come down early October, but leave one or two out for a few more weeks.

Sound like a lot of work??  If you’ve ever experienced that strange but familiar sound of a lightning fast Hummer whizzing by your head on a sunny summer afternoon, you’ll know, it’s MORE than worth it!

For more information check this site out; http://www.rubythroat.org/feedinghintsmain.html