Recession? What Recession?
O.K., I’ll admit that I’m an optimist at heart. I have also however survived as a REALTOR® through the endless recession in the 1990s and believe me, I know the terror of not making a living during a recession.
As I reported in my market update for the first half of 2008, the local marketplace has finally started to show signs of weakening in some sectors. We are not immune to global pressures such as rising unemployment, soaring oil costs and a high loonie. But how is it impacting us right here at home?
Over the last week, I’ve been asking everybody I run into this very question and here is what I’ve found. Some of our local industries are having a banner year, especially the engineering firms. The restaurants are saying that traffic is better than ever. Retailers are saying sales levels have recovered from a dismal spring. An analysis of real estate statistics shows that in certain price bands, the number of sales in actually UP, not down. Traffic is pretty steady in and around town and I notice there are a lot of visitors wandering around up at the Village at Blue these days. I’m getting daily enquiries from new potential buyers. Showing activity has improved on more than half of my listings.
We have a local guy in the top pack at Canadian Idol. Oops, that has nothing to do with the local economy but damn, it is kind of exciting to see the townsfolk rally in such a spectacular fashion.
I don’t know if it is the great weather or the fact that Elvis is almost in the building however, I dare say that Collingwood, for the moment, has chosen NOT to participate in any recession.
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When it’s time to buy or sell real estate in the Collingwood, Blue Mountain or Georgian Triangle area, contact Marg, an experienced and competent Broker who’s ready whenever you are!
