Salt Spring Island real estate tip of the day "Prices". Prices are up this year over last year on average by about 10%. Why? The real reason could have to do with the overall monetary inflation. Monetary inflation is sitting at about 10% so hard assets (Salt Spring houses) are keeping up (not booming ahead, just keeping up) with the monetary inflation. As the western countries print more money that leads to a general devaluation of the currency's and we get monetary inflation. So are you keeping up with the monetary inflation rate not the CPI inflation that is reported in the papers? The people who only keep up with the CPI inflation are being left behind.Is Salt Spring Island real estate a good investment? You bet it is if you find the right house with the right motivated seller.   07/07/2007

Salt Spring Island real estate tip of the day "roads". What does a road have to do with Salt Spring Island real estate? The thing about island roads is that some of the roads are about 25 ft wide but the easement is actually 66 ft wide. The road may be on the edge of the easement. So unless you can find the survey stakes it is hard to guess where the private land starts. This is important for building because of the setback requirements from the road easement are 7.5m.Once you visit Salt Spring you will see how these easements are so tricky because the roads are so windy. The easements themselves are relatively straight but the roads snake through the easements and sometimes out of them.Tip of the day from Salt Spring.CheersScott 07/06/2007

Salt Spring Island real estate news of the day. It seem as if things are picking up on the sales side. I think it has to do with the weather. June was a rainy month and it just did not feel like summer. I have spent the morning going over the listings and they are selling in all price ranges. The houses have to be competitive with the other one in the same range but if they do show well they are selling. I still don't like the houses that have come off the market and then are re-listed. It does not show up on the hot sheet but takes a more in depth search of the property to see if it has been re listed. What is re-listing visit my web site and read all about it.So if you are thinking of coming to Salt Spring Island to look at houses book soon our B&B is really starting to get busy. 07/05/2007

Salt Spring Island real estate tip if houses where given car names it would make it easier to identify with them. Over the last 100 years the car manufacturers have crafted an image of their vehicles and it is just so ingrained. If houses could borrow these names it would make it so easy to identify with the homes. Could you imagine what the JEEP house would look like; it would be perched on a rocky outcrop with spectacular views. The only draw back would be the rugged road you would have to drive up to get to it.How about the VOLVO house; solid construction, built to last, very safe gated community with all the houses having that boxy look.My favorite house would be the FORD F250 house; big spiralling horse farm, big horse trailers to haul around, hay in the field, tractors in the mach... 07/03/2007

Salt Spring Island things to do studio tour "sheep and goat cheese". Yes I forgot to mention if you are going to go on the studio tour you have to go to Salt Spring Island Cheese. The Cheese it to die for. My favorite is the goat cheese with peppers then just down the road is the bread lady at Salt Spring Island Bread. With a combination of the two it makes the day just so nice.So if you are going to come to Salt Spring and look at houses we could make a little side trip to see David and his cheese and pick up some fresh bread baked in a wood fired oven. Here is a little article about David Wood and is cheese: http://gremolata.com/davidwood.htm .Speaking of looking for houses you to can set up a studio on Salt Spring and sell art, wine, cheese, berries or whatever you can make, bake or ... 06/28/2007

Salt Spring Island real estate tip - the Bed and Breakfast. My advice is to keep it simple and small. I have seen quite a few B&B's on the island and June and I have one. Simple and small is nice.Over the last six years of living on Salt Spring I have seen many B&B's come and go. At any given time over the last 15 years there has been about 70 B&B's on the island. Every year new ones start and the same number seem to fade away. One of the main things that makes for a nice B&B is that the house was planned for it. The rooms need their own bathrooms. Very few places have three bedrooms with three private attached bathrooms. When I worked for Ron the plumber, two interesting years of part-time on call plumber's assistant, we had lots of calls from people who wanted a few extra bathrooms dr... 06/27/2007

Salt Spring Island - the last day of school. Yes, today was the last day of school, when do they go back, how long until September? Just joking. I always think about the song by Alice Cooper "Schools out for Summer".You might wonder why I'm writing all these blog post tonight well let's just say the kids won't go to sleep and I might as well do something. So it's time to reminisce about summers gone by and dream about the summers of the future.What are your plans for summer, for retirement? What are you going to do with yourself? What am I going to do with the salt spring dynamic duo all summer?We are going to go to the lake. Summers should be spent at the lake. A few years ago we bought a place at St. Mary's Lake. It's a Co-Op campground and it's just about the perfect spot to spend th... 06/27/2007

Salt Spring Island things to do and see - art anyone? Over the weekend my mother came to visit from Toronto. Why she lives there is another long and boring post I just won't get into now.My mother is an artist, actually a painter, and what do artists want to see? Art. So we went on the Studio Tour. It was the first time I had gone on the tour and it was great. We meet a nice lady Valla Eiriksson at Avanti glass studio who makes torchwork glass jewellery. My mom just loved it, the beads and all. Very cool shop and it would be fun to give it a try. She offers courses on it.Here is her web http://www.avantiglass.com Here is the web site for the studio tour http://www.studiotour.comThe other studio I really liked was the  Blue Horse Folk Art. Very high end presentation and very high end pri... 06/27/2007

Salt Spring Island information resource - all the local info.The Lions Club phone book is probably one of the few locally made phone books in North America. There have  been twenty-seven years of continuous publication of this great book. It has all the business listings, home listings and extras like a map, tide tables, reverse directory. It is simple and easy to use.This year there was a minor glitch with the printer and the businesses with the prefix of 653 where given a 538 prefix. They are going to have a insert available soon and will be putting the directory on line, which will be a huge service for out of town or off island people looking to move here. If you need a surveyor, plumber or a taxi you will be able to get the number on line. Wow like the 21 century is coming to Salt ... 06/27/2007

Salt Spring Island real estate tip on Building schemes.I had a customer a few months back and she was looking for a house to turn into a B&B and one area has a building scheme in place that does not allow B&B's. Sure enough there is a new B&B in the house we did not look at.That really burns. For those of us that follow the rules it is just a little frustrating. Salt Spring is governed by the Islands Trust and the CRD (capital regional district). Both of these bodies work on a complaint basis and if they hear no evil they see no evil.Like one of the building inspectors told me one day "on my days off I don't see anything. If I did no one would invite me to their home".This really puts "due diligence" into a difficult spot. Things like rented in-law suites, vacation rentals, studio renta... 06/27/2007

Salt Spring Island unique things to do on Canada day July 1st. How about a Show and Shine car show. Yes we have cars on Salt Spring and if you have a nice one or like to look at nice cars the show and Shine is on Sunday July 1 10 am - 3 pm.They do not let you drive the cars only look at them. I would be going except that they will not have my new car there. They don't sell it in Canada yet. When they do I will be buying one, that is a smart car four door model.If I wasnt always driving kids around or customers I would buy a smart car now. Did you know that smart cars pay a lower fee on the ferries and 85mpg. I watched a documentary on how safe they are for their small size.So there you have it for all the car lovers the Show and Shine on Sunday. 06/27/2007

Salt Spring island offers a unique thing to do on Canada day. Have you ever been to a Lavender Festival? Well now is your chance. The fifth annual Lavender Festival is on Sunday 1st of July 10 am - 5 pm. What do you do at a Lavender Festival?there will be performances of traditional english Morris dancingLavender flavored gelato and sorbettotwo cooking with lavender talksvendors from the saturday marketface paintingmassages in the lavender fieldsartist paintingbook signing All this and more at 401 Musgrave road http://sacredmountainlavender.comtel 250-653-2315See you all there.  06/27/2007

Salt Spring Island real estate tip don't let the island burn down. Starting on Canada Day July 1 there will be a total burning ban in effect.no backyard small brush pilesno incinerators (burning barrels)class a land clearing machine pilesThis ban will be in effect until September 30. This year the fire department said it will crack down on anyone who breaks the ban and they will be dealt with harshly. Public tar and feather treatment I suspect.Salt Spring becomes tinder dry in the summer and even a little spark could set off a huge fire so if you are coming for a visit be careful and leave your burn barrels at home. 06/27/2007

This time of year the boat traffic picks up. Our home / B&B BerryHill faces the Trimcomali channel now we are getting about 100 boats a day going by. It is split about 50 - 50 power to sailboats. Only about half the sailboats are sailing though. I always find that a little strange, why have a sailboat if you are not going to sail it.I was going to go to Vancouver tomorrow in my sailboat. It takes about 4-6 hrs to get to Vancouver from here and because the sailing club has a reciprocal agreement we can tie up for free downtown at the rowing club. It is a great deal, I can leave here at about 5 and be in by noon and get to the meeting and back to the boat for supper then up early and home by noon. If the wind is steady its a free trip and fun. What a deal. In a pinch I can always fly over... 06/21/2007

Salt Spring Island real estate tip on moving here to Salt Spring. The tip of the day is Just do it. I have lived here for six years and I have met very few people who ever regret moving here. I have met hundreds who say they would like to or have thought about it but very few ever do.Yesterday I drove off island to Nanimo for a school field trip. I must say I was scared driving on the island highway. It was the semi's they just drive so fast and don't seem to care about the cars around them. I could not imagine living in Toronto, New York or LA and having to drive on mega freeways every day. It would take me a long time to get into the swing on it. I guess it all comes down to life style choices. The fast pace of the city or the gentile pace of life on Salt Spring Island.Just do it.Chee... 06/21/2007

Salt Spring Island real estate tip "shopping for a home on on the Internet is like going to a mall blindfolded". The blindfold would only come off when you were in the store and had the product in your hand. You could get a feel for the product but where does it fit in to the mall. Is it in the discount basement low rent area of the mall or are you standing in a high end boutique?The Internet is a great way to see the houses. Some sites offer up to 36 photo's and virtual tours but it is hard to place the home on the island. The thing about the pictures is what don't they show. I was at a house two weeks ago and it looked so nice. Unfortunately, a very messy place next door may be one of the reasons for them selling.The Internet lets you compare features like kitchens, home size and lot ... 06/19/2007

Salt Spring Island real estate buying tip - If you are going to buy an Salt Spring acreage you need a Salt Spring dream machine. What is a Salt Spring dream machine? Hummer, BMW, Land Rover, no, no and no. The one machine that will make you the envy of the island is a brand new Kubota BX24. Now that is a dream machine. Just think of the fun of digging up the yard and building that pond you have always wanted. The BX24 was created for the person who just wants to have a little fun in the back 40.It would sure be a nice Father's Day to look out and see a BX24 sitting there full of diesel. The only attachment I would want to add would be a winch. That way I could winch it out of the holes I made and our property is steep it would make it easier to get into the high angle locations (maybe I... 06/15/2007

Salt Spring Island Real Estate buyers tip - is it better to buy or build? This question keeps coming up. June and I used to live in the inner city in Calgary and it was common to see little houses bought up and either ripped down or added on to. People were willing to pay more to be closer to downtown. On Salt Spring property prices tend to rise the closer you get to the water and the same thing is happening to these properties. If you buy a newer home on Salt Spring you are getting someone else's dream home and it may be a compromise on what you want but it is finished. If you build you are looking at a year or two of construction to get your perfect dream home and you must decide if that is something that you want to live through. The costs of construction can also go much higher than... 06/15/2007

Salt Spring Island real estate note of the day. Salt Spring has not followed the north american trend of homogenized and sanitized suburbia. Salt Spring is just the opposite of a new suburb. Salt Spring has a healthy demographic and socioeconomic mix. On one block their might be a 5 million dollar ocean front home and across the street there might be a Shepard living in the old blue bird school bus. The fact of the matter is the Shepard might be a Harvard prof on a year sabbatical but that is what makes it so interesting living here.In suburbia every house on a block is usually about the same size, same price, same colour scheme, it basic uniformity. On Salt Spring there is very little uniformity, the only similarity is that all homes are so unique. For this reason you need a agent who ... 06/13/2007

Salt Spring Island real estate information on land stewardship. I found a very informative site with all kind of information on all types of land stewardship. It covers all the government agency's that have jurisdiction over various lands. It also covers what you are aloud to do on various types of land and how to do it in the best possible manor.If you are thinking of Salt Spring Island real estate either a grassland ranch or a ocean front home it is worth looking at the site. http://dev.stewardshipcanada.ca/sc_bc/stew_series/NSCbc_stewseries.asp#grassCheersScott SimmonsSalt Spring Island real estate buyers agenthttp://escapetosaltspring.com   06/12/2007