You come in with a howling wail. You are hungry and unfed. You want warmth and kindness and joy and balance. We hear you. December, you have been starved… All year. The real estate diet of 2023 has felt like carrot sticks and celery. Slightly old and kept in water in the fridge to try and make them appear fresh and edible. December 6th, the Bank of Canada held the rate and that has given the slightest ray of hope to us. A small light lit in a dark night. We are waiting for more. We are hoping that the interest rates come down on mortgages. We hear they are. We talk about it all day long and what it means and why it works that way. Essentially, our government wants to curb spending, so they tighten the bootstraps to make us feel like we can’t spend. This is the way to bring down inflation. There are sooo many factors… The price of oil… The price of groceries… Shipping things from here to there… Consumer confidence… War… Wars… Fear. I am a Real Estate Agent, not a Mortgage Broker. If I listen too long to that conversation, my eyes glaze over and I start thinking about grilled cheese sandwiches and pickles.

BUT!!! I know this.

My son had a mortgage that almost doubled in the last year. If he wants to keep his condo, he can’t buy other things. He works like a dog. We still live in, what I believe, one of the best countries in the world. I feel lucky and grateful. My Mortgage Broker has helped ease the suffering with available options.

Grateful.

Lucky. (Let me know if you want his number.)

Where are we going next year? Are the rates coming down? Will houses, condos be more affordable? We hope so. I am not a fortune teller, although I used to play one at the Nottawasaga Inn when I was an actor. But the short answer is that we hope so.

A lot of new build condos that were bought before interest rates changed will be going on the market come spring, is my prediction. We will have a lot of inventory.

We already have 4 months’ worth of inventory. We have been gliding along at 1 month’s worth of inventory for years. So, I say, strap in. If you sell now, it will be great to buy something else. If you wait till spring????… How can we know? This roller coaster ride feels like the old big wooden one at Crystal Beach. It took about 10 years to get to the top of that first hill overlooking the lake… And then you plunged, rickety and fast screaming and laughing as you whipped around.

Do you have any control? Well… Sure… You chose to get on the ride. See it through to the end. You will make it. And when you unstrap and your wobbly legs touch the ground… You will sway and you are probably a bit light headed. You will walk away to get fries or a drink or go to the bathroom… But I would guess… (And it’s just a guess…) Once you have been on the ride…

You will want to go again.

Over and over.

Heart thumping

Blood pumping

You will probably go again.

So take December and rest up or get in line early if you are ready.

We are in for a wild and rickety eye-popping old wooden roller coaster ride.

Life is short.

Buy the ticket.