Happy New Year to all my valued friends & clients!
It’s amazing how quickly the years fly past, isn’t it? I hope you enjoyed the Christmas season with friends and family and have turned the page to a bright New Year. I thought I would just share with you a little about my year in 2018, and provide a bit of insight into what to expect in the Real Estate Market in 2019.
As most of you know, this past year has been a tough one for me. My husband of 39 years passed away suddenly and unexpectedly at the beginning of May. As you can imagine, it turned my whole world upside down. I am slowly but steadily coming to terms with that loss. I have been so blessed to have such an amazing network of family, friends, colleagues and clients rally around and support me. Life does carry on and I am a strong person.
On a positive note, there were some wonderful memories created this year as well. I was able to do some camping this summer in my new red Micro Minnie Winnebago travel trailer. It’s just perfect for me and I can handle towing it and setting it up myself. I took my two granddaughters camping in it for a week which was a lot of fun.
In September my daughters and I went to Nova Scotia and toured the province together for 10 days. That was such a wonderful time: lots of 
sites, beautiful landscapes and opportunity for us to heal. They both flew back and I stayed on a further week to attend the Royal LePage National Sales Conference in Halifax. It was, as always, a whirlwind of seminars, speakers and workshops as well as reconnecting with and meeting so many Royal LePage agents from across the country. I believe there were over 1000 in attendance and Royal LePage has such a great culture, it really does feel like family.
I took my first solo trip to Puerto Vallarta, Mexico in November. It was a very different experience, but I really enjoyed the downtime and alone time. The highlight of the trip for me was a cooking class that started with a trip to the market and ended with a fabulous 4 course dinner.
Of course, Christmas was very different this year. My family and I all gathered at my daughter’s house in Rutland. She has two young girls so it was good to have them to keep us all on track with the merriment. My Dad, stepmother, brother and my other daughter and her fiancé all joined us. There is nothing like family!
2018 saw a relatively strong start to the South Okanagan Real Estate market that really petered out and slowed over the course of the Fall. We ended the year down about 13% in the total number of residential sales. This slowing or correction has been felt across the country and is largely a result of rising interest rates, tougher mortgage qualifications and new taxes. The predictions for 2019 are pretty consistent in forecasting a continued slowing of the number of sales and even some decline in prices as we transition to more of a buyers market. There is expected to be a further two or more interest rate hikes over the course of the year which could further dampen sales.
In closing, I wish you and your families the very best of love, laughter and good health in 2019. Don’t be a stranger! I’d welcome a coffee, lunch or a glass of wine with you some time. My cell is 250-498-9867. I’d love to hear from you!