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Salt Spring Island Real Estate

MLS homes for sale by Scott Simmons

Crofton BC real estate investment

March 30, 2012 By Scott Simmons Leave a Comment

Like I have said on my old web site “Crofton could be one of the nicest town on the west side of Vancouver Island”.   Fast forward Catalyst Paper is out of bankruptcy protection as of 2013.  They have a deal in place with the unions to cut their labour cost but the main problem is their staggering debt, high taxes and high input cost.  So I state again “if” (or when) the mill closes Crofton may become a condo mecca that could feature 30-40 story high rise condo buildings, restaurants, waterfront golf course, high end marina, rail excursion terminus, casino and cruse ships dock.

The lay of the land that the town is on is very conducive to redevelopment and or gentrification.  Crofton is on the sunny & dry side of Vancouver Island and faces east to Salt Spring.  There is no freeway running through Crofton (no road noise).  Crofton is a true waterfront town.  Almost all the houses in the town could or have an ocean view.  The land is gently sloping like a large bowl.

With current prices held to a low level this is the time to buy.  One can buy a nice home for less than 300k. If the mill closes major developers might be lining up to buy the mill land.  There is no golf course I know of on the west coast that has islands that are part of the course.  The island that the mill owns could be part of a fabulous waters edge golf course.  The bay between the island and the mill site could be a large high end marina for extreme super yachts.  The mill site has a rail line that is connected to the Vancouver Island rail system that could offer island tours.  Deep Sea ports are relatively rare on the West Coast.  Most of the major cruise ships lines that go from Seattle or Vancouver to Alaska are looking for new one day destination stops.  Who knows maybe a Casino might be part of the mix.

The thing is if the mill closes (it would be tragic for lots of families and the loss of good paying union jobs, it would be a terrible blow to Vancouver Island, I would hate to see this happen) the town would go on it is just part of the evolution of the area.  Crofton started not as a pulp mill town but a smelter town for the local mines that are long gone.  If the mill closes these are just some of the possible things that could happen;  North Cowichan will loose approx 6.7 million a year in taxes if the mill closes.  A mega condo/tourism development would replenish their tax base and replace local job that would be lost.  It will be interesting to see what happens over the next 3-5 years or so.  The value of land is really based on local zoning.  If North Cowichan loses 1/3 it’s tax base the pressure will be on them to re zone.  I can not remember seeing any local gov chop spending to make up such a big shortfall.  Bureaucrats look after themselves and their own jobs first.  If it comes to rezoning or lay offs at the local district I would put my money on rezoning. This is happening now in Campbell River BC where the local Catalyst paper mill has shut down.  The local Mayor wants to cut spending but the bureaucrats want to just raise taxes a mere 13.6% at a time when people have lost their jobs.  Read the story here in the Courier – Islander   Print – Print Story – canada.com network

Crofton could be a fabulous development making it one of the best towns on Vancouver Island.  Why wait until the prices are sky high buy now and ride the prices up.  If Salt Spring is over your budget and you want to be on the west coast give Crofton a serious look.  I think Crofton is probably one of the lowest price places on southern Vancouver Island for real estate with the biggest potential for making the highest returns on your Vancouver Island real estate investment dollars.

Here is the link to the Crofton MLS.  I can show you any home in Crofton.

Have a great day

Cheers
Scott

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Salt Spring Real Estate Market Report

If you are looking for Salt Spring Island Real Estate it would be well worth your time to check out my Salt Spring Market Report pages.

To help you search for a Salt Spring home for sale I have two systems you can use.  One is a map based mobile search system for tablets and/or phones. This system works really well if you are on Salt Spring, as it will automatically show you properties as you drive around the island.

The other system is a data base (Advanced MLS system or PCS) for laptops or desktops.

These two systems display information in real time, which allows you to view new listings within one second of them coming on the market. You will also find the “sold” prices of homes, as well as other useful information.

Radio Real Estate Shows

TV show Realty Reality on Salt Spring

So glad shooting for the new Real Estate TV show “Realty Reality” is over. It was a lot of work. It all looks so easy on TV but in reality it was not easy. I think they were waiting for the “moment” to happen. You know the big fall down the steps or fall of […]

Home inspection on Salt Spring Island

Home inspection on Salt Spring Island happened yesterday at a 42 year old log home. To accomplish the home inspections the buyer brought in a  Home Inspector, Geo-technical Engineer and a local Salt Spring contractor. Jeff the home inspector tells the story about the bag of Gold he found in an attic; gold story How […]

Salt Spring home face lift

My clients bought this dated salt spring home a month ago and are upgrading it.  The home was built in 1996 and is structurally 100% perfect.  It seams as if the original owner skimped on the finishing.   The main up grade Alex Denny (salt spring master carpenter) will be doing for the owners is re-finishing […]

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Buying on Salt Spring Island

Salt Spring rental homes by the numbers

July 18, 2018 By Scott Simmons 2 Comments

I get many people asking me about buying a rental home on Salt Spring and usually spend a lot of time answering all their questions.  So in this post, I hope to cover some of the factual information. Here are the typical questions and basic answers; What is the rental market like on Salt Spring?  […]

Ban on Dual Agency BC

June 16, 2018 By Scott Simmons 2 Comments

On June 15th, 2018 the ban on dual agency just came into effect in BC. Here is a post I wrote about how the new rules will change the way I do business on Salt Spring New Rules for BC Real Estate As a continuation of the New Rules post, what happens if we are […]

New Rules for BC Real Estate

June 16, 2018 By Scott Simmons Leave a Comment

On the 15th of June 2018, the new rules governing BC real estate have come into effect. If you come to Salt Spring to look at homes and or land Scott will go over the form below and ask you if you would like agency representation and ask you to sign this Disclosure-of-Representation-in-Trading-Services as a represented part […]

Salt Spring Island Trust Land Use Zoning bylaw 355

February 17, 2018 By Scott Simmons Leave a Comment

On Salt Spring Island the Island Trust is responsible for our local zoning.  You can find our zoning info here at the Salt Spring Island Trust LUB 355. The bylaw has maps that cover every part of the island.  Believe it or not every few months or so I get an email from someone saying […]

Is an offer an sale?

January 26, 2018 By Scott Simmons Leave a Comment

This last month I had an accepted offer on a home and had a backup offer come in.  The backup offer was a very weak offer because the condition precedent (subject to clause) was so subjective.  It was subject to the buyer viewing and liking the lot.  Normally no one would take an offer like […]

More Posts from this Category

 

SALT SPRING NEWS

Salt Spring Housing Crisis explained

July 12, 2018 By Scott Simmons 2 Comments

Is Salt Spring in the middle of a housing crisis?  It all depends on who you talk to and what one defines as a crisis. If you move to Salt Spring and have limited funds and are looking to rent a home at about $1000 per month your probably out of luck.  There are basically […]

Candidate for Regional Director CREA

March 7, 2017 By Scott Simmons Leave a Comment

I’m running for the position of board member Regional Director for BC for the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA).  Below is my official platform after edits suggested by CREA lawyers. My name is Scott Simmons. I’m a REALTOR® on Salt Spring Island BC. If you go to the REALTOR.ca site and put in Salt Spring […]

CRD sewer and solid waste

January 23, 2017 By Scott Simmons Leave a Comment

The nuts and bolts of local goverment are really the non glamours basics of water, sewer and garbage (solid waste).   The CRD is the local service provider for Salt Spring.  On the night of 24 Nov 2016 Russ Smith Senior Manager, Environmental Resource Management for the CRD put on a waste presentation.  Here is a […]

Incorporation – A Third Option: Self-governance with contracted services

May 11, 2016 By Scott Simmons Leave a Comment

This was just posted on the Salt Spring exchange in 4 parts.  I have permission from John Gauld the author to publish this document on my Salt Spring web site;   SSI is known as a community that questions conventional practices and is creative and innovative in its response to community challenges. Perhaps the up-coming […]

Salt Spring’s new SSIWPA PAC

November 4, 2014 By Scott Simmons 2 Comments

If you live on Salt Spring you have to get used to all the acronyms.  If you have not heard of SSIWPA it’s because it’s new.   SSIWPA stands for Salt Spring Island WaterShed Protection Authority.  Today  was the first meeting of the SSIWPA PAC (Public Advisory Committee). The ideal behind SSIWPA is that it […]

 

Critical Salt Spring Buying Info

Ban on Dual Agency BC

June 16, 2018 By Scott Simmons 2 Comments

On June 15th, 2018 the ban on dual agency just came into effect in BC. Here is a post I wrote about how the new rules will change the way I do business on Salt Spring New Rules for BC Real Estate As a continuation of the New Rules post, what happens if we are […]

New Rules for BC Real Estate

June 16, 2018 By Scott Simmons Leave a Comment

On the 15th of June 2018, the new rules governing BC real estate have come into effect. If you come to Salt Spring to look at homes and or land Scott will go over the form below and ask you if you would like agency representation and ask you to sign this Disclosure-of-Representation-in-Trading-Services as a represented part […]

Sun Path Chart

Does the home get sunlight?

February 28, 2013 By Scott Simmons 1 Comment

If you’re planning to live on Salt Spring year-round, one of the most important things to consider when buying a property is SUNLIGHT. Do the neighbor’s trees or a mountain block the sun during the winter months?  According to Salt Spring real estate mythology, “If they buy in August, they will list in November and […]

Aggregate Days on the Market

January 2, 2012 By Scott Simmons Leave a Comment

What are “aggregate days on the market”? On the Victoria Real Estate board an agent can “Re-List” a property for a mere $25 fee.  An example would be if a home has been listed on the board for 180 days the listing can be taken off the market and then “Re-Listed” and appear to be […]

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