As more and more people return to work, it's obvious that Zoom meetings aren’t going away. Some of us will continue working from home at least part-time, and there will always be long-distance meetings that require video. If the thought of another Zoom meeting fills you with anxiety — which is not uncommon these days — consider this advice from the Psych Central website:

Minimize yourself on screen. Many of us are self-conscious about our appearance, and being in a Zoom meeting can make that worse. Choose a view that doesn’t put you front and center. Zoom has a “Hide Self View” option so you don’t have to look at yourself while you’re talking.

Turn off your video. You may be intimidated by the sight of all those faces on your screen. You can go audio only and turn the Zoom meeting into a typical conference call. You may not be able to do this all the time, but it can relieve anxiety if you're able to do this. You can also switch to “Speaker Only”—many virtual meeting platforms allow you to adjust your settings so you can only see one person at a time as they speak.

Be mindful when moving. You may feel like you can’t move at all when you’re on video, but that will only make you more uncomfortable. The key is to move slowly, with intention, when you have to stretch, take a drink of water, or handle something temporarily offscreen. You’ll feel better in general if you keep both feet firmly on the floor to ground yourself during the meeting.

Canadian housing starts fell by 7.7k (2.8 per cent) to 267.4k units in August at a seasonally-adjusted annual rate (SAAR). Comparing year-over-year, starts were up from August of 2021 (2.5 per cent). Single-detached housing starts rose 1 per cent to 73.4k, while multi-family and others declined 4.2 per cent to 194k (SAAR). 

In British Columbia, starts increased by 0.8 per cent in August, rising to 49.5k units SAAR in all areas of the province. In areas in the province with 10,000 or more residents, single-detached starts fell 6.7 per cent m/m to 6.7k units while multi-family starts rose 1.6 per cent to 39k units. Starts in the province were 5.7 per cent above the levels from August 2021. Starts were flat month over month in Vancouver, up by 6.5k in Kelowna, and down by 1.3k in Abbotsford and 6.8k in Victoria. The 6-month moving average trend rose 5.4 per cent to 47.1k in BC in August. 

Link: https://mailchi.mp/bcrea/canadian-housing-starts-august-2022

For more information, please contact: Gino Pezzani.

She signaled to the waiter—who politely informed her that she must be mistaken because each table always had one salt shaker and one pepper shaker. The woman quietly picked up the first shaker and sprinkled a little pepper on the side of her plate.Then she picked up the second shaker and did the same. The waiter apologized profusely, then rushed to bring a salt shaker. He returned with the maitre d’ who offered complimentary desserts to atone for the mistake.

"My goodness,” the woman said, somewhat embarrassed by the attention. “It’s not that important. It was just a simple mix-up.”

“But, madame,” the maitre d’ replied, “what if you had been the Queen?”

Metro Vancouver’s housing market is experiencing a quieter summer season marked by reduced sale and listing activity. With inflationary pressure and interest rates on the rise, home buyer and seller activity shifted below our long-term seasonal averages this summer. This shift in market conditions caused prices to edge down over the past four months.

For the complete news release, including detailed statistics, click here.

Vancouver, BC – September, 2022. The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) reports that a total of 5,645 residential unit sales were recorded by the Multiple Listing Service^® (MLS^®) in August 2022, a decrease of 40.8 per cent from August 2021. The average MLS^® residential price in BC was $918,378, a 2.1 per cent increase from $899,428 recorded in August 2021. Total sales dollar volume was $5.2 billion, a 39.6 per cent decline from the same time last year. 

“Housing activity across the province remains well below normal but is showing signs of stabilizing,” said BCREA Chief Economist Brendon Ogmundson. “While inventory is up over last year, active listings have somewhat stalled at relatively low levels in most major markets and as a result we are seeing a healthier balance compared to last year.”

Year-to-date, BC residential sales dollar volume was down 22.1 per cent from the same period in 2021 to $63.8 billion. Residential unit sales were down 30.5 per cent to 62,502 units, while the average MLS^® residential price was up 12 per cent to $1.02 million.

For more information, please contact: Gino Pezzani.

Canadian employment declined by 40,000 (-0.2 per cent) to 19.527 million in August, falling for the third consecutive month. The Canadian unemployment rate also jumped by 0.5 to 5.4 per cent, rising from the lowest rate on record in the prior two months and up for the first time in seven months. Average hourly wages were up 5.4 per cent year-over-year, increasing from 5.2 per cent in June and July. Wage gains remain below the inflation rate, however, which hit 7.6 per cent year-over-year in the most-recent data. Total hours worked were unchanged in August, but are up 3.7 per cent year-over-year.

Employment in BC declined by 28.1k to 2.719 million in August, while Metro Vancouver's employment fell by 2.1k month over month. The unemployment rate rose in August to 4.8 per cent. Among the provinces, only Quebec currently has a lower unemployment rate. 

Link: https://mailchi.mp/bcrea/canadian-employment-august-2022

For more information, please contact: Gino Pezzani.

BCREA 2022 Third Quarter Housing Forecast Update

To view the BCREA Housing Forecast Update PDF, click here.

Vancouver, BC – September, 2022. The British Columbia Real Estate Association (BCREA) released its 2022 Third Quarter Housing Forecast Update today.

Multiple Listing Service^® (MLS^®) residential sales in BC are forecast to decline 34.4 per cent from a record high 2021 to 81,900 units this year. In 2023, MLS^® residential sales are forecast to fall an additional 5 per cent to 77,790 units.

“Mortgage rates have risen at a much faster rate and to a higher level than previously anticipated,” said BCREA Chief Economist Brendon Ogmundson. “Faced with a dramatic shift in the cost of borrowing, housing market activity is likely to fall well below normal over the next year.”

Weaker sales and rising inventory mean that some regions, largely in more expensive markets, have tipped into buyers’ market territory. Consequently, average MLS^® home prices have come down from peak levels.

While the housing market is currently feeling the weight of higher interest rates, the downturn is unlikely to be long-lived as BC’s strong population growth combined with extremely favourable demographics means there will be no shortage of demand for housing in the province.  

For the complete news release, including detailed statistics, click here.

For more information, please contact: Gino Pezzani.

Labor Day is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of American workers. It’s a national tribute to the contributions workers have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of the United States.

Some records show that Peter J. McGuire, general secretary of the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and a co-founder of the American Federation of Labor, was first to suggest a day to honor those “who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold.” But other research seems to support the contention that machinist Matthew Maguire, later the secretary of Local 344 of the International Association of Machinists in Paterson, N.J., proposed the holiday in 1882 while serving as secretary of the Central Labor Union in New York.

The Central Labor Union adopted a Labor Day proposal and appointed a committee to plan a demonstration and picnic. Either way, the first Labor Day holiday was celebrated in New York City on Tuesday, Sept. 5, 1882, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. The Central Labor Union held its second Labor Day holiday just a year later, on Sept. 5, 1883.

In 1884, the first Monday in September was selected as the holiday. As labor organizations grew in size and power, so did the idea of Labor Day. In 1885, Labor Day was celebrated in many industrial centers of the country.

The first governmental recognition of the holiday came through municipal ordinances passed during 1885 and 1886. While the first state bill proposing the holiday was introduced into the New York legislature, Oregon passed the first law on Feb. 21, 1887.

Four more states—Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York—created the Labor Day holiday by legislative enactment that same year. By the end of the decade, Connecticut, Nebraska, and Pennsylvania had followed suit. By 1894, 23 other states had adopted the holiday in honor of workers, and on June 28 of that year, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and the territories.

As was widely expected, the Bank of Canada raised its overnight policy rate by 0.75 basis points, bringing it to 3.25 per cent.  In the statement accompanying the decision, the Bank noted that while CPI inflation eased somewhat in July, that easing was due only to a fall in gasoline prices and more broad-based measures of price growth like core inflation moved slightly higher. The Bank continues to see excess demand in the Canadian economy, but does anticipate a moderation in the second half of the year. Ultimately, the Bank sees a need for the policy rate to rise further and will be assessing how much higher interest rates need to go to bring inflation back to its 2 per cent target.

The overnight rate is now above the Bank's estimate of "neutral", or the level of its policy rate at which inflation should run at 2 per cent and the economy is operating at full-capacity.  How much further the Bank will go and how long rates will stay above neutral depends entirely on the trajectory of inflation going forward. We expect the Bank will its policy rate at least one more time this year, ultimately settling at 3.5 or 3.75 per cent.

Link:  https://mailchi.mp/bcrea/bank-of-canada-interest-rate-announcement-9d2hl2ry93

For more information, please contact: Gino Pezzani.

It’s once again my honor and privilege to write this monthly letter and find some connection with you, even if it’s just for a few brief moments as you flip through your daily mail. This month I am over-joyed to celebrate Labor Day with you.

Typically, I don’t speak about holidays or major events, but this month I was moved by the concept of work. The day is meant to honor those out in the field, as we call them now, essential workers. Now, more than ever, we can share our appreciation for those on the front lines of healthcare and other essential services keeping us safe for the last three years.

In the larger sense, I was inspired to share my feelings on what it means to be a good worker. Is a good worker going 100% all the time? Do they never take a break or a day off?

If the past almost three years has taught us anything, it’s that we can “do our job” anywhere. Admittedly, I’ve done some work from bed in my PJs and what that has taught me is that it’s okay to relax a little.

I used to think I had to be on a tight schedule, do everything, manage everyone, or else the world would stop spinning. It turns out that my team is what keeps this ship afloat, and if I can’t learn to delegate appropriately, then something important will fall through the cracks, and my facade of the perfect worker bee will, in fact, crumble all because I thought I could “do it all.”

Nobody can do it all, and though it sounds counterintuitive due to what we have been taught to believe, asking for help does make you a good worker. Collaborating, sharing, giving feedback, and asking questions are tools, not weaknesses.

I encourage you to take this idea into your work week and if you’re a leader in your field, try bringing in your co-workers to see if they can help you. You never know what others have up their sleeve when given the opportunity.

Kind Regards,

Gino Pezzani

Your Real Estate/Mortgage Consultant For Life

Fiber, in the form of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and other carbohydrates that pass through your body undigested, is important to your digestive health, and your overall well- being in general. Too little fiber in the diet is associated with a higher risk of heart disease and diabetes. But only 7% of adults in the U.S. get enough fiber, according to a study reported by U.S. News & World Report.

How much should you eat? Overall, health experts say you should consume 14 grams of fiber for every 1,000 calories you eat in a day. For women, the target is 25 grams in a 2,000-calorie daily diet; and for men, it’s 38 grams in a 2,500-calorie diet. People over 50 years old can consume less.

What should you eat? For starters, try a one-cup serving of pearl barley, which has six grams of fiber, instead of white rice, with just two grams.

National Wildlife Day, Sept. 4. The purpose is to raise awareness about endangered species and their habitats, which need to be protected and rescued.

Labor Day, Sept. 5. A federal holiday in the United States celebrated to honor and recognize the American labor movement.

International Day of Charity, Sept. 5. Established with the objective of sensitizing and mobilizing people, NGOs, and stakeholders all around the world to to help others through volunteer and philanthropic activities.

Autumnal Equinox Day, Sept. 22. The Autumn equinox signals the beginning of Fall. It is the point where there is exactly 12 hours of daylight and 12 hours of darkness at the equator.