I hope you’re enjoying a great summer. I must confess that mine has been difficult. This has nothing to do with the slow-down in the real estate market, but rather a personal issue that has impacted me. I have added a tribute to our daughter-in-law who passed away on August 13th after a brief battle with cancer. This has devastated our family, but we are grateful that she did not have to suffer for an extended time, and proud of the courage that she showed and for her testimony which touched so many people. She was a woman of great faith and we will see her again one day.
Last month I mentioned a cousin who had inspired me to go to the blog format for this newsletter, and I gave a link to her site. http://judys-front-porch.blogspot.com/ I am doing that again this month, particularly to thank her for the posting she had on her site last week:
"Cancer is so limited
......it cannot cripple love
...it cannot shatter hope
...it cannot corrode faith
...it cannot eat away at peace
...it cannot destroy confidence
...it cannot kill friendship
...it cannot shut out memories
...it cannot reduce eternal life
...it cannot quench the spirit
...it cannot lessen the power of the resurrection!
On the July 1st weekend we met with extended family in Oliver for the weekend. A daughter-in-law of our cousin was not able to join us, as she was hospitalized for an infection that weekend. As it turned out, the 'infection' was a rapidly growing cancer. Six weeks later, she has gone on to her eternal home. Tomorrow the Westnedge family will be 'laying to rest' a wonderful lady who was part of their family for such a short time. They are hurting deeply, but know first-hand the limitations of cancer...
Thanks, Judy.
Now, on to other things!
Five years ago, it was the height of the fire season, and the devastation that occurred in the Kelowna and Barriere communities. This year we have had similar conditions, but the results have been far different. While we were in Kelowna there were several "good" thunder and lightning storms, and some fires were sparked. However, the response of the crews was very quick and helicopters were dispatched to douse the affected areas right away. We actually watched this happen from the home we were staying in last week (but I did not have my camera handy when this occurred). We've had some rain the past couple of days, but the forests are still really dry, so be careful if you are out there.
TODAY'S CLEAN LAUGH
Whether you are a student looking for that first time or summer job or a long-time veteran looking for a change of pace, this JOB SEARCH JARGON should help you get on your way...
COMPETITIVE SALARY: We remain competitive by paying less than our competitors. FLEXIBLE HOURS: Work 55 hours; get paid for 37.5.
GOOD COMMUNICATION SKILLS: Management communicates, you listen and figure out what they want you to do.
ABILITY TO HANDLE A HEAVY WORKLOAD: You whine, you're fired.
CAREER-MINDED: We expect that you will want to flip hamburgers until you are 70.
SELF-MOTIVATED: Management won't answer questions.
SOME OVERTIME REQUIRED: Some time each night and some time each weekend.
DUTIES WILL VARY: Anyone in the office can boss you around.
COMPETITIVE ENVIRONMENT: We have a lot of turnover.
SALES POSITION REQUIRING MOTIVATED SELF-STARTER: We're not going to supply you with leads; there's no base salary; you'll wait 30 days for your first commission check.
CASUAL WORK ATMOSPHERE: We don't pay enough to expect that you'll dress up; well, a couple of the real daring guys wear earrings.
SOME PUBLIC RELATIONS REQUIRED: If we're in trouble, you'll go on TV and get us out of it.
SEEKING CANDIDATES WITH A WIDE VARIETY OF EXPERIENCE: You'll need it to replace three people who just left.
PROBLEM-SOLVING SKILLS A MUST: You're walking into a company in perpetual chaos.
*Thanks to Pastor Tim for this joke!* http://www.cybersalt.org/cleanlaugh
O.K. - That was a decent funny -- now here's something more serious. The West Kootenay area is not known for earthquakes, although I keep hearing about a fault line along the bottom of Kootenay Lake. However, it may be relevant to you, either where you are living, or while you are traveling:
EXTRACT FROM DOUG COPP'S ARTICLE ON THE: 'TRIANGLE OF LIFE'
My name is Doug Copp. I am the Rescue Chief and Disaster Manager of the
American Rescue Team International (ARTI), the world's most experienced
rescue team. The information in this article will save lives in an earthquake.
I have crawled inside 875 collapsed buildings, worked with rescue teams
from 60 countries, founded rescue teams in several countries, and I am a
member of many rescue teams from many countries.
I was the United Nations expert in Disaster Mitigation for two years. I
have worked at every major disaster in the world since 1985, except for
simultaneous disasters.
The first building I ever crawled inside of was a school in Mexico City
during the 1985 earthquake. Every child was under its desk. Every child
was crushed to the thickness of their bones. They could have survived by
lying down next to their desks in the aisles. It was obscene, unnecessary and
I wondered why the children were not in the aisles. I didn't at the time
know that the children were told to hide under something.
Simply stated, when buildings collapse, the weight of the ceilings
falling upon the objects or furniture inside crushes these objects, leaving a
space or void next to them. This space is what I call the 'triangle of life'.
The larger the object, the stronger, the less it will compact. The less the
object compacts, the larger the void, the greater the probability that
the person who is using this void for safety will not be injured. The next
time you watch collapsed buildings, on television, count the 'triangles' you
see formed. They are everywhere. It is the most common shape, you will see,
in a collapsed building.
TIPS FOR EARTHQUAKE SAFETY
1) Most everyone who simply 'ducks and covers' WHEN BUILDINGS COLLAPSE
are crushed to death. People who get under objects, like desks or cars, are crushed.
2) Cats, dogs and babies often naturally curl up in the fetal position.
You should too in an earthquake. It is a natural safety/survival instinct. You can survive
in a smaller void. Get next to an object, next to a sofa, next to a large bulky object that will
compress slightly but leave a void next to it.
3) Wooden buildings are the safest type of construction to be in during
an earthquake. Wood is flexible and moves with the force of the earthquake.
If the wooden building does collapse, large survival voids are created.
Also, the wooden building has less concentrated, crushing weight. Brick
buildings will break into individual bricks. Bricks will cause many injuries but
less squashed bodies than concrete slabs.
4) If you are in bed during the night and an earthquake occurs, simply
roll off the bed. A safe void will exist around the bed. Hotels can achieve a
much greater survival rate in earthquakes, simply by posting a sign on the back
of the door of every room telling occupants to lie down on the floor, next to the bottom
of the bed during an earthquake.
5) If an earthquake happens and you cannot easily escape by getting out
the door or window, then lie down and curl up in the fetal position next to
a sofa, or large chair.
6) Most everyone who gets under a doorway when buildings collapse is
killed. How? If you stand under a doorway and the door jamb falls forward or
backward you will be crushed by the ceiling above. If the door jam falls sideways
you will be cut in half by the doorway. In either case, you will be killed!
7) Never go to the stairs. The stairs have a different 'moment of
frequency' (they swing separately from the main part of the building).
The stairs and remainder of the building continuously bump into each
other until structural failure of the stairs takes place. The people who get
on stairs before they fail are chopped up by the stair treads - horribly
mutilated. Even if the building doesn't collapse, stay away from the
stairs. The stairs are a likely part of the building to be damaged. Even if the
stairs are not collapsed by the earthquake , they may collapse later when
overloaded by fleeing people. They should always be checked for safety,
even when the rest of the building is not damaged.
8) Get Near the Outer Walls Of Buildings Or Outside Of Them If Possible
- It is much better to be near the outside of the building rather than
the interior. The farther inside you are from the outside perimeter of the
building the greater the probability that your escape route will be
blocked.
9) People inside of their vehicles are crushed when the road above falls
in an earthquake and crushes their vehicles; which is exactly what happened
with the slabs between the decks of the Nimitz Freeway. The victims of
the San Francisco earthquake all stayed inside of their vehicles. They were
all killed. They could have easily survived by getting out and sitting or
lying next to their vehicles. Everyone killed would have survived if they had
been able to get out of their cars and sit or lie next to them. All the
crushed cars had voids 3 feet high next to them, except for the cars that had
columns fall directly across them.
10) I discovered, while crawling inside of collapsed newspaper offices
and other offices with a lot of paper, that paper does not compact.
Large voids are found surrounding stacks of paper.
Spread the word and save someone's life... The entire world is
experiencing natural calamities so be prepared!
'We are but angels with one wing, it takes two to fly'
In 1996 we made a film, which proved my survival methodology to be
correct. The Turkish Federal Government, City of Istanbul , University of
Istanbul Case Productions and ARTI cooperated to film this practical, scientific
test. We collapsed a school and a home with 20 mannequins inside. Ten
mannequins did 'duck and cover, ' and ten mannequins I used in my
'triangle of life' survival method. After the simulated earthquake collapse we
crawled through the rubble and entered the building to film and document the
results. The film, in which I practiced my survival techniques under
directly observable, scientific conditions , relevant to building collapse, showed
there would have been zero percent survival for those doing duck
and cover.
There would likely have been 100 percent survivability for people using
my method of the 'triangle of life.'
My name is Doug Copp. I am the Rescue Chief and Disaster Manager of the
American Rescue Team International (ARTI), the world's most experienced
rescue team. The information in this article will save lives in an earthquake.
I have crawled inside 875 collapsed buildings, worked with rescue teams
from 60 countries, founded rescue teams in several countries, and I am a
member of many rescue teams from many countries.
I was the United Nations expert in Disaster Mitigation for two years. I
have worked at every major disaster in the world since 1985, except for
simultaneous disasters.
The first building I ever crawled inside of was a school in Mexico City
during the 1985 earthquake. Every child was under its desk. Every child
was crushed to the thickness of their bones. They could have survived by
lying down next to their desks in the aisles. It was obscene, unnecessary and
I wondered why the children were not in the aisles. I didn't at the time
know that the children were told to hide under something.
Simply stated, when buildings collapse, the weight of the ceilings
falling upon the objects or furniture inside crushes these objects, leaving a
space or void next to them. This space is what I call the 'triangle of life'.
The larger the object, the stronger, the less it will compact. The less the
object compacts, the larger the void, the greater the probability that
the person who is using this void for safety will not be injured. The next
time you watch collapsed buildings, on television, count the 'triangles' you
see formed. They are everywhere. It is the most common shape, you will see,
in a collapsed building.
TIPS FOR EARTHQUAKE SAFETY
1) Most everyone who simply 'ducks and covers' WHEN BUILDINGS COLLAPSE
are crushed to death. People who get under objects, like desks or cars, are crushed.
2) Cats, dogs and babies often naturally curl up in the fetal position.
You should too in an earthquake. It is a natural safety/survival instinct. You can survive
in a smaller void. Get next to an object, next to a sofa, next to a large bulky object that will
compress slightly but leave a void next to it.
3) Wooden buildings are the safest type of construction to be in during
an earthquake. Wood is flexible and moves with the force of the earthquake.
If the wooden building does collapse, large survival voids are created.
Also, the wooden building has less concentrated, crushing weight. Brick
buildings will break into individual bricks. Bricks will cause many injuries but
less squashed bodies than concrete slabs.
4) If you are in bed during the night and an earthquake occurs, simply
roll off the bed. A safe void will exist around the bed. Hotels can achieve a
much greater survival rate in earthquakes, simply by posting a sign on the back
of the door of every room telling occupants to lie down on the floor, next to the bottom
of the bed during an earthquake.
5) If an earthquake happens and you cannot easily escape by getting out
the door or window, then lie down and curl up in the fetal position next to
a sofa, or large chair.
6) Most everyone who gets under a doorway when buildings collapse is
killed. How? If you stand under a doorway and the door jamb falls forward or
backward you will be crushed by the ceiling above. If the door jam falls sideways
you will be cut in half by the doorway. In either case, you will be killed!
7) Never go to the stairs. The stairs have a different 'moment of
frequency' (they swing separately from the main part of the building).
The stairs and remainder of the building continuously bump into each
other until structural failure of the stairs takes place. The people who get
on stairs before they fail are chopped up by the stair treads - horribly
mutilated. Even if the building doesn't collapse, stay away from the
stairs. The stairs are a likely part of the building to be damaged. Even if the
stairs are not collapsed by the earthquake , they may collapse later when
overloaded by fleeing people. They should always be checked for safety,
even when the rest of the building is not damaged.
8) Get Near the Outer Walls Of Buildings Or Outside Of Them If Possible
- It is much better to be near the outside of the building rather than
the interior. The farther inside you are from the outside perimeter of the
building the greater the probability that your escape route will be
blocked.
9) People inside of their vehicles are crushed when the road above falls
in an earthquake and crushes their vehicles; which is exactly what happened
with the slabs between the decks of the Nimitz Freeway. The victims of
the San Francisco earthquake all stayed inside of their vehicles. They were
all killed. They could have easily survived by getting out and sitting or
lying next to their vehicles. Everyone killed would have survived if they had
been able to get out of their cars and sit or lie next to them. All the
crushed cars had voids 3 feet high next to them, except for the cars that had
columns fall directly across them.
10) I discovered, while crawling inside of collapsed newspaper offices
and other offices with a lot of paper, that paper does not compact.
Large voids are found surrounding stacks of paper.
Spread the word and save someone's life... The entire world is
experiencing natural calamities so be prepared!
'We are but angels with one wing, it takes two to fly'
In 1996 we made a film, which proved my survival methodology to be
correct. The Turkish Federal Government, City of Istanbul , University of
Istanbul Case Productions and ARTI cooperated to film this practical, scientific
test. We collapsed a school and a home with 20 mannequins inside. Ten
mannequins did 'duck and cover, ' and ten mannequins I used in my
'triangle of life' survival method. After the simulated earthquake collapse we
crawled through the rubble and entered the building to film and document the
results. The film, in which I practiced my survival techniques under
directly observable, scientific conditions , relevant to building collapse, showed
there would have been zero percent survival for those doing duck
and cover.
There would likely have been 100 percent survivability for people using
my method of the 'triangle of life.'
Love him or hate him, he sure hits the nail on the head with this! Bill Gates recently gave a speech at a High School about 11 things they did not and will not learn in school. He talks about how feel-good, politically correct teachings created a generation of kids with no concept of reality and how this concept set them up for failure in the real world.
Rule 1: Life is not fair - get used to it!
Rule 1: Life is not fair - get used to it!
Rule 2: The world won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.
Rule 3: You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You won't be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.
Rule 4: If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.
Rule 5: Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it opportunity.
Rule 6: If you mess up, it's not your parents' fault, so don't whine about your mistakes, learn from them.
Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren't as boring as they are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent's generation, try delousing the closet in your own room.
Rule 8: Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and they'll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This doesn't bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.
Rule 9: Life is not divided into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few employers are interested in helpin g you FIND YOURSELF. Do that on your own time.
Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.
Rule 11: Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one.
If you can read this - thank a teacher!
Do You Know A Buyer For Any Of These Properties:
O.K., so maybe this is cheating a little bit. However, Drew and I have quite a number of listings in all price ranges, so we thought we'd give you a peak at all of them this month. Just click on the following link for our homes:
or this link for condominiums:
finally, you can check out our land listings here:
*Lobster Pets** After a day fishing in the ocean a fisherman is walking from the pier carrying two lobsters in a bucket. He is approached by the Game Warden who asks him for his fishing license. The fisherman says to the warden, "I did not catch these lobsters, they are my pets. Everyday I come down to the water and whistle and these lobster jump out and I take them for a walk only to return them at the end of the day." The warden, not believing him, reminds him that it is illegal to fish without a license. The fisherman turns to the warden and says, "If you don't believe me then watch," as he throws the lobsters back into the water. The warden says, "Now whistle to your lobsters and show me that they will come out of the water." The fisherman turns to the warden and says, "What lobsters?"
*Thanks to Pastor Tim for this joke!* http://www.crosswalkmail.com/idckckax_sbcobohdxo.html
KREB MEDIA REALEASE
2008 Mid Year numbers resemble “Buyers Market”.
Nelson, BC July 11, 2008 – Midway through 2008, the year in real estate resembles a “buyers market”. A buyers market can be categorized as a real estate market where the inventory of available properties for sale surpasses the needs of the number of available buyers. Signs of a buyers market include an increase in the number of days it takes it takes to sell a property, a decrease in the average home price of real estate, and an increase in the overall inventory of available properties.
Kootenay Real Estate President Andrew Smith says “The real estate market in the Kootenay’s are generally in a “buyers market” state with inventories of active listings on the MLS® increasing 71% over active MLS® listings to the end of June 2007. The market situation that is out of sync with a “buyers market” is the total general average price per unit increase of 16%. Some markets are seeing a decline in average price per unit, but generally, values are holding and statistically are increasing in spite of high inventory levels and a decline in MLS® unit sales.”
MLS® Dollar Volume of all sales processed through the Kootenay Real Estate Board Year to Date to the end of June 2008 are sitting at $439,081,617, a decline of 24% over the same reporting period last year.
Kootenay Real Estate Board President Andrew Smith further says: “REALTORS® in the Kootenay’s expected that the real estate markets would slow in 2008 given the records set in 2007. 2008 is shaping up to be the year the markets take a rest from the unprecedented price gains of the last few years and in general, it’s healthy for markets to pause and cycle. The statistics are showing that even with the declines, values are staying strong. That should give consumers confidence we aren’t experiencing the same type of a decline as the US real estate market and that the value of their real estate is still strong.”
MLS® Unit Sales in June 2008 declined 37% from amounts reported in June 2007. MLS® Sales year to date to the end of June 2008 show a decline of 34% over MLS® sales to the end of June 2007.
The price of the average residential detached house sold on the Multiple Listing Service® in June 2008 rose by 7% to $334,303 compared to June of 2007. Year to Date comparisons to the end of June 2008 saw values increase to $321,419, an average increase of 15% over the same reporting period last year.
Kootenay Real Estate Board MLS® statistics for 2008 year to date show residential detached housing listings up 21% over the same period in 2007 with MLS® unit sales for detached residential housing showing a decline of 37% over amounts reported last year.
Overall, the number of MLS® listings in 2008 year to date to the end of June increased 27% over the same period in 2007, with overall MLS® unit sales down 34% over the same period in 2007.
When asked to comment on what residents of the Kootenays should expect for their real estate markets in for the remainder of 2008 President Andrew Smith had this to say:
“From an MLS® unit sales perspective we are seeing performance at about 2004 levels. The unexpected factor this year so far are the average price per MLS® unit sale increases. Not all ends of the market are seeing increases, but the common trend is that real estate continues to be an appreciating asset.”
2008 Mid Year numbers resemble “Buyers Market”.
Nelson, BC July 11, 2008 – Midway through 2008, the year in real estate resembles a “buyers market”. A buyers market can be categorized as a real estate market where the inventory of available properties for sale surpasses the needs of the number of available buyers. Signs of a buyers market include an increase in the number of days it takes it takes to sell a property, a decrease in the average home price of real estate, and an increase in the overall inventory of available properties.
Kootenay Real Estate President Andrew Smith says “The real estate market in the Kootenay’s are generally in a “buyers market” state with inventories of active listings on the MLS® increasing 71% over active MLS® listings to the end of June 2007. The market situation that is out of sync with a “buyers market” is the total general average price per unit increase of 16%. Some markets are seeing a decline in average price per unit, but generally, values are holding and statistically are increasing in spite of high inventory levels and a decline in MLS® unit sales.”
MLS® Dollar Volume of all sales processed through the Kootenay Real Estate Board Year to Date to the end of June 2008 are sitting at $439,081,617, a decline of 24% over the same reporting period last year.
Kootenay Real Estate Board President Andrew Smith further says: “REALTORS® in the Kootenay’s expected that the real estate markets would slow in 2008 given the records set in 2007. 2008 is shaping up to be the year the markets take a rest from the unprecedented price gains of the last few years and in general, it’s healthy for markets to pause and cycle. The statistics are showing that even with the declines, values are staying strong. That should give consumers confidence we aren’t experiencing the same type of a decline as the US real estate market and that the value of their real estate is still strong.”
MLS® Unit Sales in June 2008 declined 37% from amounts reported in June 2007. MLS® Sales year to date to the end of June 2008 show a decline of 34% over MLS® sales to the end of June 2007.
The price of the average residential detached house sold on the Multiple Listing Service® in June 2008 rose by 7% to $334,303 compared to June of 2007. Year to Date comparisons to the end of June 2008 saw values increase to $321,419, an average increase of 15% over the same reporting period last year.
Kootenay Real Estate Board MLS® statistics for 2008 year to date show residential detached housing listings up 21% over the same period in 2007 with MLS® unit sales for detached residential housing showing a decline of 37% over amounts reported last year.
Overall, the number of MLS® listings in 2008 year to date to the end of June increased 27% over the same period in 2007, with overall MLS® unit sales down 34% over the same period in 2007.
When asked to comment on what residents of the Kootenays should expect for their real estate markets in for the remainder of 2008 President Andrew Smith had this to say:
“From an MLS® unit sales perspective we are seeing performance at about 2004 levels. The unexpected factor this year so far are the average price per MLS® unit sale increases. Not all ends of the market are seeing increases, but the common trend is that real estate continues to be an appreciating asset.”
Lorne's added note to the above information: People are commenting to me that they are seeing a lot of "For Sale" signs around the area. While it is true that the number of available properties is up, we are getting back to what used to be "normal" market, before the huge increase in number of sales and sale prices that we have experienced in the past 3 years. This seems to be happening in many parts of our province, and indeed in other parts of Canada as well. While the principles of supply and demand will have an impact on our market, we are not seeing a lot of decreases in prices and sales are still occurring, so the market has not gone "flat".
Are you interested in going bike riding with our group in two weeks? September 6 & 7 is our annual P.A.G.E. (Pedal Around a Glacier, Eh?) ride from Nelson to Kaslo, then over to New Denver where we spend the night. Day 2 brings us back to Nelson through the Slocan Valley, along Highway 6. If you are interested, send me a quick e-mail and I'll make sure you get a registration form. Next month I will expect to have a photo or two to add to this newsletter.
A couple more photos from my garden in the past month:
Sorry, I can't tell you what kind of flower this is.
But this is an Easter Lilly (Yes, I know it's August!)
*Zoo Trip* Little Johnny wanted to go to the zoo and pestered his parents for days. Finally his mother talked his reluctant father into taking him. "So how was it?" his mother asked when they returned home. "Great," Little Johnny replied. "Did you and your father have a good time?" asked his mother. "Yeah, Daddy especially liked it," exclaimed Little Johnny excitedly, "especially when one of the animals came home at 30 to 1!"
*Thanks to Pastor Tim for this joke!* http://www.cybersalt.org/cleanlaugh
Enough of this fun! Thanks for reading. As always, your comments are more than welcome. If you, or any of the wonderful people you come into contact with, are looking to buy or sell real estate, we hope you will recommend us.
Lorne & Drew
