Messages

1

General Discussion / Re: Archipelago Results - Nov 1

« on: March 04, 2015, 08:40:25 PM »

Thought I'd revive this thread.

From Realtor.ca

Listing ID: 201436006

LOT 23 FRANCIS ISLAND, GEORGIAN BAY
BRAND NEW TO BE BUILT OPEN CONCEPT 3 BDRM COTTAGE. LARGE GREAT RM W/FP & ADJOINING COUNTRY KITCHEN, MBDRM W/ENSUITE, MAIN FLOOR LAUNDRY, SPACIOUS SCREEN PORCH. 2.8 ACRES TREED LOT W/VIEWS 180 DEGREES


$680,000


I don't usually go up where the air is that thin in my searches.  Yes its the same parcel.  Key phrase here is "to be built". Oh, and just in time for the Cottage Life Show.  I'm always suspicious when an in-house listing number is used.

2

General / Carling

« on: January 12, 2015, 05:37:07 PM »

Anyone have any insights into this property?  I see as of this morning, the day of the sale, it was redeemed.

I was paying attention from the day it was posted, but didn't take it seriously as the current assessment was $650K.  That was well beyond my entertaining bidding.  Not that there are a lot of tax sales in they Parry Sound area, but from what I've seen, recreational properties appear to go for around 3/4 (or more) of their market value.

Seemed a little odd timing wise.  Listed middle of December, with a due date of middle of January.  True it had the minimum 30 days in there, but it also included a couple of stat holidays as well.  Wonder if those diminished business days would have caused any legal problems for the legitimacy of the sale?

I figure that it was some mess up on resolving internal estate issues.

I'll be watching the real estate market leading up to spring, to see if it lists.  Couple of years ago an island came up, was redeemed and with in a couple of days it was on the market.  Listing was with an agent who I'd describe as non-local.  Last I saw it still hadn't sold, but had been going down incrementally for asking price.

3

General / Waterfront on Stewart Lake

« on: March 26, 2014, 09:28:47 PM »

I love a good puzzle, and I have little faith in government at any level to be error free.  Hopefully the pictures will convey the puzzle.  I measured the parcel in the second image at .43 acres.

Just one of those interesting computer anomalies.

4

General / Re: Township of Archipeligo results.

« on: March 26, 2014, 08:33:37 PM »

I'd be blindly guessing when it came down to costs to do the renovations.  Under the conditions I saw it, I couldn't see anything overtly broken.  What I could see was a lot of aging, seasonal build quality, and some things which if they weren't causing trouble would eventually cause trouble.

For the individual(s) who won, its what they're willing to accept for cottage use, middle of May to Middle of September.  I'm happy with a cottage with open framing on the inside, just no leaks and a view.  If aesthetics are important, then they'll be doing siding, windows, doors, decking and possibly the roof.  I'd be guessing again, but I'd say there is 3 or less inches of insulation in the walls, so they'd best to invest in layers of foam insulation for the exterior while doing the siding and windows.

Given the state of the exterior, the interior probably isn't a whole lot better.  I couldn't see anything of the interior, but someone has.  An extension ladder had been positioned to allow access to the second floor via a rear deck.  I'd guess from what is typical for that kind of build and area, paneling in most, if not all rooms.  Typical flooring might be particle board and plywood, with linoleum or carpeting.  More work and expense.

I wouldn't say this was an abused or neglected property (well maybe recently it was).  It was built in the early 70's for seasonal use, so some of it is approaching 40 years of use in a harsh environment.

In my mind the dollar signs are rolling over pretty fast, maybe a budget of $50-60,000 on the exterior.  Probably wrong there, I catch a few of these reality shows where they spend $40,000 on a kitchen.

Two things that come to mind as possible issues for costs are, how much are the contractors and suppliers going to charge for traveling that far out, and at what point do the renovations require you to build to year-round building code standards further increasing the costs.

(Still looks like Winter)

5

General / Re: Township of Archipeligo results.

« on: March 20, 2014, 08:04:39 PM »

This one will get added to the list.

I have a bunch of properties that I've investigated over the last few years, that I return to just to see what's happening.  Sometimes a property will sit and deteriorate, other times a full crew will gut and rebuild, sometimes people move in and just go with what comes.

Have to wait for the snow to start melting before I regularly get up there again.

Still looks pretty wintry (from the Deep Bay Association's Webcam)

6

General / Re: Township of Archipeligo results.

« on: March 16, 2014, 07:17:50 PM »

Just some follow-up information. Had to retype the numbers so...

as per Archipelago website:

Summary of Bids

Description of Lands: PIN 52093-0133

1  $   155,000.00
2  $   125,000.00
3  $   105,020.00
4  $     82,300.00
5  $     68,888.90
6  $     67,090.00
7  $     65,100.00
8  $     55,000.00
9  $     52,000.00
10 $    46,160.00
11 $    37,500.00
12 $    32,500.00
13 $    25,775.00
14 $    25,205.00
15 $    20,000.00
16 $    18,600.00

7

General / Re: Township of Archipeligo results.

« on: December 18, 2013, 01:28:18 AM »

Thanks Dave.

Whether its retail or tax sale I frequently find my jaw on the floor with some of these bids and offers.  Many times I find myself questioning my valuations, am I missing something here?

8

General / Re: Township of Archipeligo results.

« on: December 14, 2013, 01:57:23 AM »

Being a long time cottager in the area, and owning property near there. (Only made it out there at dusk, and couldn't stay long.)  I'll risk an opinion.

Its road access, big plus.
It is quasi waterfront, with matching zoning, a plus
Current water levels only allow a canoe, kayak or john boat through the culvert, a negative.
There is a upscale boat launch not to far away, a plus.
On going annual road development charge from township for reserve by-pass, a negative.
The route from the Hwy 559 cutoff on Hwy 400 is 28 kilometers of winding road, a negative.
Nearest retail store, Parry Sound.  There maybe a seasonal variety store in the community, but its not on the road in.
The build dates back to just around the same time that the OBC was brought in.  This could be a disaster, as many of the contractors of the area were pretty questionable for best practices, a negative.
Siding looks to be original and untreated, windows are mostly original and seasonal quality, negatives
Getting pretty dark at this point, the dreaded interior joists becoming exterior joists for deck support.  Disastrous rot may result from this economical design, negative.
Current assessment and tax rate will push the taxes up there for what you're getting, a negative.
Has a built in garage, done with permits, a positive.
Looks to have been rented for awhile, so interior condition is suspect, a negative.
No record of a drilled well, and likewise for most neighbouring parcels, means high probability of a dug well or lake intake, a negative.
Block foundation looks to be in good shape, which is something for that area, a positive.
Marginal driveway, a negative.
Buried electrical feed, positive.
Just shy of 2 acres, positive.
Building has southern exposure, a positive.
Georgian Bay is just right there, a positive.
Not a lot of crown land in the area, for day tripping, a negative.
Some of the property has been cleared, while the western portion, towards the main road is forested, positive.
The grade of the property isn't to steep, but sufficient for drainage.
Maybe issues with up-slope drainage, a negative.
Building removed from main road, a positive.
Newer septic system, a big plus.

You have just driven 3+ hours from Toronto, I found the drive, with packed snow and ice a little stressful.  In the winter the road is known for being closed by weather and downed trees.  You have a neighbour to the east that's with in spitting distance or beer can striking distance, and across the river are several highly visible properties.  Some people will like having a few neighbours, particularly as they get older.  For me the area is a bit over developed, with quite a few 1 or less acre parcels.  The township has zoned a couple of parcels as "coastal residential - holding", I believe this is their way of stopping any further development.  The sheltered water areas have in recent history had problems with toxic algae blooms.

Around the corner a vacant parcel sold at a tax sale last year for a little more than the minimum bid (8K?), and I believe there was only 1 bid.  MPAC assessments of other vacant parcels is surprisingly low.  Several other developed properties in the community have failed to get their asking price, mostly the listings expired.  Also they were true water front.  Given its age and condition it won't be an easy flip.  The majority of reasonably timed sales in the Parry Sound area, are much more expensive, but, they're water front, and the buyer can walk-in, do nothing if they like.

So did the bidder do ok?  Depends on what they're aiming for.  If they just wanted a seasonal cottage, that's a bit rough and needing mid-range repairs, at $155, eh, they're right on the edge.  Maybe 35 below retail.  To get better and not pay more they'd end up over in the Burk's Falls or South River area or further east, not Georgian Bay.  If they're looking to flip it at 250, won't happen.  I've seen much better, for less, sit for a couple of seasons before selling.

So there's my opinion.

9

General Discussion / Re: Invalid Tax Sale

« on: August 03, 2013, 10:22:09 PM »

Just for reference, the above link is to the repealed version.

The current version (April 2013)  is: http://www.e-laws.gov.on.ca/html/statutes/english/elaws_statutes_01m25_e.htm#BK439

10

Property Information / Re: Some Images for Thunder Bay

« on: June 01, 2013, 03:13:00 PM »

I was eying all those boats.  Wonder if you could turn a profit there.
 

11

Property Information / Some Images for Thunder Bay

« on: May 30, 2013, 10:57:03 PM »

I wouldn't normally go this far north, but I know a little of the area and still have some family there, so out of curiosity...

My favorite is Kingston Rd., that deserves a frame on my wall.

Credit where credit is do, from Google Street View.

12

General / Re: Ancient forms of Measurement

« on: March 05, 2013, 02:40:23 PM »

Thanks for the topic link.

I have used the search facility before, but haven't found it very effective.  Today I put in "township" and searched, you'd think I'd get 1000s of hits, it returns:

taxsaleproperty.org > Tax Sale Forum > Questions and Answers > Search > Search Results
Pages: [1]

(No results found)

Pages: [1]

Alternatively going to the top most level of the forums, doing a search, appears to return every thread and checking the content of the first several hits, didn't contain the keyword (relevance of each was below 68% and down)

Gotten spoiled using Google. In Google using: site:taxsaleproperty.org township
Returns a stupid number of hits with the keyword highlighted.

http://taxsaleproperty.org/forum/index.php?topic=2035.msg8891#msg8891

Gets you to the relevant part of the thread containing mesurements.

Thanks again

13

General / Ancient forms of Measurement

« on: March 04, 2013, 10:12:28 PM »

Came across this legal description of a parcel today. Last time I saw this parcel listed I had no idea what they were talking.  After having skulked around here for awhile I actually understand (more or less) what they're describing.  There was a thread awhile back that explained some of the variants of measuring land, maybe if someone can find that thread they can reference it here or put a sticky on it. Thanks for the info.

 ALLOWANCE OF ONE CHAIN IN PERPENDICULAR WIDTH FOR A RD ON THE BANKS OF THE CHE-PA-KONGE RIVER AND ALSO ON THE SHORE OF THE GEORGIAN BAY; CARLING

14

Questions and Answers / Re: Collaberative Effort

« on: February 11, 2013, 03:27:50 PM »

Posted this yesterday, but it evaporated.

OK, so as the OP...

Does anyone know what the South River property sold for?

As a past water front property owner...

You could drive a truck through the holes in the MPAC system.  If you want some reading to raise your blood pressure, see: http://www.ombudsman.on.ca/Files/sitemedia/Documents/Investigations/SORT%20Investigations/getting_it_right_20060328.pdf. Unfortunately followup documents don't paint a promising future.

That, said it does have some use as a benchmark.  I've found it useful when trying to get a sense of the fairness of a posted asking price.  If someone is asking $199K and MPAC assessed the property at $110K, something isn't right.  The reverse also works, MPAC assessment of $120K, but an asking price of $50K, you know the place is a wreck.

As far as individual situations, I urge everyone who has a beef to challenge MPAC, but be prepared if need be to take it to ARB.  If you still have a complaint, with either MPAC or ARB go to the Ombudsman of Ontario and file a complaint.  MPAC measures its performance based on challenges.  If no one challenges them, then they say they're doing great.

15

Questions and Answers / Re: Collaberative Effort

« on: February 06, 2013, 06:11:32 PM »

Did anyone ever hear what the outcome of this tax sale was?