By Lynda Cox
How do buyers choose where to live? Sometimes they have identified a specific area and style of home but often it comes down to price and availability. In this buyer-heavy/low inventory market, buyers often have to look outside their preferred area and make compromises. Realtors quickly try to assess their needs. Is it a particular school catchment area they want? Is it within walking distance of their job? Is it land, space and privacy? Is it a home just like mom and dad’s?
The list can be long. If buyers have grown up and lived in Ottawa sometimes they want to live in the same neighbourhood or part of the city that is familiar, while others might choose the complete opposite.
So who chooses to live in Lowertown? We see suburban dwellers who are tired of their commute to work and willing to sacrifice space for time spent at home. We see grown children of suburban dwellers looking for a vibrant community for their first apartment. We see retirees leaving the suburbs and their big homes to simplify their lives and try condo living.
I think it might also come down to this: people who move to Lowertown want to be in the heart of the city. They don’t want to depend on a car anymore. They want to walk to all amenities if possible. If they are still working, they want to walk or ride their bikes to work. They don’t mind the great diversity of population, architecture and commerce; they love it.
I met a young family recently who had come from Turkey. I asked them why they chose to live in Lowertown. They said it felt more like home to them. They did not want to have a car. They did not want a long commute to work. It just felt right. They love it.
Why did I personally move to Lowertown? I had spent years as a suburban dweller, a country dweller and an urban dweller, but when I had to choose a home for my golden years there was nowhere else but Lowertown for me. Every day I am glad to be here.
As a realtor I have sold houses from Orleans to Kanata, from Lowertown to Barrhaven but now, as I return home after a trek to Manotick and beyond I am so thankful to be in this great neighbourhood where everything is just a short stroll away. I love it.
Real Estate Update (from January 25 to March 25, 2021)
Residential
8 Active Listings 1 Conditionally Sold
10 SOLD (5 sold over list price ranging from $75K to $121K over)
Condominium
21 Active Listings 3 Conditionally Sold
32 SOLD 6 sold over list price ranging from $1K to $106K over)
Note: We are starting to see the market balance out as more listings are coming to the market. Interest rates are still low and buyers still plentiful. As the inventory increases the number of bidding wars should lessen. These bidding wars are causing “buyer fatigue” to set in. Some buyers have offered 15 or more times on different homes only to be outbid.
Lynda Cox and her son Jim form the “Cox Home Team”. They are with Royal Lepage Performance Realty 613-238-2801.