The Villas at Crown Mansion located in Qualicum Beach on Vancouver Island overlook the Qualicum Beach golf course.  These luxurious Vancouver Island homes offer ocean or garden views and are situated for easy accessibility to the Qualicum Beach town centre for shopping and dining.

The Villas at Crown Mansion have revised their pricing structure and now start at $349,000.  These Vancouver Island homes at Crown Mansion are available for viewing on Saturday and Sunday from 1pm to 4pm.

Excerpted from 1stView.ca.

Steam Engine Estates, located in historic Cumberland on Vancouver Island, is gaining considerable interest in their residential project of patio homes and town homes.  This Comox Valley project has recently sold eight units and the Fall is looking even busier.

Steam Engine Estates is a Vancouver Island real estate project situated in a tranquil setting with a view of the Comox Valley mountains. These spacious, quality built Vancouver Island patio homes and town homes are beautifully finished with plenty of natural lighting.

Pricing for these quality built Vancouver Island homes are now starting at $224,900.

Excerpted from 1stView.ca.

Vancouver Island home owners have an advantage they have never had before.  When purchasing Vancouver Island real estate, a home owner may have access on how energy efficient their home is, or the new residential home they are about to purchase.

EnerGuide is an energy efficiency rating service offered by Certified Energy Advisors through Natural Resources Canada for new residential homes. Vancouver Island builders are able to have the construction of their new projects accessed by a Certified Energy Advisor and generate a label through Natural Resources Canada in order to prove the efficiency of the newly constructed home. The products used to build Vancouver Island homes, the craftsmanship and practices used during the construction, is all taken into account in the EnerGuide rating and confirmed once construction of the home is completed, by the Certified Energy Advisor.

The technology for Vancouver Island real estate purchasers to know what their utility expenses are going to be in their new Vancouver Island home for the next 20 years, has arrived.

Contact  Elemental Energy Advisors to find out the proactive builders in your Vancouver Island area who are willing to prove the quality of their new residential homes by having them EnerGuide rated.

For more information visit Elemental Energy Advisors or call Cristi Guttormson (250) 830-8000.

Excerpted from 1stview.ca.

The Vancouver Island Real Estate Board (VIREB) released its 2009 Buyer Profile for Vancouver Island, which tracks where people are coming from, what they are buying and why.

Statistics are for the overall Board area and for each individual zone (Duncan/Cowichan Valley, Nanaimo, Port Alberni/West Coast, Parksville/Qualicum, Comox Valley, Campbell River, North Island and Island areas).

There were 1,685 completed responses to letters that were sent to residential buyers of Vancouver Island real estate. These responses were entered into a database from which the profile was developed.

First time buyers comprised 19% of all transactions in 2009. This was the highest record for Vancouver Island since 2004 and was due to low mortgage rates and attractive pricing.

Local buyers made up 39% of sales in 2009, which was a result of low interest rates and demand.

Consumer demand from Alberta buyers was higher than expected given the Canadian economic performance in 2009, slipping from 13% to 11%.

A growing segment of retirees seem to be relocating to Vancouver Island and it continues to be their preferred destination. In 2009, forty percent of residential properties purchased on were purchased as a retirement home, which is up from last year. There was also an increase in buyers from other areas of Vancouver Island.

Vancouver Island homes that were purchased as a principal residence made up 95% of the sales transactions. Only 3% were investments or rentals.

The Buyer Profile also shows the characteristics of Vancouver Island homes with the highest frequency. The single-family detached unit was the most popular representing 62% of all sales, with 3 bedrooms, 2 bathrooms, a double garage and a vinyl exterior with mountain or ocean views.

There is speculation that over the next decade approximately 5,000 new households will be formed annually in the Vancouver Island/Coast Development Region, with approximately 1,300 of these new Vancouver Island homes formed in Nanaimo.

Excerpted from 1stView.ca.

Steam Engine Estates located in Cumberland onVancouver Island has recently sold three additional residential units.

This Vancouver Island development consists of patio homes and town homes and is located in a tranquil setting with spectacular views of the Comox Valley Mountains.

This Vancouver Island real estate project offers quality Comox Valley patio homes and town homes starting from $229,000.

Steam Engine Estates residential units #42 and #46 are the two show homes that are available for viewing during their open house hours between 1pm and 3pm, from Wednesday through Sunday in Cumberland at 3400 Coniston Crescent on Vancouver Island.

Excerpted from 1stView.ca.

The “Summer Sizzle Package” consists of a stay in the luxury villas located at Crown Isle which is a course side accommodation. Included with your stay at the Crown Isle Resort & Golf Community in the Comox Valley is a $50 food credit to use in either of Crown Isle’s fabulous restaurants; a round of golf at their Vancouver Island platinum-rated championship course; and a shared power cart. This package is offered at $139 per person, based on double occupancy and valid for bookings Sunday through Thursday. This offer is valid up until September 30, 2011.

During your stay view the Vancouver Island real estate opportunities available at Crown Isle such as golf course lots, residential lots, semi-detached patio homes and luxury quarter-ownership villas.

Excerpted from 1stView.ca.

Things are definitely moving along at Crown Isle Resort & Golf Community known as the “jewel” of the Comox Valley.  The local real estate market is buoyant and the region’s top development continues to expand and inspire growth within the community. Crown Isle Resort & Golf Community located in the Comox Valley on Vancouver Island, offers golf course homes, residential lots, semi-detached patio homes and quarter ownership villas.

The Vancouver Island Crown Isle marketing team recently launched their latest innovation to the World Wide Web in the form of an interactive real estate map.  The map encompasses everything Crown Isle including video tours of the golf holes, plenty of photos, Google Street View, and most important of all, the current real estate listings of residential building lots and properties including their location within the development.  This map is intended to provide easy access to all real estate offerings within the development, also to support realtors within the Comox Valley, and offer an informative experience to the website visitor.

Vancouver Island homes within Crown Isle continue to sell and new residential homes are being constructed by Comox Valley builders including Crown Isle Homes, Benco Ventures and Monterra Developments. The price point, abundant amenities and lifestyle that the Comox Valley offers combined with the discerning real estate demand from clients, ensure sustainable growth of the Vancouver Island region.

Excerpted from 1stView.ca.

1stView.ca is a residential development directory for Vancouver Island and was founded by Clarice Coty of the Comox Valley.  This Vancouver Island business is the only online directory of new residential real estate that focuses exclusively on marking Vancouver Island projects. 1stView.ca is pleased to announce that in May of 2010, its site received over 20,000 visits.  This Vancouver Island business guarantees results and states that you will gain proven exposure for your project or business by listing with 1stView.ca.

Excerpted from 1stView.ca.

Vancouver Island housing starts slipped in May from last month; although, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) states that the year-to-date figures are well ahead of last year’s. According to analysts, some of Vancouver Island home builders want to get projects completed early to beat the upcoming HST, while others are holding off to gauge its impact.

The HST which is slated to come into effect on July 1^st, will combine the 7% provincial sales tax and 5% GST. The anticipated increase in the interest rates together with the upcoming HST, has made an impact on the market.

In the month of May 2010, there were 268 home starts on Vancouver Island, down 31% from 389 in April of 2010.  Although, a total of 1,665 starts to date this year are up at 167% above the same months from last year, with 624 starts.

The Greater Victoria region saw housing starts decrease to 132 in May from 213 in April; but were 158% high than the 51 starts in the same month of last year.

Lower land prices outside of the Greater Victoria region have spurred residential home construction outside of the urbanVictoria core. Other Vancouver Island communities such as the Comox Valley and Campbell River are offering great value for new homes.

Find out more from the Times Colonist.

Steam Engine Estates is a Vancouver Island project situated in a tranquil setting with spectacular views of the Comox Valley Mountains. This project is located only minutes away from Mt. Washington, the Comox Valley and the Comox Airport. Vancouver Island shopping is quick and accessible via the Inland Island Highway which is just minutes from this quality patio home and town home development.

These Comox Valley patio homes and town homes have three spacious floor plans to choose from with plenty of natural lighting and are beautifully finished. Steam Engine Estates is a well priced Vancouver Island real estate development with residential homes starting at $229,000.

Attend the Open House at Steam Engine Estates from Wednesday to Sunday between 1pm and 3pm to view these quality built Comox Valley patio homes and town homes.

Excerpted from 1stView.ca.