Buying or Selling a CONDOMINIUM in Winnipeg? Key considerations from your local Realtor (2022)

Are you considering buying or selling a condominium in Winnipeg? If so, today's episode is for you! Here are some key considerations from your local Realtor, Jennifer Queen.

Also, if you are considering selling a condo in Winnipeg, please be sure to reach out. We are here to serve!

Some Spoilers below:
In Winnipeg, we are currently experiencing a very strong seller’s market when it comes to houses. However, when it comes to condominiums it could be likened to a balanced or potentially even a buyer’s market. For condos, there is a lot of inventory, it does tend to sit for longer, and oftentimes we see several price adjustments before a unit finally sells.

Want to know why? Well, we first started seeing this slowing of the market in 2014 and 2015. Much of this was due to incoming legislation that was to take effect February 1, 2015. There were a few key parts of this new legislation that really changed the landscape of the selling process for condominiums. The first, was the change in what we called the “Cooling Off Period”. Prior to this, all purchasers were given 48 hours to review the condominium documents and they could change their mind for any reason. With the new legislation, this time was now extended to 7 days. Now 7 days is a really long time in the real estate world for one to change their mind. Say a new property came up that was more appealing, it gave the buyer ample opportunity to explore that opportunity and perhaps, change their mind. It cannot be waived, it is mandatory. Also, to add insult to injury, now if there was a “material change” to the condo rules, this cooling off period would actually be reopened and the buyer would have yet another 7 day period to change their mind.

The second thing that changed was the requirement for corporations to do reserve fund studies every five years so that a corporation knows where they stand, financially. Prior to this, condominium boards were determining themselves just what kind of funds they should have set aside for upcoming capital projects. Now however, they were required to hire professional companies versed in assessing appropriate reserve fund amounts to come, view the property, and assess upcoming capital expenditures for the corporation. Guess what this revealed!? Almost every condominium project showed a reserve fund balance that was UNDERFUNDED.

Now, it isn’t unreasonable to say – all homeowners -whether it be a house or condo will incur unexpected costs. A furnace can go, a roof can leak, etc. and those all represent a large cash outlay. What I find people to find most upsetting though when it comes to condominium ownership, is they have less input over the final outcome. It is a voting process in which perhaps things don’t always go your way. You are making plans through consensus, and if that sounds awful to you, condominium ownership may not be for you!

There were a number of other document changes that came into effect in 2015, the majority of them just to do with the sheer number of documents that are required before that 7-day cooling off period can begin, but the two most notable changes were the extending of the cooling off period and the reserve fund study requirements – which often led to escalating monthly fees.

There have been a couple of other changes worth noting here too. Around this same time, we were also instructed that we could no longer advertise condominiums as 55 plus. It became a human rights issue – as in, you can’t discriminate based on age. I do still see this in rental apartments, and I’m not sure how they are allowed to do it there, but in condominium world, this became a huge no-no. Condos that once advertised as being exclusively a 55 plus community, now saw younger residents moving in. But gone are the days of advertising 55 plus condos for sale in Winnipeg!

Another factor that has been eating into our condominium market in Winnipeg, is the number of new construction options. Regardless of where you live, you are going to find condos for sale in South Winnipeg to north, east, and west. There has been a ton of development, which often is more desirable than the older, pre-existing options. Oftentimes, because the monthly fees in those new complexes are far lower than more established (read: aging), complexes. Condos in Winnipeg are slowly cannibalizing one another, in terms of resale value.

Another factor that seems to have impacted the resale of condominium is the baby boomer behaviour. As a Realtor, I am finding more often than not that my clients are either opting to just live in their homes for longer – the idea of living in a condominium is far less attractive to them, OR, they are oftentimes selling their home and moving into an apartment instead.

A lot more detail is given in this video, but YouTube says I'm out of room here - so watch the video through to the end.

The Jennifer Queen Team
RE/MAX Professionals
(204) 797-7945
[email protected]