Re/Max Eastern Realty founder John Bowes is retiring from the business after 70 years.
Bowes, who is about to celebrate his 93rd birthday next week, believes his career as a real estate agent is a provincial record.
“I was first licensed in 1950 at the age of 23. I started in Toronto and then moved to Peterborough,” he said.
Before founding his own firm — which is now Re/Max Eastern — in 1980, at the beginning of his career, Bowes was the manager of Ridout Real Estate in Toronto.
According to Bowes, Ridout was one of the first real estate firms to offer in-house training, which involved morning meetings in its Bay Street office in downtown Toronto, followed by calling and door knocking in the afternoon.
At 24, Bowes began managing the Ridout Peterborough branch, which listed and sold several waterfront properties, he said.
He then joined forces with Bill Cocks to establish Bowes and Cocks Ltd., which he was president of for 15 years.
In the early 90s, Bowes was also the first to propose a toll road linking the QEW, southwest of Toronto, with Highway 7/115.
“I was a member of a local group known as the Greater Peterborough Economic Council and as a member there I proposed that the council agree to recommend building a toll road,” he said.
In 2013, John Hope became the new owner of Re/Max Eastern. However, since then, Bowes has still remained in the office on a consulting basis.
During his career, he’s had many memorable experiences, Bowes said.
When the Madawaska Mine, an abandoned underground uranium mine near Bancroft, closed, he was contacted to sell the property.
“Well it turned out to be close to 300 homes,” Bowes said.
Real estate is a wonderful business, but isn’t a part-time career, he said.
“You have to devote your time to it and to your clients, whether you’re representing buyers or sellers,” Bowes said.
For those entering into the field of real estate, he said it’s crucial for individuals to build relationships with their clients and to treat people right.
“There’s a lot of repeat business. Some people move every six or seven years,” Bowes said.
He said it’s about time that he retire.
“It’s my time. I’ve paid my contributions to the community and to the business,” Bowes said.
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After retiring, Bowes said he hopes to write another book.
“I’ve written a couple of books on real estate and the history of real estate. I don’t know if there’s another book in the works, but you never know,” Bowes said.
Funded by the Government of Canada/Financé par le Gouvernement du Canada.
HALIFAX – A village of tiny homes is set to open next month in a Halifax suburb, the latest project by the provincial government to address homelessness.
Located in Lower Sackville, N.S., the tiny home community will house up to 34 people when the first 26 units open Nov. 4.
Another 35 people are scheduled to move in when construction on another 29 units should be complete in December, under a partnership between the province, the Halifax Regional Municipality, United Way Halifax, The Shaw Group and Dexter Construction.
The province invested $9.4 million to build the village and will contribute $935,000 annually for operating costs.
Residents have been chosen from a list of people experiencing homelessness maintained by the Affordable Housing Association of Nova Scotia.
They will pay rent that is tied to their income for a unit that is fully furnished with a private bathroom, shower and a kitchen equipped with a cooktop, small fridge and microwave.
The Atlantic Community Shelters Society will also provide support to residents, ranging from counselling and mental health supports to employment and educational services.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 24, 2024.
Housing affordability is a key issue in the provincial election campaign in British Columbia, particularly in major centres.
Here are some statistics about housing in B.C. from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s 2024 Rental Market Report, issued in January, and the B.C. Real Estate Association’s August 2024 report.
Average residential home price in B.C.: $938,500
Average price in greater Vancouver (2024 year to date): $1,304,438
Average price in greater Victoria (2024 year to date): $979,103
Average price in the Okanagan (2024 year to date): $748,015
Average two-bedroom purpose-built rental in Vancouver: $2,181
Average two-bedroom purpose-built rental in Victoria: $1,839
Average two-bedroom purpose-built rental in Canada: $1,359
Rental vacancy rate in Vancouver: 0.9 per cent
How much more do new renters in Vancouver pay compared with renters who have occupied their home for at least a year: 27 per cent
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.
VANCOUVER – Voters along the south coast of British Columbia who have not cast their ballots yet will have to contend with heavy rain and high winds from an incoming atmospheric river weather system on election day.
Environment Canada says the weather system will bring prolonged heavy rain to Metro Vancouver, the Sunshine Coast, Fraser Valley, Howe Sound, Whistler and Vancouver Island starting Friday.
The agency says strong winds with gusts up to 80 kilometres an hour will also develop on Saturday — the day thousands are expected to go to the polls across B.C. — in parts of Vancouver Island and Metro Vancouver.
Wednesday was the last day for advance voting, which started on Oct. 10.
More than 180,000 voters cast their votes Wednesday — the most ever on an advance voting day in B.C., beating the record set just days earlier on Oct. 10 of more than 170,000 votes.
Environment Canada says voters in the area of the atmospheric river can expect around 70 millimetres of precipitation generally and up to 100 millimetres along the coastal mountains, while parts of Vancouver Island could see as much as 200 millimetres of rainfall for the weekend.
An atmospheric river system in November 2021 created severe flooding and landslides that at one point severed most rail links between Vancouver’s port and the rest of Canada while inundating communities in the Fraser Valley and B.C. Interior.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.
