February 15/17 – Mike & Nikki’s February Newsletter

JANUARY 2017
Prince Rupert (& Area) Real Estate

It is still early in the year to make any predictions based on one month’s worth of stats but it looks like we’re off to a decent start for 2017. We had 14 sales (of all types) in January. It’s interesting that the average sale price for a house was $239,500, reflecting that most of the homes that sold were well under $300,000.

SALES (all types):
# of sales in January 2016 – 8
# of sales in January 2017 – 14

YEAR-TO-DATE SALES (all types)
As of January 31, 2016 – $2,484,500
As of January 31, 2017 – $3,389,750

TYPES OF PROPERTIES SOLD IN JANUARY 2017:
2 – Residential Land
2 – Half-duplex
1 – House on more than one acre
6 – Houses
2 – Manufactured homes on a pad
1 – Retail

NUMBER OF ACTIVE LISTINGS (all types):
As of January 31, 2016 – 134
As of January 31, 2017 – 137

AVERAGE SALE PRICE OF A HOUSE (YEAR-TO-DATE)
As of January 31, 2016 – $ 265,000
As of January 31, 2017 – $ 239,500

TOTAL SALES OF ALL TYPES (YEAR-TO-DATE)
As of January 31, 2016 – $ 2,484,500
As of January 31, 2017 – $ 3,389,750

The stats are based in whole or in part on information supplied by the BC Northern Real Estate Board for the period January 1, 2016 through January 31, 2017.

Over time, we all tend to build up a cupboard full of mugs which don’t match and which we never use. Most of us have that one special mug we use all the time while the rest gather dust. In the interests of clearing out some cupboard space, here are a few things you can do with those otherwise unused mugs.

1. Make candles

Making your own candle is easy to do and mugs make great holders for them. If you haven’t made candles before there are lots of tutorials online. Why not try this one?

2. Sharpen your knives

Blunt kitchen knives are a nuisance to use, but thankfully, you can use the bottom of a mug to sharpen them. It just needs to be one with a rough, flat underside. Hold the mug steady and slide the knife back and forth at a slight angle against the mug’s bottom. Remember to do both sides!

3. Plant herbs

Bigger mugs can be just right for planting herbs in; they are a good size and weighty enough to be stable. Put some potting soil into the bottom of your mugs, then your herb plant, a bit more more soil, water them in and you’re done. Place them somewhere sunny in your kitchen.

4. Turn them into art

Break up colourful mugs and then use the pieces to make a mosaic. The best part is that you can even do this with chipped mugs. Just lay out your design before you start glueing!

5. Use them for measuring

With a Sharpie, mark the mug at different levels for use when measuring ingredients.

6. Make a new bird feeder for your garden or balcony

This is relatively simple to do, and you can find a great tutorial here.