(Excerpted from the North Shore Heritage Heights Newsletter published by the North Shore Heritage Preservation Society in the Fall of 2010)

Grant Stuart Gardiner, a North Shore Heritage board member, gave a talk on the real estate market for heritage homes at the society's AGM on Nov. 18. Grant has worked as a local realtor specializing in heritage homes since 1991.

Approximately 15 heritage homes have been sold in North Vancouver annually since 2000, ranging from a peak of 25 in 2003 to around 10 in 2008. This includes only houses listed on municipal heritage inventories.

Heritage homes have consis-tently attracted a premium to the market for detached homes since 2000, with exceptions in only two years. On average, heritage homes sold for $40,000 more than detached homes in that period.

A stereotypical buyer for a North Vancouver heritage home is a family working in the movie industry moving from Vancouver's West Side. However, an analysis of buyers from 2009 reveals a much more varied demographic, including a software programmer, professional tennis player, banker, musician, architect, midwife, journalist, accountant, chief executive and police officer. The average age of buyers that year was 40.

There is a relatively select number of people interested in buying heritage homes -- but they are very targeted and motivated buyers, competing for a limited number of listings.

Twenty years ago, buyers were happy to buy fixer-uppers and put in the sweat equity. These days, most buyers want to buy a house where the work has already been done.

Popular selling points include: front veranda, large entrance hall, original flooring, kitchen, bathrooms (not necessarily old fixtures) and old fire-places. Other selling points include: ensuite bathroom, closet space, mechanical up-grades, relatively new roof (up to 10 years), basement suite as mortgage-helper, and quiet, central location.

In terms of renovations, refin-ishing floors and painting walls in neutral colours tend to produce the best returns on investment if selling a property. Kitchens and bath-rooms can also give strong returns, and an attractive kitchen can close a deal. Renovations should respect the original integrity to be sure of good returns. Other good investments tend to be mechanical upgrades and basement suites.

In general it is harder to get the full investment back when extending the building enve-lope (a $200,000 investment may add only $150,000 to the property value), spending a lot of money on a garden, or installing top-end kitchen appliances. In these cases, you are spending more for your own enjoyment, than for pay-back when selling.

Common issues that arise in sales include knob-and-tube wiring (a new buyer may have trouble with their insurer, although this can be re-solved); an outdated electrical system; vermiculite insulation (can contain asbestos, and any such insulation typically must be removed by the seller at a cost of about $10,000-$15,000); and oil tanks (these cost around $1,500-$2,000 to remove, but this tends to be a bigger problem with homes built in the 1950s).

Insurance can be an issue for any heritage home, especially if taking out a new policy after a purchase. If a property is on the municipal inventory but not legally protected or designated, this is usually a misunderstanding on the part of the insurer -- problems are resolved once it is explained that there is no legal protec-tion on the property. Recently, there have been some problems with designated houses, but this can also be overcome.

There are common miscon-ceptions among buyers about the need to replace single-glazed windows with double glazing. Payback on replacements can take 30-plus years, while the life expectancy of vinyl frames is just 20-25 years. Replacement windows also have a much higher, in-visible cost in energy con-sumption for manufacture. The best option: keep those gorgeous old wood windows and install heavy drapes!

For photos of heritage homes sold in North Vancouver, visit www.iloveheritage.com

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