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REVIEW friday, january 4, 2013
28 PAGEs
Baby Oliver helps family ring in new year Richmond Hospital’s first baby now resting comfortably at home
Buyers, sellers sit on sidelines to end 2012
by Matthew Hoekstra
December sales slow in Richmond, but prices held firm for 2012
Staff Reporter Oliver wasn’t supposed to be Richmond’s New Year’s Baby. With a due date of Dec. 20, that distinction was for someone else. Oliver, however, thought differently. After his initial refusal to see the world on the predicted day, the son of Natalie and Ryan Wing arrived at 3:47 a.m. Jan. 1—making him the first Richmond Hospital birth of 2013. “He’s doing fantastic. He’s a very hungry boy,” smiled his mom in an interview at the hospital. Oliver made his family wait a nerve-wracking 11 days before making moves toward daylight late New Year’s Eve. His nine-pound-15-ounce size eventually forced the hospital’s medical staff to perform an emergency C-section to complete his arrival. “He was too comfy in there,” said mom, an esthetician. His parents gave Oliver two middle names: Warren, the name of Ryan’s father; and Joseph, a name belonging to Natalie’s dad. It’s the North Delta couple’s second child, whose first is three-year-old Maddison. All headed home in good health Wednesday afternoon. The couple had an inclination Oliver could be Rich-
by Martin van den Hemel Staff Reporter
Matthew Hoekstra photo Natalie and Ryan Wing, with baby Oliver and Maddison, 3, at Richmond Hospital Wednesday afternoon.
mond’s New Year’s Baby, but they were facing competition in the maternity ward. In the end, Oliver earned the title.
Dad Ryan, a financial security advisor who grew up in Richmond and graduated from Steveston High,
was able to celebrate their new arrival—and the new year—with a mimosa in the morning.
Fewer homes may be changing hands, and the Lower Mainland real estate market may be continuing to cool, but homeowners aren’t budging much when it comes to their asking prices. According to the latest figures from the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver, prices held firm for the most part for 2012, as home buyers and sellers sat on the sidelines. “For much of 2012, we saw a collective hesitation on the part of buyers and sellers in the Greater Vancouver housing market,” said Just 44 houses board president Eugen Klein. “This behaviour was reflected in sold last month, lower than average home sale down 42 per cent activity and modest fluctuations compared to in home prices.” Fewer Richmond condos, town- November, and homes and single detached houses sold in December compared to a drop of 29 per November as well as a year ago. cent compared to While month-over-month prices held firm, the median selling pric- December of 2011. es of condos and townhomes also remained about the same compared to a year ago. Just 44 houses sold last month, down 42 per cent compared to November, and a drop of 29 per cent compared to December of 2011. The number of condos sold fell 33 per cent in December compared to November, and dropped 28 per cent compared to a year ago. Since reaching a peak in May of this year, the MLS Home Price Index benchmark price of a Greater Vancouver home dropped from $625,100 to $590,800, a 5.8-per-cent decline. “We saw home prices come down a bit during the latter half of the year,”Klein said.“During that same period, we saw fewer home sales and listings.” For the year, the number of real estate transactions in the Greater Vancouver area dropped 22.7 per cent, from 32,387 in 2011 to 25,032.
Wishing you a bright and happy new year. Thinking of Selling Your home? Current Value Available @
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