Not being an Islander from birth I often get asked 'what ever possessed you to move here?". Most think that I have family or friends here that enticed me to relocate...no. Then the conclusion becomes I must of been here before on holidays or business and decided this is were I wanted to be...no. Then what was it? Curiosity! I had travelled Canada from coast to coast but had missed PEI in my journey, so it was a land yet to be discovered for me. One night listening to the nightly news I saw a report on PEI that sparked my interest and it was centered around lifestyle.
Now my Ontario friends like to think of us 'Islanders" as being somewhat behind the times...actually 30 years is often the number given and I guess there is some truth to that. We still find time to value family and friends. Our churches are still well attended. Crime rates are very low. People still enjoy talking with their neighbours. Most Islanders enjoy the wondrous natural beauty that surrounds them and share a great enthusiasm for preserving it.
But there are some misconceptions about Islanders that permeate the general Canadian culture. Most of us aren't spending our lives on unemployment insurance. Actually some of the hardest working most dedicated souls I have ever had the pleasure of knowing live right here on this little spec of land in the Atlantic Ocean. I find most value work not so much for the necessary income to survive but more as an opportunity to be creative, productive and for the social aspect that work brings. Work is not our lives but it is integral to a healthy and happy individual.
Another humorous misconception pertains to the size of our Island. Walking the length of the Island is not for the weak. It is greater in length to the distance between Ottawa and Montreal and roughly the width of Ottawa to Kingston, so please bring a vehicle!
In this day and age, Islanders are exposed to all aspects of modern culture via the medias. We have kids walking around with the crotch of their pants hanging down to their knees. We view the same news, movies and have access to the internet and music like every other place on the globe. And yes this is having an impact on our lifestyles but resistance is not futile. The Islander is an adept at integrating modern life with values from the past. Thus making PEI a most unique environment to live and work.
A house should not be viewed as an investment. When investments go bad, it causes financial hardship and anguish. When the bad financial investment is a family home it ruins everything. The joyous memories that are supposed to be associated with a person's home instead become associated with the financial distress of a losing investment. Nobody wants that.
To be financially conservative is to accumulate wealth and to be risk adverse. It requires managing equity, paying down a mortgage loan, and allowing net worth to accumulate rather than depleting it via consumer spending through mortgage equity withdrawal. People became motivated to own real estate, not as a place to live, but as a source of income through appreciation and equity extraction.
Many people do not realize the risk they take on when they use some of the innovative loan programs developed during the bubble. Exotic financing terms are not exotic anymore. Interest-only, adjustable rates and negative amortization have become so ubiquitous that nobody seems to remember why 30-year fixed-rate mortgages are used. A home should be financed with a fixed-rate conventionally-amortized mortgage and a sizable downpayment. The reason for this is simple stress management: nobody wants to spend the next several years worried about a loan reset or the need for increasing house values or future salary increases.
During the Great Housing Bubble, greed replaced need as a motivation to own real estate. People should not buy with the desire to make a fortune in real estate. Instead, they should purchase with the intent to have a stable housing payment, and a stress-free life.
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Rick Dufresne has sinced written about articles on various topics from Real Estate. RICK DUFRESNE is the author of this article on who helps buyers locate and purchase. Visit. Rick Dufresne's top article generates over 720 views. to your Favourites.
Alex Gwen Thomson has sinced written about articles on various topics from Home Management, Income Tax Return and Wrinkles. is the author of The Great Housing Bubble: Why Did House Prices Fall?Learn more and get FREE eBooks at:. Alex Gwen Thomson's top article generates over 673000 views. to your Favourites.