The blog
Buying, selling, and living in Midland, Penetanguishene, Tiny, Tay, and Wasaga Beach. I write about this market the way I'd talk you through it in person: real numbers, no spin.
Every Wednesday
Simcoe County numbers, one read, and the Friday email that explains what they mean for Midland, Penetanguishene, Tiny, Tay and Wasaga Beach.
Open the weekly market hubMarkets bet on an October 28 hike, but core inflation is at a six-year low and jobs are falling. What it means for buyers, sellers and GTA condo owners moving north.
Two step-by-step checklists, one for staying and one for heading south, plus Ontario's new CO alarm rule and the local trades I trust.
A non-partisan guide to the 2026 council elections in Midland, Penetanguishene, Tiny, Tay and Wasaga Beach.
Simcoe County recorded 103 sales at an average of $671,128, with 9.2 months of inventory. Sales fell, days on market rose to 44 and homes sold at 96 percent of asking.
Labatte House, built in 1834 at Thunder Beach, is moving by barge to a new home at 159 Balm Beach Road East. Who the Labattes were, why it is moving, and the arrival celebration on October 24.
Fixed rates are about 1.1 points above variable, the widest gap since 2022. What a bond yield is, how the Bank of Canada decides, and how to choose, step by step.
More Ontario homeowners are behind on their mortgages. What the renewal wave means, why one forced sale can move a small market, and what condo buyers should check.
The Midland restaurants we keep going back to, from Nare's oshi sushi to Dino's corned beef on rye. Not a ranking, just what I order and rough prices.
A sit-down with Ben Poole of HGR Graham Partners: choosing an executor, whether probate is worth dodging, why you probably don't need a trust, and the document that may matter more than your will.
Farlain Lake in Tiny Township is a kettle lake with no surface outlet. Water hit record highs relative to the SSEA gauge in 2026. A plain-English look at the public reports, resident concerns, and the Drainage Act path still in play.
A sit-down with David Clayton of Midland Chrysler: what affordable means for your household, one trim level down, new versus used, loan length, winter tires, and the tax saving on a trade-in.
The national story got uglier, and you can feel pieces of it on Georgian Bay. Fixed rates jumped, confidence cracked, and here is what that means if you are buying or selling.
A sit-down with Renée Pauzé of Jarlette Health Services: what to do when the house is becoming harder to manage, the difference between retirement living and long-term care, and why families who tour early keep more control.
A sit-down with Caleb Deleon of Northern Beaver Marine Services: hull size for this wind, Mercury or Volvo, the real yearly maintenance bill, why a seller's survey is not enough, and the cabin cruiser step up.
Georgian Bay is a bay of Lake Huron in Simcoe County, not Muskoka District. The Township of Georgian Bay shares the name, and REALM sold data shows why the price question is not as simple as the naming one.
Four criteria that predict how your sale actually goes, plus seven Penetanguishene questions on waterfront pockets, bilingual marketing, schools, taxes, and shoreline ownership that no agent can answer from a distance.
Permit fees, deposits and the $48,297 in development charges, line by line at 2026 rates.
Since December 2018, Jonathan Wallace has helped more than 500 families through a real estate transition on Georgian Bay. From the 2021 boom to the 2026 correction, this is what actually changed.
The two clauses in every rural and waterfront offer, what a real inspection actually includes, the local cost of getting it wrong, and who to call. With the complete guide as a free PDF.
Fourteen pockets, fourteen price bands, from $750K on Farlain Lake to $10M+ at Thunder Beach. The pocket map, the Goessman Reserves, and the well and septic checklist that keeps deals together.
How the escape clause actually works, what accepting one costs you in showing traffic, and the six questions to ask about the buyer's property before you sign.
Four criteria that predict how your sale actually goes, plus six Tiny questions on shoreline ownership, wells and septic systems that no agent can answer from memory.
Four criteria that predict how your sale actually goes, plus Midland questions on price comps, King Street, waterfront pockets, marketing spend, and who you actually deal with.
Four criteria that predict how your sale actually goes, plus Tay questions on Victoria Harbour, Port McNicoll, Waubaushene, and attainable waterfront that no township average can answer.
Four criteria that predict how your sale actually goes, plus Wasaga questions on the four-season town, the beach, Collingwood and Blue Mountain proximity, and new builds.
Most sellers interview agents without knowing what to ask. Five questions, twenty minutes, and the difference between a real listing campaign and a sign on the lawn becomes obvious.
King Street splits Midland in two. An honest read on history, schools, boating, the Barrie commute, and where the money actually sits, West versus East.
A working guide built from the Town's Official Plan: 2031 growth targets, what you can build by designation, the Strategic Growth Areas, Midland Bay Landing, and the amendment process.
An honest read on the summer market: the cost of waiting for spring, first-time buyer math, and how to think about your timing. Plus the free guide.
Six ways a Georgian Bay shoreline can be owned, the 66-foot shore road allowance, deeded access, and how to confirm exactly what you own before you buy.
One valley apart, two ways to live: amenities, waterfront, schools, taxes and housing, compared honestly.
The waterfront due diligence checklist: shoreline, water levels, septic and well, winter access.
The honest picture: beaches, seasonal rhythms, wells and septics, and who the township suits.
Test holes, zoning, servicing, drainage and builder vetting, plus the free 14-page guide.
Choosing your town, what gets better, what takes adjusting, and the right order to move.
Market conditions, down payments, first-time buyer programs, offers and closing costs.
The four selling paths, pricing from day one, real costs, and a results-driven listing.
Prices, days on market, inventory and the rate picture, and what the mix means for you.
Listing sources, satellite checks, waterfront homework and video tours for remote buyers.
Reading verified reviews, sub-scores and red flags, and the questions that test an agent.
The team and systems behind every listing, and the risk-free promise that backs it.
Photography and drone video, YouTube tours, data-driven pricing and targeted outreach.
Simcoe County recorded 144 sales at an average of $793,403, with 8.9 months of inventory. Sales and new listings both slowed, and homes that sold went closer to asking.
Simcoe County recorded 147 sales at an average of $711,967, with 8.9 months of inventory. Sales rose 13.1 percent, but new and active listings rose faster.
Simcoe County recorded 124 sales at an average of $769,992, with 8.4 months of inventory. New listings rose to 559 while sales fell.
Simcoe County recorded 142 sales at an average of $746,077. Months of inventory fell to 7.7, but roughly 514 listings left the market without selling rather than buyers absorbing them.
Simcoe County recorded 149 sales at an average of $743,427. Sales fell 15.8 percent while the average price rose 5.8 percent, and days on market rose 9 days to 48.
Simcoe County recorded 163 sales at an average of $687,463. Months of inventory rose to 8.3 even though active listings did not move, while days on market fell from 49 to 39.
Simcoe County recorded 177 sales at an average of $685,032. Sales rose 30 percent while the average price fell 10.4 percent, and the list to sale price ratio rose to 96 percent.
Simcoe County recorded 129 sales at an average of $765,460. The average rose on a handful of higher priced sales, while the list to sale price ratio slipped to 95 percent.
756 sales, an average of $728,181 and 7.17 months of inventory. The county slowed, but four of the five Georgian Bay markets moved the other way.
Simcoe County sales and average price both eased this week, but the list to sale price ratio held at 96 percent. The number that actually moved was days on market, now 47.
Simcoe County reached 8.0 months of inventory this week, its deepest buyer's market of the summer. Here is the real read for buyers and sellers across Georgian Bay.
Inventory hit a new high and days on market rose, yet sales edged up and prices held. The real read on the week.
A side-by-side look at how six national outlets covered the Bank's seventh straight hold, plus what six economists predict comes next for Georgian Bay mortgages.
A sixth straight hold at 2.25%. What a flat-rate environment means for buyers, sellers, and renewals on the Bay.
New listings jumped nearly 19%, yet sales held and prices rose. Why demand is quietly holding its ground.
Only 155 of 5,473 listings sold. How the homes that sell win the first impression before a showing is booked.
Prices down, sales up. June was the most misunderstood month of the year, and the numbers explain why.
Sales down 15%, inventory climbing. Why the summer slowdown is a season, not a signal, and what it means for you.
Neither slowing nor heating up. The week the Simcoe County market started settling toward balance.
Rates held a fifth straight time and inventory is at multi-year highs. Where Georgian Bay stands right now.
Listing agent Jonathan Wallace, Realtor with Faris Team Real Estate Brokerage, helped a widow sell a three-season cottage at Wahnekewening Beach in under two weeks after a year of planning.
Listing agent Jonathan Wallace, Realtor with Faris Team Real Estate Brokerage, helped a family sell a Midland one-bedroom and buy a larger multi-gen home in Penetanguishene for roughly $150 more per month after offsets.
Jonathan Wallace helped a seller exit a nearly year-long stalled Penetanguishene bungalow listing in under two weeks once priced to the market, then buy quieter privacy in the same town.
Jonathan Wallace listed a 1950s Midland Point waterfront as an estate trustee file with hard prep, mold taken out of play, full media, and a negotiated quick close after a cooperating agent brought the buyer.