Neighbourhood Edition: Tom Goodfellow on Transcona

Announcer:

Welcome to the I Love Winnipeg Real Estate Podcast, your premier resource for buying, owning, and investing in Winnipeg's real estate market. And now here's your host, Adrian Schulz, who loves all things real estate, property management, and mortgage financing.

Adrian:

I'm joined today by Tom Goodfellow who's with Goodfellow Realty here in Winnipeg. Welcome Tom.

Tom:

Thanks for having me.

Adrian:

Tom, I think you're in the heart of the Transcona neighborhood. Is that right?

Tom:

Well, we're probably, I guess you would classify it as Lakeside Meadows, Kildonan Green, but pretty much, that's where we're going to be. We are on Plessis Road.

Adrian:

Okay. We're doing something a little bit unique in this episode and it's called Neighborhood Edition and I thank you for being a part of it today. Can you tell me a little bit about yourself, your business, and the neighborhood that you specialize in?

Tom:

I've been a realtor, it's actually going to be 15 years tomorrow. I just looked at that. Kind of crazy to think time flies.

Adrian:

Happy anniversary.

Tom:

Thanks a lot. I appreciate it. I'm the broker, owner of the company. The company was started in '97 by my aunt and uncle. Prior to that, they worked for Delbro Real Estate, had a big following there or whatever. So I was lucky enough to be put in a good situation because of them. And now we're supported by all the fantastic realtors that we have here. It's awesome. It's a good gig. Really enjoy it.

Adrian:

You're independent, right? You're local and you're independent.

Tom:

Correct.

Adrian:

Okay.

Tom:

So it's nice. We're going to be one of the more successful, independent real estate companies in the city. So it's nice. And, like I said, we've got a lot of good hardworking realtors here, so it's a good gig. A lot of the realtors, we have had past relationships when I say stuff like that. So friends or through family or stuff. So, we got to really tight knit group.

Adrian:

And what neighborhood do you specialize in?

Tom:

Well, me specifically, I'm going to be on the East Side of Winnipeg a lot of the times. And Transcona is going to be my bread and butter because that's where I've been born and raised. So, a lot of relationships there. Once again, we do all over the city. We do have realtors that specialize in other areas. So yeah, we're all over the place. But me specifically, East Side's going to be the big thing for me and Transcona, like I said, will be my bread and butter.

Adrian:

So born and raised in the Transcona neighborhood. What makes it unique compared to other parts of Winnipeg?

Tom:

I think Transcona is going to be a very unique neighborhood. One of the big things is going to be the people and, of course, the history of Transcona with the CN railway, all that stuff there. So, it's a very hardworking community. People wear their heart on their sleeve. They're very humble. It's a lot of fun living here. You'll have people that are, I don't want to say, certain class of living or whatever. So you'll have higher class, lower class, whatever it is, but it seems like whenever there's a social function or a sporting event or anything like that, there's no labels or anything. Everybody functions at the same level, all that stuff. So it's a great community. Everybody gets along really good here. It's awesome.

Adrian:

With its broad appeal, what has changed in the last decade in Transcona?

Tom:

A lot's actually changed. So, the main thing's going to be all the construction that's going on in here. So, if you look in the last 10 years, we've added neighborhoods like Summerlea, Canterbury Park, Canterbury Crossing going on right now, Devonshire Park, Devonshire Village, Kildonan Green. Those are going to be on the more of the residential things. And then you start to look commercial, Park City Commons, which is just awesome. The new apartment and commercial and all that stuff there. We get a lot of clientele shifting over, moving into there. And then, they've done the Buhler Baseball Park, East End Community Club, the library, the water park's another big one. And then they're all the renovations with the mall. So it's really expanded and modernized. A lot of new homes, everything like that. So you're starting to see it becoming a really new neighborhood, modernized. So it's really nice to see.

Adrian:

So there's rental, there's condo, there's single family homes that are newly built. And then of course there's all of the traditional neighborhoods in Transcona, which I think have some of the most affordable entry points in a well rounded, well versed community. What's the price range for an average family home in your neighborhood? And I know that's a loaded question because there's new and old. But if you're a young family looking to plant roots in a community, what's the budget range one needs to have to get into Transcona?

Tom:

Okay. So from the stats that I have, pre pandemic, the average home in Transcona. So this is going to be everything. So your new sales, all that stuff. Everything that's been on MLS. You were at $297,000 for a home. That was going to be the average sale. So $297,000. Now, in 2021, when you pull that same stat, it's going to be $362,000, which is just crazy to think that it's jumped that much, but that's the market that we're living in right now. If you had to give a ballpark figure to live in Transcona somewhere in there, I would say that you're probably budgeting yourself from the $300,000 to $350,000 mark. And we're starting to see that climb a little bit too. I always gauge it off of the three bedroom 1,000 square foot bungalow, the most common home in Transcona, or I should say in the city. Those homes are going to range from 1950 to 1970, somewheres in there. So that's what I always use as my gauge. So I would say a good solid home like that. You're probably going to be looking at that $350,000 and up, probably at this point now.

Adrian:

Yeah. And I think that's when you think about most first time home buyers, that magic price range is between $300,000 and $400,000, depending on single income, dual income. And I'm familiar with Transcona and I think it's great value and because there's...

Tom:

Totally.

Adrian:

... development, it's a great opportunity to get into real estate there and then enjoy the upswing of the value of that home regardless, I think, of what area in Transcona.

Tom:

Yeah. It's a tremendous investment opportunity. Myself, I have five rental properties in the area, so I'm not scared to invest in it at all. It's a great opportunity for real estate investment, that's for sure. And even things like, I know that it's not a dramatic difference, but taxes tend to be a little bit lower here. So those monthly payments are a little bit lower, all those things.

Adrian:

Yeah. The fact that you're born and raised in Transcona, you live there, you have rental properties there, you're a real estate professional there, assuming you have a family?

Tom:

Yep.

Adrian:

What do you love about your neighborhood?

Tom:

What do I love about it? Once again, it's going to go back to the people. I just love that you can go to a social event and it doesn't matter who you are or where you're from or whatever. Everybody seems to get along, have a good time, all that. Just all different walks of life. Very diverse. So yeah, I really like that. It's just a comfort level for me, obviously, but yeah, everybody's, for the most part, very kind people. And I think that there's that loyalty to certain things. Even the business end of stuff. Transcona people are very loyal. That's one thing that I notice with them. I don't know if you're familiar with the, you said you have some...

Adrian:

Specifically Wyatt insurance or someone, locally based businesses that I'm familiar with in your area.

Tom:

Yeah, absolutely. So there is that loyalty and there's a little bit of that, everybody's got those old school mannerisms and everything like that. Very respectful people, all those things. So I like that. We're moving in a very modern direction with all the construction, but people like to keep those roots going.

Adrian:

Yeah. The new developments that are out by your office, how long ago did those things start?

Tom:

Well, it all depends. Because there's been so many. But if you look at something like Summerlea. Summerlea's been going on probably, don't quote me on this, but I'm going to say the last 2 years that they started to pre-sell in Summerlea and then that one's probably been going on, they've got the shovel in the ground. I think people are starting to take possessions of some of the homes in there. So it's coming up fast. Devonshire Park, what would we be there now? I'm going to say 4 years?

Adrian:

Yeah.

Tom:

4 or 5 years, somewhere in there. It took off like wildfire. It was impossible to get a lot in there in the last year. Devonshire Village was just before that.

Adrian:

Are you seeing resales already in those areas?

Tom:

Yep. We're seeing a few, not crazy. Canterbury Crossing, obviously, that's the other really big one that's going on right now, too. We haven't been seeing a lot of resale, but when they come up they're gone pretty quick. People are doing well on the resale on them as well too.

Adrian:

Okay. Tom, how do people reach you?

Tom:

You can email me, tom@goodfellowrealty.com or my cell phone (204) 807-3311. Or go take a look at our website, Goodfellowrealty.com.

Adrian:

Thanks so much, Tom, for being a part of today's episode.

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