Real eState

Calgary real estate expected to see gains this fall

Published

1 year ago

September 21, 2023

Most Canadian resale real estate markets are expected to soften this fall until the end of the year — except Calgary, a new report is forecasting.

Re/Max Canada released its new 2023 Fall Housing Market Outlook Report showing that sales and average prices will largely decline year over year in many parts of the country, including Vancouver, Ottawa and Kelowna.

“We’re certainly going to be off pace from last year,” says Chris Alexander, president of Re/Max Canada in Toronto.

Yet the report also predicts that some cities, including Calgary, will see their average prices climb — though not necessarily due to rising sales.

In fact, sales are expected to fall across Canada by year’s end compared with 2022, he adds.

Yet with inventories at historical lows, including Calgary, some cities will still see gains in their average price.

In turn, the report forecasts the average price in Calgary at the end of 2023 will rise 4.5 per cent year over year reaching about $564,000. That’s despite it predicting sales could drop 20 per cent.

Alexander notes demand remains strong in Calgary — as in other large centres — but choice is limited by two factors hampering sales. One is supply where in Calgary, for example, inventory was down 25 per cent year to date, ending July 31, compared with last year.

The other factor is higher interest rates — though that could change, too, he adds.

“If we get another pause next month from the Bank of Canada, we could see renewed activity.”

Indeed, a poll commissioned for the report highlights the impact of rates on buyer and seller decisions, especially younger buyers. It found that 55 per cent of generation Zs (individuals aged 30 or less) and nearly half of millennials (respondents in their 30s and early 40s) have changed their housing plans due to higher borrowing costs.

Higher rates aside, demand for housing remains strong, Alexander says, especially in Alberta, which has experienced record high migration in the last year.

Alexander notes that demand could grow in Calgary and elsewhere if, as previously mentioned, interest rates stay steady or even fall slightly in the coming months.

Among those municipalities seeing growth would be Greater Toronto Area where already low inventory and persistently strong demand are forecast to push the average price up 2.5 per cent by year’s end, reaching about $1.17 million. That’s despite sales being expected to remain flat, according to the report.

Those ongoing tight conditions in the GTA and surrounding areas are, in fact, a key reason Calgary is experiencing continued strong demand with buyers from those jurisdictions moving here to take advantage of the city’s lower home prices, says Darryl Terrio, broker/owner of Re/Max Complete Realty.

“The single-family segment has been tight for awhile, but now it’s even townhouses and condos.”

Terrio adds that local buyers make up the majority of demand, but out-of-province buyers have been more prominent in the last year — in some cases as investors — buying homes across all segments.

Regardless of the buyers’ origins, the going challenge is supply as many would-be sellers are reluctant to list, Terrio says.

“Sure, they can sell and get a great price, but what are they going to buy?”

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Real eState

Homelessness: Tiny home village to open next week in Halifax suburb

Published

10 hours ago

October 24, 2024

Anne Joseph

HALIFAX – A village of tiny homes is set to open next month in a Halifax suburb, the latest project by the provincial government to address homelessness.

Located in Lower Sackville, N.S., the tiny home community will house up to 34 people when the first 26 units open Nov. 4.

Another 35 people are scheduled to move in when construction on another 29 units should be complete in December, under a partnership between the province, the Halifax Regional Municipality, United Way Halifax, The Shaw Group and Dexter Construction.

The province invested $9.4 million to build the village and will contribute $935,000 annually for operating costs.

Residents have been chosen from a list of people experiencing homelessness maintained by the Affordable Housing Association of Nova Scotia.

They will pay rent that is tied to their income for a unit that is fully furnished with a private bathroom, shower and a kitchen equipped with a cooktop, small fridge and microwave.

The Atlantic Community Shelters Society will also provide support to residents, ranging from counselling and mental health supports to employment and educational services.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 24, 2024.

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Real eState

Here are some facts about British Columbia’s housing market

Published

1 week ago

October 17, 2024

Anne Joseph

Housing affordability is a key issue in the provincial election campaign in British Columbia, particularly in major centres.

Here are some statistics about housing in B.C. from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s 2024 Rental Market Report, issued in January, and the B.C. Real Estate Association’s August 2024 report.

Average residential home price in B.C.: $938,500

Average price in greater Vancouver (2024 year to date): $1,304,438

Average price in greater Victoria (2024 year to date): $979,103

Average price in the Okanagan (2024 year to date): $748,015

Average two-bedroom purpose-built rental in Vancouver: $2,181

Average two-bedroom purpose-built rental in Victoria: $1,839

Average two-bedroom purpose-built rental in Canada: $1,359

Rental vacancy rate in Vancouver: 0.9 per cent

How much more do new renters in Vancouver pay compared with renters who have occupied their home for at least a year: 27 per cent

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.

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B.C. voters face atmospheric river with heavy rain, high winds on election day

Published

1 week ago

October 17, 2024

Anne Joseph

VANCOUVER – Voters along the south coast of British Columbia who have not cast their ballots yet will have to contend with heavy rain and high winds from an incoming atmospheric river weather system on election day.

Environment Canada says the weather system will bring prolonged heavy rain to Metro Vancouver, the Sunshine Coast, Fraser Valley, Howe Sound, Whistler and Vancouver Island starting Friday.

The agency says strong winds with gusts up to 80 kilometres an hour will also develop on Saturday — the day thousands are expected to go to the polls across B.C. — in parts of Vancouver Island and Metro Vancouver.

Wednesday was the last day for advance voting, which started on Oct. 10.

More than 180,000 voters cast their votes Wednesday — the most ever on an advance voting day in B.C., beating the record set just days earlier on Oct. 10 of more than 170,000 votes.

Environment Canada says voters in the area of the atmospheric river can expect around 70 millimetres of precipitation generally and up to 100 millimetres along the coastal mountains, while parts of Vancouver Island could see as much as 200 millimetres of rainfall for the weekend.

An atmospheric river system in November 2021 created severe flooding and landslides that at one point severed most rail links between Vancouver’s port and the rest of Canada while inundating communities in the Fraser Valley and B.C. Interior.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 17, 2024.

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