Real eState

Real estate, home renovations boom during pandemic – St. Albert Today

Published

3 years ago

December 6, 2021

The real estate and home renovation markets have been booming since COVID-19 came and kept everyone in their home, industry experts have said.

Doris Wyatt, realtor with Re/Max Elite and Robertson Real Estate, said the last two years have been “exceptional” in the real estate market.

“The last two years, 2020 and 2021, have been very active, busy years. Inventory levels are certainly down in St. Albert as well,” Wyatt said.

Buyers are flocking to the market because of the historically low interest rates, Wyatt said. First-time buyers are entering the market with lower payments and families are up-sizing their homes and taking advantage of the low rates.

“You’ve got a bit more buying power,” Wyatt said.

St. Albert has faced a low supply of housing, Wyatt said, with new communities such as Erin Ridge North and Jensen Lakes still in the build-out phase. As low interest rates cause high demand for housing, the result is higher prices and less selection for buyers.

In St. Albert 1,100 single-family homes have been sold in 2021, year-to-date, with an average selling price of $485,100, Wyatt said. In all of 2020, there were 834 single-family homes sold in St. Albert, with an average price of $462,179.

“This equates to an approximate increase of five per cent in the average cost of a single-family home in St. Albert,” Wyatt said.

Right now, inventory levels for single-family homes is low, with only 106 active single-family homes available, down from 169 at this time last year.

And while condos aren’t as hot as single-family homes, they are still selling in the city.

So far in 2021 there have been 296 condos sold with an average selling price of $282,000, Wyatt said. In all of 2020 there were 221 condos sold in St. Albert with an average selling price of $253,598.

Currently there are 92 available condos for sale in St. Albert and last year at this time there were 110 for sale.

In St. Albert anything in the $450,000 to $500,000 range goes very quickly, but even homes in the higher price ranges are selling fast.

When the pandemic hit, many people who were renting felt like it was time to move into home ownership, and those who already owned were spending so much time at home many looked to move into a bigger space.

While working from the kitchen table or basement seemed like a temporary change from the pandemic, nearly two years in, some employees are realizing they may be working from home for much longer and are looking to get a comfortable office or more space to work.

Demand is so high Wyatt said multiple offers are fairly common.

“If a house is in good condition and priced according to the market, we often see multiple offers happening,” Wyatt said.

Tara Borle, lead mortgage broker with Mortgage Architects, said many buyers are taking advantage of the low interest rates.

“The rates were at historical lows, which I think helped steam everyone buying these houses,” Borle said.

“They’ve climbed up a little bit over the last few months. They’re still really good, but I think the historical rates helped with people wanting to get in. We were giving out 1.59 [per cent] for a five-year lock-in rate at one point,” Borle said.

Those who already own homes, Borle said, are trying to take advantage and switch their higher rates down to the lower rates, which is keeping mortgage brokers busy.

Around 60 per cent of those who come into Borle’s office want to buy a new home, she said, and the remaining 40 per cent want a new rate on the mortgage of the house they already own.

On the other side, Borle said some people who have really struggled with COVID-19 financially are coming in to refinance their homes or find money to pay off credit cards.

“That’s the other side that we’re seeing, too, and that’s a sad side,” Borle said.

While the real estate market has been hot, home renovations have been booming, too.

Doug Walton, from Nest Builder, said business has increased since COVID-19, and the company has doubled the number of renovations in the community.

Walton said any contractor right now is likely booked from mid to late 2022 with such high demand for renovations.

People are spending more time at home during COVID-19 and they are feeling like they need extra space in their homes for their offices, Walton said.

“They have the extra money because they haven’t been traveling, and they want to put it into their home because that’s where they’re spending majority of their time. So that’s driven a lot of the renovation increase,” Walton said.

COVID-19 has caused financial woes for many and Walton said many are still being budget conscious when they renovate their homes.

Instead of buying a new home, many are choosing to renovate their older homes instead, because they have bigger backyards and larger properties.

Supply chain is a big challenge renovators are currently facing. What used to take six to eight weeks is now taking 12 to 18 weeks, Walton said.

“We just plan accordingly and we don’t start jobs until all materials have arrived,” Walton said.

Overall it has been a good year for builders, Walton said.

“It’s been a good year for us and we continue to work at trying to fit everybody in and keep everybody happy.”

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Real eState

Greater Toronto home sales jump in October after Bank of Canada rate cuts: board

Published

6 days ago

November 6, 2024

Anne Joseph

TORONTO – The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board says home sales in October surged as buyers continued moving off the sidelines amid lower interest rates.

The board said 6,658 homes changed hands last month in the Greater Toronto Area, up 44.4 per cent compared with 4,611 in the same month last year. Sales were up 14 per cent from September on a seasonally adjusted basis.

The average selling price was up 1.1 per cent compared with a year earlier at $1,135,215. The composite benchmark price, meant to represent the typical home, was down 3.3 per cent year-over-year.

“While we are still early in the Bank of Canada’s rate cutting cycle, it definitely does appear that an increasing number of buyers moved off the sidelines and back into the marketplace in October,” said TRREB president Jennifer Pearce in a news release.

“The positive affordability picture brought about by lower borrowing costs and relatively flat home prices prompted this improvement in market activity.”

The Bank of Canada has slashed its key interest rate four times since June, including a half-percentage point cut on Oct. 23. The rate now stands at 3.75 per cent, down from the high of five per cent that deterred many would-be buyers from the housing market.

New listings last month totalled 15,328, up 4.3 per cent from a year earlier.

In the City of Toronto, there were 2,509 sales last month, a 37.6 per cent jump from October 2023. Throughout the rest of the GTA, home sales rose 48.9 per cent to 4,149.

The sales uptick is encouraging, said Cameron Forbes, general manager and broker for Re/Max Realtron Realty Inc., who added the figures for October were stronger than he anticipated.

“I thought they’d be up for sure, but not necessarily that much,” said Forbes.

“Obviously, the 50 basis points was certainly a great move in the right direction. I just thought it would take more to get things going.”

He said it shows confidence in the market is returning faster than expected, especially among existing homeowners looking for a new property.

“The average consumer who’s employed and may have been able to get some increases in their wages over the last little bit to make up some ground with inflation, I think they’re confident, so they’re looking in the market.

“The conditions are nice because you’ve got a little more time, you’ve got more choice, you’ve got fewer other buyers to compete against.”

All property types saw more sales in October compared with a year ago throughout the GTA.

Townhouses led the surge with 56.8 per cent more sales, followed by detached homes at 46.6 per cent and semi-detached homes at 44 per cent. There were 33.4 per cent more condos that changed hands year-over-year.

“Market conditions did tighten in October, but there is still a lot of inventory and therefore choice for homebuyers,” said TRREB chief market analyst Jason Mercer.

“This choice will keep home price growth moderate over the next few months. However, as inventory is absorbed and home construction continues to lag population growth, selling price growth will accelerate, likely as we move through the spring of 2025.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 6, 2024.

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

Published

3 weeks 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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Here are some facts about British Columbia’s housing market

Published

4 weeks 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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