Rent crunch to worsen

YOKO

Sun, November 4, 2007
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0 p1 b; n. l4 U9 b. ERent crunch to worsen
Vacancy rate forecasted to dip to under 1%

By KEVIN CRUSH, SUN MEDIA

0 Z) k! }$ t+ I0 H! q, i3 g6 d/ WThink the rental market is tight now? Just wait until next year.

3 F! O1 s$ t9 w+ @/ A% ?- i/ A1 @That's when the apartment vacancy rate in Edmonton is forecasted to dip below the current 1% - making it that much harder for already frustrated renters to find a place to live.

2 b4 p% u% y$ X. ?1 b) u"It's just getting retarded," said Jasmine, who asked her last name not be printed.
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SIX MONTHS LOOKING

% E, |! ?; j! v% J# q& S" FJasmine said she's already spent more than six months trying to find a decent place for her and her fiance to rent with no luck.
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; i9 ]6 c; i; t2 r6 e8 aFor now, the couple has been living with her brother and mother in a three-bedroom government-subsidized housing unit.

They have been scouring the city for anything - but have found nothing in their price range, around $1,100.
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1 [+ v7 E' M5 {# X4 m"I graduated from college, but I'm still working two to three jobs just to supplement the rent payments," she said.
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According to new numbers from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the apartment vacancy rate for Edmonton is a minuscule 1%.
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, F( G$ [# g9 Y9 R" _The rent crunch isn't expected to get any better with the agency pegging the rate next October at just 0.8%.

A limited supply of new rental buildings is keeping the market tight, according to the CMHC's outlook for Edmonton, released this week. Apartments being converted into condos is further keeping a stranglehold on renters.

Rates are staying high with the average rent for two-bedroom apartments at $950 a month, up from $877 a month in October 2006.
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"With the rental rates being so high, you can only do so much," said Jasmine.

$ ?( R& U+ W$ {9 @/ q; y" U; S. aMaking it worse, she has pets, and few places accept animals.

: m0 U$ K* ?2 x  ?# K; tMeanwhile, house sellers are facing a crunch of their own.

With a growing inventory, high prices, and wary buyers, houses can be on the market for months. The CMHC predicts listing periods will get even longer in the new year.
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"It's been slow," said Alana Schulte, whose Goldbar home has been up for sale since June.
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"Shoppers are shopping around a lot more now. They're taking their time. I have had one couple who have come in four times now, but they're not in any rush to make an offer."
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  ^% I5 R* z& A  `8 F* H* QOriginally listed at $450,000, in late August, she dropped her price to $400,000 to entice buyers. So far, there have been only lookers.
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  X3 I4 \) R# @( cSchulte bought the house for $165,000 less than five years ago.
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& F$ K. `" j/ Y5 m: B' n& N# r, rHome prices skyrocketed because of investors buying up properties, said realtor Abe Hering.
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' W: Y3 V3 g% f, m) `  E6 A5 @9 m$ MINVESTORS A HUGE FACTOR
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"The investors were causing the market to spiral."
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Those investors have left the market, leaving mostly people looking for a home to live in.

Hering said there's just not enough of them to cause a real frenzy and they're often nervous about the high prices.

0 o- {( J0 H6 ^+ J& s2 |, CThe Edmonton Real Estate Board recently reported the average single-family home in Edmonton sold for $399,555 in September, down 1% from the previous month.

水管工

现在是大家的日子都不好过:
有房的, 房子在贬值.
$ m+ D, {6 k! r8 r没房的, 房租在上涨.

YOKO

I wondered that how much the rental would be going up for just two bedroom apartment next year???

人生几何

原帖由 水管工 于 2007-11-5 09:42 发表
' T$ T2 G# ~* F: _4 c  w7 C现在是大家的日子都不好过:
有房的, 房子在贬值.
, s: r( i- d0 H" N2 u没房的, 房租在上涨.

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& R! l: x) M2 e待不住了，还有一个字“走”。

YOKO

Don't be sad!