Rent crunch to worsen

YOKO

Sun, November 4, 2007
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Rent crunch to worsen
Vacancy rate forecasted to dip to under 1%
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By KEVIN CRUSH, SUN MEDIA

1 I, Q: p6 ?; @$ @8 c# PThink the rental market is tight now? Just wait until next year.

/ ~/ a' _8 H& |# j! {7 |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.
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"It's just getting retarded," said Jasmine, who asked her last name not be printed.
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1 q8 H8 o7 V2 K+ mSIX MONTHS LOOKING

Jasmine 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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. g# j# e& r0 UFor now, the couple has been living with her brother and mother in a three-bedroom government-subsidized housing unit.
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They have been scouring the city for anything - but have found nothing in their price range, around $1,100.
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$ r0 q% T  m2 Q9 K2 K. Y' c  @"I graduated from college, but I'm still working two to three jobs just to supplement the rent payments," she said.

3 ^2 v8 q/ z8 g" b: C/ nAccording to new numbers from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the apartment vacancy rate for Edmonton is a minuscule 1%.

& n5 ~- S; @9 [4 [5 l/ KThe rent crunch isn't expected to get any better with the agency pegging the rate next October at just 0.8%.

0 [0 ^5 B; u5 m2 y2 H: i; m( nA 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.
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Making it worse, she has pets, and few places accept animals.
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" l/ R: o+ ~! |+ Q  n: m: lMeanwhile, 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.

( @* D& z# o" b' g) @"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."

Originally listed at $450,000, in late August, she dropped her price to $400,000 to entice buyers. So far, there have been only lookers.
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$ J( f3 A8 O4 A* z3 ASchulte bought the house for $165,000 less than five years ago.

Home prices skyrocketed because of investors buying up properties, said realtor Abe Hering.
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" M/ A# f6 C; F1 b- l, j  x  k7 u) tINVESTORS A HUGE FACTOR

9 N& e1 d; V9 X. Y+ o- |"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.
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! q4 f& ~# k2 a! ]" ?! I  A# s4 kHering said there's just not enough of them to cause a real frenzy and they're often nervous about the high prices.

The 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.
9 i/ q& F1 u! V% P+ \4 z! C- `+ }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
现在是大家的日子都不好过:
& x" q& P. N; \有房的, 房子在贬值.
没房的, 房租在上涨.

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待不住了，还有一个字“走”。

YOKO

Don't be sad!