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Ron Chalmers, The Edmonton Journal
: T8 Z) y. G0 cPublished: Tuesday, April 03, 2007
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EDMONTON - Most Albertans think this is a bad time to buy a house -- but a good time to buy major household items.
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- U0 F# ~" Y- f# TLeger Marketing surveyed 900 Alberta consumers for PricewaterhouseCoopers, in February, asking about the economy.
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# X1 `; C$ f9 @& o3 nResponses were compiled on a 200-point scale, with scores above 100 indicating optimism that conditions are good or will improve, and lower scores revealing pessimism that conditions are bad or will worsen.0 |# z8 E* U" E+ G p
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Is this a good time to buy a house in Alberta?6 f% d$ n' O+ b+ n3 S
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No, not according to the sample's composite score of 71, showing significant doubt.
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4 R6 \, F" ?1 i S) KLeger's report noted "the relatively pessimistic sentiment regarding interest rates, combined with the fact that the housing market in Alberta has boomed over the last two years."- @$ \+ ? U! [4 w$ Z, ^& W
- z( o1 ?) n; zWhen asked specifically about interest rates, the sample scored 66, with a widely-shared belief that rates will rise.
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A question about household incomes drew a score of 141, as most people expected incomes to rise.) ]1 m' X. `$ W2 T0 ~! ^1 y
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The sample scored 161 -- overwhelmingly affirmative -- when asked whether this is a good time to buy major household items "reflecting the fact that many Albertans are experiencing unprecedented levels of disposable income," the report said.
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The prospect for future unemployment was highly optimistic at 127 -- although it's hard to imagine how unemployment could fall any lower.
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" }" n8 F4 x7 rA related online survey of 420 Alberta business leaders similarly found optimism about fiscal conditions, current and future business conditions, and future unemployment -- all pushed by "the hot Alberta economy," the Leger report said.& z% X. V/ c p/ W H" N
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Among those several measures, it found that fiscal expectations were the least positive, "which may be attributed in part to the fact that Alberta has a new premier in place, creating uncertainty in relation to fiscal conditions if compared to the previous Klein administration."( h# x* \) G% L' a% b
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The business sample, like the consumer sample, expected interest rates to rise.' Q0 E5 e( x) W' z# ]% ~% @" Y P
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Barry James, PricewaterhouseCoopers' managing partner in Edmonton, urged borrowers to consider the risk of higher rates.
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"If you're going to make a large spend, ask yourself what one or two or three more points would cost," he suggested. |
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发表于 2007-4-3 06:55
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发表于 2007-4-4 14:25
晕啊~~我看晕了~~~
