Rent crunch to worsen

YOKO

Sun, November 4, 2007
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* `5 j! V; B6 hRent crunch to worsen
9 {7 K1 K+ ~( ?* C6 U$ tVacancy rate forecasted to dip to under 1%

By KEVIN CRUSH, SUN MEDIA

0 s7 h6 f% w  X- h1 J) dThink the rental market is tight now? Just wait until next year.
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3 z- i9 B% G+ O) @' q+ fThat'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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SIX MONTHS LOOKING
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/ N9 C' Y& l$ j6 V/ J4 BJasmine 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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For now, the couple has been living with her brother and mother in a three-bedroom government-subsidized housing unit.
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9 t; F% [, r. rThey have been scouring the city for anything - but have found nothing in their price range, around $1,100.
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"I graduated from college, but I'm still working two to three jobs just to supplement the rent payments," she said.

7 B5 M) p3 A* p* X& |" u+ JAccording to new numbers from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the apartment vacancy rate for Edmonton is a minuscule 1%.

The rent crunch isn't expected to get any better with the agency pegging the rate next October at just 0.8%.
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# V) E0 I' k, H4 _* jA 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.

8 ?. U& I2 E- DRates 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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' ~- [8 }  e0 ["With the rental rates being so high, you can only do so much," said Jasmine.

Making it worse, she has pets, and few places accept animals.
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* w2 G* `( B4 \3 QMeanwhile, house sellers are facing a crunch of their own.
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/ j) N3 J$ s. ~7 R0 O5 [% HWith 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.

) w+ _: ^& L% E1 I"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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0 }. p" f4 j! 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.

9 \' q& c! g% C6 u2 y; zSchulte bought the house for $165,000 less than five years ago.
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Home prices skyrocketed because of investors buying up properties, said realtor Abe Hering.
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- b/ K/ ^5 l; D, z! IINVESTORS A HUGE FACTOR

$ q+ J: Z) F3 O0 o/ B4 W7 S2 n"The investors were causing the market to spiral."

Those investors have left the market, leaving mostly people looking for a home to live in.

6 Z5 W# b) A4 D# j* MHering 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:
) A" K5 x! n: j2 u. I/ ]有房的, 房子在贬值.
+ C5 p9 R& @) c. k: A( O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
7 W0 y9 a0 j) I, W( b' f现在是大家的日子都不好过:
有房的, 房子在贬值.
6 _" |" k: g8 V1 P! z没房的, 房租在上涨.

" n2 x( t) l3 l待不住了，还有一个字“走”。

YOKO

Don't be sad!