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Sun, November 4, 20075 B2 {& b, u2 h+ A ]
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Rent crunch to worsen
. Y# n3 b' J& m, XVacancy rate forecasted to dip to under 1%
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! v1 b$ l" p- q! T5 WBy KEVIN CRUSH, SUN MEDIA8 I" J4 O4 E; K& R& `1 e1 q
5 y& ]: y# m7 i3 oThink the rental market is tight now? Just wait until next year. + W+ w$ x4 |. L, E# F, Q
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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. " a: l- ], c% l( J3 ^
: R3 U$ S" }* m9 [+ G"It's just getting retarded," said Jasmine, who asked her last name not be printed.
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% H7 `: i+ Y5 d, p" B+ d- gSIX MONTHS LOOKING : s# V) s/ c) }, y5 O
0 I q- l; X! QJasmine 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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They have been scouring the city for anything - but have found nothing in their price range, around $1,100. - V3 _9 E+ x/ r2 O% T$ M- Z
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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. 6 _2 n( L, O$ a/ u4 H
5 ~1 T& ?* W% q1 e) `0 k: RAccording to new numbers from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the apartment vacancy rate for Edmonton is a minuscule 1%. 6 H5 C# D9 H* D* P3 T
- n& Z2 a c% W! e1 j3 x# i5 ^# EThe rent crunch isn't expected to get any better with the agency pegging the rate next October at just 0.8%. ( ]% E8 v8 }- ^1 M1 w+ H& `
/ [) j k& R. f& Y% w( HA 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.
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( ~0 h* Y2 C: E2 g0 w4 @( L oRates are staying high with the average rent for two-bedroom apartments at $950 a month, up from $877 a month in October 2006.
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"With the rental rates being so high, you can only do so much," said Jasmine.
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Making it worse, she has pets, and few places accept animals. , r" g% Y# \0 ?% n* {, C( U+ A
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Meanwhile, house sellers are facing a crunch of their own.
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" T" M! V9 A4 z1 X+ pWith a growing inventory, high prices, and wary buyers, houses can be on the market for months. The CMHC predicts listing periods will get even longer in the new year. 6 }: H# ^0 Q! N) h$ v6 S3 _
# F7 g% h& `5 }- j- d" ^"It's been slow," said Alana Schulte, whose Goldbar home has been up for sale since June.
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& t$ y% Y2 ^2 I8 L"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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# @4 N% L6 W* R2 Q% W VOriginally listed at $450,000, in late August, she dropped her price to $400,000 to entice buyers. So far, there have been only lookers.
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& v, }; Y* w7 E* G$ Z# NSchulte bought the house for $165,000 less than five years ago. 7 d+ z1 x; u' j$ l2 U& U
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Home prices skyrocketed because of investors buying up properties, said realtor Abe Hering. 0 ~& o& K# u9 `; U \
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"The investors were causing the market to spiral." 2 ^, {; C- u9 w: f3 h
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Those investors have left the market, leaving mostly people looking for a home to live in. 7 Z8 P) c+ E* g: S. w
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Hering said there's just not enough of them to cause a real frenzy and they're often nervous about the high prices.
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) q; [1 D' Z' W+ u' ^7 sThe 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. |
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发表于 2007-11-4 20:11
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