 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
British Columbia's housing affordability notably improved but still has far to go, says RBC 6 C' P* o! ^( A6 \" H) d8 V
TORONTO, April 16 /CNW/ - British Columbia's housing markets are in the
' r4 z% x+ ]3 m, q+ r) fmiddle of a significant correction that is partly reversing the extensive
1 P/ s' }; l" k* [- r- [- tgains of recent years and which is helping restore affordability conditions,# i5 F. [0 t) B1 w
according to the latest housing report released today by RBC Economics.
( \( l3 Q+ M9 ~1 x "The province's housing markets remain under heavy downward pressure,"8 P. j$ n: U4 I3 ^$ E! b# D
said Robert Hogue, senior economist, RBC. "While housing affordability is9 u. j# P+ J, O! {' f) C( }0 W. N
improving as the correction process runs its course. RBC's affordability& c& w9 n& j3 _7 O6 [+ w4 K" b* G# k9 P
measures for the province are still at levels far off historical averages."* L0 Q, g: ?3 P; m4 _/ Y- W
RBC notes that the sharp rise in unemployment since last summer is
# {/ A$ k2 R: x! Pworrying households in the province and weighing down demand for housing,: Z6 U# O1 }- k- @
which runs well short of available supply. Such weak market conditions have: {: d5 K& Q. ^+ A
sustained the declining trend in prices for both existing and new homes.: Y0 n4 r5 ?4 I! c: `% ]# O
The RBC Affordability measure for British Columbia, which captures the
' |. ]5 f- N1 Q, h4 mproportion of pre-tax household income needed to service the costs of owning a9 u. D/ S; p4 w# |& t: w
home, improved across all housing segments in the last quarter of 2008.
% `! T4 q% j4 T0 n' m8 zAffordability of detached bungalows in the province moved to 66 per cent, the
; e; |/ L9 b; ^; e' b8 ~, j$ mstandard townhouse to 52.5 per cent, the standard condo to 36.7 per cent, and$ s. F- n% n5 `& S( X" t
the standard two-story home to 73.7 per cent.
* a: @- p% J& M4 T According to the report, there are signs that the B.C. housing markets& M9 ]* a: [" j; e) m
may be stabilizing as sales of existing homes appear to have bottomed out in, R* _3 L6 R$ C: Q4 l
the closing months of 2008 and the first two in 2009 - although at
* Z4 w7 ^2 t7 V- ohistorically depressed levels.
) s% M; n* |* g7 y Despite sharply declining house prices and lower mortgage rates, the cost
/ c- [6 q x1 oof homeownership in Vancouver is still the highest in the country. House
& m# R" T& ~: eprices continue to rapidly decline and pricing power remains firmly in the5 [: {' E- V* Y! G! V, j+ ^: Y/ v
hands of buyers with the sales-to-new listings ratio at historical lows. "This
" t/ ^+ V% l# n- aenormous imbalance suggests that prices will likely further correct in the
% C0 s$ K; ~9 i2 Nmonths ahead," added Hogue.5 g6 d! k# P/ x! q
RBC's Affordability measure for a detached bungalow for Canada's largest" N& X5 ^) y( S; }# E
cities is as follows: Vancouver 70.3 per cent, Toronto 51.3 per cent, Calgary( w# d! b! B" Q& g/ E
42.7 per cent, Ottawa 42.7 and Montreal 39.4 per cent.
! w( V( q# f2 M! y The report also looked at mortgage carrying costs relative to incomes for
$ G7 L# h. r0 r9 ma broader sampling of cities across the country, including Victoria. For these& a( l( ]5 w7 n
cities, RBC has used a narrower measure of housing affordability that only2 v( Y, c7 \2 u3 u* M0 ~* ?
takes mortgage payments relative to income into account." N! w8 ], N1 p& L- F2 [
The Housing Affordability measure, which RBC has compiled since 1985, is" Z0 t6 h! ], M/ m- L7 o% O
based on the costs of owning a detached bungalow, a reasonable property
1 R* E& c2 d; K: ibenchmark for the housing market. Alternative housing types are also presented2 }4 i0 p6 E8 S/ Z# k
including a standard two-storey home, a standard townhouse and a standard
! B: G8 e6 t( r9 d7 D4 u6 P2 |condominium. The higher the reading, the more costly it is to afford a home.) y1 m: g6 ?8 Q8 s& v
For example, an Affordability reading of 50 per cent means that homeownership
. p+ ]: l3 H8 D# v' T hcosts, including mortgage payments, utilities and property taxes, take up 50
& P# z9 G3 Z; Y+ X, j- ?per cent of a typical household's monthly pre-tax income.
- P" \. a9 c4 @9 t8 V% m
$ S3 z& P2 p+ D& K4 w <<( ]5 r" q2 o+ v4 W4 w
Highlights from across Canada:
6 ]/ l @. e5 g+ h# j! v
" O* ^5 }- X1 @/ \ - Alberta: Since last fall, the declining Alberta economy has5 A1 i4 s* W1 M* ~5 [
intensified the downdraft on the province's housing markets, causing
$ K' l p4 p2 n home resales to drop to a 12-year low at the end of 2008 and rebound
( ?: _2 ^& l) c5 Z/ x only modestly since. Affordability has been on an improving track
0 x* j$ w A' u0 u0 }5 P: D! L since about the middle of 2007.
$ J2 Y) d0 i3 N* X* ]5 o9 x - Saskatchewan: Market activity has cooled considerably from the
6 c; Z6 \1 o5 ~- H5 q frenzied pace from 2006 to early 2008 and prices have begun to
* r, A4 B! ]/ g9 s+ G decline. Nonetheless, economic and demographic fundamentals are still
9 k) ?7 w8 R" [. [* j largely supportive of the housing market and overshadow extremely
* l. \; D3 i1 F. r" k poor affordability levels.
* W% l6 q* w5 U$ O& ~, v# f - Manitoba: Manitoba's housing markets have fared much better than the' K" l; S1 I$ N. y- @( M
vast majority in Canada: resale activity has slowed moderately and
8 w6 H' n& h3 _* a prices have either held their own or edged down just slightly.
0 k4 L2 O. u9 C6 I2 j6 } Affordability has been kept out of the danger zone, helping to; v1 T5 q0 {* H2 P
minimize any downside risks.6 G, P, W. L% `: O8 ^" N U/ v a
- Ontario: With the recession pounding many communities, housing market1 O- h+ L& g, N- U# c
conditions have deteriorated considerably. However, the impact is
v( K- l; e& l3 p( ^% Y unlikely to develop into an all-out rout similar to that of the early
4 p: [4 g F5 ^( N) V Q 1990s. Affordability, while still causing some stress, is quickly' T3 x# Z d3 Z" r3 l" l
being restored to levels closer to long-term averages. J8 u1 }7 X" q- O- L- c/ V! V
- Quebec: The province's housing markets have been among the last in
' Z! w3 m7 V2 `2 K+ ` Canada to yield to the weakening trend. The main sign of cooling thus: `$ s' _% N( e! `6 J( \2 o' v
far has been a drop in resale activity, as prices have held up
( N: i4 d; G: y8 j reasonably well. Some of the persisting market strength can be7 O, O, x: K# X% t/ B4 p( c
ascribed to sensible affordability levels, which had eroded only o$ E9 a& c3 x. e8 s
modestly in recent years.
& z0 I0 h7 m' F+ S - Atlantic region: Markets have largely remained stable against the
- { S. p) l) K6 t general housing downturn, with St. John's becoming the housing hot! R" I) ^( a- y6 v# T
spot in Canada and Halifax and Saint John maintaining steady upward0 T' R1 W( _& K
price momentum. The region is benefiting from improving affordability
; l& V4 r$ x- C; j. z" { x I following two years of deterioration.
" e; I ~- E7 f) C; Q$ X. b >> |
|
狗仔卡
发表于 2009-4-15 19:05
提升卡
置顶卡
沉默卡
喧嚣卡
变色卡
显身卡
发表于 2009-4-15 19:53
