 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
British Columbia's housing affordability notably improved but still has far to go, says RBC
2 _6 J+ t7 T& W: n TORONTO, April 16 /CNW/ - British Columbia's housing markets are in the8 V8 ?1 ~8 z3 K
middle of a significant correction that is partly reversing the extensive3 E9 b! ~, d. x, h+ L
gains of recent years and which is helping restore affordability conditions, c: u! c! u7 h+ P( C0 r
according to the latest housing report released today by RBC Economics.
& u! k6 K" Y) u$ q5 C "The province's housing markets remain under heavy downward pressure,"
8 h" X) h6 I/ U1 |6 s# r( H+ \. Jsaid Robert Hogue, senior economist, RBC. "While housing affordability is ` k, U; j7 u; v6 T( D
improving as the correction process runs its course. RBC's affordability* Y a& b# ], y- T4 s
measures for the province are still at levels far off historical averages."& ^, [2 R% K# j8 a1 z1 n+ h
RBC notes that the sharp rise in unemployment since last summer is6 ^' V' ]0 S* Q( E+ d2 e7 i! B
worrying households in the province and weighing down demand for housing,2 {' k% \4 M& h. n8 _) |
which runs well short of available supply. Such weak market conditions have. N: n& z6 T" }
sustained the declining trend in prices for both existing and new homes.
0 i! t2 R! W2 U4 _7 T The RBC Affordability measure for British Columbia, which captures the
" `" J9 w1 A% gproportion of pre-tax household income needed to service the costs of owning a6 l C" a u: i8 _
home, improved across all housing segments in the last quarter of 2008.; S0 T) c S7 l7 b
Affordability of detached bungalows in the province moved to 66 per cent, the
' K, S2 m* z' A; a, {/ xstandard townhouse to 52.5 per cent, the standard condo to 36.7 per cent, and% e3 }! E6 H8 A1 [- G
the standard two-story home to 73.7 per cent.
/ R! m! J6 e" [6 A3 M9 H, ] According to the report, there are signs that the B.C. housing markets) k& p; t" A% r& g8 x4 V: p" y; Q l
may be stabilizing as sales of existing homes appear to have bottomed out in, w- j y, L+ E! g3 m) _+ ^4 R
the closing months of 2008 and the first two in 2009 - although at% m( |9 c' v% y
historically depressed levels.
5 d4 ^" _8 G' ?; X Despite sharply declining house prices and lower mortgage rates, the cost+ P! f! S4 i" c
of homeownership in Vancouver is still the highest in the country. House5 U1 w7 `% ~1 @% R) d% _
prices continue to rapidly decline and pricing power remains firmly in the
6 i( ?% Y! t n$ ihands of buyers with the sales-to-new listings ratio at historical lows. "This* g; u6 o6 @+ ] }8 v
enormous imbalance suggests that prices will likely further correct in the
+ k0 I; Y- d! \4 e: Jmonths ahead," added Hogue.. p! o2 L0 h! b
RBC's Affordability measure for a detached bungalow for Canada's largest# F" `" {: @1 t, F5 n1 R
cities is as follows: Vancouver 70.3 per cent, Toronto 51.3 per cent, Calgary
0 h1 H& x2 D& u5 K42.7 per cent, Ottawa 42.7 and Montreal 39.4 per cent.
$ T% f, a( A, ^- g5 M* c7 }+ g The report also looked at mortgage carrying costs relative to incomes for; ?1 h3 K1 l$ k7 M
a broader sampling of cities across the country, including Victoria. For these
, z; ` e. T* s) a Ycities, RBC has used a narrower measure of housing affordability that only
0 U. }! y) z# I, y' ^7 i/ o2 Y+ Ktakes mortgage payments relative to income into account.
1 s, t. r8 H. E8 S4 p5 X The Housing Affordability measure, which RBC has compiled since 1985, is
, Z) z# _% T" p6 Jbased on the costs of owning a detached bungalow, a reasonable property' N8 p, K( u1 P& g- o* } `
benchmark for the housing market. Alternative housing types are also presented
( X" x9 s/ q2 G$ `including a standard two-storey home, a standard townhouse and a standard
: @' \% }, \9 M; Z9 j: K0 u# Lcondominium. The higher the reading, the more costly it is to afford a home.) j% h3 _% k9 f5 R7 _6 R, Q
For example, an Affordability reading of 50 per cent means that homeownership
* I: n) [$ \/ o1 r5 o7 d5 D2 zcosts, including mortgage payments, utilities and property taxes, take up 50: S, [3 N& F, ~# K
per cent of a typical household's monthly pre-tax income.
4 e8 M3 C7 T3 y) t9 K1 n4 i4 \. _' i1 n2 W& y1 s8 ^6 }8 h
<<
0 C* S1 C3 X" Q" _: w Highlights from across Canada:
5 ~& {8 p- w$ L( I
& O, _4 a' t# K: @+ X/ g - Alberta: Since last fall, the declining Alberta economy has1 c* u; ~' M- V1 ^' E/ l
intensified the downdraft on the province's housing markets, causing
* ?9 z5 z1 ?; o1 s* t- m home resales to drop to a 12-year low at the end of 2008 and rebound8 S3 {9 S r4 h2 o! a( i4 P" S
only modestly since. Affordability has been on an improving track f$ z0 O6 q# r, Y3 y* k+ J8 l
since about the middle of 2007.0 _ F8 X* l) a: I+ E5 _
- Saskatchewan: Market activity has cooled considerably from the5 |: g$ l, x8 F- _5 W
frenzied pace from 2006 to early 2008 and prices have begun to1 k- \$ i8 w% z! E# o
decline. Nonetheless, economic and demographic fundamentals are still
+ |- n6 A4 s# q6 h largely supportive of the housing market and overshadow extremely
1 G) G3 t% E7 M poor affordability levels.) {, d. E( ]8 D" {; ^1 l4 I
- Manitoba: Manitoba's housing markets have fared much better than the0 \# M7 v& |& z5 v
vast majority in Canada: resale activity has slowed moderately and# E) o2 V- V0 z" a
prices have either held their own or edged down just slightly.
1 ~) h3 F( g) l& K1 N3 g3 s Affordability has been kept out of the danger zone, helping to
0 X. \8 s7 d$ b+ c) V* d0 E minimize any downside risks.
( }' y% O4 v; F7 P. z - Ontario: With the recession pounding many communities, housing market
) r/ \1 @: [, V: `& M conditions have deteriorated considerably. However, the impact is ~4 N: n. B, Q
unlikely to develop into an all-out rout similar to that of the early7 s) @; y& J K0 Q% D# ~
1990s. Affordability, while still causing some stress, is quickly. A, V3 }3 O+ V& A$ j
being restored to levels closer to long-term averages.
3 j5 z7 H7 Z) z) P3 r. @% o- n) w - Quebec: The province's housing markets have been among the last in
5 z! v# J" n" L' i4 O Canada to yield to the weakening trend. The main sign of cooling thus! `- F2 m$ d4 r7 l: P
far has been a drop in resale activity, as prices have held up
6 [8 f/ d5 [ v/ ^7 ]2 K' t, o" l reasonably well. Some of the persisting market strength can be
8 Z, P8 H3 y' R) H: S; b% e o ascribed to sensible affordability levels, which had eroded only
" r! B# Q1 i0 w# F1 J/ I modestly in recent years.
" K% \# N* i$ r) n _ - Atlantic region: Markets have largely remained stable against the
. i a6 Y/ G r general housing downturn, with St. John's becoming the housing hot
8 N* P2 F6 y5 b- D3 j$ K spot in Canada and Halifax and Saint John maintaining steady upward( J7 y$ g; ?; v x" F+ A, y
price momentum. The region is benefiting from improving affordability7 E* ?4 j) h6 Z3 k: {0 [
following two years of deterioration.
8 F6 L/ U& N; [: A" `" ]8 z0 ^; Y >> |
|
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
