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Sun, November 4, 2007& F" h+ ^( ]7 a Y' ]
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Rent crunch to worsen$ w x" e6 g1 G7 S% }* J
Vacancy rate forecasted to dip to under 1%' ~& I/ x& l, u; u! O6 Y
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By KEVIN CRUSH, SUN MEDIA7 w+ C, R6 p6 R% B
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Think the rental market is tight now? Just wait until next year. 6 z% u* n. G* p& E
I/ z# T, }% l( K6 _) h! H& |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. # N w I! S- ~! \
; K+ ?& @4 G0 Z"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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$ c* c1 c8 {0 \/ J& V; m% d! a; C) r/ fJasmine 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. R7 I' B7 ^1 Z; N/ W' |
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For now, the couple has been living with her brother and mother in a three-bedroom government-subsidized housing unit. 0 r# d8 v, G3 _2 l
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They have been scouring the city for anything - but have found nothing in their price range, around $1,100.
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"I graduated from college, but I'm still working two to three jobs just to supplement the rent payments," she said.
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6 @8 h& t4 e' g0 S B, W, w7 v( _According to new numbers from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the apartment vacancy rate for Edmonton is a minuscule 1%.
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The rent crunch isn't expected to get any better with the agency pegging the rate next October at just 0.8%. 4 I' W$ A C: S! H
; H. y5 k8 \0 p( mA 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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) {" i5 w" z0 qRates are staying high with the average rent for two-bedroom apartments at $950 a month, up from $877 a month in October 2006.
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"With the rental rates being so high, you can only do so much," said Jasmine.
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( @1 p8 R1 h; ~$ e2 R* Z* N2 o! JMaking it worse, she has pets, and few places accept animals.
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Meanwhile, house sellers are facing a crunch of their own. ( x3 h# L G4 Q
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With 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. ! p$ ^2 e& R* t
- `5 }8 W% O0 e8 _"It's been slow," said Alana Schulte, whose Goldbar home has been up for sale since June. 7 d, L+ u$ c, w: A" T# L" W
+ Y, q2 l$ C n5 C7 J+ p9 @$ i"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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Originally 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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Schulte bought the house for $165,000 less than five years ago.
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Home prices skyrocketed because of investors buying up properties, said realtor Abe Hering.
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& V7 B. D/ }9 `% u/ TINVESTORS A HUGE FACTOR ! k% A$ U: r, S) Q) V# \
/ h% V' B* D# l"The investors were causing the market to spiral."
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" r8 S! @/ B3 R) ?) Z* k# O& [. p/ LThose investors have left the market, leaving mostly people looking for a home to live in. 8 L6 s* R ^2 D8 z, G# B
) H% h9 x7 h5 N. S) QHering 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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! M, S* K) r: j7 F; F- ?8 qThe 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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