Rent crunch to worsen

YOKO

Sun, November 4, 2007
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Rent crunch to worsen
/ w: B( R, r2 }: p  JVacancy rate forecasted to dip to under 1%
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By KEVIN CRUSH, SUN MEDIA
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  y: q) \% b. X4 `1 R7 qThink the rental market is tight now? Just wait until next year.

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.

"It's just getting retarded," said Jasmine, who asked her last name not be printed.

SIX MONTHS LOOKING
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) J; Y' Y2 }( J: L& r1 \4 vJasmine 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.

They have been scouring the city for anything - but have found nothing in their price range, around $1,100.
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7 N3 G: I$ n4 t"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 s8 e) _# }+ ^* P3 Z2 h- k( c/ nAccording 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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  I3 U" \: a# o- |$ yThe 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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A 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.

3 m! O# J* c5 D) |Rates are staying high with the average rent for two-bedroom apartments at $950 a month, up from $877 a month in October 2006.

4 w# p7 Z3 k  v1 i1 x"With the rental rates being so high, you can only do so much," said Jasmine.

2 I# d+ ~7 |' d' bMaking it worse, she has pets, and few places accept animals.
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Meanwhile, house sellers are facing a crunch of their own.
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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.
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/ X' L! G: B4 o8 e  q5 v9 O"It's been slow," said Alana Schulte, whose Goldbar home has been up for sale since June.

"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.

1 s. G% z. J+ z6 JSchulte 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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% Y1 h) X; h" @) |% RINVESTORS A HUGE FACTOR

: S" i; J: N! X"The investors were causing the market to spiral."

Those investors have left the market, leaving mostly people looking for a home to live in.
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6 H  l, n" n5 S' aHering 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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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:
有房的, 房子在贬值.
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
现在是大家的日子都不好过:
有房的, 房子在贬值.
  k% P8 \' ^, {没房的, 房租在上涨.

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待不住了，还有一个字“走”。

YOKO

Don't be sad!