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Sun, November 4, 2007
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Rent crunch to worsen
) `+ g f0 l8 F% C0 d; hVacancy rate forecasted to dip to under 1%6 h, S: ^$ v: F* B5 f2 [
- K# d" U* n( XBy KEVIN CRUSH, SUN MEDIA
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Think the rental market is tight now? Just wait until next year. ( o: x0 ?1 i/ ~0 K
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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.
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$ X5 w/ @8 Y6 k/ H( ?$ s"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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Jasmine 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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5 J) `5 e, N8 A) SFor now, the couple has been living with her brother and mother in a three-bedroom government-subsidized housing unit. - C, g+ O$ n6 D, Q/ J3 l
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They have been scouring the city for anything - but have found nothing in their price range, around $1,100. ) [4 v: v8 b# g0 s5 y
[0 Q) w# k& E( u' N- N; |& v& O"I graduated from college, but I'm still working two to three jobs just to supplement the rent payments," she said. 1 e& Z w- [2 y4 i+ Y8 p! {
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According to new numbers from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the apartment vacancy rate for Edmonton is a minuscule 1%. 8 G1 D/ a3 k: o; E
! T: P y. e) w& k& rThe 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.
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: X% r E f6 l0 O) xRates are staying high with the average rent for two-bedroom apartments at $950 a month, up from $877 a month in October 2006. + K, m& t- p" [' X& B
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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.
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. S6 C4 h4 r0 `' a7 Q4 I7 L" E/ |4 g: {; lMeanwhile, 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. * ]; g% t6 M! T7 W2 E* k2 |
3 Q2 ]9 V# S) R0 K! q: L3 W"It's been slow," said Alana Schulte, whose Goldbar home has been up for sale since June.
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"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. ; `4 D5 {: S6 u) p5 O* _! p. i
; O; F5 p d- m- {# [Schulte bought the house for $165,000 less than five years ago. - s+ ^# u9 f1 q' O H ~
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Home prices skyrocketed because of investors buying up properties, said realtor Abe Hering.
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; `1 H! l# N* I0 Z% A; Z9 qINVESTORS A HUGE FACTOR 4 t7 g! \7 V) g* p4 w; ^3 r- f1 B; _6 t
; ~7 ^/ Z' d7 q! H, x"The investors were causing the market to spiral."
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, p& }2 R2 W0 |- r4 ~5 l) b0 a8 _) wThose investors have left the market, leaving mostly people looking for a home to live in.
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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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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. |
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