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ZT: Cost of home ownership continues to rise: RBC9 {# z- S/ d9 V, v6 Z7 _& i
8 t) F4 f4 i; HCanadian Press) p+ q. O/ A' \$ c- e
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Wednesday, September 12, 2007. `4 Y% e$ q( _' i% O- L& V
8 G( h% a; m+ l. j5 x6 aTORONTO — The cost of owning a home in Canada continued to climb in the second quarter as affordability in Western Canada showed the biggest change, according to a new report by the Royal Bank. ~( R( L% E. Y
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Saskatchewan suffered its worst ever quarterly deterioration of affordability on record, according to the bank, as an influx of people caught the housing supply off guard.' ?7 |1 R9 Y- \& H% i# H# h
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“In the second quarter, Canada's housing affordability experienced one of the largest and most broadly based quarterly deteriorations since the mid-1990s,” said Derek Holt, assistant chief economist, RBC.
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“Higher house prices, mortgage rates, utilities and property taxes all combined to drive the country-wide deterioration.” c1 P( w" N w) x. `# L5 o. I# G+ Z
# N: c, L& K+ d$ J8 eThe report measures the proportion of pre-tax household income needed to service the costs of owning a home. The higher the reading, the more costly it is to afford a home3 o% H' c9 X% C0 e: c8 F, H
8 z/ Y. P( }+ T: D' b$ S! NThe bank said a standard condo was the most affordable, requiring about 29 per cent of income compared with 27.5 per cent in the first quarter.
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/ c. M' h* s6 _6 P4 sA standard townhouse was next at 33 per cent, up from 31.5 per cent in the first quarter followed by a detached bungalow which increased from 39 per cent to 41 per cent in the second quarter.
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8 E6 C6 Y. W# n2 T2 ]% O: oA standard two-storey home was 46 per cent, up from 44 per cent in the first three months of the year.7 W; H3 \4 x$ R7 V/ _5 d* T8 E
/ n: `2 `6 A1 `/ f1 _& \+ b% kSaskatchewan, Alberta and B.C. saw the biggest increase in costs in the quarter.8 K4 I! N: p" v! s: I% ~
+ z! K! L3 {' }# `Affordability fell about 20 per cent in Saskatchewan with no signs that prices were letting up yet, but the bank said the high prices were starting to weigh on demand.
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9 @5 m& q9 F1 { Q. dAmong Canada's largest cities, a detached bungalow in Vancouver was the most expensive with the proportion of pre-tax household income needed to own a home coming in at 71 per cent. Toronto and Calgary followed at 45 per cent, Montreal at 36 per cent and Ottawa at 31 per cent.7 h) T* C) f* v1 ~" _
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“Market conditions in Vancouver have loosened up during the year, but conditions remain tilted in favour of a seller's market and are still supportive of fairly strong price gains,” the report said. |
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