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Sun, November 4, 2007
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Rent crunch to worsen
, a, r* n ^! s; ]# F) AVacancy rate forecasted to dip to under 1%5 {& f. V) S: u7 j! H3 K- \
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By KEVIN CRUSH, SUN MEDIA
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Think the rental market is tight now? Just wait until next year. ; S$ Q D: T5 f/ y( _" W; `) G4 s
% x8 d7 |' T$ z' tThat'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. * f, I, @* A; T5 d( |# n# G7 V9 ~
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"It's just getting retarded," said Jasmine, who asked her last name not be printed.
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SIX MONTHS LOOKING 0 R# e* m4 W* R/ N. }7 i7 W, ]- j
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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. 1 E7 ]: r# y+ P9 z, ^% l7 T
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0 P% J8 [" V1 |, }3 S0 ?' uFor now, the couple has been living with her brother and mother in a three-bedroom government-subsidized housing unit.
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They have been scouring the city for anything - but have found nothing in their price range, around $1,100. & @. y3 |7 \$ o3 o/ ~, H+ _3 v0 ]. y
( |. @1 {) m M( l- a/ O: D5 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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According to new numbers from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the apartment vacancy rate for Edmonton is a minuscule 1%. ) Y7 E9 x+ x9 @( @! q1 Z( Z
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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%.
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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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7 g6 z1 [3 d6 zRates are staying high with the average rent for two-bedroom apartments at $950 a month, up from $877 a month in October 2006. : ? y8 _5 P; p
3 R$ O3 C, C* g' U3 i( p( q5 s"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. 7 K8 x& t5 j& y" p( n% p
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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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n+ [) Q3 \. \# S& n0 t"It's been slow," said Alana Schulte, whose Goldbar home has been up for sale since June. 5 J8 B7 X) J* ]9 k' e/ S' ^# e9 H
5 s2 l$ ?' h. o* E"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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' E. K& f$ E7 P! i' w3 d8 FOriginally listed at $450,000, in late August, she dropped her price to $400,000 to entice buyers. So far, there have been only lookers. 3 \4 n8 j& g! Y P
( {' P. i \; H0 ]" t# G) P6 KSchulte bought the house for $165,000 less than five years ago.
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, ^- W. w% ?. B1 @% Y1 hHome prices skyrocketed because of investors buying up properties, said realtor Abe Hering. # `8 k% p% j1 l$ i" l, l
" v! @. {4 l8 s9 G& sINVESTORS A HUGE FACTOR & N& G1 B5 b: G# N ~2 p9 x8 o
& i5 V6 ?/ k' k# B5 a' N"The investors were causing the market to spiral."
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( w6 ~% b% l( b) t, ^0 cThose investors have left the market, leaving mostly people looking for a home to live in. 9 C3 N N9 o# N
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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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: b( K- P, @2 M) zThe 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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