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不止是有点暖,是高烧~- X; n" b$ \* n" v1 u% m
2 Q/ _9 D& V5 k4 M+ d u/ t# Jhttp://www.edmontonjournal.com/b ... ?cid=megadrop_story& j& m( Y ^. _8 W3 [! H c
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1 B- ~/ d/ ^( N* tEdmonton sees 26% spike in luxury-home sales7 i- j7 O0 B! c! l0 N
High-end houses defy real estate cooling trend9 y7 f5 M% b* [7 E: Z. a
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EDMONTON — While homebuying activity is cooling in Edmonton, luxury-home sales are picking up, says a new national report by ReMax.
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“One area of the market that has outperformed all others is the upper end,” said the ReMax Market Trends Report Fall 2010 released Tuesday.
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3 ?; L( S9 `" v! oSales of homes priced more than $700,000 are up 26 per cent over 2009, with 240 upscale properties changing hands as of August, compared to 190 units for the same period last year, it said. ! d5 u- c( ]' Q; G7 Z7 A
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Fifty-five homes in the Edmonton area have sold for more than $1 million.
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The urgency in Edmonton’s residential housing market — prompted by tighter lending policies and the threat of higher interest rates earlier in the year — has given way to more stable conditions heading into the fourth quarter of 2010, the report said.+ O, e6 G$ ^4 T
7 B" x6 ^7 F# n; o$ H5 p9 {, T9 h“Positive announcements in the oil and gas sector should spur renewed activity in residential real estate — as evidenced in the first few weeks of September.
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“Despite recent hikes, interest rates remain attractive with a five-year closed hovering at four per cent. The outlook for the remainder of the year is stable, with no real fluctuations in either sales or price.”
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Year-to-date sales have slipped 14 per cent to 11,773 units, compared to 13,694 during the same period a year earlier, the report said.
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The sales-to-listing ratio is now 47 per cent, down from 59 per cent in 2009, but up from 42 per cent in 2008.
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& H6 q. H/ i% e- V* Y3 [# GAverage price is holding steady, up about four cent to $332,789 in 2010, about $12,500, or 3.9 per cent, higher than a year ago when the residential average was $320,289, the report said.
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~# Z. W$ `2 c p- B/ ZInventory levels are up marginally over last year, but down from peak levels reached in 2007 and 2008, ReMax said.
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5 ?* [- w4 A3 j9 B) d9 X“As a result, the housing market has been characterized as balanced, slightly favouring the buyer,” the report said.
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d7 w+ s- z. j. JFirst-time buyers in Edmonton remain most active, driving sales of single-family homes between $250,000 and $350,000. Condos represent 34 per cent of residential sales.
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1 d' U; _" l$ t& g8 W8 Y" I/ KAn influx of new units recently has pushed up supply, putting downward pressure on condo prices, according to the report. Tighter lending rules, requiring a 20-per-cent down payment, “is proving to be detrimental to investment activity.”
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The report, which covered trends and developments in 19 major centres from January to August, found year-to-date sales ahead of 2009 levels in 11 markets.
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8 _" C4 O8 |' J. A9 X+ `5 M9 yPrices were up year-over-year in all cities, with five experiencing double-digit gains in 2010: Vancouver, St. John’s, Sudbury, Winnipeg and the Greater Toronto Area.
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“We cleaned up in the first quarter of 2010 because housing activity during the same period one year earlier was dismal,” said Elton Ash, regional executive vice-president of ReMax, Western Canada.
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“We’re now comparing the second half of the year to 2009 and falling short of expectations. Looking at the big picture however, the market remains healthy.” |
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