 鲜花( 0)  鸡蛋( 0)
|
British Columbia's housing affordability notably improved but still has far to go, says RBC
7 j0 y9 L* e8 y4 G TORONTO, April 16 /CNW/ - British Columbia's housing markets are in the! ?- u4 r! z& u* b/ @) O
middle of a significant correction that is partly reversing the extensive
# G$ S; h) b2 C8 ?gains of recent years and which is helping restore affordability conditions,
$ {8 z/ C) i8 t, u7 naccording to the latest housing report released today by RBC Economics.3 m8 V5 u+ W# b% i
"The province's housing markets remain under heavy downward pressure,"
5 y) P9 ?5 p) }said Robert Hogue, senior economist, RBC. "While housing affordability is' f! E1 a" c0 Z# ~% K. ]
improving as the correction process runs its course. RBC's affordability& Y! O" {7 X; s
measures for the province are still at levels far off historical averages."
, i; L1 O/ `5 D RBC notes that the sharp rise in unemployment since last summer is" }/ y. \5 Z* B8 W
worrying households in the province and weighing down demand for housing, c; \& P+ N0 L# M; y- u4 Q
which runs well short of available supply. Such weak market conditions have
& w8 R9 q, H8 Z: e: |) Osustained the declining trend in prices for both existing and new homes.& {7 y9 [# S3 \5 U) P1 [
The RBC Affordability measure for British Columbia, which captures the0 U4 t* z) `7 A- a8 q! y3 p' z0 [4 d
proportion of pre-tax household income needed to service the costs of owning a
4 }2 r$ _2 v5 j1 E8 k. bhome, improved across all housing segments in the last quarter of 2008.
. w- i) p/ I& Y7 fAffordability of detached bungalows in the province moved to 66 per cent, the4 @8 D$ \7 u- \
standard townhouse to 52.5 per cent, the standard condo to 36.7 per cent, and
, \3 _% {0 W" H6 `* Gthe standard two-story home to 73.7 per cent.* N' A8 Q. y8 _7 u& r5 V
According to the report, there are signs that the B.C. housing markets
! y" Y# H: H+ o! M% b: `may be stabilizing as sales of existing homes appear to have bottomed out in
* e+ _ S- w0 k* [the closing months of 2008 and the first two in 2009 - although at
8 \7 j, E6 w" |; b6 d# C) Y, }; Nhistorically depressed levels.
3 S) p# z* w+ R( d Q Despite sharply declining house prices and lower mortgage rates, the cost( E8 P# N8 m" G" x
of homeownership in Vancouver is still the highest in the country. House
( w% g! [$ M2 C. Fprices continue to rapidly decline and pricing power remains firmly in the
2 o9 X m, a& m) D! M+ _! S- ?hands of buyers with the sales-to-new listings ratio at historical lows. "This
$ ? q0 O; k$ z3 Nenormous imbalance suggests that prices will likely further correct in the
2 c' r [. R: g. s1 L1 zmonths ahead," added Hogue.
. p _1 d& _* m8 X6 t RBC's Affordability measure for a detached bungalow for Canada's largest
. r# C% m) z. F, ?" e$ Ycities is as follows: Vancouver 70.3 per cent, Toronto 51.3 per cent, Calgary
( |6 ?) |' W8 Y1 z1 R q42.7 per cent, Ottawa 42.7 and Montreal 39.4 per cent.
& T; S1 _3 N( I8 |' W! l) q The report also looked at mortgage carrying costs relative to incomes for
( H+ F( o3 \* F& {6 E9 {a broader sampling of cities across the country, including Victoria. For these
% {/ q2 F8 c& M% a& Fcities, RBC has used a narrower measure of housing affordability that only
4 U3 J, n! u, w) v: k( V2 ltakes mortgage payments relative to income into account.3 `% @" D0 Y0 i- m
The Housing Affordability measure, which RBC has compiled since 1985, is6 x- m( y. A H/ r1 {/ J# y
based on the costs of owning a detached bungalow, a reasonable property, c6 r. S2 A) h' c1 b
benchmark for the housing market. Alternative housing types are also presented) a5 r3 E+ f w3 l; s
including a standard two-storey home, a standard townhouse and a standard
5 N1 g: {, f/ B- Z7 k3 W5 rcondominium. The higher the reading, the more costly it is to afford a home.! O) b% j5 |7 B1 I2 ^
For example, an Affordability reading of 50 per cent means that homeownership- m% d# |& q9 y* M# G; U
costs, including mortgage payments, utilities and property taxes, take up 50
7 _% h( p1 T* `% e1 j/ k& J2 Kper cent of a typical household's monthly pre-tax income.5 S& f2 J, M+ O d/ {% J) y3 B
$ H: |& b2 P6 V3 L E$ \# F << B* V4 o2 e1 g9 J
Highlights from across Canada:
& P+ J" ]0 B- z+ s( K$ |# q3 o( U
- Alberta: Since last fall, the declining Alberta economy has; ?3 _$ { d" L
intensified the downdraft on the province's housing markets, causing2 n$ w" p0 G) `0 e4 _* W6 A
home resales to drop to a 12-year low at the end of 2008 and rebound& V+ c* n8 ]4 Q( {6 A, a
only modestly since. Affordability has been on an improving track9 x( U$ U" Y" t) J: c1 C5 y+ C
since about the middle of 2007.0 g O# m, V8 {
- Saskatchewan: Market activity has cooled considerably from the
/ V) @1 z+ g4 f* X( x: ^" F; S frenzied pace from 2006 to early 2008 and prices have begun to3 g% A/ Q, q! B% }1 [6 l: x
decline. Nonetheless, economic and demographic fundamentals are still
5 O/ o2 j* O% W0 ~+ r largely supportive of the housing market and overshadow extremely0 v7 e- D, F2 g8 k' V
poor affordability levels.. [ D7 d" @/ q; p) n
- Manitoba: Manitoba's housing markets have fared much better than the, S2 i' T& B4 h9 w
vast majority in Canada: resale activity has slowed moderately and
& _$ k5 @/ P7 N" @# G" V( R prices have either held their own or edged down just slightly.* v- o" _9 |/ W. U3 P( P
Affordability has been kept out of the danger zone, helping to
4 n+ j: c& h5 r( f" g minimize any downside risks." j3 |' U/ S2 M. e0 w" o2 W
- Ontario: With the recession pounding many communities, housing market
) h7 H3 J3 C7 q: J4 ?/ i+ O conditions have deteriorated considerably. However, the impact is! C" O# u+ g4 K
unlikely to develop into an all-out rout similar to that of the early
5 W1 W$ w) U: E! q 1990s. Affordability, while still causing some stress, is quickly
: x& M8 ?0 E. K: p3 I$ T) k being restored to levels closer to long-term averages.
" I1 U( L) z ~- Z M9 A - Quebec: The province's housing markets have been among the last in
# j; R) l; G, w- _ Canada to yield to the weakening trend. The main sign of cooling thus4 Y+ N7 a7 U7 I3 q
far has been a drop in resale activity, as prices have held up
) n @% s' E3 ~ reasonably well. Some of the persisting market strength can be
q$ E- |: {9 C& u" U# l: l ascribed to sensible affordability levels, which had eroded only2 W* U: \% r8 z$ }; I* f' U+ M. u
modestly in recent years.# ]& a) h9 S8 G0 R/ b; A9 X) [2 ?; ~4 S
- Atlantic region: Markets have largely remained stable against the
* Y0 {0 }$ a. [5 T general housing downturn, with St. John's becoming the housing hot
6 j3 g' e4 x" N4 P spot in Canada and Halifax and Saint John maintaining steady upward* L) E) K- O# D. A3 R9 u% _
price momentum. The region is benefiting from improving affordability8 |4 q( v7 i( @& h3 Y5 e' `
following two years of deterioration.
& p. b; M$ H* x# _! b) ^9 a >> |
|
狗仔卡
发表于 2009-4-15 19:05
提升卡
置顶卡
沉默卡
喧嚣卡
变色卡
显身卡
发表于 2009-4-15 19:53
