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ZT: Cost of home ownership continues to rise: RBC
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Canadian Press* o, h H5 j" u+ Z
% A8 C5 ]" e1 f+ ?4 _5 s2 }& O! U1 mWednesday, September 12, 2007, W1 I+ x. l( m3 s) G! Q b
8 _. i. [8 Z. C' w7 mTORONTO — 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.( u) G: {/ ]7 M6 x P2 g
- q$ m2 R& Z" X- ISaskatchewan 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.
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% U- U5 J. K( L% y“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.& R: J1 Y8 ^6 f9 }$ H
8 S* n! |2 p/ Y“Higher house prices, mortgage rates, utilities and property taxes all combined to drive the country-wide deterioration.”1 X2 H5 `; M: D$ V% \! u$ `7 q$ Y) G
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The 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 home! g6 A" H$ p2 C
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The 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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A 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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A standard two-storey home was 46 per cent, up from 44 per cent in the first three months of the year.
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1 i6 b4 j7 U% P; I OSaskatchewan, Alberta and B.C. saw the biggest increase in costs in the quarter.+ I% U0 ]/ ?" d
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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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Among 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.
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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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