Rent crunch to worsen

YOKO

Sun, November 4, 2007

Rent crunch to worsen
Vacancy rate forecasted to dip to under 1%
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8 ]( A$ W) w9 k' d) l* Z. }4 uBy KEVIN CRUSH, SUN MEDIA

Think the rental market is tight now? Just wait until next year.
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, ?& U! R1 C( @3 z& x) 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.

"It's just getting retarded," said Jasmine, who asked her last name not be printed.

SIX MONTHS LOOKING
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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.

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1 r: X2 `; X! g. {$ RFor now, the couple has been living with her brother and mother in a three-bedroom government-subsidized housing unit.
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+ W; T: c* t) H) _) _2 |: S! ]They have been scouring the city for anything - but have found nothing in their price range, around $1,100.
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9 O2 R+ g3 H' k! |/ q"I graduated from college, but I'm still working two to three jobs just to supplement the rent payments," she said.

3 A( e- l) W& C* K& ]- X& aAccording to new numbers from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), the apartment vacancy rate for Edmonton is a minuscule 1%.
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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%.

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.

Rates are staying high with the average rent for two-bedroom apartments at $950 a month, up from $877 a month in October 2006.

"With the rental rates being so high, you can only do so much," said Jasmine.

Making it worse, she has pets, and few places accept animals.
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: I. e* q8 S! }5 a# |+ ?/ G# |) rMeanwhile, house sellers are facing a crunch of their own.

( E: Y" D' b& X% ?/ x7 B- A3 pWith 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.

" m, }) J6 s7 }+ K+ i/ R% h2 }( l"It's been slow," said Alana Schulte, whose Goldbar home has been up for sale since June.

"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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Originally listed at $450,000, in late August, she dropped her price to $400,000 to entice buyers. So far, there have been only lookers.

8 S% X7 ]" I$ X* O* V4 ~Schulte bought the house for $165,000 less than five years ago.
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$ \7 ^. M/ h7 ?6 i3 aHome prices skyrocketed because of investors buying up properties, said realtor Abe Hering.

INVESTORS A HUGE FACTOR

"The investors were causing the market to spiral."
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) z, u" X0 X% N2 G) g; HThose investors have left the market, leaving mostly people looking for a home to live in.

/ }) j- \. \  {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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The 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.

水管工

现在是大家的日子都不好过:
有房的, 房子在贬值.
$ h5 s" s* ~8 R. l没房的, 房租在上涨.

YOKO

I wondered that how much the rental would be going up for just two bedroom apartment next year???

人生几何

原帖由 水管工 于 2007-11-5 09:42 发表
现在是大家的日子都不好过:
0 ]# b0 U7 I3 v- Y有房的, 房子在贬值.
没房的, 房租在上涨.

8 ~' }4 J% \2 A/ y) m. _待不住了，还有一个字“走”。

YOKO

Don't be sad!