Rent crunch to worsen

YOKO

Sun, November 4, 2007
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" M) O; ~% F4 K- [: ]5 ?Rent crunch to worsen
Vacancy rate forecasted to dip to under 1%

By KEVIN CRUSH, SUN MEDIA

Think the rental market is tight now? Just wait until next year.

5 r% U0 @; n1 qThat'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

' p1 T: I, D9 G+ v* n9 NJasmine 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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( _6 l( ^- w* g' Y$ y* A- N9 p8 ZFor 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.

"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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( _1 n2 ?8 j5 ~# g* {/ HAccording 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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5 A7 q9 g% F. y) i3 a" X9 p7 ?2 ?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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* G; U" {5 X/ }( CA 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.

# y& l# q5 \9 D) J$ t: aRates are staying high with the average rent for two-bedroom apartments at $950 a month, up from $877 a month in October 2006.
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. E9 Y: n/ I8 K$ K9 \% W& B9 r  y$ K"With the rental rates being so high, you can only do so much," said Jasmine.
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- v: ?% C3 v5 H1 E4 vMaking it worse, she has pets, and few places accept animals.
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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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"It's been slow," said Alana Schulte, whose Goldbar home has been up for sale since June.

/ W. W6 n4 Y: u8 l! b5 |+ G"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.

! K" B9 a* w8 l( b* S' P  {  iSchulte bought the house for $165,000 less than five years ago.

Home prices skyrocketed because of investors buying up properties, said realtor Abe Hering.

INVESTORS A HUGE FACTOR

- }2 L) A/ B- J, W+ A" y"The investors were causing the market to spiral."
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Those investors have left the market, leaving mostly people looking for a home to live in.

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.
' l7 Y# I0 E- p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:
" Y$ X" y' y0 N' J( r有房的, 房子在贬值.
0 _: t& Y8 k6 D没房的, 房租在上涨.

待不住了，还有一个字“走”。

YOKO

Don't be sad!