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Ron Chalmers, The Edmonton Journal
! p% N8 G6 c M0 m. G+ A. j3 TPublished: Tuesday, April 03, 20073 L2 c1 o4 `3 r' U( h
9 c; p& ^6 ]& |! c8 D0 S SEDMONTON - Most Albertans think this is a bad time to buy a house -- but a good time to buy major household items.
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Leger Marketing surveyed 900 Alberta consumers for PricewaterhouseCoopers, in February, asking about the economy.# J+ l. A9 u1 C2 B! C5 b$ V, y
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Responses were compiled on a 200-point scale, with scores above 100 indicating optimism that conditions are good or will improve, and lower scores revealing pessimism that conditions are bad or will worsen.
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Is this a good time to buy a house in Alberta?; _: T+ t9 {8 O2 A0 G' D
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No, not according to the sample's composite score of 71, showing significant doubt., s' b7 m. T9 c$ H9 I9 o
/ P" _. K8 ^" U. m: wLeger's report noted "the relatively pessimistic sentiment regarding interest rates, combined with the fact that the housing market in Alberta has boomed over the last two years."
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4 J3 |* g1 Q, m; m& M& aWhen asked specifically about interest rates, the sample scored 66, with a widely-shared belief that rates will rise.
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A question about household incomes drew a score of 141, as most people expected incomes to rise.
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5 W# Y: P# V: t6 JThe sample scored 161 -- overwhelmingly affirmative -- when asked whether this is a good time to buy major household items "reflecting the fact that many Albertans are experiencing unprecedented levels of disposable income," the report said.
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The prospect for future unemployment was highly optimistic at 127 -- although it's hard to imagine how unemployment could fall any lower.
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: \# L- @! S) A$ D: K, kA related online survey of 420 Alberta business leaders similarly found optimism about fiscal conditions, current and future business conditions, and future unemployment -- all pushed by "the hot Alberta economy," the Leger report said.
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Among those several measures, it found that fiscal expectations were the least positive, "which may be attributed in part to the fact that Alberta has a new premier in place, creating uncertainty in relation to fiscal conditions if compared to the previous Klein administration."
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+ o; F) [' O$ h( W) |The business sample, like the consumer sample, expected interest rates to rise.
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2 i+ _/ D/ E/ R; d FBarry James, PricewaterhouseCoopers' managing partner in Edmonton, urged borrowers to consider the risk of higher rates.& t* X- D$ ^) F& ]# K; @" Y% U
' o7 ?( K4 X! |# A, O: B; Y' S! R"If you're going to make a large spend, ask yourself what one or two or three more points would cost," he suggested. |
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发表于 2007-4-3 06:55
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发表于 2007-4-4 14:25
晕啊~~我看晕了~~~
