Rent crunch to worsen

YOKO

Sun, November 4, 2007
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6 \" _2 R: k% m. z* FRent crunch to worsen
: r6 z% d- f; e+ V  FVacancy rate forecasted to dip to under 1%

By KEVIN CRUSH, SUN MEDIA

9 p( x/ l& d0 j, C. gThink the rental market is tight now? Just wait until next year.

That'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.
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/ A1 F- z2 A: I3 i# ^# v8 \" I"It's just getting retarded," said Jasmine, who asked her last name not be printed.

/ q$ S. l) l* z3 b  f- ?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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For now, the couple has been living with her brother and mother in a three-bedroom government-subsidized housing unit.
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7 f+ G/ b+ j1 Q, [* z" Y2 uThey have been scouring the city for anything - but have found nothing in their price range, around $1,100.

" B5 V# W; u7 q% G$ h: i"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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According 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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' R* B- [) }( d3 Z2 y4 XThe 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.
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* v5 D" ~" L7 U3 I" vRates 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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"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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Meanwhile, house sellers are facing a crunch of their own.
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6 E5 C& O# f" h4 Z2 w) \- fWith 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.

; v6 h$ [6 q8 }"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."

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.

1 t8 C2 r" D; O8 OSchulte bought the house for $165,000 less than five years ago.
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1 T- T' G5 R# u  `- C# F! q, y- t# RHome prices skyrocketed because of investors buying up properties, said realtor Abe Hering.

+ [7 [& t9 N9 E9 P# i; L* WINVESTORS A HUGE FACTOR
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) o6 y& s% ]% Q+ y2 W1 `2 E"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.
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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:
$ X0 {& [- I! d1 A  h. B有房的, 房子在贬值.
+ C+ P3 d! Q9 D) Z* Q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
5 V% a. ]: [7 N  E! D现在是大家的日子都不好过:
有房的, 房子在贬值.
6 ?% F: s& G4 E7 C. Z% z没房的, 房租在上涨.

- d% s8 Z, C, M2 k- `4 D. s, f1 y5 p3 C
2 n: M! ?# r, a- X  x待不住了，还有一个字“走”。

YOKO

Don't be sad!