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Ron Chalmers, The Edmonton Journal
' C# P( u; v% ] P- lPublished: Tuesday, April 03, 2007
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' ]$ e+ o/ X) t/ ~3 r. W- TEDMONTON - Most Albertans think this is a bad time to buy a house -- but a good time to buy major household items.5 ^8 H3 `/ b K. k2 v1 G
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Leger Marketing surveyed 900 Alberta consumers for PricewaterhouseCoopers, in February, asking about the economy.( B: [( W7 V9 K' x
% I% f9 ?9 Y7 z# AResponses 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.3 i& [9 N3 y* f
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Is this a good time to buy a house in Alberta?" {; x$ T% N' w: V# T* ^
9 x, G. l; o" E2 h5 c FNo, not according to the sample's composite score of 71, showing significant doubt.
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6 O$ N8 F3 _( tLeger'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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When asked specifically about interest rates, the sample scored 66, with a widely-shared belief that rates will rise.
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, G9 v1 i! Y2 \8 u) S, OA question about household incomes drew a score of 141, as most people expected incomes to rise.9 A# f% | J0 T9 P0 p
5 v& X7 E$ }/ Z# h4 m0 \The 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./ {/ d6 O$ S% A0 u4 G
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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./ V D( r) \# B( f; n
* D$ B8 D( G( w" FA 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."! d% q5 t. Z- Y
) c! e( i& ^! ]The business sample, like the consumer sample, expected interest rates to rise., s8 n; O$ A. P* u, a
8 k/ s/ n* D. d- G6 i, x. jBarry James, PricewaterhouseCoopers' managing partner in Edmonton, urged borrowers to consider the risk of higher rates.
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"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~~~
