Rent crunch to worsen

YOKO

Sun, November 4, 2007
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$ s6 E0 ]7 Z' DRent crunch to worsen
% }8 ~5 P& P! `- u, u/ l2 W( E# jVacancy rate forecasted to dip to under 1%
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" `% p1 D9 Y  ]" B( QBy KEVIN CRUSH, SUN MEDIA
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5 H8 z8 S- L6 c: eThink the rental market is tight now? Just wait until next year.
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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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"It's just getting retarded," said Jasmine, who asked her last name not be printed.

- X" @2 A/ i9 y+ }! s' c& H5 MSIX 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.

  

; F* T1 Q# y7 M5 y3 wFor now, the couple has been living with her brother and mother in a three-bedroom government-subsidized housing unit.
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% z+ S+ p8 ?4 w( g! wThey have been scouring the city for anything - but have found nothing in their price range, around $1,100.
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8 \2 M% F# \  @"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%.

+ }) h1 D% Q7 j, q9 b  dThe 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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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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6 V1 S  e3 D" e2 T. A$ ?3 g0 l, zRates 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.

" E' V/ C. Q4 A# TMaking it worse, she has pets, and few places accept animals.

& H% V! Y# Z; {) ?Meanwhile, house sellers are facing a crunch of their own.
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8 T4 J: l& o1 U- Y8 YWith 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.
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"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.

/ _" m  m6 e! a9 ^Schulte bought the house for $165,000 less than five years ago.

3 I4 b% x: b8 `; p6 z/ L% A4 D7 p8 jHome prices skyrocketed because of investors buying up properties, said realtor Abe Hering.

INVESTORS A HUGE FACTOR
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% r4 ]0 ~; c( P"The investors were causing the market to spiral."

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:
* ^: h+ H0 I! Q: d有房的, 房子在贬值.
5 A8 h* V+ a" A  e9 L8 ?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:
有房的, 房子在贬值.
没房的, 房租在上涨.

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待不住了，还有一个字“走”。

YOKO

Don't be sad!