BristolUK

I think that depends on where it is.

When the house and land sells for $58k and a few months later the house (having been renovated inside) and land sells for $205k, it's the house cost that made the difference. Remember - - this is the same street where a similar sized lot (no house) went for $28k a few months earlier.

scrubbedexpat091

Yes it does, and I speaking from a BC perspective where in a fair chunk of places its the land, nobody is paying 1 million for the crack shack in Vancouver for the house itself....

NB seems to be one of the few places left with relatively affordable housing, wages seem lower though, but 40k seems to go further in NB than BC, but than I don't know if 40K is easy to make in NB.

BristolUK

Isn't it a successful business?
Too much competition?

Tangram

NB prices are rising and houses going for more than asking in many cases as the 'work at home' dudes from out west are realising they can pick up a mansion for what they had in Ontario etc.

BristolUK

For the last couple of months the newspaper has been reporting tenants in apartment buildings with rents of around $700 all inclusive rising to $1000 plus amenities

Many are scrabbling around looking for cheaper.

HGerchikov

The GTA is beyond crazy at the moment. Houses that would have sold at around 1.1mi in October, could easily fetch 1.3 possibly 1.4mi now.

orly

Been considering heading out that direction ourselves. Household income is about $110k (jobs would follow us) but that doesn't really qualify you to afford the crap that's being put on the market here for 600k, 800k, 1million here in Ontario.
We'd prefer to not spend a clean fortune and then slave for decades to pay off a mortgage.

ChrisBan

Bananas in Hamilton at the moment. House just sold for 712k that needs a gut job. Nice comparable that was totally move in ready in the same neighbourhood sold in fall 2020 for 800k. We bought our house in July 2020, house 2 doors down 2 months later sold for 15% more with one less bathroom and smaller finished attic space, otherwise identical. That was after a weekend of viewings lining up to go in.

Siouxie

Do you have a link to the gut job? I'd be interested to see it - I live in the Hammer too, the housing market has gone completely stupid the last year or two.. for a blue collar town, the GTA'ers moving here are pricing the locals out of the market.

scrubbedexpat091

2020 rental market survey was released by CMHC.

Vacancy rates in 2020 were up as were rents.

6.11% or 116,929 apartment units were in arrears out of a total universe of 1,912,290 units.

Not surprising Vancouver and Toronto where just 0.2% of the rental universe in Vancouver CMA and Toronto CMA are affordable to renter households in the first quintile.

By specific CMA's

Vancouver

Rent up 2% and vacancy rate up 2.6%
Purpose-built rental apartment vacancy rate increased from 1.1% in 2019 to 2.6% in 2020 due to higher supply and lower demand.
Prospective tenants face higher rents than longer-term tenants. The average asking rent for vacant units is 21.4% higher than the average rent paid for occupied units.
condominium apartments in long-term rental increased by 10.2%
Significant imbalances remain, posing challenges for lower income renters.

Toronto

Vacancy rate increased to 3.4%
Average rent up by 4.7%
Vacancy rates increased in all of the GTA but most significant in the downtown core.
Toronto had the highest share of rent arrears in Canada at 0.92%

Montreal

Vacancy rate increased to 2,7%
Average rent $891 up by 4.2%
Vacancy rate stayed stable in the suburbs but doubled on the island of Montreal.
Montreal average rent biggest increase since 2003

Victoria

Vacancy rate increased 2.2%
Average rents up by 3.3% at 1,275
Average apartment rent increased by 3.3%, faster than inflation and the provincially allowable rent increase.
Affordable rentals remain a challenge for lower income households needing suitable family friendly sized units

Edmonton

Vacancy rate increased to 7.2%
Average rents 1,153 up 0.8%
Despite increased in vacancy rate there was little change in average rents.

Calgary

Vacancy rate increased to 6.6%
Average rent 1,195 unchanged.
Vacancy rate was last seen in 2016

Saskatoon

Vacancy rate unchanged at 5.9%
Average rent 1,078 up by 2%

Regina

Vacancy rate unchanged at 7.5%
Average rent 1,062 up by 0.5%

Winnipeg

Vacancy rate increased to 3.8%
Average rent 1,107 up by 3%

Hamilton

Vacancy rate unchanged at 3.5%
Average rent 1,207 up by 5.4%
Greater number of existing tenants remained in their units in 2020.
Rent growth far exceeded the Ontario Rent Increase Guideline of 2.2%.


There are more CMA's listed on the website.

https://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/en/housi...-market-report






Looking at the list of CMA's the only one with an average rent that falls within the 30% guideline for affordable rent for our income is Quebec City, which for several reasons isn't an option for us.

Kind of surprised rents have continued to increase despite increases in vacancy rates, seems the market isn't healthy really, in theory higher vacancy rates should lead to stable or lowering rents.

ChrisBan

sorry the MLS versions are down now, if you can’t see the pics I’ll attach a couple. I was confusing it with another listing (I casually watch so many of these now that they all blur lol) this isn’t a complete gut job like the second link I’m providing, but still given the list price and the comparable close by that was more of a polished finish, the 712k price is a little silly

https://www.zolo.ca/hamilton-real-estate/132-cumberland-avenue

This is the one I was confusing it with:

https://www.zolo.ca/hamilton-real-es...09-kent-street

the 2nd one is for the location sure, but it sold for 615k, a comparable on the same street a few doors down in the summer sold for 690k.

To your point, it’s really just the last couple of years; the house 2 doors down the sellers tripled their money in the 6 years they owned it. We were talking to our neighbours about it all when that house went on the market. They’re in the 24th year on their mortgage for their house, they’re sitting on a gold mine now...but where can they go for what they have now? They’re ok, they’re happy staying there but I worry particularly about renters who get displaced by this because their rents are going up substantially when they have to move and reduces any hopes they have of home ownership here.

There’s another house down in St Clair that I’ve been watching, it originally went on the market for $1.07m, they dropped it to 970k in December and now it’s down to 940k. Whoever bought it has apparently done a garbage job on the Reno, cheap fittings etc to a point where it’s actually worse than it was before (saw the before and there was nothing wrong with it) but these out of town investors have been coming in thinking they can also turn a quick buck, making the situation worse. The ironic thing here is had this particular investor left it as it was with all the original features they probably would have had a line out the door with multiple offers without having to spend anything.

Coming from the GTA, we’ve played our part in this madness. We’d been completely priced out of the Toronto market so had no hope of home ownership there, and we knew after 4 years of condo living that we no longer wanted to live in a condo. We’d been looking at Hamilton since 2018, so I feel a little less guilty about it and the pandemic brought forward the move. Seems we got in just at the right time as we only had 1 other competing offer, we saw the place on a Saturday morning and had our offer in by Saturday afternoon.

Siouxie

According to this Cached version of 132 Cumberland, it was on sale on 5 Feb 2021 05:53:43 GMT. for $499,900 -
I don't altogether trust Zolo's figures, they have been inaccurate on occasion.

St Clair area was usually one to avoid - crack houses, break-ins, prossies etc., (now it's 'up and coming' LOL). I'm amazed at the prices there nowadays, I know people who sold houses twice the size of that one for less than 200k 10 years ago,

Around Kent / Homewood Avenue / Stanley Avenue area, houses were costing as much as $480,000 18 years ago, so I'm not quite as surprised at the prices around there. I lived in this house on Homewood for a short time 20 odd years ago, it's a lovely area.. Locke Street 'village' etc. One of the few areas 'down the hill' I would live in.


If you think that's 'grand' - look at this listing 8.8r Million, anyone? In Hamilton!! https://www.realtor.ca/real-estate/2...venue-hamilton

scrubbedexpat091

The housing affordability (both to rent and buy) issue in Canada appears to be growing and spreading like a virus.

Almost appears households making under 40,000 have almost 0 options left for affordable rentals and clearly priced out of many city's.

Almost wonder even with healthcare costs if its better to live in the US and pay 50% less rent, while the US has expensive city's as well, they have quite a good selection of mid range city's that Canada lacks.

Fer Canard

Are you saying you lived in that house pictured ? The huge, gothic one with the turret ?

I want a turret.

scrubbedexpat091

Well it's nice looking, but I am not sure it's almost 9 million dollar nice. If I had that level of wealth, I would need an ocean view for 8 million...