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Thursday, February 14th, 2013
Archive for the ‘Real Estate News’ Category
Kitchener-Waterloo Home Sales Maintain Steady Pace
Thursday, February 7th, 2013By Kitchener-Waterloo Association of REALTORS® (KWAR) admin •February 6th, 2013
KITCHENER-WATERLOO, ON (February 5, 2013) –– Residential sales through the Multiple Listing Service (MLS® System) of the Kitchener-Waterloo Association of REALTORS® (KWAR) were down slightly in January compared to the same month last year.
There were a total of 337 residential properties sold last month, a 2.3 percent decrease compared to the same month last year, and a 23.9 percent increase from December 2012.
“January’s sales were in line with the 10-year average for our area,” Dietmar Sommerfeld, President of the KWAR points out.
January’s residential sales included 237 detached homes (up 6.8 percent compared to January 2012) 49 condos (down 34.7 percent), 24 semis (up 14.3 percent), and 26 freehold townhouses (up 4 percent).
Residential sales between $250 and $349,999 were strong showing a 32 percent (157 vs. 119 units) increase compared to January last year.
The average sale price of all homes sold in January increased half a percent to $319,283 from the same time last year. Single detached homes sold for an average price of $354,540, a decrease of 2.6 percent compared to January 2012. In the condominium market the average sale price in January was $212,408, a 4.7 percent decrease compared to the same month a year ago.
The KWAR cautions average sale price information can be useful in establishing long term trends, but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The average sale price is based on the total dollar volume of all residential properties sold.
Consumers uncertain about current market conditions should work with a REALTOR® to develop an effective selling strategy. If you are buying, a REALTOR® will negotiate on your behalf and guide you through every step. A REALTOR® understands the local market and must, by law, look after your best interests.
Home Sales In Kitchener-Waterloo Steady In 2012
Monday, January 7th, 2013By Kitchener-Waterloo Association of REALTORS® (KWAR) admin •January 4th, 2013
KITCHENER-WATERLOO, ON (January 4, 2013) –– There were a total of 6,212 residential sales through the Multiple Listing System (MLS®) of the Kitchener-Waterloo Association of REALTORS® (KWAR) in 2012, a slight decline of 0.7 percent compared to 2011’s year-end results.
Coming off two consecutive months of strong housing activity in October and November, fourth quarter home sales were practically on par with last year’s results. A total of 1,268 homes sold through the last 3 months of 2012, 6 transactions more than the same period in 2011.
Dollar volume of all residential real estate sold last year increased 2.6 percent to $ 1,931,345,147 compared with 2011, reflecting the steady price gains realized in 2012.
The average sale price of all homes sold in 2012 increased 3.3 percent to $311,006. Single detached homes sold for an average price of $353,888 in 2012, an increase of 3.2 percent. In the condominium market the average sale price in 2012 was $213,520, a 4 percent increase compared to the previous year.
“Residential sales activity remained fairly steady throughout 2012,” says Dietmar Sommerfeld, president of the KWAR. “In July the government put in place tighter mortgage lending rules, which is perhaps partly responsible for the slight easing of demand we saw, but overall the Kitchener-Waterloo housing market continues to show its stability.”
Home sales in 2012 included 4,070 detached homes (down 1.2 percent from 2011), 1,200 condos (down 0.1 percent) 486 semis (down 2.4 percent), and 400 townhouses (up 7.8 percent).
Sommerfeld says that Waterloo region benefits from a very diverse and dynamic economy that will continue to support a healthy housing market and consumer appetite for home ownership in 2012.
The KWAR cautions average sale price information can be useful in establishing long term trends, but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The average sale price is based on the total dollar volume of all residential properties sold.
Consumers uncertain about current market conditions should work with a REALTOR® to develop an effective selling strategy. If you are buying, a REALTOR® will negotiate on your behalf and guide you through every step. A REALTOR® understands the local market and must, by law, look after your best interests.
Happy New Year!
Monday, December 31st, 2012We would like to personally wish each and every one of you a Happy & Prosperous New Year.
May the new year of 2013, fill your homes with joy, your hearts with love & your lives with laughter.
GTA new home sales fall 38%
Thursday, December 20th, 2012November condo sales in the GTA fell 59 per cent from the same month last year
DAVID COOPER/TORONTO STAR
By Susan Pigg | Wed Dec 19 2012While all eyes were looking skyward for fallout from the GTA’s softening condo market in November, sales of new single-family homes plummeted to lows not seen since the recession, as prices soared almost 17 per cent year over year, according to a new study.
Total new home and condo sales to the end of November this year were 16 per cent below the long-term average across the GTA. But the biggest decline — some 38 per cent — has been in the sale of detached, semi-detached and townhouses, according to a report released Wednesday by market research firm RealNet Canada.
Condo sales were down just seven per cent over historic averages for November — although they fell a whopping 59 per cent compared to the same month in 2011, the tail end of what was record year of 28,000 new condo sales across the GTA.
Three new condo launches in particular buoyed highrise sales numbers this November, says RealNet, led by Tridel’s Ten York project in the waterfront area, which is considered an important bellwether of the softening market. Some 85 per cent — 596 of 694 — of its preconstruction units put up for sale Nov. 3 sold within the month, says Tridel vice president Jim Ritchie.
The RealNet study provides some of the best evidence yet of the growing gap between what’s become, just since 2011, the tale of two housing markets across the GTA — new condos and new low-rise homes, which includes detached, semi-detached and townhouses.
The average price of low-rise homes hit a record $625,473 in November, while new condos averaged $437,264, says RealNet.
While the gap between houses and condos has traditionally averaged about $78,000, it has soared to $188,000, largely just in the last 18 months, says George Carras, president of RealNet, which provides new housing market analysis for the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD.)
“Sales of low-rise homes in November were the worst on record next to the gloom of November 2008, when we weren’t sure if the world’s financial system was going to hold together or not,” says Carras, citing scarcity for the fact that prices soared to the point that they, combined with tighter mortgage rules, pushed down sales in November.
The scarcity includes a shortage of develop-ready land for new subdivisions caused by a lack of municipal roads, sewers and other infrastructure, as well as the fact that thousands of hectacres of future-growth areas within the provincial greenbelt are tied up in disputes at the Ontario Municipal Board, says Carras.
That supply pressure, at the same time the GTA is seeing a “mini baby boom” among echo boomers, could push up new home prices an average 15 per cent a year, says Bryan Tuckey, president and CEO of BILD.
“In Vancouver, the gap has grown to $700,000 between a condo and a detached house. Vancouver is about 15 years ahead of Toronto in terms of the maturity of its intensification policies and their impacts,” says Carras.
“That city is between the water and the mountains. Here we’re between the water and policy mountains and the same impact is starting to show.”
But John Stillich, former executive director of the Sustainable Urban Development Association, says too many developers remain fixated on the two extremes of new housing — high- and low-rise — instead of a new middle ground of two- or three-storey housing types that allows GTA residents to “live sustainably on the lands that we do have.”
“It’s not about a scarcity of land. It’s about how you use the land. The development industry could probably build twice as many ground-related houses if they started thinking in a completely different way.”
Real Estate Association Cuts Canadian Home Sales Forecast for 2012 and 2013
Monday, December 17th, 2012The Canadian Real Estate Association is forecasting that house sales will decline two per cent in 2013
The Canadian Press Mon Dec 17 2012 11:49:00
OTTAWA – The Canadian Real Estate Association cut its sales forecast for this year and next on Monday as it said slower sales in the wake of tighter lending rules this summer have remained.
The industry association said now expects home sales this year to slip 0.5 per cent compared with 2011 to about 456,300.
That compared with a forecast in September that called for sales this year to rise 1.9 per cent to 466,900 units.
The association also said it now expects sales next year to drop two per cent to 447,400 compared with earlier expectations for a drop of 1.9 per cent to 457,800 in 2013.
“Annual sales in 2012 reflect a stronger profile prior to recent mortgage rule changes followed by weaker activity following their implementation,” said Gregory Klump, the association’s chief economist.
“By contrast, forecast sales in 2013 reflect an improvement from levels this summer in the immediate wake of mortgage rule changes. Even so, sales in most provinces next year are expected to remain down from levels posted prior to the most recent changes to mortgage regulations.”
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty moved in July to tighten mortgage rules for the fourth time in as many years in order to discourage those most at risk of becoming over-leveraged. Flaherty made mortgage payments more expensive by dropping the maximum amortization period to 25 years.
The association said the average price for 2012 is expected to be $363,900, up 0.3 per cent compared with a September forecast of $365,000, up 0.6 per cent.
For 2013, the association said it expects prices to gain 0.3 per cent to average $365,100. That compared with earlier expectations of a drop of one tenth of one per cent to $364,500 in 2013.
The downgrade for the outlook for the year came as home sales edged down 1.7 per cent month over month in November and were back where they stood in August.
The decrease followed a drop of about one-tenth of a per cent in September.
Actual, or non-seasonally adjusted sales, were down 11.9 per cent from November 2011 while the national average home price in November was $356,687, off 0.8 per cent from November 2011.
Sales were down on a year-over-year basis in three of every four of all local markets in November, including most large urban centres. Calgary stood out as an exception, with sales up 10.6 per cent from a year ago.
Kitchener and Waterloo also recorded a sales increase in November, with sales rising 7.3 per cent. Sales in Cambridge fell 14 per cent.
Toronto, Montreal and Vancouver contributed most to the small decline at the national level.
A total of 432,861 homes have traded hands over the MLS system so far this year, down 0.2 per cent from levels reported over the first 11 months of 2011 and 0.8 per cent below the 10-year average for the period.
The MLS Home Price Index, which is not affected changes in the mix of sales, showed prices up 3.5 per cent nationally on a year-over-year basis in November.
However, it was the seventh consecutive month in which the year-over-year gain shrank and marked the slowest rate of increase since May 2011.
The MLS HPI rose fastest in Regina, up 11.6 per cent year over year in November, though down from 13 per cent in November.
Among other markets, the HPI was up 4.6 per cent year over year in Toronto, 1.9 per cent in Montreal and 7.1 per cent in Calgary. In Greater Vancouver, the HPI was down 1.7 per cent year over year.
Residential Sales up in November
Wednesday, December 5th, 2012By Kitchener-Waterloo Association of REALTORS® (KWAR) admin •December 5th, 2012
KITCHENER-WATERLOO, ON (November 5, 2012) –– Residential real estate sales through the Multiple Listing System (MLS®) of the Kitchener-Waterloo Association of REALTORS® (KWAR) were up 7.3 percent last month compared to November of last year.
There were 486 residential properties sold in November, bringing the year-to-date total to 5,931, just nine more home sales than during the first 11 months of 2011. The total value of homes sold last month was $151 million, up 11.3 percent over last year.
“In terms of total unit sales, it was a better than average November” says Dietmar Sommerfeld, president of the KWAR. “Our figures show that residential transactions in November were 6.8 percent above the previous 5 year-average.”
November’s residential sales included 318 detached homes (up 8.9 percent), 33 semi-detached (down 17.5 percent), 26 townhouses (up 4 percent), and 103 condominium units (up 14.4 percent).
There was a jump in the number of home selling in the $500,000 to $750,000 price range — 41 homes compared to 23 in November of last year. This put some upward pressure on the average price range.
The average sale price of all homes sold in November was $311,604, compared with $300,447 a year ago, an increase of 3.7 percent. Single detached homes sold for an average price of $359,439, compared with 346,044 last year, up 3.9 percent.
The median price for all homes sold in November was $287,750 compared with $275,000, an increase of 4.6 percent. Single detached homes sold for a median price of $326,500 compared with $315,000 last year, up 3.7 percent.
Sommerfeld says that despite talk of cooling markets in some Canadian cities, continued low borrowing costs, confidence in the local real estate market, and a well-diversified local economy are keeping Kitchener-Waterloo’s housing market steady and stable.
Waterloo Region Housing Market Expected to Pick up Later Next Year
Wednesday, November 28th, 2012The Waterloo Region can expect “slow but steady” growth into 2013
Construction crews work on a multi-unit housing project on Cedar Street, near Church Street, in Kitchener.
Rose Simone, Record staff
WATERLOO REGION — It has been a year of doom and gloom, with Europe in a recession, the United States facing a “fiscal cliff” and tighter mortgage rules putting a damper on housing market in cities like Toronto and Vancouver.
But Waterloo Region’s housing market is doing relatively well, a housing market outlook conference was told Thursday.
The market is somewhat softer than it was at the beginning of the year, but should pick up a bit later next year, analysts from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. told real estate agents and home builders at the event at Bingemans.
“I think we have seen, especially in the resale market, the slowest part,” said Erica McLerie, an analyst with the corporation. “The new mortgage rules were introduced in July, so that has already impacted the markets, and as we move through 2013, especially with employment growth, that will support housing demand.”
The corporation expects that 6,450 resale homes will change hands in 2013 while 2,900 new homes will be built. Those numbers are a bit lower compared to this year, but the good news is that prices in Waterloo Region should remain steady, instead of declining, as is happening in other markets, McLerie said.
Ed Heese, another analyst with the corporation, said the U.S. economy is turning the corner with growing consumer confidence and rising house prices. Vehicle sales in the U.S. are rising, which will help out manufacturing and the employment picture in Waterloo Region, he said.
As a result, he expects “slow but steady” improvement in the local housing market next year.
The corporation also presented research about the home features that have the biggest impact on home prices. A finished basement has very little impact on price, said McLerie. But homes with green features, central air and those located close to post-secondary institutions are the ones that generate higher prices.
The corporation stressed, however, that construction of single detached homes is slowing down, while demand for apartments and condominiums is rising.
There were fewer couples with children in the 2011 census compared to the 2006 census, and that’s the group that is most likely to buy single-detached homes, McLerie said.
An increase in the number of immigrants in the region and a growing boomer population that has more middle-aged people living alone means there will be greater demand for apartments, she said.
Most of the apartments are being built in downtown areas, in keeping with Waterloo Region’s strategy of trying to intensify core areas, McLerie said.
A concern for the long-term future of the housing market is the 14 per cent unemployment rate for young people. That is slowing down the formation of new households, she said.
“According to the Statistics Canada census, about 42 per cent of people ages 20 to 29 are still living in their parental homes and unless they get good jobs they won’t be able to move into housing of their own, whether in the rental market or the home buying market.”
When can you walk away from a house deal?
Tuesday, November 13th, 2012Be sure you fully understand the details before closing a real estate deal
By Mark Weisleder | moneyville.ca article
Putting your home up for sale can be a tough decision, but once made and the ball is rolling, you may not be able to change your mind. Last week’s column about a $3.3 million home sale that went wrong for the seller prompted several related questions from readers.
Here they are:
Is there a buyer’s remorse period in Ontario?
If you are buying a new condominium from a builder, you have 10 days to change your mind. You do not need a reason. This does not apply if you buy a new house from a builder and does not apply if you are buying a resale home or condominium. Why condos only? The clause is included in the Condominium Act.
Can a buyer sign an offer and then walk away?
The Ontario real estate contract gives a buyer 24 hours to pay the deposit, once the offer is accepted by the seller. The buyer cannot just change their mind or they can be sued.
For example, the buyer offers $300,000 for a house which is accepted. The buyer changes his mind and doesn’t pay the deposit and walks away from the deal. The seller resells the property for $275,000. They can still sue the first buyer for the difference, or $25,000.
Can buyers use conditional clauses as escape hatches?
Most real estate contracts are conditional on the buyer being able to get a mortgage and being satisfied with a home inspection. Other conditions include being satisfied with a condominium status certificate when buying a resale condo.
Many buyers think these conditions give them the right to just change their minds. It is not that easy. The case law has demonstrated that buyers must try and satisfy any condition in good faith. This means that you need a legitimate reason why you found the home inspection report or condominium status certificate unsatisfactory.
Who gets the deposit when buyers change their mind?
In most cases, the deposit is held by the seller’s real estate brokerage, in trust. Under the law, when a deal breaks down, the brokerage cannot pay the deposit to anyone without either a mutual release or direction signed by both the buyer and the seller, or an order of the court. As such, when deals do not close, if there is no agreement, the deposit can be locked up for a long time, and the buyer will not have access to it to make an offer on another property.
Is there a “legal” way for a buyer to get out of a deal?
It depends. If for example, there was a right on your title for the City to access 20 per cent of your property for any reason, known as an easement, and that was not disclosed to the buyer, they can usually cancel the agreement without penalty. However, there have been other cases that indicate if there is a problem with a city work order or title problem for which the seller can obtain title insurance to protect the buyer, then the buyer cannot refuse to close. A buyer can also cancel if there has been substantial damage to the property before closing, such as a flood that was not repaired. You can’t refuse to close if the oven is not working.
The better answer in all of these situations is to be very careful and serious before you make any decision to buy a home. Changing your mind later can be very expensive.
Mark Weisleder is a Toronto real estate lawyer. Contact him at mark@markweisleder.com
Kitchener-Waterloo Home sales up in October
Monday, November 5th, 2012By Kitchener-Waterloo Association of REALTORS® (KWAR) admin • November 5th, 2012
KITCHENER-WATERLOO, ON (October 5, 2012) –– Area home sales rebounded in October, with 500 homes trading through the Multiple Listing System (MLS®) of the Kitchener-Waterloo Association of REALTORS® (KWAR). Residential sales in October are up 11.6 percent compared to last month’s results, and increased 4.6 percent from October 2011.
October’s residential sales included 322 detached homes (up 1.6 percent), 48 semi-detached (up 54.8), 33 townhouses (up 32 percent), and 92 condominium units (down 7.1 percent).
The average sales price of all residential sales in October was $302,656 a 1.5 percent decrease from the average sale price recorded in October 2011. Single detached properties sold for an average price of $339,592, a 3.8 percent decrease relative to one year ago.
Average prices for townhouses and condominium property types both increased last month, with townhouses gaining 10.7 percent to $287,133, and condominium units increasing 7 percent to $215,831 compared to the same month last year.
“The overall average residential price decreased slightly last month, which is not a surprise,” says Sara Hill, President of the KWAR, “In the past two months the average sale price was showing fairly strong gains even as sales were slowing, so I see this as a slight correction.”
On a year-to-date basis, residential home sales are practically on par with 2011 – with a total of 5,443 sales recorded. The average price of all residential properties sold year-to date is $310,739, an increase of 3.2 percent over 2011.
“The Kitchener-Waterloo housing market continues to show both long-term strength and stability” says Hill. “Shifts in average prices are normal, and home buyers and sellers should work with their REALTOR® to understand the market and set their expectations accordingly.”
Hill reminds consumers to use caution when looking at averages. The average sale price is based on the total dollar volume of all residential properties sold. Average sale price information can be useful in establishing long term trends, but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value.
