November 2012 B.C. Economic Fundamentals
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Further home price dips forecast in the Lower Mainland in 2013
Greater Vancouver's average home prices should drop nearly two per cent next year after falling 5.9 per cent in 2012, according to a new housing forecast from the B.C. Real Estate Association.
The weakness in the real estate market is projected to be softest in single detached houses next year, with a 2.7 per cent drop to $1.09 million in the average price paid in Greater Vancouver in 2013.
Read the full article here.
Greater Vancouver's average home prices should drop nearly two per cent next year after falling 5.9 per cent in 2012, according to a new housing forecast from the B.C. Real Estate Association.
The weakness in the real estate market is projected to be softest in single detached houses next year, with a 2.7 per cent drop to $1.09 million in the average price paid in Greater Vancouver in 2013.
Read the full article here.
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Northern B.C.'s growth benefits entire province
Northern British Columbia is one of the fastest-growing economic regions in North America. Capital investments related to transportation, advanced manufacturing, forestry, mining and oil and gas, utilities and public infrastructure development are driving employment growth in communities throughout the north. It may surprise some British Columbians that economic activity across the northern region, specifically natural resource development, is generating approximately 70 per cent of the provincial government's annual revenue. In other words, seven out of every 10 dollars are generated in northern BC. As a result, continued economic growth in the north is crucial, not only for the health of the provincial economy, but also for the government's ability to provide public services, such as health care and education while maintaining a balanced budget.
Read the full article here.
Northern British Columbia is one of the fastest-growing economic regions in North America. Capital investments related to transportation, advanced manufacturing, forestry, mining and oil and gas, utilities and public infrastructure development are driving employment growth in communities throughout the north. It may surprise some British Columbians that economic activity across the northern region, specifically natural resource development, is generating approximately 70 per cent of the provincial government's annual revenue. In other words, seven out of every 10 dollars are generated in northern BC. As a result, continued economic growth in the north is crucial, not only for the health of the provincial economy, but also for the government's ability to provide public services, such as health care and education while maintaining a balanced budget.
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Vancouver city council approves Vancouver 2040 transportation plan
Vancouver City council has passed a plan that would mean far fewer vehicles in the city and could see at least two-thirds of trips into town made by foot, bike or transit by the year 2040.
Mayor Gregor Robertson says that would boost the economy and move Vancouver towards its so-called greenest city targets.
About 44 per cent of the population already walks, bikes or uses transit to get around the city.
Read the full article here.
Vancouver City council has passed a plan that would mean far fewer vehicles in the city and could see at least two-thirds of trips into town made by foot, bike or transit by the year 2040.
Mayor Gregor Robertson says that would boost the economy and move Vancouver towards its so-called greenest city targets.
About 44 per cent of the population already walks, bikes or uses transit to get around the city.
Read the full article here.
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BC home sales recover in 2013
Home sales in B.C. are expected to fall overall this year but will see a significant increase in 2013, according to a B.C. Real Estate Association (BCREA) report issued Friday.
The BCREA`s 2012 Fourth Quarter Housing Forecast stated that 2012 sales are forecasted to decline by 9.8% to 69,200 units, compared with 2011. But it forecasts that this will be followed by an increase of 8.3% in 2013, with expected sales of 74,920 units.
`Despite stronger consumer demand in the Interior, B.C. home sales will fall short of last year`s total,` said BCREA chief economist Cameron Muir.
Read the full article here.
Home sales in B.C. are expected to fall overall this year but will see a significant increase in 2013, according to a B.C. Real Estate Association (BCREA) report issued Friday.
The BCREA`s 2012 Fourth Quarter Housing Forecast stated that 2012 sales are forecasted to decline by 9.8% to 69,200 units, compared with 2011. But it forecasts that this will be followed by an increase of 8.3% in 2013, with expected sales of 74,920 units.
`Despite stronger consumer demand in the Interior, B.C. home sales will fall short of last year`s total,` said BCREA chief economist Cameron Muir.
Read the full article here.
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BC loses 11,000 jobs in October
OTTAWA - B.C. suffered the biggest setback in job loss, while little changed in other provinces in October, according to Statistics Canada.
The federal agency says the number of workers declined in the province by 11,000 last month. Despite the loss, the unemployment rate fell 0.3 percentage points to 6.7 per cent, the agency said, as fewer people participated in the labour force.
Overall, the country's unemployment rate remained unchanged at 7.4 per cent, as the economy added a meagre 1,800 jobs.
Read the full article here.
OTTAWA - B.C. suffered the biggest setback in job loss, while little changed in other provinces in October, according to Statistics Canada.
The federal agency says the number of workers declined in the province by 11,000 last month. Despite the loss, the unemployment rate fell 0.3 percentage points to 6.7 per cent, the agency said, as fewer people participated in the labour force.
Overall, the country's unemployment rate remained unchanged at 7.4 per cent, as the economy added a meagre 1,800 jobs.
Read the full article here.
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Kamloops weathers faltering economy
The region`s diverse economy can be thanked for 1,100 new jobs in October and a two-per-cent drop in unemployment in the last year, the head of the Kamloops Chamber of Commerce said Thursday.
And Maurice Hindle believes those numbers, released with the province`s monthly jobs update, prove the city`s economy is one of the strongest in B.C. and Canada
Read the full article here.
The region`s diverse economy can be thanked for 1,100 new jobs in October and a two-per-cent drop in unemployment in the last year, the head of the Kamloops Chamber of Commerce said Thursday.
And Maurice Hindle believes those numbers, released with the province`s monthly jobs update, prove the city`s economy is one of the strongest in B.C. and Canada
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B.C. hard hit with Canada's largest job loss
Canada's recent strong jobs performance slowed to a crawl in October, as the economy managed a meagre 1,800 new jobs, not enough to nudge the unemployment rate off 7.4 per cent.
Regionally, the biggest loss came in B.C., which reported 10,900 fewer job last month. In contrast, the biggest gain was in Quebec, which saw 20,100 jobs added.
Read the full article here.
Canada's recent strong jobs performance slowed to a crawl in October, as the economy managed a meagre 1,800 new jobs, not enough to nudge the unemployment rate off 7.4 per cent.
Regionally, the biggest loss came in B.C., which reported 10,900 fewer job last month. In contrast, the biggest gain was in Quebec, which saw 20,100 jobs added.
Read the full article here.
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Positive signs for Fraser Valley housing market
The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board (FVREB) processed 1,053 sales on its Multiple Listing Service (MLSÂ
in October, a decrease of 8 per cent compared to the 1,139 sales during October last year however, a 23 per cent increase compared to September.
Scott Olson is the president of the Board. `This is a marked improvement over September. Our sales increased at the same time as our inventory dropped improving our supply‐demand conditions.
`Although we remain in a buyer`s market, it moves us in the direction we want to go, which is closer to balance.`
Read the full article here.
The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board (FVREB) processed 1,053 sales on its Multiple Listing Service (MLSÂ
in October, a decrease of 8 per cent compared to the 1,139 sales during October last year however, a 23 per cent increase compared to September.Scott Olson is the president of the Board. `This is a marked improvement over September. Our sales increased at the same time as our inventory dropped improving our supply‐demand conditions.
`Although we remain in a buyer`s market, it moves us in the direction we want to go, which is closer to balance.`
Read the full article here.
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Housing construction, sales, and price forecasts are stable, CMHC reports
Stability is the name of the game in B.C. real estate, according to the latest housing market forecast from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
CMHC`s fourth quarter Housing Market Outlook calls for a slight increase in housing starts and sales numbers with a slight decrease in average prices.
`In 2013, multiple-family housing starts are forecast to level off, while single-detached home starts are forecast to rise but remain below their ten-year average,` explained Carol Frketich, CMHC`s B.C. regional economist. `Actual housing starts so far in 2012 have been in line with CMHC`s forecast. This year, growth was concentrated in multiple-family housing with a similar level of single-detached starts to 2011.`
Read the full article here.
Stability is the name of the game in B.C. real estate, according to the latest housing market forecast from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
CMHC`s fourth quarter Housing Market Outlook calls for a slight increase in housing starts and sales numbers with a slight decrease in average prices.
`In 2013, multiple-family housing starts are forecast to level off, while single-detached home starts are forecast to rise but remain below their ten-year average,` explained Carol Frketich, CMHC`s B.C. regional economist. `Actual housing starts so far in 2012 have been in line with CMHC`s forecast. This year, growth was concentrated in multiple-family housing with a similar level of single-detached starts to 2011.`
Read the full article here.
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Online rental database set to launch in Vancouver in 2013
An online database of Vancouver rental properties with bylaw violations is set to go live early next year.
Prompted by a motion approved by city council last January, the initiative is intended to provide renters with more information about properties around the city, according to Vancouver`s director of licences and inspections, Will Johnston.
`There`s two objectives to this: one is to motivate property owners and landlords to keep their properties in good order for renters, and also assist renters by giving them more information so they can make more informed decisions about rental properties in the city,` Johnston told the Straight by phone.
Read the full article here.
An online database of Vancouver rental properties with bylaw violations is set to go live early next year.
Prompted by a motion approved by city council last January, the initiative is intended to provide renters with more information about properties around the city, according to Vancouver`s director of licences and inspections, Will Johnston.
`There`s two objectives to this: one is to motivate property owners and landlords to keep their properties in good order for renters, and also assist renters by giving them more information so they can make more informed decisions about rental properties in the city,` Johnston told the Straight by phone.
Read the full article here.
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Home sales in Vancouver may hit freezing points this winter
Marcus Arkan, CTO of Syndicate Mortgages, has recently reviewed the current statistics from housing markets across Canada and presented a detailed analysis of the chilling Vancouver market. According to Mr. Arkan, Vancouver can be considered one of the markets most severely affected by the rules changes introduced by Mr. Flaherty earlier this year. In contrast, figures from the Canadian Real Estate Association, as reported by the Wall Street Journal, show that home prices have elevated in two of the other major metropolitans, Calgary and Toronto.
According to CREA, the average home price in Vancouver has dropped 11% from April 2011 when the prices peaked at $815,252. Currently, the average home price in Vancouver was recorded to be around $372,544. At this point, Vancouver still remains one of the most expensive metropolitans. However, Mr. Arkan states that dropping sales may change the situation sooner than expected.
Read the full article here.
Marcus Arkan, CTO of Syndicate Mortgages, has recently reviewed the current statistics from housing markets across Canada and presented a detailed analysis of the chilling Vancouver market. According to Mr. Arkan, Vancouver can be considered one of the markets most severely affected by the rules changes introduced by Mr. Flaherty earlier this year. In contrast, figures from the Canadian Real Estate Association, as reported by the Wall Street Journal, show that home prices have elevated in two of the other major metropolitans, Calgary and Toronto.
According to CREA, the average home price in Vancouver has dropped 11% from April 2011 when the prices peaked at $815,252. Currently, the average home price in Vancouver was recorded to be around $372,544. At this point, Vancouver still remains one of the most expensive metropolitans. However, Mr. Arkan states that dropping sales may change the situation sooner than expected.
Read the full article here.
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Broadway rapid transit key component of Vancouver's 2040 transportation plan
Last week, Vancouver city councillors passed the sweeping 30-year transportation plan that aims to see 66 per cent of all trips in the city made by foot, bike or transit by 2040.
Central to the plan is a proposed rapid transit line along the busy Broadway Corridor. But of course the biggest question is where funding for such a major project would come from.
According to a recent article in the Globe and Mail, Vancouver doesn`t have an alternative in mind to reach the two-thirds goal if the Broadway line doesn`t get built.
`We cannot reach our goals without rapid transit through central Broadway,` Vancouver transportation director Jerry Dobrovolny told the Globe and Mail last week. `Our long-term needs require SkyTrain through central Broadway.`
Read the full article here.
Last week, Vancouver city councillors passed the sweeping 30-year transportation plan that aims to see 66 per cent of all trips in the city made by foot, bike or transit by 2040.
Central to the plan is a proposed rapid transit line along the busy Broadway Corridor. But of course the biggest question is where funding for such a major project would come from.
According to a recent article in the Globe and Mail, Vancouver doesn`t have an alternative in mind to reach the two-thirds goal if the Broadway line doesn`t get built.
`We cannot reach our goals without rapid transit through central Broadway,` Vancouver transportation director Jerry Dobrovolny told the Globe and Mail last week. `Our long-term needs require SkyTrain through central Broadway.`
Read the full article here.
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BC unions to go to court over Chinese miners
Two major unions of the Canadian province of British Columbia have applied to have the Federal Court overturn a decision to allow about 200 foreign workers work at HD Mining Ltd.`s planned Murray River underground coal mine near Tumbler Ridge.
The application to the Federal Court of Canada comes amidst ongoing debate over the news that a group of firms, mostly Chinese-owned, will bring about 2,000 Chinese workers to four projects in B.C. to fill jobs they say Canadians aren't qualified to take.
Mark Olsen, business manager of the Labourers Union, objected to that assumption.
Read the full article here.
Two major unions of the Canadian province of British Columbia have applied to have the Federal Court overturn a decision to allow about 200 foreign workers work at HD Mining Ltd.`s planned Murray River underground coal mine near Tumbler Ridge.
The application to the Federal Court of Canada comes amidst ongoing debate over the news that a group of firms, mostly Chinese-owned, will bring about 2,000 Chinese workers to four projects in B.C. to fill jobs they say Canadians aren't qualified to take.
Mark Olsen, business manager of the Labourers Union, objected to that assumption.
Read the full article here.
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Vancouver housing market outlook
According to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's (CMHC) Fall 2012 Housing Market Outlook Vancouver/Abbotsford Report, housing starts in the Vancouver CMA are forecast to remain flat in 2013, following a projected increase in 2012.
"Home builders are expected to maintain a steady level of residential construction, particularly multiple-family projects, in response to stable economic conditions and favourable construction costs," explained Robyn Adamache, CMHC's Senior Market Analyst.
Housing starts in the Vancouver CMA are forecast to total 19,000 homes in 2012 and 19,100 homes in 2013. Homebuyer preference for multiple-family homes such as apartments and town homes rather than single-detached homes will bolster multiple-family home starts over the forecast period. Housing starts in the Abbotsford-Mission CMA are forecast to reach 420 and 480 in 2012 and 2013, respectively.
The resale market in Vancouver is forecast to end 2012 with market conditions favouring buyers but the market is expected to return to balanced territory in 2013 as resale activity picks up. Sales of existing homes are forecast to decline to 28,500 in 2012 before recovering to 30,000 in 2013. Multiple-family residences are forecast to gain market share over single-detached homes based on their relative price. This shift in sales is forecast to dampen growth in the average MLS[sup]Â(1)[/sup] price, which is forecast to moderate to $733,500 in 2012 and $730,000 in 2013 for the Greater Vancouver Real Estate Board area. The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board area is forecast to exhibit a similar trend, though not as pronounced.
Read the full article here.
According to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's (CMHC) Fall 2012 Housing Market Outlook Vancouver/Abbotsford Report, housing starts in the Vancouver CMA are forecast to remain flat in 2013, following a projected increase in 2012.
"Home builders are expected to maintain a steady level of residential construction, particularly multiple-family projects, in response to stable economic conditions and favourable construction costs," explained Robyn Adamache, CMHC's Senior Market Analyst.
Housing starts in the Vancouver CMA are forecast to total 19,000 homes in 2012 and 19,100 homes in 2013. Homebuyer preference for multiple-family homes such as apartments and town homes rather than single-detached homes will bolster multiple-family home starts over the forecast period. Housing starts in the Abbotsford-Mission CMA are forecast to reach 420 and 480 in 2012 and 2013, respectively.
The resale market in Vancouver is forecast to end 2012 with market conditions favouring buyers but the market is expected to return to balanced territory in 2013 as resale activity picks up. Sales of existing homes are forecast to decline to 28,500 in 2012 before recovering to 30,000 in 2013. Multiple-family residences are forecast to gain market share over single-detached homes based on their relative price. This shift in sales is forecast to dampen growth in the average MLS[sup]Â(1)[/sup] price, which is forecast to moderate to $733,500 in 2012 and $730,000 in 2013 for the Greater Vancouver Real Estate Board area. The Fraser Valley Real Estate Board area is forecast to exhibit a similar trend, though not as pronounced.
Read the full article here.
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October 2012 BC housing starts
VICTORIA, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Nov. 8, 2012) - Housing starts in British Columbia were trending at 27,722 units in October, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend is a six month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR)[sup]1[/sup] of housing starts. The stand-alone monthly SAAR was 26,788 units in October, down from 27,184 units in September.
"New home construction maintained a steady pace in October compared to September but was below trend due to moderation in multiple-family housing starts," said Carol Frketich, CMHC's British Columbia Regional Economist.
Read the full article here.
VICTORIA, BRITISH COLUMBIA--(Marketwire - Nov. 8, 2012) - Housing starts in British Columbia were trending at 27,722 units in October, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The trend is a six month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR)[sup]1[/sup] of housing starts. The stand-alone monthly SAAR was 26,788 units in October, down from 27,184 units in September.
"New home construction maintained a steady pace in October compared to September but was below trend due to moderation in multiple-family housing starts," said Carol Frketich, CMHC's British Columbia Regional Economist.
Read the full article here.
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Fraser Valley farm values in a league of their own
It`s not just residential real estate that`s increasingly out of reach for many moving to the West Coast.
B.C.`s agricultural sector is suffering from the same effects of escalating property values.
Due to its relative scarcity, the high-value crops local farms can support, and development pressures including the purchase of farms to enable the construction of mega-homes, the value of Fraser Valley farmland has been pushed into a league of its own.
Read the full article here.
It`s not just residential real estate that`s increasingly out of reach for many moving to the West Coast.
B.C.`s agricultural sector is suffering from the same effects of escalating property values.
Due to its relative scarcity, the high-value crops local farms can support, and development pressures including the purchase of farms to enable the construction of mega-homes, the value of Fraser Valley farmland has been pushed into a league of its own.
Read the full article here.
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First-time buyers shake up real estate market doldrums in Kelowna
It may be difficult to get a fix on the local real estate market given the high number of prognosticating, so-called experts.
But from the point of view of one local realtor, there have been improvements, and he has the numbers to show a growing contingent of first-time buyers are the reason why.
On the heels of a new Re/Max report focused on new buyers, realtor Cliff Shillington contended a lower price point and a looming hike in interest rates created a stir among those who were previously frozen out of the market, sparking some much needed market momentum
Read the full article here.
It may be difficult to get a fix on the local real estate market given the high number of prognosticating, so-called experts.
But from the point of view of one local realtor, there have been improvements, and he has the numbers to show a growing contingent of first-time buyers are the reason why.
On the heels of a new Re/Max report focused on new buyers, realtor Cliff Shillington contended a lower price point and a looming hike in interest rates created a stir among those who were previously frozen out of the market, sparking some much needed market momentum
Read the full article here.
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Develop your own brand, Bob Rennie tells New Westminster crowd
If New Westminster can do a good job rebranding itself, the city will be attractive to young homebuyers, says renowned Vancouver condo marketer Bob Rennie.
The owner of Rennie Marketing Systems made the comments in a keynote speech at a one-day New Westminster economic forum, titled The New New West held at the River Market on Thursday.
Read the full article here.
If New Westminster can do a good job rebranding itself, the city will be attractive to young homebuyers, says renowned Vancouver condo marketer Bob Rennie.
The owner of Rennie Marketing Systems made the comments in a keynote speech at a one-day New Westminster economic forum, titled The New New West held at the River Market on Thursday.
Read the full article here.