December 2011 Ontario Economic Fundamentals

[Ally]

Some condos have rental restrictions





When I was condo hunting earlier this year, a big consideration was whether I should buy in a complex that allowed rentals.







Condo buildings have bylaws that might restrict whether you can rent your unit out, so it pays to check the bylaws carefully before you make an offer.







Rachelle Berube, President of Toronto's LandlordRescue.ca, believes that for owners who don`t intend on renting, a building that has rental restrictions, or does not allow rentals at all, might be best.







Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

GTA realtors report mid-month resale housing market figures





TORONTO, December 16, 2011 -- Greater Toronto REALTORSÂ reported 2,699 transactions through the TorontoMLSÂ system during the first 14 days of December. This result was 11 per cent above the number of transactions recorded during the same period in 2010. On a year-to-date basis, sales amounted to 87,407 ` up 4.3 per cent compared to 2010.







`We have had the second best year on record for transactions under the current Toronto Real Estate Board boundaries. Households have continued to take advantage of affordable home ownership options across the diverse array of housing types available in the Greater Toronto Area,` said TREB President Richard Silver.







The average selling price during the first two weeks of December 2011 was $460,967 ` up six per cent in comparison to December 2010.







Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Ontario credit downgrade possible, Moody warns




The influential bond rating agency Moody's Investors Service has warned that it could downgrade the Province of Ontario's debt rating.




Late Thursday afternoon, the New York-based agency downgraded Ontario's debt outlook to "negative" from "stable."




Moody's said it's concerned the provincial government won't be able to meet its targets for reducing the deficit given the sluggish economy.




A downgrade would affect the government's $190-billion debt and likely increase future borrowing costs.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Toronto investors applaud plans to ditch land transfer tax





`I campaigned we`d get rid of it by the end of my term and if we do it in pieces, we`ll do it in pieces, but I`m going to keep my promise,` Rob Ford said Thursday during a TV interview. `We`re going to be tackling that (next year).`





The move ` or rather the promise of a move ` comes a week after Toronto Realtors amped up their lobby efforts for repeal of the tax, taking that fight to City Hall.




Last week they presented a new survey suggesting public support for axing the tax is relatively strong ` even despite the budget crisis.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

GM to produce new Chevy Impala at Oshawa plant




General Motors of Canada Ltd. plans to invest $68-million in its Oshawa, Ont. assembly plant, where it will build the next-generation Chevy Impala, the company said Friday.




The investment will secure about 350 jobs, the company said, and comes after its August announcement that it would build its new Cadillac XTS at the plant.




On Aug. 4, the company said it would invest about $117-million in preparing the plant to produce the Cadillac and that it expected the new line to create or retain 400 jobs at the plant.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Condo investors may head for exits




Investors rushed to buy Toronto condos in the good times, now there is a worry that they will rush for the exits as the economy weakens and they realize that profits are hard to come by in an overbuilt market.




A record number of condos were built in the past year in the Greater Toronto Area, with some 43,000 units under construction. Anecdotal evidence suggests many of the units were sold to investors who plan to rent them out, but a flood of supply hitting the market at once could drive rents below what`s needed to generate a profit.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Peterborough's apartment vacancy rate falls to 3.5% from 4.1% a year ago




Peterborough's apartment vacancy rate continued to fall this year, reaching 3.5% in October, down from a peak of 6% in October 2009, when recession-ravaged Peterborough had the third-highest vacancy rate in Canada, according to a Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation report released Tuesday.




Peterborough's vacancy rate had been 4.1% in October 2010.




The supply of local rental housing has not changed since then, the report states, and the slip in available apartments is the result of a slow movement to home ownership by local renters, particularly in the 25 to 44 age group, and stable youth employment.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Kingston remains tough place to find an apartment




Kingston remains one of the toughest cities in Canada in which to find an apartment, a new survey has found.




The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation's rental market survey for this fall found that Kingston and Guelph, both with a vacancy rate of 1.1%, were the hardest census metropolitan areas in which to find an apartment.




Only Regina proved to be more difficult in finding a rental, with a vacancy rate of just 0.6%.




Last year, the vacancy rate for Kingston was even lower, at 1%.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Alberta oil tech company to open plant in Windsor




WINDSOR, Ont. -- An Alberta-based oil and gas manufacturing company announced today it is opening a new manufacturing plant in the Windsor area, creating up to 40 jobs within the next 12 months.




Red Deer's Dynamic Solutions Inc. specializes in the design, manufacturing and operation of coiled tubing downhole tools used in well bore technology.




`Windsor has been selected to be our manufacturing centre due to its highly-skilled workforce and rich history in advanced manufacturing,` said Leigh McDiarmid, Dynamic`s general manager.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Ontario's debt, Canada's woes




No one was really surprised when Ontario`s debt rating took another drubbing last week, adding Canada`s largest province to a long list of debt-swamped jurisdictions from Italy to Spain to be singled out by credit rating agencies for critical review.




Moody`s expressed displeasure with Ontario`s ballooning debt and dismal growth projections by lowering its outlook for the province`s debt rating to `negative.` It`s the latest in a cascade of downgrades beginning in 2009 after the province, having indulged in a massive uptick in government spending, was blindsided by the financial crisis.





Read the full article here.