February 2013 Alberta Economic Fundamentals

[Ally]

Red Deer on a roll




The numbers are up these days in the City of Red Deer.




Home sales. Home prices. Building permit totals. Population. Lease costs.




Central Alberta's unofficial capital is firmly back in growth mode, something Keith Acheson easily observes in his commercial realty position at Century 21 Advantage in the oilpatch hub.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Calgary housing market sales growth best in Canada




CALGARY ` While Canadian home sales dipped in January, particularly in major centres like Toronto and Vancouver, Calgary`s housing market remained strong and posted the best year-over-year growth in the country for MLS transactions.




The Canadian Real Estate Association reported Friday that Calgary MLS sales during the month were 1,572, up 20.2 per cent from January 2012 while sales across the nation dropped by 5.2 per cent to 23,579 transactions.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Vacancy rate drops for Calgary industrial real estate market to 4.5%




CALGARY ` Sentiment in Calgary`s industrial real estate market is expected to be `cautious` over the first quarters of this year but tenant demand for space will remain `somewhat stable,` says a report by Cushman & Wakefield.




`As 2013 progresses, the global economy should begin to pick up, resulting in an increased demand for natural resources, setting Calgary and the rest of Alberta up for another surge in economic activity,` said the report.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Oil patch companies cautious as price pressures build




The latest quarterly results from some key oil patch companies show how pricing pressures are translating into cutbacks or flat growth in their expansion plans this year.




Precision Drilling Corp., for example, is planning $526-million in capital expenditures this year, half the $1.1-billion it budgeted for in 2012.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

New light pollution rules could affect Calgary builders




CALGARY ` A springtime public hearing to address amending the city`s light pollution policy is expected to bring new rules for the building industry.




A policy requiring builders and developers to submit lighting plans when applying for permits is expected to be added to Plan It development guidelines, the city`s planning and urban development committee heard Wednesday.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Survey aimed at helping retool province's condo laws




EDMONTON - The Alberta government is seeking public input into proposed changes to the law that governs how condominiums operate.




The Condominium Property Act is under review and Service Alberta is conducting an online survey to gather feedback on recommendations developed by a committee of condominium experts.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Economically speaking: Who's afraid of slow?




It's practically official: Alberta's economy is slowing. Few economic indicators have started to reveal it yet, but that's not surprising since most of them`the unemployment rate, wage growth, retail sales`are lagging indicators. They tell the story of what's been. The story of what's yet to come in 2013 will be one of a softer economy, prompted by lower resource prices.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Fort McMurray awaits housing land




EDMONTON - A few weeks before he stepped down as premier, Ed Stelmach flew to Fort McMurray with a key document tucked into his briefcase.




The proposal for a 20-year supply of land ` enough to stabilize sky-high housing prices, enough to handle an expected 200,000 people ` was a key issue for Mayor Melissa Blake and the struggling boomtown.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Pipe dreams: A look at Canada's 6 leading pipeline proposal




Pipelines are to a landlocked oil economy what supply lines are to invading armies: critical to success but vulnerable to attack.




Canada`s prairie oil producers ` led by Alberta but including Saskatchewan and now Manitoba ` have been wildly favoured in geology but less so in geography. While the provinces are enjoying a boom in production from oil sands and new light oil prospects, they are located far from the massive refining hub on the U.S. Gulf Coast, and far from ocean ports that would allow them to reach energy-hungry customers overseas.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Enbridge unveils plan to get oil to Gulf




Enbridge Inc. has a new scheme for getting around North American oil pipeline snarls, with plans to transport Canadian and North Dakota crude to the large east Gulf Coast refining area with a $3.4-billion conversion of a natural-gas pipeline system.




The proposed project, a joint venture with Texas-based Energy Transfer Partners LP, would see more than 1,100 kilometres of the existing Trunkline natural-gas transmission line between Patoka, Ill., and St. James, La., reversed and modified to transport up to 660,000 barrels of oil a day by 2015, a relatively short timeline.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Strathcona County optimistic mothballed bitument upgrader projects will resume





Strathcona County watched in dismay as the plans for half-a- dozen upgraders disappeared with the 2008-09 global meltdown, recalls Mayor Linda Osinchuk.







But these days, there`s some optimism that at least two of the projects are possible ` reviving the mothballed Heartland, also called the B.A. upgrader, already partially built by Calgary-based Value Creation Inc.; and the North West upgrader near Redwater that will turn bitumen into diesel.







The B.A. upgrader, owned by Value Creation Inc., could be ready in 18 months to turn 85,000 barrels of bitumen into synthetic crude that any refinery in Canada could handle, Osinchuk noted.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Job vacancies in Alberta rise




CALGARY ` The ratio of unemployed people for every job vacancy dipped in Alberta in November, according to Statistics Canada.




The federal agency reported Tuesday that there were 1.7 unemployed people for every job vacancy in the province, compared with 2.4 one year earlier.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Attainable home initiatives gainin popularity




CALGARY ` With prices in Calgary`s real estate market continuing to rise, a growing trend is emerging in the popularity of attainable housing initiatives in the city.




Attainable Homes Calgary and McPherson Place ` two separate projects ` have seen an explosion of interest by Calgarians who want to get into home ownership





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Quebec open to oil pipeline project




MONTREAL ` Quebec would be open to having an oil pipeline pass through it to bring crude from Alberta to New Brunswick as long as the project served the interests of Quebecers, Premier Pauline Marois said in a statement Monday.




After meeting with her New Brunswick counterpart Monday, the Quebec premier for the first time said she wouldn`t be opposed to the $5-billion dollar project, which also needs the approval of other provinces before going ahead.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Booming western provinces more positive about Canada's economy




CALGARY ` Booming Western provinces are more positive about Canada`s economy than others, according to a survey released Tuesday by UPS Canada.




The survey said 58 per cent of business leaders in Western Canada have a favourable opinion of Canada`s economic prospects compared with 46 per cent in other provinces.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Calgary rental apartments trump condos





A landlord investor would be better off buying a small apartment block than condominiums if they want to profit in Calgary's red-hot rental market, according to veteran commercial realtor in the city.




The rental vacancy rate in Calgary is now 1.3 per cent, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), down from 1.9 per cent a year ago, and most landlords are increasing rents. Alberta has no rent controls.



Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Alberta on pace for $3.5-4 billion deficit




A $2.4 billion drop in resource revenue has put Alberta on pace for a deficit of between $3.5- and $4 billion ` one of the highest deficits in history, Finance Minister Doug Horner revealed Tuesday in the province`s third quarter fiscal update.




The sea of red ink will be four times deeper than was forecast in the budget last February. The province initially predicted an $886 million deficit, but by the second quarter had increased its deficit forecast to $2.3 to $3 billion.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Calgary repeat home sales see prices fall




CALGARY ` House prices in Calgary for repeat home sales dipped slightly in January in line with a trend across the country.




The Teranet-National Bank National Composite House Price index, released Wednesday, said prices in Calgary were down 0.1 per cent from the previous month and nationally they were down 0.3 per cent, the fifth consecutive monthly decline.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Redford 'very optimistic' Keystone will be approved





EDMONTON - Alberta`s premier said Thursday she remains `very optimistic` TransCanada`s Keystone XL pipeline will be approved in the United States even as the political rhetoric heats up in that country on the issue of climate change.




Premier Alison Redford, leaving Friday for a weekend lobbying trip in Washington, D.C., said it is important for her to spend time learning from federal and state legislators about the connection they see between the $7-billion pipeline`s future and Canada`s greenhouse gas emission policies.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Calgary to see MLS sales and prices to rise for the next 2 years




CALGARY ` The Calgary region can expect to see increases in both sales and average MLS prices for the next two years, according to a housing forecast released Friday by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp.




The agency said sales in the Calgary census metropolitan area will grow by 1.37 per cent this year to 27,000 units followed by another 2.59 per cent growth in 2014 to 27,700 transactions.



Read the full article here.