November 2012 Ontario Economic Fundamentals

[Ally]

Lakehead shares its success stories






ORILLIA - Debbie Balika is one of Lakehead University`s greatest success stories.




The master`s student and graduate assistant spoke at the university`s 2011-12 Report to the Community presentation Friday.




Balika was among the first students to attend the university in 2006, when the Orillia campus opened its doors.




`I`ve seen the university grow so much,` said Balika. `I think we`ve grown together.`




A single mother of two, the Barrie resident said she couldn`t have afforded the time to go anywhere further than Orillia.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Building a home, from dirt to door





New-home construction employs thousands and creates a thriving industry in the GTA. Here`s what it takes to build one







Boaz Feiner: low-rise







Boaz Feiner, president of Geranium Homes, a company that has built more than 7,000 houses over the past 35 years, says it`s a `mass co-ordination effort` to build a home. According to the 2012 BILD Home Builder of the Year, typically around 200 people work on building a single home.







Find a site



Given the scarcity of developable land in the GTA, it`s becoming increasingly difficult to find sites, says Feiner. `Low-rise builders are starting to look farther afield than they would have historically looked.` But location remains a key consideration when looking for good-quality sites ` those that are close to transportation, shopping and other amenities.







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[Ally]

Toronto condo market seen stabilizing in 2013: CMHC




Toronto`s slowing condo market will stabilize next year, but the risk that prices will fall is greater in the longer term, Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation says.




Shaun Hildebrand, a senior market analyst for the Greater Toronto Area at CMHC, is scheduled to present his latest thoughts on the market at a conference Wednesday morning.



Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Data on condo speculators proves elusive





An effort to get more information about the influence of some speculators in Toronto`s condo market has collapsed after developers refused to take part, leaving policy makers in the dark.




Urbanation Inc., a data-research firm, has pulled the plug on a survey that it had tried to conduct, with the support of Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., to quantify how many `assignments` are taking place in the market.



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[Ally]

Southcore Financial Centre draws development South of Front





Development of the area south of Front Street is proceeding at a dizzying pace, with new residential, commercial and institutional projects filling in the once-ignored and mostly-vacant land between Front and Lake Shore Boulevard. With land in Toronto's traditional financial district already occupied by skyscrapers, high-rise office space is now pushing south where there is land available to developers. Southcore Financial Centre & Delta Toronto by Great West Life and bcIMC is set to become one of the most significant commercial developments in the south financial district, contributing 1.4 million square feet of office space plus a four-star hotel. The Page + Steele / IBI Group Architect and KPMB-designed project includes three towers of 26, 30, and 45 storeys and is expected to be complete in 2014.





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[Ally]

As Canada's hottest home markets cool, Re/Max looks east



The West Coast city of Vancouver is no longer Canada`s hottest real-estate market. Not by a mile.





In its 2013 outlook, RE/MAX forecasts home prices in Vancouver are poised to rise 1% in 2013, to an average C$742,000, after this year`s 6% drop.





That`s about what the international real-estate group sees happening nation-wide next year. But for the real action, RE/MAX is casting its eyes mostly eastward. Here`s its forecast for Canada`s hottest markets next year, by expected home-price appreciation:





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[Ally]

Immigration key to solving aging workforce



Ontario`s first immigration strategy gets a lot of things right, but there`s still room for improvement, a York Region report stated.







Unveiled last week, the strategy is intended to provide a new direction for how the province selects, welcomes and provides assistance to newcomers. Its primary focus is economic development and the role newcomers play as workers and job creators. It also delves into how they will help address the

looming gaps that will appear in the labour market as our population ages.





`This is a bold new direction for immigration in Ontario,` said Citizenship and Immigration Minister Charles Sousa, who has since jumped into the Liberal leadership race. `It sets a path so we can attract the highly skilled immigrants and investors we need to fuel economic growth and help build stronger communities.`





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Barrie faces tough challenges and choices ahead




As we approach the midway point of the current term of Barrie city council, last Saturday, councillors and city staff spent the day reviewing our strategic priorities as well as getting our first look at the 2013 Draft Budget and Business Plan.




In terms of our strategic priorities, council collectively resolved to place a more narrow focus during the next two years of bringing more jobs to Barrie than the 3,200 full-time jobs created since 2010.




We talked about a need for renewal of the business ambassador program that came out of the `Ideas in Motion` event, as well as the need to foster relationships with larger Greater Toronto Area industrial and commercial developers and real estate agents, who work very closely with companies looking to expand or move their operations to a more affordable and lifestyle enriching experience for their companies and employees.




We all know that Barrie has everything to offer in that regard.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

GTA buyers bolster Hamilton housing market




Average Hamilton and Burlington home price will hit $358,000 this year




Call it the Great Exodus.




Home buyers from the GTA are having a positive and profound impact on the housing market.




Housing sales and prices are strengthening in Hamilton and Burlington this year, and are forecasted in a new ReMax real estate report to show slightly higher increases than in some other major Canadian markets.




Conrad Zurini, a Hamilton and area real estate broker and co-author of the report, said 17 per cent of all buyers of real estate in Hamilton and Burlington are from the GTA.





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[Ally]

GTA Realtors release mid-month resale figures




TORONTO, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Nov 19, 2012) - Greater Toronto Area REALTORSÂ reported 2,687 transactions through the TorontoMLS system during the first two weeks of November. This result represented a 17.5 per cent decline compared to the same period in 2011.




"The reduction of the maximum amortization period to 25 years translated into higher mortgage payments. Some households will have to save more money for a down payment before purchasing a home, in order to offset these higher mortgage costs. This is more difficult in the City of Toronto, where households must pay an additional land transfer tax up front. The abolishment of this tax would allow buyers to have a larger down payment," said Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) President Ann Hannah.





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[Ally]

Sheppard subway gets moving




The Sheppard subway line`s biggest champion already felt the need to defend it before the first token was plunked into a fare box ` such was the worry over whether North York would ever have a high enough population density to pack subway trains full of commuters.





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[Ally]

The Beach Motel says its goodbyes





Two years ago, we reported that Empire had purchased a site in the Humber Bay area, the location of the `Beach Motel.` While we eagerly gathered up as much info as we could and fawned over each new rendering, what we were really waiting for was the demolition of the motel, so that `Eau Du Soleil` could start rising. Well, the time has come!




Earlier this week, Paul Golini, the Executive Vice-President of Empire Communities, invited out some media and integral members of the community, including local councillor Mark Grimes, to celebrate this landmark event.






Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

U.S. recovery to 'boost' Ontario




Ontario's fragile economy is hanging in against a double-barrel dose of austerity from the federal and provincial governments and may be poised for a modest rebound, the Conference Board said Monday.




The Ottawa-based think-tank's provincial outlook has the resource-rich western provinces, particularly Alberta and Saskatchewan, continuing to lead the country in growth this year and through 2014.




But it also has some welcome news for Canada's most populous province. It projects Ontario will rebound from weak economic growth of 1.8 per cent this year to 2.1 per cent in 2013 and 2.6 per cent the year after as the U.S. economy regains strength.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Ottawa's condo market keeps its momentum




Ottawa`s condo market is keeping up its momentum, a sign experts say shows the city`s urban living is changing.




A new 25-storey condominium is moving into Ottawa`s popular Westboro neighbourhood, a project that could further expand the west-of-downtown area.




Grace Vale said she and her husband are interested in living close to in an efficient space, driving them to think about that new building.




`We live in a large house in West Wellington Village, and so we're either looking at buying a smaller place for one of our daughters to rent or maybe moving ourselves,` she said of the new Minto-Canderel Upper West Tower.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Apartments up, single family homes down in Ottawa land review




The City of Ottawa has updated its residential land use plan to reflect the ongoing condo boom.




Official statistics released Monday said demand for condos drove the percentage of apartments and townhouses in Ottawa`s market to 30 per cent over the last five years.




That`s seven per cent more than the city had projected for that time frame.





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[Ally]

What's a home worth?




Welcome to Hamilton, the new `sleeper` destination for waterfront home-seekers.




Property values near the harbour and along Lake Ontario have shot up in Burlington and parts of Hamilton since 2008, despite low or flatlining increases for waterfront homes elsewhere in Ontario.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Residents of Toronto's Waterfront want their own electoral riding



Toronto`s booming waterfront population should have its own member of Parliament in the House of Commons, a chorus of people are telling the panel redrawing Canada`s electoral map.





In repeated testimony at hearings on Thursday in Toronto, many strong voices were raised in support of a brand-new riding to represent the rapidly expanding ranks of condo dwellers along Toronto`s waterfront.






Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Homes shrink as population grows





The growing population density in cities like Toronto and Mississauga is redefining the traditional Canadian home, says Toronto architect Ian MacBurnie.





"The GTA is growing, and we`re fortunate that it is,` says MacBurnie, an associate professor at Ryerson University`s department of architectural science. `It`s good economically [and] obviously providing opportunities for employment in the construction sector, real estate and [other] areas.`

More and more people in places like Toronto and Mississauga are living in high-density, high-rise buildings. Over the last five years, the fastest-growing region in Canada is the GTA, specifically Toronto, Mississauga, Brampton, Ajax, Markham and Vaughan. According to the Ontario government`s recent projections, by 2036 the population of the GTA will increase by 44.6 per cent, to about 9.2 million.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Hamilton homeowners still paying bulk of city's taxes




Hamilton remains mired in a longstanding battle to increase the proportion of taxes flowing to the city from industrial and commercial sources, rather than homeowners.




Newest figures from the Municipal Property Assessment Corporation show about 85 per cent of property tax revenue still comes from residential ratepayers, who continue to fund a disproportionate share of the city`s budget.




Hamilton has been trying to remedy the situation for a decade, but is only treading water, says taxation director Larry Friday.





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[Ally]

Dundas, central and east Hamilton are new housing hotspots




Toronto housing refugees looking for bargains in Hamilton are shifting their focus.




A new Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation outlook study concludes Dundas and the central and east parts of Hamilton will be the new targets for those migrants as prices in Flamborough, Burlington and Ancaster near those of Toronto.




CMHC projected small increases in sales and prices in Dundas and Hamilton east and centre, matched by small declines in Flamborough, Ancaster and Burlington. The rest of the area`s neighbourhoods will hold steady while the overall market next year will be down slightly.





Read the full article here.