T.O. land transfer tax revenues miss target for first time

T.O. land transfer tax revenues miss target for first time

The City of Toronto’s budget-balancing golden goose — the land transfer tax — is sick. For the first time since the tax on real estate exchanges was introduced in 2008, revenues that used to gush into Toronto’s operating budget will miss the target — $818 million this year — recommended by city staff and approved by city council, staff acknowledged Monday.

Toronto Star – Globe and Mail – Globe Newswire

Toronto region risks deficit of 165,000 new homes by 2041

The Greater Toronto and Hamilton Region could be short 165,600 homes by 2041 if it doesn’t rightsize its housing supply to give families more space and build places that will induce seniors to downsize. Failure to do so could skew the population to an older demographic and impede its prosperity by discouraging younger, skilled workers, says a new study.

Toronto Star – Canada Newswire

Purpose-built rentals: Issues, strategy from apartment experts

Rising expenses, combined with increasing demand and a lack of supply, are putting the squeeze on Canadian apartment developers, owners and renters. That was the consensus of five top real estate executives focused on the purpose-built rental market during a panel at the Toronto Real Estate Forum held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre on Nov. 29.

Property Biz Canada

Canadian new home prices, sales softened in 2018

Softer sales and pricing were the prevailing trends in new home sales in seven key Canadian markets in 2018, according to analysis by Altus Group’s Data Solutions team. Executive vice-president of research consulting Patricia Arsenault and vice-president of product management Matthew Boukall presented their findings in a Nov. 22 webinar. They said Kitchener-Waterloo and Montreal were the only two markets where new home sales increased in 2018. 

Property Biz Canada

Montréal residential sales rise for 45th straight month

The Greater Montréal Real Estate Board‘s (GMREB) most recent residential real estate market statistics indicate 3,630 residential sales were concluded in November 2018, a six per cent year-over-year increase. It also represents a new sales record for the month of November and the 45th consecutive increase in transactions.

Canada Newswire – CBC

Centurion buys six Western Canadian apartment properties

Centurion Asset Management and Centurion Apartment REIT announced the addition of six multi-family properties in Manitoba, British Columbia and Saskatchewan to their portfolio. In total, the properties comprise almost 740 units and are either new, or recently constructed.Three of the properties are in Regina, two are in Winnipeg and the other is in Victoria.

Property Biz Canada

Winnipeg’s Lount Corp. develops new niche: Luxury apartments

With 13 units, Winnipeg’s Dexter House may be small, but the multi-family project aims to make a big impression with an increasingly affluent demographic: the baby boomers.  The concrete and steel, four-story development in trendy Osborne Village is a purpose-built rental offering a similar experience to high-end condo living without the commitment of ownership, says Ben Lount, executive vice-president of Lount Corporation, the company behind the development.

Property Biz Canada

Vancouver council strengthens renter protections

Vancouver council voted Tuesday to strengthen protection for the city’s renters, many of whom face precarious tenure in a pricey city with a near-zero vacancy rate — a decision celebrated by renters and advocates as a win. Councillor Jean Swanson’s motion, intended to protect tenants from “renovictions and aggressive buyouts,” drew 56 speakers over two nights and a large crowd that rallied outside council chambers before the vote on Tuesday.

Vancouver Sun – Vancouver Sun – Vancouver Sun

Metro Vancouver home sales down 43% year-over-year

November home sales across Metro Vancouver were 34.7% below the 10-year average for the month, according to new Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver data. A total of 1,608 sales were recorded across the region in the month, which is a 42.5% drop year-over-year compared with the 2,795 sales in November 2017. It is down 18.2% compared with October.

Business In Vancouver – CBC – Globe and Mail (Subscription required)

Empty homes fraction of Vancouver estimate: Report

The City of Vancouver has found 2,538 vacant homes in its first empty-homes tax annual report – about one-10th of the homes the city said were empty when it first promoted the tax, which has cost $10 million to implement. Two years ago, a widely quoted city report written by Gil Kelley, general manager of planning, urban design and sustainability, stated there were 24,495 vacant homes in the city.

Business In Vancouver

Vancouver ponders removal of new houses, for newer homes

The two freshly minted houses are among Vancouver’s newest, complete with lane-way homes and basement suites. But within months of renters moving in, the brand new buildings on the corner of Renfrew and Georgia are facing the possibility of removal — to make way for proposed multi-family dwellings that opponents fear will transform their neighbourhood beyond recognition.

CBC – Globe and Mail

Construction underway on Montreal’s Symphonia POP

Développements Symphonia recently held the official groundbreaking ceremony kicking off construction of Symphonia POP, a real-estate project featuring iconic modular architecture to be built on the southern tip of Nuns’ Island, representing a $100-million investment. More than 65 per cent of the condos have been sold and the first units are expected to be delivered by 2021.

Canada Newswire – Property Biz Canada

Does rent control stifle Ontario construction?

The debate about rent control is far from over. Geordie Dent of the Federation of Metro Tenant’s Association and Andrea Horwath, leader of the provincial NDP, say removing rent control in 1997 did not encourage new purpose-built rental construction in Ontario. However, rental starts in Ontario were in free-fall from a high of more than 5,000 units in the third quarter of 1991, to fewer than a hundred units in Q1 1997

Financial Post

The most memorable new home industry events of 2018

What was your most memorable new home industry event of 2018? Was it the BILD Awards? Maybe another award show? While award shows are fun, we want to highlight some other events that stand out as we reminisce about the past year. Here are a few of the most memorable new home industry events in chronological order:

Newinhomes.com

Alberta home-building industry struggling: BILD

An association of Alberta home builders says the economic downturn and government policies are crippling its industry. Building Industry and Land Development Alberta Association (BILD Alberta) represents 1,800 land developers, home builders and renovators in the province. The organization says new mortgage rules and proposed provincial legislation are creating uncertainty and higher housing prices.

CBC – Global News

Market Conditions

17 per cent sales drop in Hamilton-area RE

A 17.1 per cent decrease in sales of residential properties in the area in November is no cause for alarm, but a reflection the market is coming off a peak year in 2017, says the chief executive officer of the Realtors Association of Hamilton-Burlington (RAHB). The RAHB monthly statistics release for November shows 862 sales of residential properties, down from 1,000-plus last November.

Hamilton Spectator – CBC – CBC

Calgary home sales down 14% year-over-year

It continued to be a buyer’s market for real estate in Calgary last month, according to the latest numbers from the local real estate board. The November sales tally in the city was 1,171 units, and for the year so far, 15,349 units sold — a 14 per cent decline over last year and nearly 20 per cent below long-term averages, the Calgary Real Estate Board (CREB) said in a release.

CBC – Calgary Sun

Inadequate U.S. housing supply a major challenge: Freddie Mac

After nearly a decade of low levels of building, housing stock is well short of what the United States needs. New research from Freddie Mac (FMCC) finds if supply continues to fall short of demand, home prices and rents are likely to outpace income and household formation will fail to reach potential. Housing supply will be a major challenge for years to come, according to Insight.

Globe Newswire – Globe Newswire – PR Newswire

New Developments

York Condos a ‘gateway’ to downtown Markham

Construction on the York Condos in downtown Markham, Ont., part of the massive $4-billion Downtown Markham development, is well underway, but that doesn’t mean there haven’t been some challenges as the build takes shape incorporating several unique features. The owner and general contractor on the project is The Remington Group. Quadrangle is both the architect and interior designer.

ConstructConnect

Natural Disasters

Fire-scarred Southern California areas face flood risk

Authorities kept a worried eye Friday on fire-scarred Southern California hillsides after a storm brought flooding fears and prompted evacuation orders for hundreds of homes. The second storm in a week dropped record-breaking rains on downtown Los Angeles, jammed major roads and sent an airliner skidding off a runway, but no major injuries were reported.

Globe and Mail (Subscription required)

Construction

Canadian housing starts trend increases in November

The trend in housing starts was 210,038 units in November 2018, compared to 206,460 units in October 2018, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). This trend measure is a six-month moving average of the monthly seasonally adjusted annual rates (SAAR) of housing starts. “The national trend in housing starts increased in November, following four consecutive months of decline,” said Bob Dugan, CMHC’s chief economist.

Canada Newswire – Bloomberg – Halifax ChronicleHerald

Affordable Housing

Vancouver tops for tech talent; rental costs erode affordability

Vancouver gets high marks in CBRE Ltd.’s new tech-sector report, which ranks the city fourth in Canada overall.  However, the average tech wage lags behind Edmonton, Saskatoon and St, John’s, where housing also tends to be cheaper. Indeed, tech workers will shell out 20.8 per cent of their pay for a purpose-built rental in Vancouver, more than anywhere else in Canada. Condos will require 28.6 per cent of wages.

Business In Vancouver

Nearly one million supported by feds’ housing support

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation recently announced since 2016 nearly one million people across the country have benefited from federal government investments in building more affordable housing. In the last two years, more than $5.7 billion has gone toward affordable housing supporting families, seniors, Indigenous people, persons with disabilities, mental health and addiction issues, veterans, young adults, and women and children fleeing domestic violence.

Newinhomes.com

Buying and Selling

What cities are doing about unlucky numbers

It’s an open secret among real estate agents that in certain communities, condo units on the fourth floor can take longer to sell. “When I was younger, I didn’t believe any of these things. I thought it was just BS,” said Tina Mak, a Vancouver-area real estate agent who has been in the business for nearly 30 years. “You don’t believe in it but when it keeps on repeating . . .”

Bloomberg

Toronto far from Ontario’s top sellers’ market

Any savvy homebuyer or seller knows the importance of the sales-to-new-listings ratio which measures how many newly listed homes are selling within a specific area each month, provides valuable insight into the level of buyer competition and can greatly inform offer or listing strategy. If you know your dream home is located within a tight sellers’ market, you can be sure you’ll find yourself in a bidding war situation.

Newinhomes.com

$20M Whistler mansion to be auctioned internationally

The furnished Chateau du Lac property will go to the highest bidder this month during an online auction that begins on Dec. 14. You’ll be out at least $10.9 million, but it could be a steal of a deal. The luxurious 9,940-square-foot property tucked away on Whistler’s Nita Lake is going up for international auction later this month for about half what it previously listed for.

Vancouver Province

Vancouver home to go to highest bidder in Hong Kong

A Vancouver Mid-Century Modern home of architectural note, designed by Kenneth McKinley in 1955 and featured in home magazines in the late 1950s, is part of an elite portfolio of global properties that will go to the highest bidder at an auction in Hong Kong on Dec. 19. The super-retro house on an 11,000-square-foot lot is one of 17 properties being targeted at Chinese buyers by global auction house Concierge Auctions.

Western Investor

Other

Empire wins gold at World Luxury Awards

Empire Communities, one of North America’s largest homebuilders, won gold at the recent World Luxury Awards. The 2018 award win for best Real Estate & Property Integrated/Mixed Media Campaign was for The Maverick Manifesto – the fully integrated marketing campaign developed to promote the launch of Empire’s latest downtown Toronto condominium, Empire Maverick.

Canada Newswire

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