B.C. considers halt to exclusive access for condo presales

B.C. considers halt to exclusive access for condo presales

Forcing developers to make preconstruction condo units available to all potential buyers at the same time and the same price is something B.C.’s Finance Minister says she is open to trying in order to help make real estate more affordable in and around Vancouver. It’s part of a broader promise by the B.C. government to address soaring real estate prices in the Vancouver area. 

Globe and Mail – Richmond News

Millennials facing more competition with smaller budgets

There’s (more) bad news for millennials trying to crack into the Greater Toronto Area’s real estate market. According to a new report from Royal LePage, new rules around mortgage stress testing have driven up competition for properties and slashed the purchasing power of millennials around the GTA. In January, OSFI mandated all borrowers undergo a test ensuring they would be able to pay their loan if interest rates rise.

CBC – Canada Newswire – Canada Newswire – Canada Newswire

Montreal’s Humaniti enters final development phase

Cogir Real Estate, DevMcGill and the Fonds immobilier de solidarité FTQ are about to release the final phase of their $200-million Humaniti Montreal project to market. The firms said Tuesday the 158 condos which are part of the mixed-use development will go on sale April 28. Occupancy is expected to begin during the summer of 2020.

Property Biz Canada

Saskatoon apartment vacancy stays high as rental rates fall

At 14 per cent, Saskatoon’s rental apartment vacancy rate is at a level that might spur Vancouver or Toronto’s embattled renters to consider quitting their jobs and moving to the Prairies. The continuing high vacancy rate is also pushing rental rates down almost in lockstep. “Tenants now have options,” said Duncan Mayer, research manager with Colliers International Saskatchewan, which recently published a report assessing Saskatoon’s multi-family property market.

Property Biz Canada

B.C. municipalities will be able to create rental-only zoning

Local governments in B.C. could soon have the power to zone areas for rental housing. Municipal Affairs Minister Selina Robinson introduced the Local Government Statutes (Residential Rental Tenure Zoning) Amendment Act in the legislature Tuesday. It would enable municipalities to zone undeveloped land for rental housing, or mandate a certain percentage of units on the land be rental; and force existing rental properties to remain rental-only after redevelopment.

CBC – Vancouver Sun – Global News

Despite new tax, Vancouver rentals remain scarce

Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson declared the city’s new tax on empty homes a success last week, thanking the absentee owners of 8,500 properties for paying up. He was less conclusive about whether the tax actually did what it set out to accomplish. “The ultimate goal here was to encourage people to rent their empty homes,” he said. “Hopefully that’s happening.”

Bloomberg

Harbour Equity raises $67.95 million for JV development fund

SPONSORED CONTENT: Harbour Equity has closed a $67.95 million private placement offering for Harbour Equity JV Development Fund IV and is now actively reviewing investment opportunities for the capital raised. As a capital provider for developers, Harbour Equity uses a variety of joint-venture structures to invest in both ground-up developments and value-add opportunities across real estate asset classes in all major markets throughout Canada.

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Planned hikes in development charges rile GTA condo industry

Amid signs condominium developers in the Greater Toronto Area may be walking away from projects in the face of rising costs, some municipalities are moving ahead with plans that could add millions more in tax charges for high-rise buildings. The City of Vaughan and the City of Toronto are among the municipalities considering large increases in their local development charges. Brampton, too, is mulling significant fee hikes.

Globe and Mail

GTA would see only modest rent boost from HQ2

If Amazon selects the GTA for its second headquarters, rents would rise an additional 0.2 percentage points each year, according to an analysis from U.S. real estate website, Zillow. Among the 20 finalist cities, Amazon HQ2 would spur the biggest rent increases in Nashville and Denver. Toronto is the eighth most likely metro to win Amazon HQ2, according to a panel of more than 100 housing experts recently surveyed by Zillow. 

Canada Newswire – PR Newswire – Global News

Ontario real estate tax curbs foreign buyers

A year after Ontario launched its foreign buyers’ real estate tax, the province has raised about $41 million and steadily reduced the number of off-shore property transactions in the Greater Golden Horseshoe area to about 1.6 per cent in February 2018, from about 4.7 per cent in May. New numbers show nearly half of the non-resident speculation tax collected in the province between Nov. 18 and Feb. 16 was in the City of Toronto. 

Toronto Star – Globe and Mail

Six things: New multi-family construction in the Calgary area

While new construction of apartments in the Calgary area pulled back last month, starts on both townhomes and duplexes grew year-over-year. Apartments starts in the Calgary census metropolitan area in March slid 55 per cent to 292 from 662 a year ago, says Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. In the townhome segment, builders turned shovels for 159 units last month, up from 130 in March 2017.

Calgary Herald – CBC

Vibrant downtown core the key for urban multi-family development

For suburban cities looking to attract multi-family development to their downtowns, finding ways to make those areas vibrant throughout the day and into the night is critical. While amenities such as mass transit stops are also important, luxury renters want something more. Elmhurst, a suburb west of Chicago, addressed this challenge with a plan to boost its downtown in 2016.

Building Design & Construction – The Real Deal

Housing market highly vulnerable for seventh straight quarter

For the seventh straight quarter, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation’s Housing Market Assessment warns of a high degree of vulnerability to market instability. The Crown corporation says Toronto, Hamilton, Vancouver and Victoria are of the most concern because of overvaluation and increasing home prices. Winnipeg, Ottawa, Quebec City, Moncton, Halifax and St. John’s are faring much better.

Globe and Mail – Newinhomes.com – Canada Newswire

RBC joins TD in raising fixed five-year mortgage rate

Royal Bank of Canada (RY-T) is joining TD Bank (TD-T) in lifting its posted rate for five-year fixed mortgages. RBC confirmed in an email to BNN the bank it was raise its five-year and 10-year rates by 20 basis points effective Monday. It also plans to raise its one-year and four-year fixed rates 15 basis points, and will lower its variable closed mortgage rate 15 basis points.

BNN – Bloomberg – Maclean's – Globe and Mail (Subscription required)

CREA calls for moratorium on homegrown recreational pot

The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) is calling for a moratorium on growing recreational marijuana at home until the government sets out nationwide regulations for the practice. Ottawa’s proposed marijuana legalization regulations allow Canadians to grow up to four marijuana plants at their residences. Medical users are already allowed to grow at home after a federal court ruled in 2016 the government cannot ban patients from growing their own cannabis.

CTV – CBC – Newinhomes.com

RENX Columnists

Can mid-sized homebuilders survive influx of public money?

When I started my career 15 years ago in Texas, most major homebuilders in Dallas operated across the state, and many were publicly traded companies with offices across the United States. When I moved back to Canada, I was surprised there were no residential developers listed on the TSX. The market was dominated by private, family-run homebuilders.

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Market Conditions

Whistler tops Vancouver as Canada’s craziest housing market

Move over Vancouver — you’re no longer Canada’s craziest property market. Benchmark property prices in Whistler, a ski town two hours north, have now surpassed those in the Pacific Coast city. Businesses are buying million-dollar properties to house employees as living costs drive out workers. The cost of visiting has also spiraled, with overnight rates during the winter peak topping anywhere else in the nation.

Bloomberg – Vancouver Province – Maclean's

Abbotsford, Mission emerge as power centres

The latest residential data underlines the strength of the economy of the far east of the Lower Mainland as Abbotsford and Mission report 1,777 new homes under construction in March. Abbotsford reported record-breaking building permits in 2017, representing a 92 per cent increase over the previous year to a total value of $480 million. Mission tallied $52 million in 2017 permits, up from $43.5 million a year earlier.

Western Investor

Short supply keeps GTA new-construction home prices high in March

Tight supply and demand from a growing population continues to buoy the cost of new construction homes in the Toronto area but belies a housing market that is badly out of balance. “Until we get alignment on how to fix the supply problem, we’re going to continue to have challenges within the housing market,” said Dave Wilkes, CEO of the Building Industry and Land Development Association (BILD).

Toronto Star – Globe and Mail (Subscription required) – Newinhomes.com – Globe and Mail (Subscription required)

Peterborough’s experiences ‘historic low’ inventory of homes

If you’re trying to buy a home in Peterborough, be prepared to be patient. The local real estate market is short on listings. “Just to put it in perspective, we do have around 500 active listings, where, from a historical average, we should be looking at around 1,300,” said Kristi Doyle, president of Peterborough and the Kawarthas Association of Realtors.

Global News

U.S. inventory at historic lows

There are almost nine per cent fewer homes on the market than a year ago, and the majority of those are unaffordable for most first-time homebuyers. More than half of all homes for sale across the U.S. are at the high end of the market, according to the March Zillow Real Estate Market Report. 

PR Newswire

Mortgage and Finance

B.C. real estate squeezed by tighter mortgage rules

While national home sales inched higher, B.C.’s Multiple Listings Service (MLS) sales posted another significant decline in March as proposed tax hikes on real estate introduced in the provincial budget further spooked buyers already adjusting to tighter federal lending restrictions. Policies are pushing buyers down market to lower priced multi-family units and curtailing the top end, while adding uncertainty to recreational purchases across the province.

Business In Vancouver

U.S. mortgage rates climb to highest level since 2013

Freddie Mac‘s Primary Mortgage Market Survey (PMMS), shows average mortgage rates continuing the upward trajectory seen in most of early 2018. Sam Khater, Freddie Mac chief economist, says mortgage rates increased for the third consecutive week, climbing 11 basis points to 4.58 per cent. “Mortgage rates are now at their highest level since the week of Aug. 22, 2013,” he said.

Globe Newswire

New Developments

Ontario invests $5M to boost Kitchener rental market

The Ontario government announced Friday it would give $5 million to the City of Kitchener to encourage more rental housing. According to a press release, the city can use the money “to provide development charge rebates” to developers who want to build “more high-rise, mid-rise and townhouse rental housing.”

CBC

Church scales back Oak Bay housing project

The Oak Bay United Church has scaled back its proposal for affordable housing on its site to a point it hopes the community can approve. The church is now proposing a three-storey apartment building and four 3 1/2-storey townhomes for a total of 98 units on its 1.3-acre site. Trees would be maintained or enhanced, and underground parking with 113 stalls would be included.

Victoria Times Colonist

Sélection Retraite unveils highest tower for retirees in Canada

As part of the Regroupement québécois des résidences pour aînés (RQRA) Open House Day, Sélection Retraite unveiled Sunday the common areas of its high-end residential tower, the highest peak in the Canadian industry. Future residents were able to discover the interior of this ultramodern complex located on the banks of Rivière des Prairies in Laval.

Canada Newswire

Seniors Housing

Quebec needs seniors housing entrepreneurs: MEI

With the population aged 75 and older expected to double by 2031, the government should rely on entrepreneurs to meet seniors’ demand for housing, says the MEI. In December, more than 2,400 aged 75 and over were waiting — an average of 15 months in some regions — for a housing space in a CHSLD, according to the Health and Welfare Commissioner, who noted the number of beds has fallen in recent years.

Canada Newswire

Taxes and Utilities

Calgary votes against four-year property tax freeze

A few members of Calgary’s city council have expressed concerns with the kinds of tax hikes and utility rate increases the city is considering. Council discussed target rates on Wednesday, in advance of the city’s four-year budget plan which will be presented in the fall. Setting what are called indicative rates helps administration figure out what kind of revenues they have to work with when drawing up the budget.

CBC

Natural Disasters

Living in Gatineau’s flood-ravaged ‘ghost sector’

For the first time, the Ethiers can see the river from their two-storey home in Pointe-Gatineau. The flood-ravaged houses that once stood in the way have all been levelled. “Practically all the houses are gone,” Fern Ethier said. “It’s almost a ghost sector.” It’s been a year since the spring flood of 2017, when the muddy brown water rose and kept rising until Pointe-Gatineau’s streets looked more like canals.

CBC – Montreal Gazette – Montreal Gazette

Spring flooding plagues B.C., Alberta, Ont., Que., N.B.

Rivers swollen with spring run-off and choked with ice are causing floods in several parts of Canada, as a long winter in some areas gives way to warmer spring temperatures. Widespread flooding in New Brunswick has left many roads under water and severed Darlings Island’s only link to the mainland.

CBC

Legal Issues

Toronto homeowners end up in condos they don’t own

How is it that 22 condominium owners in a north Toronto development do not own the units they are living in? This is the case at Liberty Walk Condominiums, an attractive stacked townhouse development at 760 Lawrence Ave. W., between Dufferin St. and the Allan Expressway, that was completed in March, 2003.

Toronto Star

Judge backs buyer reneging on $6.5M purchase

A BC Supreme Court judge has concluded a buyer who backed out of a deal to buy a $6.5 million mansion in West Vancouver was entitled to do so because a British Pacific Properties restrictive covenant significantly impacted potential uses.

Business In Vancouver

Affordable Housing

Calgary lays out eight-year plan for $320M in affordable housing

As Calgary prepares to release its first affordable housing capital development plan, concerns are being levelled at other governments over unfilled funding promises.  A proposal headed to the city’s planning and urban development committee Tuesday would see $157.5 million allocated to the maintenance of existing affordable housing units, as well as the redevelopment and construction of new projects over the next eight years.

Calgary Herald

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