Mississauga, ON (February 8th, 2011) – Tighter inventory levels helped to make the last decade one of the healthiest periods on record for Canadian real estate, insulating markets in major centres from the peaks and valleys characteristic of past decades, according to a report released by RE/MAX.

The Toronto real estate market has shifted into a seller’s market as the spring market gets going. The ratio of sales to new listings has climbed recently, as a result of too few homes being put up for sale, relative to the buyer demand.

Click for Full Report

The RE/MAX Housing Barometer Report measured monthly sales-to-new listings ratios in 18 major centres across the country from January 2000 to December 2010. The report found strong seller’s/balanced conditions prevailed for much of the time frame, prompting significant gains in housing values. The lone exception was when the market dipped into buyer’s territory during the latter half of 2008 and early 2009. However, fewer listings served to offset diminished demand and provided greater stability. Average price increases from 2000 to 2010 ranged from an annually compounded rate of return of 4.82 per cent in London-St. Thomas to a high of 9.56 per cent in Regina. The national average was 6.82 per cent. By far the tightest market in the nation was Winnipeg, where seller’s ruled the roost for 85 per cent of the decade, followed by Hamilton-Burlington (67 per cent), Regina (63.6 per cent), Kitchener-Waterloo (59.8 per cent) and Edmonton (57.5 per cent).

Housing markets have been remarkably hearty over the past decade and the stage is set for a better than expected 2011. Inventory has proven to be an effective form of market self-regulation, providing both an ideal climate for price escalation and a shelter in periods of softer home-buying activity. As a number of city centres are already reporting stronger than usual activity out of the gate, it’s clear supply will continue to be the wild card in 2011.

First-time buyers comprise the vast majority of purchasers, with move-up buyers in close pursuit. Demand and supply are on relatively even keel at present in most areas, but the traditionally busy spring season is expected to keep the market at a perfect equilibrium in the days and months ahead. However, there may be some exceptions to the rule. The country’s largest markets—Greater Toronto, Greater Montreal, and Greater Vancouver—are expected to head into the second quarter with fewer listings overall. Two centres—Newfoundland & Labrador and Kelowna—are still firmly entrenched in buyer’s markets.

An improved global economic picture, lower unemployment rates and rising consumer confidence levels have buoyed home buying activity since November. While sales figures are expected to be slightly off 2010’s heated pace, housing values are forecast to continue to climb in Canadian real estate markets in 2011—with most a direct result of lower listing levels.

There’s no question that price growth has been solid over the past decade, but history tells us that exceptional growth supported by sound fundamentals is healthy. Concern is only raised when the underpinnings are insufficient to justify the trajectory. By all accounts, Canada’s real estate market measures up to conventional wisdom and the faith in homeownership has not been misplaced.

Ask Ralph Evans to explain to you what this report means for your individual situation.

From:
     Ralph Evans
     Sales Representative
     RE/MAX Professionals Inc., Brokerage
     416 236-1241
     www.RealEstateHelpDesk.ca     www.Etobicoke-Homes.com

Click to visit

Ralph Evans, our residential real estate representative in the group has launched an additional website for his business.  Ralph is in tune with the latest technology inovations in real estate, to make his clients successful in their buying and selling of properties.  With this new site Etobicoke-Homes.com Ralph is focusing in on his target market of the Etobicoke real estate consumer.

Plans call for Ralph to continue to add profiles of the many specific neighbourhoods that together define Etobicoke.  Be sure to continue to watch this site grow in the coming months.

Toronto Spring Market

Toronto might be in the grips of winter, but the Spring market for Toronto Real Estate is just getting started this week. The holiday season tends to be a very quiet time in real estate. By the second week of January, people are putting the holiday season behind them and making plans for the coming year. Already we are seeing a pick-up in the number of homes being listed for sale. This is the most active time for the Toronto market, with the number of homes trading hands rising each month through to June. With more buyers in the market at this time of year, home sellers tend to take advantage of this time to market their homes. Thus, we see the best and nicest homes come up for sale through the Spring time.

Toronto Home Prices

The outlook for the coming year in real estate calls for a fairly stable market, with prices rising modestly in the 3% to 5% range. Toronto enjoys a modest steady growth in real estate values. Rising world oil prices will have an impact on people living in the outer-suburbs who will feel this in their cost of commuting. Higher oil prices helps Toronto real estate prices as more people want to live closer to their place of work. Most especially downtown condos and centrally located homes.

Interest Rates and Mortgages

The Bank of Canada has backed off of further increases in the key rates they control. The indications are that we will not be seeing further rate increases until the Canadian economy strengthens. While the Bank would like to see higher rates, they are being cautious not to raise rates for fear of halting the fragile recovery now underway. Economists are calling for further rate increases towards the end of 2011. Thus the borrowing costs for mortgages remains very attractive. To counterbalance this, the Bank of Canada has tightened the rules to qualify for a mortgage, to ensure Canadians do not take on more debt than they can carry. Knowing that rates will be higher in the future, they don’t want consumers to be unable to afford their mortgage payments.

Wishing you all the best for 2011.

Article submitted by Ralph Evans – the group’s Residential Real Estate Person…
Mississauga, ON (December 7, 2010) — Although improved economic fundamentals will have a positive impact on Canadian housing markets moving forward, the forecast for residential real estate sales remains static in most major centres in 2011, according to a report released today by RE/MAX. Click for Full Report

The RE/MAX Housing Market Outlook 2011, examining trends and developments in 26 major centres across the country, found that home-buying activity in 2010 fell short of 2009 levels. Housing values, however, continued to climb, with virtually all areas reporting an upswing in average price, ranging from just under one per cent to 15 per cent this year. Lower inventory levels in many markets offset the effects of diminished demand, propping-up price in almost every instance. Kitchener-Waterloo, Quebec City, and St. John’s saw the greatest increases in average price this year, while Eastern Canadian markets including Hamilton-Burlington, Sudbury, Windsor, Moncton and Prince Edward Island were the only markets that bucked the downward trending in home sales in 2010.

By year-end, approximately 441,000 homes are expected to change hands nationally, a five per cent decline from the 465,251 sales reported in 2009. Housing values are forecast to continue to climb, up an estimated seven per cent to $340,000, compared with $320,333 one year earlier.

“In terms of resale housing activity, what many are talking about as the new normal is actually a return to the traditional real estate cycle,” says Michael Polzler, Executive Vice President, Regional Director, RE/MAX Ontario-Atlantic Canada. “The past decade was truly unprecedented—never before have we experienced a run up that was as strong or lasted as long. As we have digressed from the typical pattern, people have forgotten what the usual healthy cycle looks like, but all the hallmarks are there. Ample inventory levels, steady demand, and moderate growth, both in terms of sales and prices, will characterize the market in 2011. While the pace may appear lackluster in comparison to what we’ve grown accustomed to, it underscores the principles of real estate 101: The market is cyclical. All boats rise and fall with the tide.”

Greater stability is expected to characterize the markets in 2011, with Canadian housing sales predicted to mirror 2010 levels at 441,000 next year, while average price is forecast to escalate three per cent to $350,000 by year-end 2011.

“Looking forward, we see steady improvement in provincial and local economies—which will bode well for housing markets across the board,” says Elton Ash, Regional Executive Vice President, RE/MAX of Western Canada. “The relentless drive in the market reminiscent of years past will be gone and instead, we can expect to see more normal, balanced market conditions, with buyers maintaining a slight edge.”

Markets in British Columbia are forecast to lead the country in terms of percentage increases in sales activity next year, with Greater Vancouver expected to climb 10 per cent, followed by Victoria at eight per cent and Kelowna at six per cent. After a prolonged period of economic hardship, Windsor is once again on track for growth, with residential home sales predicted to climb five per cent.

Almost all markets are reporting an anticipated increase in housing values next year, with St. John’s in Newfoundland-Labrador in front with an estimated eight per cent hike in average price in 2011. The value of homes in Greater Vancouver, Kelowna, Regina, Saskatoon, London-St. Thomas, Ottawa, Sudbury and Greater Montreal is also predicted to climb five per cent.

“Low interest rates and improving consumer confidence levels should stimulate home-buying activity at all price points next year,” says Sylvain Dansereau, Executive Vice President, RE/MAX Quebec. “Overall gains will be more muted—a welcome reprieve for purchasers. 2011 will be a year that will see more widespread recovery across a broader array of economic sectors, setting the stage for a better 2012.”

In the meantime, a number of factors will continue to support sustained sales and price growth in the months and years ahead:

• Land scarcity, intensification, urban renewal, infill and renovation will continue to drive up values—regardless of supply and demand—in major metropolitan areas. The Canadian housing stock is ever-evolving, particularly in the central core of each city. With average price pushing closer to or well past the $300,000 mark in the vast majority of major centres, and affordability of single-family homes diminishing, the demand for attainable product will rise in tandem, bolstering the growing condominium segment in the years ahead.

• The upper-end of the market continues to be a strong indication of the overall health of Canada’s housing sector. Typically the first segment to soften in a downturn, luxury homes posted record sales activity in 2010, and demand is expected to remain solid in 2011. Strong sales in the high-end will continue to prop up average prices.

• Immigration will remain a serious force stimulating demand, particularly given the penchant for homeownership among today’s new Canadians. While the formation of new households used to take an average of five years, a growing number of newcomers arrive skilled, financially secure, and ready to make their home-buying moves. It is estimated that Canada will average 250,000 new immigrants annually.

• In the year ahead, federal, provincial and local stimulus in the form of continued infrastructure spending and capital projects will be a considerable boon to economic stability and employment, providing consumers the confidence to move forward with real estate purchases.

• Volatility in the money markets will continue to drive buyers to the tangibility of homeownership, both as a reliable long-term investment and a form of shelter, particularly given low vacancy rates and a lack of new rental construction in a number of major centres.

For more information, visit: www.realestatehelpdesk.ca

The real estate year of 2009 began amidst the economic downturn. Hardly any homes were selling and those that were had to be priced at a steep discount. Mostly there were no buyers in the market. By May 2009 consumer confidence returned to the Toronto housing market and a strong housing recovery got underway. The rally continued until it faded away into the year-end holiday time when real estate typically is slower.

Whole year average price for Toronto rose 4.2% from $379,347 to $395,460

Comparing December 2008 to December 2009 the market is up by 14% to $411,931

But the December 2009 average is down by 1.6% from November 2009.

Got all that? The reporting of market statistics is a bit crazy in real estate! I have summarized the whole thing into a couple of charts to help explain it visually:

Here is the monthly chart for the last few years: (click chart to enlarge)

And here is the yearly chart back to 1972: (click chart to enlarge)

Contact me for all your real estate needs…
Ralph Evans, Sales Representative
RE/MAX Professionals Inc., Brokerage
Phone 416 236-1241
Humbertown Plaza – 270 The Kingsway, Suite 200, Toronto ON

Etobicoke Real Estate

Toronto has seen a remarkable recovery of its real estate market over the past year. A year ago the market was pretty bleak as we experienced the economic downturn, with just 3,640 homes selling last November, along with declines in average sales prices.

So, a year later and we find just over twice as many homes were sold in November 2009, at 7,446 sales. The average sales price across the GTA was $418,460. This is down 1.2% from the month before, but still ahead 13.5% year-over-year. Home prices continue to hover in the range of new all time highs, with the outlook for the spring 2010 market to push even higher.

This chart shows the monthly sales and average prices for Toronto since 2006. Click on the chart to see a larger version.

While these numbers are aggregates for the whole Toronto GTA, they are useful for understanding the big picture. If you’d like to have the Toronto market explained to you in more depth, or to understand the details as it pertains to your home and your neighbourhood, please let me know. I’m here to help.

Contact me for all your real estate needs…
Ralph Evans, Sales Representative
RE/MAX Professionals Inc., Brokerage
Phone 416 236-1241
Humbertown Plaza – 270 The Kingsway, Suite 200, Toronto ON

Etobicoke Real Estate

RE/MAX Housing Market Outlook for 2010

To help you understand the trends in the real estate, RE/MAX has just published this report that looks back on the past year and looks forward at the predictions for 2010. This report looks at the real estate situation for all the major markets in Canada.

RE/MAX 2010 Housing Market Outlook

I’m a modern professional REMAX agent, ready to help you with Buying, Selling and Investing in real estate.

Contact me for all your real estate needs…
Ralph Evans, Sales Representative
RE/MAX Professionals Inc., Brokerage

Etobicoke Real Estate
Humbertown Plaza 270 The Kingsway – Suite 200, Toronto ON
416 236-1241

  
Etobicoke Waterfront

• Palace Pier and Palace Place
• Grenadier Landing
• Players Club
• Nevis
• Monarch Explorer
• Waterford
• Newport Beach
• Marina Del Rey
• Grand Harbour
• Mystic Pointe
• Tides
  

Central Etobicoke

• The Masters
• Chestnut Place
• Barklay Terrace
• Loggia Condo
• St. Andrews on the Green
• Network Lofts
• Tridel Essex and Nuvo
• Sherway Gardens
• Michael Power Place
• Kingswood
• Town and Country
  (Aberfoyle)

I’m a modern professional RE/MAX Real Estate Agent, and I am quite familiar with these condo buildings and many more in the Etobicoke area and beyond.  I have assisted people buying, selling and renting suites here.  Perhaps I can help you too.

Let me know how I can help you!

Ralph Evans - Sales Representative
RE/MAX Professionals Inc., Brokerage
Humbertown Plaza

call me at 416 236-1241

www.RealEstateHelpDesk.ca   ralph@RealEstateHelpDesk.ca www.Etobicoke-Homes.com

The Loggia Condo is located at the corner of Islington Ave and The Queensway in the former Etobicoke part of Toronto. For the movie fan, its directly across from the popular Queensway Cineplex-Odeon Theatres. A short bus ride up Islington takes you to the subway station. With immediate access to the QEW highway, you can get from here to anywhere quickly.

 The building amenities include a “floating” recreation centre with:

• counter-current swiming pool
• Fitness studio, with exercise machines
• Outdoor hot tub
• Sauna
• Lounge

Loggia Condo Spaces

I’m a modern professional RE/MAX Real Estate Agent, and I am quite familiar with this building. I have assisted people buying, selling and renting suites here. Perhaps I can help you too.

The Loggia condo has a modern contemporary feel. Some exposed concrete, lots of hardwood floors.

There are a variety of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom suites here. A few are two-level suites.
Can I help you with something about this building?

Can I provide you with a list of what is currently for sale at the Loggia Condo buildings?

Great Kitchens

If you already live here and are thinking of selling your suite, find out how I help people to sell their condo suites for more.

Buying, Selling, Renting at Loggia? I’m here to help!

Contact me for all your real estate needs…
Ralph Evans, Sales Representative
Call 416 236-1241    ralph@RealEstateHelpDesk.ca
RE/MAX Professionals Inc., Brokerage
Etobicoke Real Estate   www.Etobicoke-Homes.com

October saw another exceptional month in real estate! It remains an excellent time to be a seller of a home, and with care, a buyer in the current market.

Most notably homes are selling rapidly, often with multiple offers. If the price is right, it will sell, almost without regard to the condition of the home. This is now a classic seller’s market. There is a lack of enough good homes on the market along with an over-abundance of buyers.

For the month of October 2009 there were 8,476 home transactions across the Toronto GTA as reported by the Toronto Real Estate Board. The average price jumped ahead a further 4% from last month to $423,559 – which puts us 20% of where the market was a year ago. The Toronto market has risen 6.4% above the pre-crash high of May 2008. So this is now a new-high for Toronto home prices.

If you would like a more detailed statistical review of the current market or to see what this means for your personal situation, let me know. I’m here to help!

Contact me for all your real estate needs…
Ralph Evans, Sales Representative 416 236-1241
ralph@RealEstateHelpDesk.ca
RE/MAX Professionals Inc., Brokerage

Etobicoke Real Estate