September 2014 Ontario Economic Fundamentals

[Ally]

House hunters spending more to get less






House hunters are upping the ante ` and downsizing their dreams ` as real estate prices continue to climb further out of reach, especially in Toronto, according to the BMO Fall Home-buying Report.







Some 43 per cent of buyers, most of them in Canada`s four biggest cities, have boosted the amount they plan to spend on a house by 21 per cent just since they started looking ` an increase of $83,556.





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[Ally]

Move-up buyers 'paralyzed' by high house prices: CIBC






It`s not just first-time buyers who are finding themselves priced out of Toronto`s fast-appreciating housing market ` the high price tag of properties is also starting to `paralyze` the move-up market, says a CIBC economist.







It`s one of the first times that a bank economist is saying publicly what realtors have been saying quietly for the last couple of years: That homeowners are opting to stay put and renovate instead because it`s just too expensive, and stressful, to make a move in pricey urban centres like Toronto and Vancouver.





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[Ally]

Province hopes building code change will help boost forestry sector





THUNDER BAY ` The province is hoping changes to its building code can play a role in revitalizing the beleaguered forestry industry.





Effective 2015, the Ontario Building Code will be modified to allow for wood frame buildings to be constructed up to six storeys. Current regulations had only allowed for wood frame buildings to go as high as four storeys.





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[Ally]

Chinese developer makes its first purchase in Canada





Greenland Holding Group Co., a Shanghai-based developer owned by the Chinese government, said it bought King Blue, a two-tower condominium project in Toronto, its first purchase in Canada.





Greenland Holding bought the planned development, which includes 44 and 48-story towers, from closely held Easton`s Group of Hotels Inc. and The Remington Group Inc. for at least $100 million, according to Easton`s Chief Executive Officer Steve Gupta.





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[Ally]

Hamilton office vacancy hits lowest rate in five years





The downtown office vacancy rate has fallen to its lowest rate since the city began tracking employment numbers in 2010.





There was 613,790 square feet of office space available in the core in June, for an 11.8 per cent vacancy rate. That fell from 13 per cent last year and 15.2 per cent in 2009.





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[Ally]

Condo developer hit with $29 million class-action lawsuit






First there were the multi-million lawsuits over falling glass and faulty balconies, then came the class-action suit against a North York condo developer for allegedly failing to deliver a promised subway connection.







Now a frustrated Toronto condo owner has launched a $29 million class-action suit over a relatively small, but potentially dangerous, issue ` wildly fluctuating water temperatures in a Charles St. highrise project that are being blamed on the installation of improper water valves.





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[Ally]

Why some real estate agents are marketing to new immigrants





TORONTO ` Catering to different cultures and backgrounds has become big business for the real estate industry in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).





One third of all new homes in the GTA are bought people from the Chinese and South Asian communities, according to the company behind a couple of websites aimed at that market.





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[Ally]

Home value survey finds Toronto enclaves get richer still





If you`re the owner of a palatial estate in Toronto, 2014 is turning out to be a good year to place a `for sale` sign in front of your sliding electric gates.





Sales in the luxury segment of the city's real estate market have been brisk during the first eight months of the year, and market watchers predict the trend will continue through the fall.





Read the full article here.

 

[Ally]

Toronto office building spree spurs bust concerns






The last time Toronto office developers were this exuberant, Carl Blanchaer remembers it ending badly, he said. Construction on the 57-story skyscraper his firm designed for the financial district halted after just six floors and stood abandoned for 15 years.





The Bay Adelaide Centre tower was scrapped in the 1990s, when a recession that swept through North America crimped demand for space in Canada`s largest city. Today, Toronto developers may be overbuilding again and Blanchaer, a principal at WZMH Architects, is seeing the signs.






Read the full article here.