캐나다 도시별 집값 변동(2002-2012년)

  2013-02-22일자 토론토 스타에 실린 기사가 눈길을 끕니다. 캐나다 전역 각 도시별로 지난 10년간 집값 변동을 기록한 기사입니다.

값이 오르든 내리든 상관없이 자신이 살 집을 하나쯤 가지는 건 옳은 일이란 생각이 듭니다. 지난 10년간 평균 90% 이상 상승은 좀 크게 느껴지기도 합니다. 하우징 붐(Housing boom)이 있었던 걸 감안하면 수긍이 가기도 하지요.

유대인들은 돈이 있을 때마다 부동산을 사들입니다. 한번 산 부동산은 팔지 않고 자손 대대로 물려줍니다. 개발기회가 있다고, 많은 돈을 줄 터이니 팔라고 설득을 해도 도무지 팔려고 하지 않습니다. 그래서 그들은 더 부자가 되는지도 모르겠습니다.

부동산의 경우 단기적인 부침이야 있겠지만, 장기적으로는 오른다고 보는 게 옳을 것입니다. 요즈음 젊은 세대들은 집을 장만하지 않고 세를 들어 살려는 추세가 있다고 하지요? 개인적인 생각으로는 그래도 자기가 살집 하나쯤은 장만하는 것이 옳지 않을까 싶습니다.

     

             <House of the rising boom, city by city>

 

More homeowners are poised to cash out and move up this year backed by gains averaging some 93 per cent during a 10-year housing boom that, in losing some of its steam, has opened new doors for would-be buyers, according to a new report from realty company ReMax.

Move-up buyers took advantage of the softening market last year as a chance to buy a bigger home in 14 of 16 major markets surveyed by ReMax, the exceptions being Victoria and Vancouver, where sales slumped significantly.

Move-up houses in the $500,000 to $700,000 range accounted for about 20 per cent of sales across the GTA last year, up 8 per cent from the previous year, says the ReMax Move-Up Buyers Report 2013 released Thursday.

That buy-up spree is likely to continue this year as interest rates remain low and many first-time buyers take a breather in the face of tougher mortgage lending rules, the report notes.

While departing Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney, and others, have warned of the hazards of treating houses like ATM machines — for living the good life or funding retirement — the report paints a fascinating picture of who won the biggest jackpot in the Canadian housing market lottery between 2002 and 2012.

Surprising as this may seem, you would have seen an almost tripling of the value of your house (from $100,751 to $301,145) — more than 11 per cent per year from 2002 to last year — if it was in Regina rather than Riverdale.

Second- and third-place in the housing gains department were Saskatoon and Winnipeg, with annual increases averaging 10.25 and 10.03 respectively over the decade, ReMax says.

Across the GTA the average house appreciated from $275,231 in 2002 to $497,298 last year, an almost 80 per cent increase over the decade, amounting to average annual gains of about 6 per cent.

Those price escalations eased somewhat from 2007 to 2012 (from an average $376,236 to $497,298, amounting to a still-hefty 32 per cent gain) and show “no signs of being in bubble territory — and most definitely not in the often cited markets of Vancouver and Toronto,” said Gurinder Sandhu, executive vice president and regional director of ReMax ontario-Atlantic Canada in a statement on the report.

“While gains in Regina, Saskatoon and St. John’s have been exceptional, house prices are playing catch up, given a stronger economic status and following decades of steady, but modest, growth.”

Saint John recorded the lowest price gains during the decade-long boom, the report shows, with the average house price increasing by about 62 per cent, or less than 5 per cent a year, from an average of $103,544 in 2002 to $168,048 last year.

The report found those first-time buyers now in the market are moving up faster than in the past, an average four to seven years from their initial purchase.

“Inventory levels remain a challenge within Toronto proper — with fewer than 300 single-detached homes currently listed for sale in the $500,000 to $700,000 price range from Victoria Park to Islington, north to Steeles Ave.,” the report notes.

Listings are expected to climb as the March to May spring buying season nears.

At the same time, the number homes for sale in the 905 regions has increased, “allowing purchasers the luxury of time and choice.”

<By: Susan Pigg Business Reporter, TORONTO STAR Published on Friday, Feb 22, 2013, Page B2>