爱城新屋空置量创纪录，阿省财政部门报告说
原始发布日期： 2019-03-02 发布者：虫子字变大 字变小
 （The number of newly constructed homes sitting unsold on the market set a record at 1,941 properties in January, says a report by Alberta Treasury Branches. ） The number of new vacant homes in the city has reached a record high for the fifth month in a row, says a report by Alberta Treasury Branches. Edmonton had 1,941 “completed but unabsorbed” homes in January, says the report which shows a 63 per cent increase in vacant new homes from this time last year. “The most basic reason for the rise in unsold new homes is there are more new builds than there are buyers. Underlying this is the slower pace of economic growth in the province,” said Rob Roach, ATB’s director of insight. The report says a tough labour market, stagnant wages, higher mortgages and tougher federal mortgage rules all contribute to the number of unsold homes. January’s number is 7.5 per cent higher than the previous record set last December. Calgary is following a similar trend. The southern Alberta city currently has 891 vacant new homes, up 39 per cent from January, 2018. Bryce Milliken, president of the Canadian Home Builders’ Association, Edmonton region, called the reports findings “staggering.” He said changes in mortgage regulations intended to calm the markets in Toronto and Vancouver have turned away potential buyers in Edmonton. Milliken said a federal stress test adds two per cent to a mortgage’s interest rate offered at the bank to ensure customers can afford to make their payments. “We’ve seen a 33 per cent drop in first-time homebuyers,” said Milliken. Milliken said these young people now have the means and the want to buy homes, but need to get the regulations changed to do so. John Rose, the city’s chief economist, said Edmonton’s population growth will see the market stabilize itself later this year. He said the city’s population above the age of 16 is currently growing at a rate of 2.1 per cent. He said the city’s young population will soon be looking to move into home ownership and fill vacant homes. Rose said the city will experience a buyer’s market for the next six months. “We’ve seen home prices come down in Edmonton, not catastrophically, but they have come down. So from a homeowner’s point of view, you’ve got to bite the bullet here,” said Rose. Rose said the number of new residential construction projects in the city has started to drop since the middle of 2018. dshort@postmedia.com |