sales

It’s the elephant in the room when agents, landlords and developers talk about the commercial and industrial real estate markets in Waterloo Region.

What’s going to happen with Research In Motion, and what kind of impact will it have on the market?

The potential decline of the mobile communications giant will have an “enormous” impact, but the region’s economy is diverse enough to weather the storm, agents with the commercial real estate firm Colliers International said Wednesday.

The seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts was 200,200 units in December, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). This is up from 185,600 units in November 2011. Actual housing starts for 2011 are being verified and will be reported in the January edition of Monthly Housing Statistics.

“The increase posted in December was mainly attributable to the multiple urban starts, particularly in Ontario and in Atlantic Canada”, said Mathieu Laberge, Deputy Chief Economist at CMHC’s Market Analysis Centre.

Despite a slow start in the spring, sales for 2011 nearly matched the previous year.

After a slow start in the spring, home sales in the London-St. Thomas market rebounded in 2011 and nearly matched the previous year.

The London-St. Thomas Association of Realtors (LSTAR) reported Tuesday that 8,048 homes were sold in 2011, about 1% fewer than 2010.

The year got off to a slow start when sales in the spring were lagging 15 to 20% behind 2010.

London got some good news on the housing front with new home starts up in the city and area, the Canada Mortgage Housing Corp. (CMHC) reported Thursday.

Builders poured foundations for 130 homes compared to 105 in November, up 24%, with numbers boosted by townhouse construction, said Margot Stevenson, senior market analyst for CMHC.

But the market for single, detached homes, the largest economic indicator, is still in a slump, she added.

The seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts was 181,100 units in November, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). This is down from 208,800 units in October 2011.

“Housing starts declined in November, reaching a level which is more consistent with the rate of household formation. The decrease in housing starts was due to a moderation in the multiples segment,” said Mathieu Laberge, Deputy Chief Economist at CMHC’s Market Analysis Centre.

RE/MAX is out with its Housing Market Outlook for 2012. It says 2011 was a good year for the Canadian housing market and growth is expected to continue.

Here in the Kitchener-Waterloo area, the number of units sold has gone down slightly but the average price has gone up. That's according Adrian Baas of RE/MAX Twin City, who says it, "indicates that the prices have actually climbed by almost 4%."

He attributes that to a higher number of "move-up buyers", those moving into more expensive homes.

Here's a good article in Ontario Homebuilder magazine about selling upgrades and creating loyalty through exceptional service.

view original article as published in Ontario HomeBuilder magazine.

by Enza Checchia

The seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts was 207,600 units in October, according to Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). This is down from 208,800 units in September 2011.

“Housing starts posted a slight decline in October due to a decrease in single-detached starts in urban centres,” said Mathieu Laberge, Deputy Chief Economist at CMHC’s Market Analysis Centre. “Urban multiple housing starts remained high in October, but overall housing starts are expected to moderate in line with demographic fundamentals.”

Housing starts in Waterloo Region rose slightly in October due to increased construction of apartment units and townhouses.

Builders started 305 housing units in the Kitchener-Cambridge-Waterloo census metropolitan area last month, up from 281 in October 2010, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. said Tuesday.

Three apartment buildings, all in Kitchener and Waterloo and all targeted to renters, boosted apartment starts to 171, up from 155 a year ago.

August was a stronger month for building permits in the city, but home building is still in the doldrums.

A report going to city council’s built and natural environment committee on Monday shows there were 415 building permits issued in August worth a total of $50.7 million — both numbers a slight improvement over the same month last year. But so far this year there have been 2,690 building permits issued, a 20% decline compared with same period last year.