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Edmonton, AB

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What's going on with the economy?

08-09-09
Todd & Danielle Millar
Todd & Danielle Millar: Real Estate - Other in Edmonton, AB
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  • Office: (888) 780-5940 x251

A snapshot look at Canada's economy major economists taken from The London Free Press

"The downward trend among private sector employees persisted in July, with large losses for this group partially offset by continued gains in self-employment."

Statistics Canada July employment report.

"These are difficult times. It's going to be a difficult year. I've been saying that, to sort of calm the euphoria about, you know, 'We're out of a recession.' We are stabilized, and there are some good signs. But it's still the recession and we still have to work our way out of it."

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty told CTV News.

"No one said it was going to be a smooth recovery, and especially not for employment. If there is any positive spin here for the broader economy, it's that the job losses were almost entirely concentrated among summer students (though try telling your teenager that's good news)."

BMO Capital Markets economist Doug Porter

"Even though the Canadian economy is likely to resume positive growth sometime in the third quarter, we are likely to continue to see the unemployment rate climb for up to six months after the recession has come to a close."

TD Bank economist Diana Petramala

"Sadly, today was not a happy day for the Canadian job market. It's critical when we see these disappearing jobs that we have an effective fiscal stimulus to create or to save jobs. And that means getting the money out the door because, no matter how many billions in commitments, you won't save one job if you don't get the money out the door.''

Liberal MP John McCallum, the party's finance critic

"Some people say that the recession is over, but try telling that to the unemployed and their families. Unemployment is going to get worse in the months ahead and the Harper government is leaving people to fend for themselves."

Ken Georgetti, president of the Canadian Labour Congress.

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Average Sale Price Edmonton SFD July 2009

08-09-09
Jason Thomas
Jason Thomas: Real Estate Sales Person in Edmonton, AB
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  • Office: (780) 431-1900

I've put together a graph showing the average price for Single Family Detached homes. Our prices have moved back up to mid 2008 numbers. Way off from the 2007 peak, but we are moving in the right direction.

Average sfd price Edmonton July 2009

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Edmonton Real Estate Market Update July 2009

08-06-09
Jason Thomas
Jason Thomas: Real Estate Sales Person in Edmonton, AB
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  • Office: (780) 431-1900

July has been similar to June, very strong and recordbreaking. 2277 sales in the month of July, beating July of 2006 (1953 solds) by a wide margin. On the listing supply side we are now sitting at 6592 properties for sale which is down from June's 6785. What have prices done during this strong market? Not too much. We have seen an increase for Single Family dwellings to $369,859 which is just under 1% increase from June 2009. The overall average price (including condos and duplexes) actually dropped one percent to $324,847.

What does this all mean? Well the market is definitely trying to find itself. The demand is very strong, but the listing inventory has been keeping up with the demand. The resulting situation is becoming more of a balanced market in my opinion. I don't thing the sales will be recordbreaking as we go into the fall (I have been wrong before), so I actually forsee a situation where our inventory climbs a little. Not a dramatic increase, but enough to stall any further price increases. We did have the one month of 5% price increase this year, but the rest of the months are up 1% or down 1%. Overall we will probably see an average price increase of 7% total for the whole year of 2009.

This is good, not great. It reminds me of the 1996 market in Edmonton. In 1996, we had a tremendous influx of Armed Forces personnel moving into Edmonton from other Bases. This increase in demand did not effect prices dramatically (prices went up 4% for the year), but what it did do was "sop up" the excess listing inventory we had from the 1993-1995 recession/cutbacks that were going on in the City when Premier Klein came to power. Basically, the increase in buyers helped cure the supply problem, stopped the freefall in prices, and we went on our merry way of price increases in the 5-10% range in the following years. I see a similar situation here. We don't have military moving in, but we do have first time buyers, renters and relocations coming into the market. These people were frozen out of the market for the last few years because of the higher interest rates and the higher prices.

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An Edmonton Realtor's Moral Dilema

07-13-09
John Carle
John Carle: Real Estate Agent in Edmonton, AB
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  • Office: (780) 457-3777
  • Mobile: (780) 231-7534

This weekend I had the pleasure of meeting with a lady who wants to sell her house in Edmonton. It’s a fairly average home for the area, in good condition and clean. It will be a good listing, a real feather in my hat. It should sell quickly and for a good price.

But I’m not sure if I want to list it. Here’s the background story on the situation… (with her permission of course!)

The homeowner is not comfortable with debt. She really doesn’t like owing money to anyone, even as a mortgage on a house. So her plan is to sell the house and rent instead; ideally she’d like to rent the house that she currently owns. This will allow her to get out from under the debt that is her mortgage. That’s her plan.

She isn’t selling because she needs the money, or feels that prices will fall again. She’s not selling her Edmonton home because she’s moving away or upgrading to something else. She can handle the maintenance and upkeep of the home (obvious by the good condition of the home), and the current payments and cost aren’t her issue. She just doesn’t like having a mortgage.

Here’s my moral dilema. I don’t think selling the home is in her best interests, not at all. If she sells and rents a home in Edmonton, her monthly payments will be as high as they are now, if not higher. They’ll certainly increase over time and she’ll face more and more expense as time goes on. It’s a bad move. Eventually she’ll be stuck in some rotten old basement suite in a bad neighborhood because she has no savings and that’s all she can afford. Sure it won’t happen today, but once she goes down that path… she’ll get there eventually.

I’ve always prided myself on looking out for my clients’ best interests. That’s how I’ve become successful as a Realtor; my clients know that I’m there for them and will never sell them out.

But if I don’t list the home, I’m sure someone else will. I do believe that she’ll sell the home; with or without me. So while I don’t agree with her decision or motivation, should I take her on as a client anyways? Afterall, someone will list her home and it will sell.

This is a tough one for me. Anyone have any comments or input for me?

- John Carle

ReMax Real Estate Edmonton

www.Knock-Knock.ca

(780) 231-7534

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Edmonton Real Estate Board Press Release - July 2009

07-06-09
John Carle
John Carle: Real Estate Agent in Edmonton, AB
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  • Office: (780) 457-3777
  • Mobile: (780) 231-7534

Edmonton, July 3, 2009: At the mid-point of the year, the REALTORS® Association of Edmonton is confident that the local real estate market has regained stability. The 9,741 sales of residential properties sold through the Multiple Listing Service® in the first six months surpassed the six month year-to-date figure for last year (9,567) and residential sales in June set a new record for the month. Residential sales in June totalled 2,552 units which surpassed the 2007 record of 2,203 units sold and was the third best month for unit sales in MLS® System history.

“Buyer confidence, especially among first time buyers, was evident in Edmonton despite lingering economic concerns in other markets,” said Charlie Ponde, president of the REALTORS® Association of Edmonton. “When mortgage rates looked like they might start to rise, many potential buyers locked in lower mortgage rates and then went searching for a qualifying home.”

Listing activity slowed slightly from last month (down 0.03%) with 3,179 residential listings. The strong sales drove the sales to listing ratio to 80% from 68% last month. Prices continue to climb with one month increases of 0.6% for single family dwellings and 1% increases for condominiums. The average* SFD sold for $369,859 in June as compared to $367,672 in May or $351,870 on January 1. Condominiums sold for $247,071 on average in June; up from $244,734 in May and $234,286 at the start of the year. At the end of 2008 Q2, SFDs sold for $381,384 and condos sold for $262,365.

“Last year prices fell from the high point in March. This year prices have just continued to climb,” said Ponde. “Prices typically decline slightly in the second half of the year but the drop, if it occurs, will not be precipitous.”

The average days on market was 60 days or more early in the year but dropped to 49 in June; another indicator of buyer enthusiasm. At the end of June there were 6,785 residential properties active on the MLS® System (2.65 month supply at current sales volumes) which offers a wide range of choice for those eager buyers.

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Highlights of MLS® activity

June 2009 activity Record for
the month*		 % change from
July 2008
Total MLS® System sales this month 2,847 36.00%
Value of total MLS® System sales - month $964 million 30.60%
Value of total MLS® System sales - year $3.49 billion -5.60%
Residential¹ sales this month 2,552 37.80%
Residential average price $328,299 -3.80%
SFD² average selling price - month $369,859 -3.00%
SFD median³ selling price $349,500 -4.20%
Condo average selling price $247,071 -5.80%

¹. Residential includes SFD, condos and duplex/row houses.
². Single Family Dwelling
³. The middle figure in a list of all sales prices

* Average prices indicate market trends only. They do not reflect actual prices, which may vary.

Contact

Charlie Ponde REALTOR®, 2009 President Bus: 780-460-8558
Ron Hutchinson C.A.E., Executive V.P. Bus: 780-453-9340
Jon Hall C.A.E., Manager Communications Bus: 780-453-9323

The REALTORS® Association of Edmonton (Edmonton Real Estate Board), founded in 1927, is a professional association of Brokers and Associates in the greater Edmonton area. The Association administers the Multiple Listing Service®, provides professional education to its members and enforces a strict Code of Ethics and Standards of Business Practice. The Association also advertises property listings and publishes consumer information on the Internet at REALTOR.ca and ereb.com, as well as in the Real Estate Weekly and on their web site at rewedmonton.ca. REALTORS® support charities involving shelter and the homeless through the REALTORS® Community Foundation (RCF).

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