The Montreal Real Estate Blog

“Condo conversions aren’t allowed in many Montreal boroughs, so apartment owners are using another tack to sell their properties - and renters want the city to make sure they’re protected against sudden eviction.

Condo conversion is out and co-op conversion is in as the new battleground for tenants and landlords in Montreal, tenant advocates say.

Several tenants of a 300-unit apartment building on Mountain St. that was transformed from a rental building into a co-operative last fall attended a Ville Marie borough council meeting last night to demand a moratorium on that type of building conversion.

The tenants of Club Sommet at 3475 Mountain want municipal and provincial authorities to block such conversions until they can legislate the same kind of protection that exists for tenants whose buildings undergo condo conversion.

Some of Club Sommet’s tenants are facing eviction as the building manager proceeds with major construction work to combine some units to make larger dwellings and breaks up other units to sell.

The first evictions will be heard at the Quebec rental board in June.”

Source: Montreal Gazette. Read the complete article

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Canadian Home Sales to Dip in 2008 and 2009, Real Estate Agency Says - Canadian Economic Press
“Canada’s resale housing market will cool in 2008 and 2009, with the number of homes sold expected to drop and the pace of price increases to slow, according to a forecast issued Tuesday by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA).”
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More evidence housing market cooling - 660 News
“Two new reports are affirming the big chill is hitting our real estate market. R.B.C. Capital Markets is reporting a sharp decline in building permits is being led by this province, and the Canadian Real Estate Association says home sales will drop 19% in Aberta this year.”
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• Market Blog - Just bought a house? Don’t read this - Globe & Mail Market Blog.
• Homeless crisis grows while Canada prospers - The Vancouver Sun.
• ‘Cooling’ the watchword in Canadian real estate - CBC News.ca.
• Slide ends housing boom - National Post
• Has the housing boom gone bust? - Calgary Herald
• Low inflation gives Canada wiggle room on rates, analysts say - Canada.com
• A little mortgage savvy gets some big savings - Report on Business.

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• Housing markets on shaky ground. [ Report on Business Globe & Mail ]“Canada is in better shape than many other countries and home prices here aren’t expected to drop this year.But that doesn’t mean home owners should expect, or want, to see the big gains of past years.”
• Voices: 40-year mortgages [ The Star.com ] “It should be against the law for banks to offer (and CMHC to insure) 40-year mortgages. If you have to finance with little or no money down and spread the payments of 40 years then it is obvious you cannot afford the home you are buying.”
• Softer sales will cool market. [ The Star.com ] “Canadian housing markets should cool down some this year and next with softer sales, construction and price growth from coast to coast”

On Blogs:

• TD Economics Special Report “Canada’s Red Hot Real Estate Markets to Cool” - Mortgage Dairies.ca

Canada’s real estate market stands on stable footing. On average, healthy year-over-year house price gains were recorded during the first three months of 2008.

While more modest price increases were observed when compared to previous quarters, the solid appreciations noted in the first quarter are largely due to the shared effects of resilient local economies, high immigration levels, and relatively low interest rates – all leading to enduring buyer demand, according to a House Price Survey report released today by Royal LePage Real Estate Services.

While almost all markets surveyed experienced price increases, it was the smaller cities, with relatively affordable housing and strong economies based on resource industries that emerged with the most significant gains. Thriving Saskatoon saw appreciation as high as 66 per cent, while areas in Newfoundland posted increases above 20 per cent for the first time since Royal LePage started tracking house prices.

Continue reading this article >>

Residential Resales Pick Up in February Thanks to the Condominium

The Greater Montreal Real Estate Board (GMREB) indicated that property sales for all categories recorded a 3% increase in February 2008, according to MLS® system data, compared to the same period in 2007. Condominiums set the tone with an 18% increase in transactions.

“After being put to the test in January, the confidence of consumers in Quebec in February reached a level almost equivalent to the one recorded in 2007. The short term decrease of interest rates definitely encouraged this renewal of confidence and is excellent news for the real estate market,” says Michel Beausejour, FCA, Chief Executive Officer of the GMREB. Read more »»