Tag Archives: building permits
Toronto labour shutdown could delay home possession, cripple condo industry
Susan Pigg – Toronto Star
Condo developers are bracing for a civic walkout or lockout they warn could cost the industry millions, halt construction and even delay the ability of buyers to take possession of their units.
Housing developers have been trying to fast-track requests for approvals and building permits over the last few weeks out of fear a civic shutdown could cripple the hottest condo market in North America, if not the world.
“The worse-case scenario is that a prolonged work stoppage could affect the momentum of the industry,” says Paul Golini, executive vice president of Empire Communities and chairman of the Building Industry and Land Development Assoc. (BILD).
“For us, time is money. It affects our bottom line. It affects consumers because it can delay projects. This is the unexpected event that you can’t plan for.”
With some 36,000 condos now under construction across Toronto and almost 128,000 in the planning stages, the stakes are high. They were pushed even higher Thursday when the city declared a stalemate in bargaining with one of its major unions.
The city has requested a “no board” declaration from the province. If granted, that would start the clock ticking on a possible work stoppage by Toronto’s outside workers with concerns in the building industry that inside workers will follow or be locked out. .
Those inside workers would include city building and planning staff who review and approve virtually every stage of condo — and house — construction in Toronto, from reviewing site plans, issuing building permits, inspecting construction sites as well as granting occupancy permits that assure buyers the project is safe for move-in.
That means not only would any new or proposed buildings be affected, but move-in dates could be delayed.
City staff even approve registrations that transfer ownership of units from the developer to the purchaser.
Calls from the Star to city officials for comment were not returned.
Delays would not only mean higher carrying costs for developers, but could jeopardize project timelines contingent on each phase of a project being completed by a specific date.
“We’re talking millions that is at risk here if a work stoppage goes on for any period of time — even moments,” says Steve Upton, vice president of development for condo giant Tridel.
Tridel, along with BILD and other developers, have been meeting with city officials and staff since last summer to stress the impact a work stoppage could have on the building industry.
There are also some concerns a strike or lockout could scare off investors who have looked to Canada as a safe haven and helped drive up demand for new highrises.
Condo construction is credited with almost single-handedly boosting Toronto’s tax base by about $7.5 billion in 2011 over 2010. Thursday the city tapped into about $8.8 million of extra tax revenue from the building boom to restore a host of city services — from library hours to indoor swimming pools — that had been slated for cuts.
While city managers would theoretically step in for staff, the industry is already trying to cope with staff shortages and high turnover — compounded by the sheer volume of new condo projects — that has been slowing the ability to get approvals in a reasonable time, industry insiders say.
Just reviewing the complex plans requires a special level of expertise largely unique to building and planning staff, builders warn.
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Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information – 416-388-1960
Laurin & Natalie Jeffrey are Toronto Realtors with Century 21 Regal Realty.
They did not write these articles, they just reproduce them here for people
who are interested in Toronto real estate. They do not work for any builders.
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Home values have doubled since 2000, report says
Geoff Nixon, CTVNews.ca
A new report suggests that the average home value has more than doubled in most of Canada’s big cities since the millennium.
Re/Max says it examined the value of homes in 16 major markets across Canada, calculating the changes that occurred from 2000 to 2010.
The real estate organization found that an average home in these markets was worth $339,030 as of last year, more than double the average price of $163,951 in 2000.
Re/Max says that Canadians have spent an estimated $450 billion on renovations over the decade, while more than $340 billion in residential building permits were issued.
This heavy-duty investment has helped build value in individual properties while an increasing number of people looking for housing has helped spur demand.
“They key to Canada’s housing evolution has been an increase in population,” says Michael Polzler, the executive vice president of Re/Max Ontario-Atlantic Canada Inc.
With further sharp population growth expected in the years ahead, Polzler says that portends “continued investment and continued growth in Canadian housing values.”
The hundreds of billions poured into rejuvenating homes and properties across the country have also created new trends in urban neighbourhoods, Re/Max says in its report.
In cities where space is scarce, residents are increasingly seeing small properties snapped up and turned into new structures, whether personal residences, townhomes or high-rise apartment buildings.
Condominiums have also become more popular and more varied in terms of what they can offer. Re/Max says buyers can now choose from mixed-use residential, live-work studios, lofts, townhomes and condo bungalows in major markets.
The 16 markets that Re/Max studied were: Greater Vancouver; Victoria; Kelowna, B.C.; Edmonton; Calgary; Regina; Saskatoon; Winnipeg; Ottawa; Greater Toronto; Hamilton-Burlington; Kitchener-Waterloo in Ontario; London, Ont.; Saint John, N.B.; Halifax-Dartmouth and St. John’s.
No markets from Quebec or the Territories were included in the Re/Max analysis.
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Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information – 416-388-1960
Laurin & Natalie Jeffrey are Toronto Realtors with Century 21 Regal Realty.
They did not write these articles, they just reproduce them here for people
who are interested in Toronto real estate. They do not work for any builders.
———————————————————————————————————————
Incoming search terms
Related posts:
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Canada home price index hits record high in July
* Resale home prices rise 1.3% in July from June
* Prices up 5.3% from year earlier
Reuters
Canadian resale home prices rose to a record high in July, their eighth consecutive monthly gain, according to report on Wednesday that an analyst said signaled a gradual slowdown in a strong market.
The monthly report on the Teranet-National Bank Composite House Price Index, which measures price changes for repeat sales of single-family homes in six metropolitan areas, showed overall prices were up 1.3% in July from June.
Overall prices were up 5.3% from a year earlier.
Canadian house prices dipped during the recession, but bounced back quickly and have kept climbing, fueling talk of an overheated market, if not a housing bubble.
The index notched its fourth consecutive monthly increase of more than 1% in July. In contrast to the three previous months, however, prices did not rise in all six metropolitan markets surveyed.
Prices rose 2.3% in Calgary, 1.7% in Toronto, 1.0% in Ottawa, 0.9% in Vancouver and 0.5% in Montreal, while declining 0.9% in Halifax.
In five of the six metropolitan areas, prices were at record highs.
“As the numbers show, the dispersion of the monthly increases was very high,” the report said. “Vancouver’s July rise extended its string of consecutive monthly gains to 10, currently the longest run of monthly rises among the markets covered.”
Analysts said, however, that the Teranet HPI report, along with the Canadian Real Estate Association’s report of existing home sales for July, released on Aug. 16, signal an orderly market slowdown.
“The overarching theme of a gradual moderation in the housing market remains intact,” said Mazen Issa, Canada macro strategist at TD Securities.
“On a year-ago basis, the HPI has been stable. Housing market activity has been kept in check,” he added. “For instance, housing starts and building permits have been stable for some time. We believe that in the backdrop of a low interest rate environment, macro prudential regulations will play a greater role.”
Canada’s federal government, worried about high debt levels, has tried to engineer a soft landing for the market with tighter rules for government-backed insured mortgages that took effect in March. The changes cap mortgage terms at 30 years rather than 35 and cut the amount homeowners can borrow against their homes to 85% from 90%.
The Teranet HPI index tracks home prices over time for repeat sales, so properties with at least two sales are required in the calculations. The report did not provide actual prices.
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Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information – 416−388−1960
Laurin & Natalie Jeffrey are Toronto Realtors with Century 21 Regal Realty.
They did not write these articles, they just reproduce them here for people
who are interested in Toronto real estate. They do not work for any builders.
———————————————————————————————————————
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