Tag Archives: home prices
South Annex
The South Annex neighbourhood was subdivided in the early 1850′s, on land formerly owned by the Jarvis, Crookshank and Denison families; all of whom played a prominent role in the history of Toronto.
The South Annex is a vibrant and colourful downtown Toronto neighbourhood. Much of the South Annex’s vitality comes from being located right next door to the University of Toronto.
Naturally, many University students, faculty, and alumni rent or own houses in the South Annex. The University population mixes well with the young urban professionals who have been buying and fixing up South Annex houses, giving these old houses new life, and in the process revitalizing this historic Toronto neighbourhood.
South Annex Real Estate Map
The South Annex neighbourhood has long been overlooked by Toronto homebuyers. Those who had the foresight to buy homes here in the past are now been richly rewarded as this neighbourhood is now in big demand.
South Annex is appreciating at an alarming pace – some properties south of Bloor are now going for over $1 million. This would have been unheard of a few years ago. Being in the heart of the U of T district, this area will always maintain its value and continue to exceed most other neighbourhoods.
Sales in the South Annex tend to be few and far between, as inventory is tight. This lack of supply coupled with great demand is one reason why home prices in this neighbourhood are on the rise. An average of only 2 semi-detached and rowhomes sell in a given month – for just under $1 million. Maybe one detached house sells every two months – and such rare and premium properties sell for close to a million and a half.
Home buyers are flocking to the South Annex neighbourhood for many reasons. The area attracts people looking to be within walking distance of shops, cafes, Harbord Village, Chinatown, Kensington market, Korea Town, JCC, U of T, excellent schools, the ROM, book stores, fine dining etc. There are lots of large single family homes for those with big families looking for a sense of community, as well as professional couples looking to start a family in this vibrant neighbourhood. There are also many investment properties in the area, which makes sense given the large and ever expanding U of T student population.
Houses in the South Annex
South Annex homes tend to sell in two to three weeks. Since there is never much available, it does not stay on the market for long. Housing stock is mixed with single family, duplex and multi-unit homes. The South Annex has a strong appeal to buyers due to its strong resident’s association and community involvement.
If you love Victorian architecture you will love the South Annex – which is chalk full of character homes. Interior details include high ceilings, stained glass windows, beautiful fireplace mantels, plaster mouldings and ceiling medallions, tall baseboard trim, radiators with scroll designs and hardwood floors. Exteriors are defined by Victorian gables and some houses have front porches and maybe even an original slate roof.
Public transit is always close by so you don’t need a car. However, many homes come with some form of parking whether it be a driveway or parking pad, or even a laneway at the rear. There is also permit parking available with certain houses on specific streets, but this is best to check with the City first.
If you’re planning on buying a home in the South Annex, do your homework. Have your financing in place and be ready to go when your dream home comes on the market – you will not have long to make a decision and move on it. Be diligent about home & termite inspections, be aware of where the house is located (on a heritage designated street, next to student housing, near a main street or bar).
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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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Toronto and Canada Housing Forecasts Getting Rosier
Each month, our local home builders’ association receives several market intelligence reports from the Canadian Home Builders’ Association. This month’s newsletter contained a number of items that I thought would be of interest to new-home buyers in the GTA.
Economic Update
Dr. Peter Andersen, CHBA’s consulting economist, notes that this year will be much busier than expected for construction activity of all types. Housing starts have surged and residential construction has picked-up again. Non-residential construction, always a second-half cyclical performer, is in a solid expansion. A strong office leasing market and a declining office vacancy rate are signaling the onset of an office tower construction cycle.
Housing starts averaged 248,000 at annual rates in the first quarter – an increase of 17% from the same period a year earlier. This is far above the 2005 housing starts total of 225,481 units and also the annual cyclical peak of 233,431 units set in 2004.
The March starts figures were striking – 252,300 at seasonally adjusted annual rates. The first-quarter surge reflected both single-detached and multiple-unit starts. Housing start forecasts for 2006 are being revised upwards as a result of the monthly performance through the first three months of the year.
The resale market is always a good indicator for new-home demand. It is still hot and shows no sign yet of affordability stress. First-quarter sales were at an all-time record high, after adjusting for seasonality. Sales of existing homes and condos in March continued at close to record levels. This is also good news for renovation demand as the stimulus to renovation from resale housing activity, which works with a lag, shows no sign of slowing down. The national average resale price in March in major markets was up by 11.5% year over year.
RBC affordability index
High home prices and utility costs in the last three months of 2005 pushed home affordability to its highest level in 10 years, according to the Royal Bank of Canada.
RBC’s affordability index measures the proportion of pre-tax household income it takes to service the costs of owning a home. Despite the fact that incomes continue to rise, this increase does not match the hikes in mortgage rates, house prices and utility costs.
Income growth in Canada is starting to accelerate, wages are rising, but the increase in house prices has been faster. Add to it higher interest rates and overall size of rising mortgages, so affordability is going down.
Vancouver and Calgary were hit the hardest as housing prices soared in the last quarter of 2005. Affordability is expected to get worse in the first half of this year, but should level off by year’s end.
Labour shortage
The construction industry is concerned after hundreds of construction workers from Portugal and other countries have been deported as the new Conservative government moved away from Liberal government promises of an amnesty plan.
Promises of an amnesty gave hope to underground workers who came forward to file refugee claims as a result. Their attempts to stay in the country legally ended up getting many of them deported. Canada’s current immigration system is tailored to educated immigrants, and blue-collar workers often do not qualify.
“This is insanity,” says immigration lawyer Lorne Waldman. “We have an immigration system that is supposed to supply workers for jobs, but these blue-collar workers who are needed cannot qualify to get in.”
There is a major labour shortage in the construction industry – an industry that accounts for 9.5% of Canada’s total gross domestic product and 7.5% of Ontario’s alone. It is estimated that there are between 10,000 and 15,000 illegal immigrants working in southern Ontario’s construction and hospitality industries, and 200,000 undocumented workers across the country. Deportations are therefore a major threat to the construction industry.
The Canadian Home Builders’ Association wrote a letter to Immigration Minister Monte Solberg, supporting the work foreign workers do in the homebuilding industry and urging him to resolve the labour shortage.
Solberg says the government is working with the provinces to ensure labour needs are met. “We understand the process doesn’t work well for a lot of people. We’re trying to fix that. The ideal situation is for people to go through the process.” He ruled out an amnesty, he said, because he doesn’t want to encourage people to come to Canada illegally.
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Contact the Jeffrey Team for more information – 416-388-1960
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Expecting home prices to rise?
Four out of five Canadians expect the prices of homes to increase over the next year, according to a new survey by Genworth Financial Canada.
The Genworth study shows that expectations of home price appreciation vary considerably across Canada. In Alberta, 92% believe housing prices will go up, with 42% saying that prices will increase “a lot” over the next year.
Most Canadians indicate that they expect the bull market in housing to continue, 25% believe that houses will become much more expensive, and 55% say that prices would increase slightly in the coming year.
The survey found that 56% of respondents across Canada feel that now is a good time to buy a home. Sixty-one per cent of Atlantic Canadians and Ontario respondents believe now is a good time to buy, followed by 51% in the Prairie provinces and 47% in Quebec.
“Canadians see home prices appreciating and they don’t want to be left behind,” said Genworth President Peter Vukanovich. “Fortunately, low down payment mortgages with mortgage insurance make it possible to make a smaller down payment and get into homes sooner even as prices rise.”
The study finds that half of all Canadians who purchase homes choose a low down payment mortgage. Forty percent of homebuyers put down 5% of the purchase price, while 35% make a down payment of 10%.
About one-quarter of Canadians surveyed made down payments of less than $5,000. One in five put down between $5,000 and $25,000, and 10% put between $25,000 and $50,000 down.
The telephone survey of 1,000 Canadian adults was conducted for Genworth by Veraxis Research and Communications, and is considered accurate within +/-3.1 percentage points.
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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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