CANADA's Housing Market - who is buying and where..?

Canada’s housing market took off in 2009, fueled by low interest rates. Housing became a main source of economic growth, with annual resale price increases of as much as 13% in May 2010. Price gains slowed to 3.1% as of October partly because of a new rule that shortened the maximum amortization period on mortgages the government insures to 25 years from 30 years. Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz told lawmakers Nov. 20 he doesn’t see a housing bubble and there are signs of a soft landing as indebted Canadians pull back on spending.

International buyers are shoring up high-end housing in Canada after regulators tightened mortgage rules in 2012 to cool the nation’s booming market.In Vancouver and Toronto, price growth of luxury housing in some neighborhoods also outpaced less costly homes.

TORONTO :

Toronto, the condo boom has lured international buyers, transforming Canada’s largest city. Condo developers in the city led a record number of high-rise projects in North America last year, squeezing out everything from cookie factories to parking lots.

Toronto Housing market is fueled by foreign Investors and first time buyers.

Donald Trump’s 65-story luxury condo tower opened in Yorkville, the city’s high-end shopping district, one condo was listed for sale in late November for $15 million. It boasted five bathrooms, an indoor pool, six balconies, four underground parking spots and a monthly
maintenance fee of $8,224.

VANCOUVER :

In Vancouver, which boasts a rugged Pacific coastline and cultural ties to Asia, 40% of buyers of 1,239 such homes were from aboard.

In Vancouver, where 15% of the population speaks a Chinese dialect as a first language, people from China are the largest group of foreign buyers, according to Sotheby’s survey. They are often buying second homes or investment properties.

While the entry point for a Vancouver single-family luxury home is $2.8 million, the city in late November offered the most expensive home for sale in Canada by its main broker network: a $35 million duplex once inhabited by a Lieutenant Governor. The 12,216-square-foot home a few kilometers south of Stanley Park has nine bedrooms and 13 bathrooms.

High prices in Vancouver, Canada’s third-largest city, are driven more by a land shortage and population growth than foreign investors.

MONTREAL :

Montreal, whose downtown is stocked with cafes and clubs, attracts global buyers with its Old World charm.

Montreal, known for its crumbling water pipes and bridges as much as its cobblestone streets, now stands out for drawing the biggest share of foreign owners. They purchased 49% of the 206 homes worth at least $1 million in the first half of 2013.

International buyers have thrust Montreal, a city sometimes overshadowed by Toronto and Vancouver, into the national spotlight.

The majority of international buyers of large single-family homes in Montreal are from China, Syria, Mexico, Russia and the U.S., they
typically are married with children and buy a home worth at least $3.5 million with 5,000 square feet. About 80% of them earn more than $500,000 a year and work in finance, technology, law or are entrepreneurs.

In Montreal, prices of bungalows of around 1,200 square feet (111 square meters) rose as much as 5.4% in the third quarter from a year ago, Houses of at least 3,000 square feet worth about $2.47 million in the Westmount area gained 16.9% in the same period.

There is absolutely a clear distinction between Toronto and Montreal,” Brosseau said. “Montreal is known for more quaint areas, very European feel, like Old Montreal with the cobblestones, horse and carriages.”

This year, the brokerage was selling a $6 million house in Westmount owned by a Middle Eastern family and four out of the first six potential buyers were also non-Canadians. They appreciate the city’s more relaxed lifestyle. Montreal residents still buy alcohol at any shop — they don’t have to go to a government licensed store.

Montreal's boutiques and bilingual culture made the metropolis more international over Toronto and Vancouver.

source: National post