"Townhouse and apartment benchmarks rose approximately 30 per cent year-over-year, to $771,200 and $520,700, respectively, by the end of December.
“Initially during the early stages of the pandemic, purchasers were looking for more space and pricing was more reasonable in Langley and neighbourhoods south of the Fraser in comparison to Vancouver,” said Zonda Urban market analyst Melissa Nestoruk."
“Calgary has seen more consistent activity, as well as more consistent project launches in both wood-frame condominium and townhome projects,” said Cornelius. “Demand in Calgary has tended to outpace the supply of new projects.”
While condominium sales in Edmonton have slowed, Cornelius attributes the shift to a lack of new product rather than reduced demand. Several condo projects have been delayed or converted to rentals in the past few years, shrinking the supply of new homes for sale.
“Because of the downturn in oil and gas (a few years ago), developers reassessed their projects and converted a lot of existing new condominium units to rentals,” says Jackson Cornelius, director of advisory services for Alberta at Zonda Urban.
The report from Zonda for the third quarter of 2021 (July 1 to Sept. 30) notes that sales fell, year over year, from 282 units to 257 sales — the lowest figure for the period in the last five years.
Yet the picture is better than it appears because existing new condominium units are selling well, Cornelius says.
A new report suggests investors are returning to the long slumping part of the market, seeing potential for a good return on their investment dollars, says Jackson Cornelius, manager of market and advisory for Zonda Urban in Calgary.
“Anecdotally, many sales representatives for new projects in the city are seeing more buyers over the last quarter who are investors,” he says.
Kendall Brown, manager, rental data (Alberta/Ontario) for market research and data advisory firm Zonda Urban (formerly Urban Analytics) told viewers at the virtual Calgary Real Estate Forum the majority of the completed developments are already stabilized – buildings that have achieved over 85 per cent occupancy.
Another 13 of the projects are actively leasing.
“The younger crowds are now moving downtown again with things opening up,” says Kendall Brown, manager of rental data at Zonda Urban (formerly Urban Analytics), which recently published its third-quarter new rental report for the city.
Pauline Lierman, vice president of market research at Canadian housing research consulting group Zonda Urban, said that pricing in the market is up more than 10% across the geographic target area. For example, in the City of Toronto, small, 260-square-foot condo units are priced at $360,000, and a 500-square-foot one-bedroom condo is more than $550,000. These represent the least expensive entry-level new housing in the City.
Zonda today announced the appointment of accomplished housing market specialist, analyst, and advocate Pauline Lierman to the Zonda Urban team. Lierman—now Vice President, Market Research, Ontario and Quebec—brings more than 20 years of experience in market research and advisory roles in the greater Toronto area (GTA), providing insight and strategic input based on a deep knowledge of new residential developments across the region.
“Jasmine is a highly respected and established expert in Canada’s housing industry. Her extensive experience and knowledge of cities across the country will make Zonda Urban a leader in the rental and for sale sectors of the housing market.”
Brown notes prior to 2018 most projects in the area would have launched as condominiums for ownership, but developers recognized the need for new rentals as many professional young adults are taking longer to buy a home or choosing not to buy at all.
“Rentals can attract a much wider demographic of people not just those who can secure a mortgage,” she says.