Find the single-family home you’ve always wanted at Yorkson South in Langley, in a neighbourhood that’s quiet, yet close to all community amenities ›› p.4
October 28, 2010
Canada’s market stabilizing
Wallmark Homes’ vice-president of custom homes Dale Roadhouse, on-site at a home under construction, says thanks to technological advances, homes today are built much better than years ago, especially where energy efficiency is concerned. Martin Knowles photo
cient today. Most builders have stepped up to the plate and gone beyond code,” he says. “The efficiency of furnaces has improved a lot. Years ago, I think they were around 60 per cent efficiency. Now, they’re at 94 per cent efficiency. Windows used to be a single pane. Now you have double-pane, vinyl and gas-filled.” Roofing materials, among others, have only become better with time and techno-
The housing market in Canada remains on steady ground, according to a recent Royal LePage report. Canada’s residential real estate market saw year-over-year growth in the third quarter as fears of a double-dip recession or a housing bubble faded, states a release. The Royal LePage House Price Survey, released last week, shows house price appreciation slowed to a more modest five per cent in the quarter, “which is historically typical of balanced real estate markets.” The unusually active first half of 2010 is giving way to slower markets in the latter part of the year, but the third quarter was slightly stronger than anticipated, due to low rates in a competitive financial market and new demand fuelled by improved affordability, says Royal LePage Real Estate Services president and chief executive Phil Soper. The average price of a detached bungalow in Canada was up 4.6 per cent to $324,531 compared to a year ago. Over the same period, standard two-storey homes rose 4.4 per cent to $360,329, while standard condominiums rose 3.9 per cent to $226,481, according to the report. “House price growth now sits just below the longterm annual average of approximately five per cent, but once this is adjusted for inflation, which is very low and expected to continue to be that way for some time, appreciation is right on track,” says Soper. “Canadian homeowners will be pleased.” Vancouver was among the markets that posted higher-than-the-national-average price increases; the average price of a bungalow was up by 14 per cent in St. John’s, 9.2 per cent in Winnipeg, 9.1 per cent in Montreal and 8.8 per cent in Vancouver. Vancouver, with an average bungalow price of $873,500, was the most expensive housing market in the country.
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No place like a new home Energy efficiency, design and materials better than ever in local homebuilding industry TRICIA LESLIE Single-pane windows were the norm in new homes not so long ago. Tar and gravel used to be common condo roofing materials.
But ... that was then. This is now. These days, new homes in Metro Vancouver are built better than ever before, thanks to technological advances, changes to rules and regulations in the industry and the quality of materials and design. Portrait Homes principal Rob Grimm has been involved in the homebuilding industry for 20 years, and in that time, he has seen several changes, mainly due to technological advances. “I’d say homes are much more energy-effi-
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