on Affordability in Hot Housing Markets

Are the trajectories of the Toronto and Vancouver housing markets sustainable? How much longer can it go on? Is there an innovative solution that would not only help affordable living space, but also help future Canadian retirees (without them having to invest in this hot market)?

Senior Analyst was on BNN last week to discuss these questions, as well as the rise of multi-generational housing.

As Canadian home prices continue to soar, in Toronto and Vancouver in particular, you can see demand outstripping supply, but if you “peel the onion” you can see land and ground-oriented units are driving up average sale prices more than condos. If you look at the demographics of the young families struggling to get into the market, they still want the “dirt” – the lawn, garden, space – that comes with at least a semi-detached home or townhouse.

For real estate around GO Trains and Skytrain stations demand will continue. Millennials will continue to rent or buy within walking distance to these stations.

You can think of a housing market as a pendulum: the higher and faster it goes in one direction, the quicker it comes back to centre. Real estate is a cycle, and always goes back to the mean at the end of the day. Read the Secrets of the Canadian Real Estate Cycle for more insights.

Find out where strategic Toronto-area investors should be putting their money, what may be the quickest way to slow down a market and more in this first interview:

In his second interview, Don discusses housing affordability.

“Affordability has been an issue since the ’70s,” says the analyst.  

It’s unaffordable for the average family to buy in many cities across the country so they’re moving farther out, or into condos. Another solution that’s becoming more and more prevalent is multi-generational living.

This was obvious to Don and the REIN staff at a recent ACRE weekend in Calgary: more families and kids with their parents attended than usual, which indicates multi-generational housing solutions are on the rise. You can learn more about the real estate cycle and the real estate investing system developed that works in all markets at the Authentic Canadian Real Estate program in Toronto. 

To discover Don’s creative idea to introduce more affordable rental housing, watch the full segment below: