Today I saw this article on Yahoo, talking about the values of pre-existing homes in Canada going on the rise.
OTTAWA (Reuters) - Sales of existing homes in Canada jumped 31.5 percent in the second quarter from the first and saw their first year-over-year quarterly increase since before the peak of the financial crisis, the Canadian Real Estate Association said on Tuesday. The industry group said actual home sales totaled 147,351 units in the second quarter of 2009, up 1.4 per cent from the same quarter of 2008. Home sales rose 8.7 percent in June from May on a seasonally adjusted basis. They were up 17.9 percent from June 2008, using nonseasonally adjusted figures. "This is on par with the record for the month of June set in 2007 and is the fourth highest ever for activity in any month on record," CREA said in a report. . .
I take this as encouraging news. Even thought the numbers are skewed by the major markets rebounding, overall things look like they are stabilizing. Here in Winnipeg we haven't had a decline in any values (miraculously) but it has slowed down recently. Jobina and I are strongly considering getting another rental property as we have equity that we could use for this very purpose. Although interest rates will probably slowly rise, getting a rental property in Winnipeg is a very good idea. I would encourage anyone who has a lot of equity in their house to consider getting another property as an investment. Unlike say, ahem, GM shares, which can lose all their value, real estate is definitely a more stable and reliable investment (of course risk is involved - discernment is still necessary). Also, by using your first home's equity you can actually purchase a home without a big down payment. We bought our first property and since I got a little extra on the mortgage to help pay for some repairs and cover the closing costs! I love real estate.
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