Quebec now has a higher rate of access to property than has been recorded since the middle of the 1980s, and that is thanks to the marked renewal of the activity on the resale market. These observations were registered in the latest report on the degree of access to property published by Economic Services of the Royal Bank of Canada.
“The housing market in Quebec was one of the last, in Canada, to be touched by the general economic slowdown, and prices have remained high here, stresses Robert Hogue, principal economist at the RBC. Access to property improves quickly in Quebec because of the relatively favourable conditions which prevailed there at the beginning of the slowdown. ”
The accessibility to property index makes it possible to measure the proportion of income before taxes which a household must spend on the ownership costs of a property. This index improved in the four categories of housing in the first quarter of 2009. That of the detached bungalow passed to 32,3%; that of row houses, to 27,4%; that of apartments in joint ownership, to 26,9%; and that of two-storey houses, to 38,4%.
It is announced that lower costs of property in the region of Montreal contributed to the renewed interest of buyers last spring. The increased activity of the resale market thus helps to maintain a good balance between supply and demand, which should result in a rise of prices.
Economist Hogue concludes: “In Montreal, the resale market has again become as active as at the end of last summer. The value of properties has known a light decrease compared to the highs recorded last year, but it could increase again soon. ”