Real Estate

Ottawa and Surrounding Area Real Estate market discussion

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  • Mar 28th, 2024 7:51 pm
Member
Jan 19, 2017
431 posts
121 upvotes
canabiz wrote: No worry, I just like to lay everything on the table in black and white to see all my options so I can make an informed decision.

You don't have to worry too much about fancy schmancy terms like Cap Rate, ROI (Return on Investment), Debt Service Charge Ratio etc when you first start out but it does help to maintain a little spreadsheet so you can punch numbers in and see if something makes sense.

I kept my example simple but there are other costs and revenues associated with being a landlord such as utilities (if there are no separate meters for multi-family), snow removal/landscaping for costs and parking for additional revenue.
Thanks again for the additional information. I actually don't plan on becoming a landlord. I am looking for a place to rent, but in my search, I came across places that were recently bought and turned into a rental by the new owner. Checking on redfin for the purchase price, I just couldn't figure out a how it's possible to purchase such a house and then rent it at that price. That made me think of buying a property instead of renting (my thinking was that if such a low rent generates a positive cash flow, why would I rent at all and not buy?), but I couldn't make my math work at all as I just ended up seeing a much higher monthly payment if I decided to purchase a property.
Deal Addict
May 23, 2017
1358 posts
1343 upvotes
darXider wrote: Thanks again for the additional information. I actually don't plan on becoming a landlord. I am looking for a place to rent, but in my search, I came across places that were recently bought and turned into a rental by the new owner. Checking on redfin for the purchase price, I just couldn't figure out a how it's possible to purchase such a house and then rent it at that price. That made me think of buying a property instead of renting (my thinking was that if such a low rent generates a positive cash flow, why would I rent at all and not buy?), but I couldn't make my math work at all as I just ended up seeing a much higher monthly payment if I decided to purchase a property.
Depends on what type of property you are looking at but it still could be better for you to buy. You can't really look at cashflow from a landlord perspective to draw conclusions about your own situation as a tenant. Don't forget that a big chunk of your mortgage payments is going to the principal (aka building equity). In your case, arbytor's calculations actually make more sense for you as what you really want to know is whether the expenses of owning a place exceed rent, without including mortgage principal. When doing the calculation this way, I believe you are actually better off buying in many cases.

Of course there are many factors involved (personally I was happy to rent for a number of years before buying and it worked out well for me). These include: opportunity costs of downpayment (what could you make if you invested downpayment instead, e.g. in the stockmarket), costs of maintenance/repair of owning your own place (both in terms of time and money), and intangibles (do you enjoy the stability and freedom of owning your own place, or do you enjoy the lack of responsibility and freedom of being a tenant?). And are you the type of person to benefit from the "forced savings" of having mortgage payments? Obviously though also consider how long you plan to stay in a place, general rule of thumb is usually to say buy if you plan on living there for at least 5-10 years otherwise rent (this is just a very general rule of course). Do take into account ALL costs, monetary and otherwise, associated with both scenarios when making your decision, e g. are utilities included in rent but won't be if you purchase? Will you be tempted by lifestyle inflation in one scenario over the other (buying expensive furnishings etc for the house as an owner, or spending your extra money on eating out etc as a tenant instead of saving/investing)? Will your quality of life be affected by the type of housing you choose if you rent vs buy?

Lots to consider, but again from a purely financial perspective chances are you may be better off buying. If you want to post some more specifics I'm sure many of us here would be happy to help you do an analysis.
Deal Addict
Nov 13, 2013
4527 posts
3688 upvotes
Ottawa
darXider wrote: Thanks again for the additional information. I actually don't plan on becoming a landlord. I am looking for a place to rent, but in my search, I came across places that were recently bought and turned into a rental by the new owner. Checking on redfin for the purchase price, I just couldn't figure out a how it's possible to purchase such a house and then rent it at that price. That made me think of buying a property instead of renting (my thinking was that if such a low rent generates a positive cash flow, why would I rent at all and not buy?), but I couldn't make my math work at all as I just ended up seeing a much higher monthly payment if I decided to purchase a property.
Your logic is a bit backward. Rent or buy is complicated but cash flow positive is not a given. In some markets it’s a given you are well under water and appreciation is the game. Theoretically rent should be related to purchase price but they can divert for a long time or even permanently.
Deal Fanatic
Jan 15, 2017
5750 posts
6123 upvotes
Ottawa
darXider wrote: Thanks again for the additional information. I actually don't plan on becoming a landlord. I am looking for a place to rent, but in my search, I came across places that were recently bought and turned into a rental by the new owner. Checking on redfin for the purchase price, I just couldn't figure out a how it's possible to purchase such a house and then rent it at that price. That made me think of buying a property instead of renting (my thinking was that if such a low rent generates a positive cash flow, why would I rent at all and not buy?), but I couldn't make my math work at all as I just ended up seeing a much higher monthly payment if I decided to purchase a property.
You may also want to consider that if you plan of renting a place that appears to not be cash flow positive for the landlord that you may not be there a long time. A landlord that is losing money on the place every month may decide to sell the property sooner than expected.
Member
Jan 10, 2012
464 posts
116 upvotes
Ottawa
Richcraft has increased their prices in Westwood and bradley commons. I looked at their 44 foot houses, and they have increased by 16k compared to less than a month ago.
Newbie
Apr 9, 2020
92 posts
79 upvotes
raaaaam wrote: Richcraft has increased their prices in Westwood and bradley commons. I looked at their 44 foot houses, and they have increased by 16k compared to less than a month ago.
Not surprisingly, I bought a new just before Covid started at the end of March, and my friends bought new builds from Minto Acadia, Mattamy Barrhaven. All of them got increased by 15k to 20k between then and now.
Sr. Member
Jul 15, 2019
724 posts
588 upvotes
ZhaoW9051 wrote: Not surprisingly, I bought a new just before Covid started at the end of March, and my friends bought new builds from Minto Acadia, Mattamy Barrhaven. All of them got increased by 15k to 20k between then and now.
Yea most builders are keeping up the steady price increases they have been doing prior to Covid, and that's likely due to the demand still being there... there was a small blip of time things were not selling like hot cakes on launch days. But, this are still steadily being sold. So while things are still being sold, I am sure builders want to continue to increase profits. As well as the cost of labour, and materials isn;t dropping by any means.
Newbie
Apr 9, 2020
92 posts
79 upvotes
freeman93 wrote: Yea most builders are keeping up the steady price increases they have been doing prior to Covid, and that's likely due to the demand still being there... there was a small blip of time things were not selling like hot cakes on launch days. But, this are still steadily being sold. So while things are still being sold, I am sure builders want to continue to increase profits. As well as the cost of labour, and materials isn;t dropping by any means.
The reason for demand is due to the booming of high tech. With Advent of 5g, IOT , AI, etc., The high tech sector will see the biggest booming in the next few years. That also drivers population growth with lots of talents. The covid only further boosts the high tech that is reflected by no lay off, more hiring and faster rebound revenue from the us China trade war. Thus, I could expect that the housing price will keep rising in the next few years until some points it stays flat.
Sr. Member
Jul 15, 2019
724 posts
588 upvotes
ZhaoW9051 wrote: The reason for demand is due to the booming of high tech. With Advent of 5g, IOT , AI, etc., The high tech sector will see the biggest booming in the next few years. That also drivers population growth with lots of talents. The covid only further boosts the high tech that is reflected by no lay off, more hiring and faster rebound revenue from the us China trade war. Thus, I could expect that the housing price will keep rising in the next few years until some points it stays flat.
But CMHC says that Ottawa will be the second hardest hit city in Canada, with crippling job loss /s
Sr. Member
Jul 15, 2019
724 posts
588 upvotes
golfyfan wrote: Yep, you can sign up to this link and will give you access to rockland as well as ottawa and surrounding areas. https://www.findottawarealestate.ca/nei ... d-sold.cfm

The only thing I see in Morris village for a 3 bedroom is one sold for $499k in the last 3 months, but it's a custom home to be built at 173 Onyx Crescent, Clarence-Rockland, Ontario.
The listing has been Delisted (Cancelled).
Newbie
Apr 9, 2020
92 posts
79 upvotes
freeman93 wrote: But CMHC says that Ottawa will be the second hardest hit city in Canada, with crippling job loss /s
If CMHC has been right, there won't be a housing problem in Canada to begin with. I am only providing my perspective here. I do not see any chance of major layoff. In fact , most of big company are doing incredibly well.
Deal Addict
May 23, 2017
1358 posts
1343 upvotes
ZhaoW9051 wrote: If CMHC has been right, there won't be a housing problem in Canada to begin with. I am only providing my perspective here. I do not see any chance of major layoff. In fact , most of big company are doing incredibly well.
Don't worry he was being sarcastic. :P

We were discussing on here a few pages back about CHMC predicting Ottawa house prices would fall 10% over next year or two due to COVID-19, however many of us here were skeptical of their predictions.
Member
Oct 21, 2007
478 posts
656 upvotes
ZhaoW9051 wrote: The reason for demand is due to the booming of high tech. With Advent of 5g, IOT , AI, etc., The high tech sector will see the biggest booming in the next few years. That also drivers population growth with lots of talents. The covid only further boosts the high tech that is reflected by no lay off, more hiring and faster rebound revenue from the us China trade war. Thus, I could expect that the housing price will keep rising in the next few years until some points it stays flat.
There has been a hiring boom in the Ottawa tech scene the last few years that combined with a federal government hiring boom has meant a lot of people looking for houses. I'm not sure either of those will continue - not because there will not continue to be tech jobs (though tech has not been immune from covid layoffs), but because I don't believe it will be necessary to move to Ottawa for those tech jobs. Lots of Shopify employees used to move to Ottawa for their jobs... I doubt any will be now. I think it will be the same for the other large tech companies in Kanata - most of which have already announced they will WFH til the end of the year (if not much longer). As for the federal government, it will take a few years.... but many of them are also expected to stay working from home, and: https://torontosun.com/news/national/we ... -in-canada. Long term, I don't see how that trend is positive for Ottawa's real estate.

Anyway, I'm not predicting a big drop in housing prices in Ottawa.... though I also don't see what would support the current hot market continuing after this year. With the wild swings upward at the moment, it would make a lot of sense that housing prices would take a breather in 2021.
Sr. Member
Jul 15, 2019
724 posts
588 upvotes
Does anyone know of a site with the city's site plans? For example site plan 50M-366? Builders never release me the whole thing, I only ever get certain snapshots.
Deal Fanatic
Jul 4, 2004
7430 posts
4677 upvotes
Ottawa
michelb wrote: This week's numbers:

New Listing (666)
Back On Market (61)
Price Decrease (121)
Price Increase (17)
Conditional Sale (324)
Sold (597)
Expired (25)
Leased (0)
Cancelled (82)
Rented (75)
Suspended (17)

730 coming on, 1100 coming off

Board stats for the weeks (sales have caught up to last year, prices still slightly down from pre-COVID peak (this might have more to do with what's available on the market than actual prices for a similar home):
https://content.oreb.ca/matrix/stats/index.html
Here's this week's number:


New Listing (634)
Back On Market (48)
Price Decrease (138)
Price Increase (24)
Conditional Sale (323)
Sold (763)
Expired (15)
Leased (0)
Cancelled (105)
Rented (87)
Suspended (11)

680 coming on, 1300 coming off

Board stats for the weeks:
https://content.oreb.ca/matrix/stats/index.html
Sr. Member
Aug 22, 2016
626 posts
408 upvotes
Listed $665K and sold $725K. That seem a big jump from last year prices. These size houses in that area were in the mid 600's range last year.

202 Celtic Ridge Cres
Kanata, ON K2W 0C1
Deal Addict
Sep 2, 2009
2978 posts
3020 upvotes
Ottawa
freeman93 wrote: Does anyone know of a site with the city's site plans? For example site plan 50M-366? Builders never release me the whole thing, I only ever get certain snapshots.
Not sure where you are located, but in Ontario there is OnLand. Can search and pay online.
Deal Addict
User avatar
Feb 18, 2010
1130 posts
650 upvotes
Greely
freeman93 wrote: Does anyone know of a site with the city's site plans? For example site plan 50M-366? Builders never release me the whole thing, I only ever get certain snapshots.
I'm not sure how often they update the city GIS system, but you can try:

geoOttawa

Edit: It's not up-to-date. My step-son just put $1k down on a new build in Diamondview, and the phase 2 lot is not yet shown on the city GIS site...

I recall him saying the model they bought has gone up $70k since last year when they first looked...
Deal Addict
Nov 26, 2004
4462 posts
4128 upvotes
freeman93 wrote: Does anyone know of a site with the city's site plans? For example site plan 50M-366? Builders never release me the whole thing, I only ever get certain snapshots.
You may have to search the archive section if everything has already been approved. But you should be able to find the information you're looking for here.

https://app01.ottawa.ca/postingplans/home.jsf?lang=en
Member
Feb 14, 2006
288 posts
137 upvotes
Ottawa
House next door sold 50k over asking within 4 days back in March. This one had a similar asking and sat for 3 weeks and now they have dropped the asking 40k. A sign of things to come or just a one-off?

6 Hemlo

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