Ottawa and Surrounding Area Real Estate market discussion

michelb wrote: ↑ I'm not sure how much Shopify location helps Moon - it's close but not close enough (Shopify basically wants their employees at the office as much as possible so gives them food all the time which means that many employees living in the area want a very short walk to the office (so they can eat at work) - at around 20 minutes walk, I think Moon is kind of too far) (A Shopify employee might buy at Moon but one renting would probably look for something within 5 minutes walk).

Thank you for sharing that. I don't actually work at a "silicon valley headquarter" kind of company, so I'm not familiar with the hours and what their employees need in terms of housing. Given the still relatively low prices in downtown Ottawa, the effect of shopify is probably the knock-on effect of employees bidding up prices in units right next to the company, pushing other buyers/renters to other areas of downtown, such as moon.

cyberfreak123 wrote: ↑ Impressive performance for the condos. Let's see if this price increase will continue in the coming months or it's just a statistical glitch. Is it because of the popularity of the townhouses condo?

Since it's average price rather than benchmark price, it could be due to a change in sales mix, like higher priced downtown condos finally moving. Or it could be condos finally catching up on some of the gains of freeholds. Condo got hit pretty hard during the slump after 2011.

MOI is below 2 now:
http://www.hometeamottawa.com/stats/

Probably an outlier month. Prices can really go up if MOI stays below 2.

cyberfreak123 wrote: ↑ The condos' inventory is declining quickly, more than the freeholds. Condos might continue to lead in price growth, at least in the very short term. Condos developers will catch up I'm sure.
Does anyone look at the condo market and can share with us some observations made in the condo market?

Unless you're looking for very specific condos, I don't think you can really see any patterns. You can probably find condos within the city limits that range for $100k or less to $1 million or more and the numbers are low so you'll get huge variances in avgs depending on what's available, what sells, etc.

michelb wrote: ↑ Unless you're looking for very specific condos, I don't think you can really see any patterns. You can probably find condos within the city limits that range for $100k or less to $1 million or more and the numbers are low so you'll get huge variances in avgs depending on what's available, what sells, etc.

Yes. I track some very central (Glebe, Market, New Edinburgh) and generally expensive condos and it does vary a lot. Some well priced units are selling quickly. Others are trying to sell for 10-20% more than last year and seem to be not selling. Units with high condo fees still languishing which suggests the market is warm not hot. In the same areas semi-detached and townhouses seem to sell fastest. These run $700k-900k where I look but are obviously much cheaper than detached and can also have the advantage of being newish though those sell for above $900k in many cases.

BlueSolstice wrote: ↑ MOI is below 2 now:
http://www.hometeamottawa.com/stats/

Probably an outlier month. Prices can really go up if MOI stays below 2.

I am still not seeing a lot of homes being listed. And of those that are priced less than $550K, the SOLD signs go up rather quickly.

Little update on my side: photos and virtual tour done this week, we'll be listing May 28th'ish.

For the poster above who asked about market conditions, I asked our listing agent. In our neighbourhood (Fairwinds, Stittsville) the average, single car, detached home goes from listing to firm sale in 15 days (listing to conditional sale in 10-11 days). Apparently the $450-550k detached home market is quite competitive.

mself084 wrote: ↑ Apparently the $450-550k detached home market is quite competitive.

Competitive for who? Buyers or sellers?

Thanks for the update!

old sparks wrote: ↑ Competitive for who? Buyers or sellers?

Thanks for the update!

Competitive for buyers. Low inventory, average days listed also low.

What does everyone feel about Claridge Moon project downtown (supposedly above the future LRT station)?

I am thinking betting on two units and hoping that this gamble pays off in few years.

Would love to hear any and all pros and cons from the Ottawa RE experts on here.

TIA!

cyberfreak123 wrote: ↑ i’ve been monitoring freehold houses more than condos, but I’m curious about condos in downtown. i love downtown, but damn they’re expensive, especially freehold.
how much do these units cost? how many bedrooms? what are your total expenses?
how much do you expect to rent this for? cashflow neutral?

Prices have not been released yet

deadsea wrote: ↑ What does everyone feel about Claridge Moon project downtown (supposedly above the future LRT station)?

I am thinking betting on two units and hoping that this gamble pays off in few years.

Would love to hear any and all pros and cons from the Ottawa RE experts on here.

TIA!

Its a couple of blocks from my place but I haven't taken a look at the pricelist yet.

I love the area, and can't wait for the grocery store to be built.

Ultimately, the prices, if they're anything like Claridge's other downtown projects, are going to be cashflow negative for the typical investor at current market rents. In fact, most who could afford to rent there will be able to buy elsewhere in the city.

Im also deeply averse to buying any Claridge projects where they retain ownership of components like commercial/retail space, from personal experience, as they tend to rig common service agreements in their favour.

You should also know there's going to be a lot more rental stock coming online in the area. A retirement home is going on the remaining Christ Church parking lot and rental buildings are going up on the entire block south of the Moon site. Claridge is building their own rental building attached to Moon. As an investor, do you want to compete with your builder for tenants?

I'm incredibly bullish on the area long-term, which is why I bought my personal condo here, but i think for a rental investor or flipper there remain better opportunities in the suburbs.

deadsea wrote: ↑ What does everyone feel about Claridge Moon project downtown (supposedly above the future LRT station)?

I am thinking betting on two units and hoping that this gamble pays off in few years.

Would love to hear any and all pros and cons from the Ottawa RE experts on here.

TIA!

Personally, you may be better off waiting after the election before you place your bet. After all, if the Conservative forms government, the market psychology may have shifted by the time you take possession. Judging by what happened the last time Harper came in, by the time the condo units closed, which can be 3 to 4 years from signing, you may be underwater or providing subsidized housing on behalf of the government.

It may take you a while to go through the entire thread, but pretty much this thread chronicled the real estate cycle of Ottawa for the last 8 years. When the thread started, the market was near the plateau and the market sentiment was very similar to what we see today. The market than stagnated until pretty much 2015, and that's when the market changed course and started its current upward trajectory.

VIP sale for claridge moon is on Thursday May 9th at 4:00pm. First some first serve basis. Open to the public on Saturday, May 11th.
As per claridge they will start breaking ground very soon with construction starting on the rental building first.
I will not be able to attend the VIP sale event but if someone can post the price/units that would be great.

Almost all the builders in Ottawa have new release this weekend, the biggest one is Minto in Kanata. Minto may post the price tomorrow.

Too bad that I have to out of town this weekend...

old sparks wrote: ↑ Competitive for who? Buyers or sellers?

Thanks for the update!

Buyers. Sorry, should have specified.

Minto Arcadia is releasing 52 lots of two story executive towns and urban three story townhomes on May 11.

People started lining up Wednesday afternoon.

Drove by at 9pm Wednesday and parking lot is full. 30 people in line already.

Zero Hope wrote: ↑Minto Arcadia is releasing 52 lots of two story executive towns and urban three story townhomes on May 11.

People started lining up Wednesday afternoon.

Drove by at 9pm Wednesday and parking lot is full. 30 people in line already.

Do they know the price before lineup?