Google Redfin

Thanks. This document has some of the most recent migration stats.

http://www.statcan.ca/Daily/English/071219/d071219b.htm

I just liked this comment. I have no doubt that in the next few years or 5-10 years we will do great as a province. (Just not sure what this housing thing will do in the short term)

And what would happen if just for a couple years, people stopped migrating to Alberta? Our pop. has sat around a million for 80 years. To a lot of places, adding an extra 30,000 people might not create much of a change. But for a smaller population, the effect is much larger.

I’m wondering if there are any recent numbers on migration.

WTF are you talking about?

How about supply, demand, speculation, perception, scarcity, market manipulation?

Have you noticed that many of the natural resources in Saskatchewan are in demand globally?

Growing populations grow and developing nations develop, and then they want a piece of the pie. Gotta make a bigger pie, and Sask has the ingredients currently needed.

Unless of course you mean that people have resigned themselves because they are not protesting in the street, or using their power of numbers to vote out the people who ran you out of Saskatoon.

Why did you feel compelled to respond to my post if it doesn’t hold water? My comment was effective enough to deserve a reply from you.

Sellers have a lot more to lose when their houses are sitting vacant. What about the people paying two mortgages because they bought another house before selling their last property? Buyers within Saskatoon aren’t living on the streets, most won’t lose any money by staying put. They will keep saving money every month while sellers keep losing money every month.

Don’t you folks realize that mob mentality only works if you actually have a mob? I also agree that over bids are a little stupid, but you can’t change that market with a few dozen people who decide to boycott it.

If you don’t want to buy, then don’t. Nobody minds. Just think about the comment a bit, and decide if you really think it might be effective.

There are a lot of us that feel right now buyers should hold out and wait a bit because demand IS easing. I hope they will soon take heed. There should also be a LOT of spec houses coming up for sale. If people play their cards right they might be able to pick one up this summer for decent price.

The only reason the price of anything goes through the roof is because people have resigned themselves to such changes. Nobody stands up to say anything because there are neo-cons around every corner ready and armed with disinformation to guilt them into silence. Don’t be too un-moderate now, nobody wants to hear that!

We have such a lobotomized society built around acceptance, corporations don’t have to fear repercussions. Either from consumers with demand or from the government for unfair or dishonest business practices.

So long as you can prove somebody agreed to get screwed, screwing people is okay nowadays.

That means unless you’re an expert on everything you deal with, people are positioned to rake you clean.

Ah, the wonders of a “free” market. Consolidation, dishonesty, lack of transparency, stagnated innovation, persuasion, informal cartels and a reduction of available work. Libertarians and believers of their ideals need a serious head check.

There’s just too much damage being done to our economy because of greed right now and everyone is stuck taking their cues from each other.

When will Canada wake up?

I didn’t mean to say that Royal Lepage fudged the numbers, but from my own digging around I know the numbers do not match up.

On Bob Truman’s site the average SFH in Edmonton is 398k.

In Saskatoon the average is 325k?

But these stats are for the whole city.

To get the stats that show Saskatoon is more expensive than Edmonton some of the higher end places in Edmonton are left out and the low end places in Saskatoon are left out, right?

You’re a class act man. A real class act.

“I am curious about what people feel about this lady on social assistance getting her rent raised?”

Sad story indeed, and unfortunately it appears that there is no relief in sight for the poor with food prices about to go through the roof.

These stories certainly don’t help. Received a half dozen of these inquiries just over the weekend and the ink isn’t even dry.

Smokey,

These types of real estate brokerages have been operating in Canada for years. Hardly news. Inovex Realty will be happy to take your Saskatoon listing for a 1% fee. To the best of my knowledge, that offer has been around as long as I’ve been in the business, about 15 years.

It takes any Realtor a while to develop a network of clientèle once outta school, due to the fact when you finish the program, no one just hands you a bunch of clients. Real estate is cut-throat dirty and often unethical business. I have heard stories about older more established Realtors treating inexperienced Realtors like garbage, because they want them to give up.

This guy from Edmonton figured out that charging less with a creative name, that people may give him business. Many Realtors that have success have either business connections, or work their ass of to get clients. Some start as assistants. This guy was brilliant, and when this article gets out there will copycats offering lower commission everywhere, because at 2 percent you can still make a fair living. I hope it ends the high commissions, and creates a better environment for competition.

Can you imagine his office to tomorrow. His poor secretary is in for an exhausting day. This article will probably triple his clientèle.

It would be great if this created ramifications for other Realtors, such as many having to lower rates. I have always felt that Realtor commissions are unjustifiable. There are too many Realtor’s who do not deserve the nice living they get. I have met so many unknowledgeable Realtors over the last few years. I find that they often are asking me questions about market conditions and future prognostications, because they don’t take the time to educate themselves. Many are great at spin, and that is why they are successful. I remember one Realtor who had know clue as to the what the market was doing. I directed them to a number of websites so they would be able to find out for themselves were the market was going. Too many Realtor’s lack understanding in market condition, but know how to read people, and spit out the current real-estate lingo and choicest phrases. Why would I pay them for their spin? The only way I would pay a Realtor high commissions, if I felt their expertize benefited me in making a decision that was better than me making it on my own.

Realtors love them uneducated masses who buy foolishly because all they have to do is pump the spin. Watch a few episodes of “Flip My House,” and listen to the blond bombshell Realtor tell her clients that they will make lotsa of money cause they install granite countertops and hardwood. It is crazy to think that a person with no education can take the course and then people can consider them an expert?

Those stories will continue until the media is absolutely 100% without a doubt positive that Saskatoon’s real estate market is cooling.

Smokey,

Interesting article! That realtor must be fairly popular because of his lower commission rate and cash back offer. But the higher client volume must keep him busy. He probably ends up working harder because of the higher client volume, but making the same amount of money as any other realtor in the end because his commission is less. Does he just have a kind heart, or am I missing something?…

http://www.edmontonsun.com/Business/News/2008/04/27/5400406-sun.html

http://www.canada.com/saskatoonstarphoenix/news/third_page/story.html?id=7c780505-2eec-479f-ae94-6305dacfd869

If you don’t believe the report in Royal Lepage, analyze comparable ares in Saskatoon and Edmonton. I find it shocking.

you mentioned that your phone is still ringing from outside investors. The media is probably largely responsible.

Mid april feature on BNN: Saskaboom, series of 8 spotlites/videos

April 28 edition of Canadian business: Saskatoon still relatively affordable and one of the markets expected to grow

Current issue Resource World magazine: article entitled Insights and Investments in Saskatchewan- Well positioned to withstand any potential downturn in the U.S. economy

I am sure these are just some of the sources. The Can Bus mag states that our gov spent 320K advertising in Alberta and Southern Ontario. Someone also posted a link to the feature in Report on Business(Golbe and Mail?)

How long do you think these stories will last?

I’m not really sure what Royal LePage might have to gain by fudging these numbers. That said, I do think that the method is faulty and I said as much when this news initially broke that “Saskatoon is more expensive than Edmonton.”

The Royal LePage House Price Survey examines recent prices for specific housing types in specific areas. In Saskatoon, we report on “East” (east of Circle Drive, or Area 1), “East Central” (west of Circle Drive East to the river, or Area 2), “North” (the North end of Saskatoon, or Area 3), and “West” (which includes everything west of Circle Drive West, or Area 5). For some reason, Royal LePage thinks it’s appropriate to average the results from those 4 spots. Note that all of the properties in Area 4, the cheapest area of Saskatoon are not included. Also, Edmonton reports on eight specific areas and the average is arrived at in the same manner. I’m not familiar with those areas so I don’t really know how that shakes out but I would imagine that it presents similar issued when averaging. I suspect that the averages for each identified area are fairly accurate but the whole thing comes apart when you attempt to produce one average from all of the areas. You can’t really say, “If the average in East is X, and the average in East Central is Y, then the average for both is Z. As far as I can tell, there is something missing from that equation, that being the number of sales. This is something that I need to take up with Royal LePage.

Homes in Saskatoon East may be more expensive than homes in Edmonton Terwilliger, but there is no way that the average price of a detached bungalow in Saskatoon is higher then it is in Edmonton.