Quote:
Originally Posted by Claeren
I think there is some confusion from both sides.
Those of us saying it is not a good time to buy and it is a better time to rent are not saying it is ALWAYS better to rent.
What we are saying is that RIGHT NOW it is better to rent.
3 years ago it was better to buy. 6 months from now it might be better to buy. But looking at pricing versus long term scarcity it is currently better to rent.
In fact someone who bought a suburban condo or home 6 months ago is likely down $30,000-$60,000 IF they could even sell it right now. Not sure how negative equity is ever better then renting?
As for Calgary being cheaper then comparable markets, that is a joke. No comparable city Calgary's size has pricing from the core to the far perifery like we do. Toronto and Vancouver are both MUCH bigger cities, that are on the water (less developable land), and yet BOTH have cheaper pricing in the far flung suburbs. Most American cities with ~1M people have pricing a fraction of current Calgary pricing, usually at or below $250,000 (or even <$200,000) for a mid-size suburban home (v. $500,000).
Claeren.
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Bingo. I have always been pro buy, but there are times when you're better off waiting it out a bit. That time is now in Calgary. There is no reason why a house in a praire city with very little in ways of good climate, water etc should cost 500K. When the economy goes down you're stuck with a huge mortgage on a crappy house in a crappy place. Some will argue that the economy won't come down here, but they forget that it takes many a moon to pay off a 500K house. There are some tough times ahead, the only question is when and how tough.
And comparing Calgary to Vancouver and Toronto is fruitless, Calgary is a Praire Village compared to both.