Calgary's NE (newer communities)

[shane_c]

Does anyone on here live in any of the newer communities in the NE? Which one? Do you like it?

We love the deep SE and would like to stay in the M-Towne and New Brighton area if at all possible but because of house prices we may be forced to go elsewhere when we look to buy in the next few months.

[Bobblehead]

Well, I'm in Taradale; my house was built in '87, but 90% of the rest of Taradale has been built in the last 6 years. You can really see the difference. My area - all the houses on the street are different, bungalos, bi-level, 2 story, 1 1/2 story, and lots of trees. The new section is very cookie cutter with immature trees.

There are some premium sections around man-made water features, but outside of those spots it is pretty tight, small yards, few attached garages. A lady here at work signed to get a unit in a townhouse that is yet to be built. She isn't scheduled to move in until Nov.'07, so there is still a lot of building scheduled for the next few years. A lot of the homes in the area are starter homes with younger families.

A few years ago, there were regularly a few houses for sale in my area - people who had outgrown the starter home and moving up - but in the last 18 months it seems everyone is staying put.

Traffic has gotten steadily worse, but they are working like crazy on the new 36th/McKnight overpass and tse C-Train extension, so that should help.

Personally, my wife and I would like to move, but with the rising home prices, and not wanting to make the daily commute too much worse (currently 15-20 minutes for me), we'll probably hang tight for a while.

[ken0042]

Shane, are you currently owning or renting?

I ask because if you own, places in the NE seem to be about $20K less, and by the time you sell and move, you'd be almost even with realtor fees and moving costs.

[shane_c]

renting.

Originally Posted by ken0042

Shane, are you currently owning or renting?

I ask because if you own, places in the NE seem to be about $20K less, and by the time you sell and move, you'd be almost even with realtor fees and moving costs.

[shane_c]

Thanks Bobblehead. Are there many ameneties nearby or are they yet to be built?

Originally Posted by Bobblehead

Well, I'm in Taradale; my house was built in '87, but 90% of the rest of Taradale has been built in the last 6 years. You can really see the difference. My area - all the houses on the street are different, bungalos, bi-level, 2 story, 1 1/2 story, and lots of trees. The new section is very cookie cutter with immature trees.

There are some premium sections around man-made water features, but outside of those spots it is pretty tight, small yards, few attached garages. A lady here at work signed to get a unit in a townhouse that is yet to be built. She isn't scheduled to move in until Nov.'07, so there is still a lot of building scheduled for the next few years. A lot of the homes in the area are starter homes with younger families.

A few years ago, there were regularly a few houses for sale in my area - people who had outgrown the starter home and moving up - but in the last 18 months it seems everyone is staying put.

Traffic has gotten steadily worse, but they are working like crazy on the new 36th/McKnight overpass and tse C-Train extension, so that should help.

Personally, my wife and I would like to move, but with the rising home prices, and not wanting to make the daily commute too much worse (currently 15-20 minutes for me), we'll probably hang tight for a while.

[Eddie Bronze]

shane,

Whatever I could tell you about the NE would be negative so I won't go there. But I've noticed you commenting on the fact you would like to buy for quite some time here on CP and I'm in a similar situation, although I'm single and I believe you said your situation involves two incomes.

The problem is that at the moment, it's strictly a sellers market. I know you're likely looking at renting the same way I do and it does feel like it's wasted money, but the other avenue of buying could see you wasting even more. You buy something right now, in an over-priced market and 5 or even 10 years down the road you go to sell it and maybe only get 3/4's of what you bought it for. That's not a guarantee, but it's a financial risk that could bite hard down the road.

I work in the construction industry and the price of stuff is climbing at an astronomical rate. We had a one month span earlier this year where the average price of a place went up over $20,000. It's impossible to predict whether the current rate of increase can continue, but right now it's looking like a really bad time to buy. When you hear the price of some of the building material has gone down, and significantly in some cases, but the price to buy something continues to go up, it's not a good sign. I'm not expert, but I would advise against buying at the moment. Giving it some time will probably save you a lot in the long run.

[Clarkey]

Is the market really going to face a downturn anytime soon though? I think it may level off or increase at a lower rate but I doubt we will see price decreases in the real estate market. The wait and see attitude is one you might regret, you want to get in now if you can.

[snappyk]

I live in the NE, up in Martindale and I like it. We live in the last part of Martindale that was built 4 years ago, quiet street. I really don't know why the NE always gets such a bad rap all the time.

[Bobblehead]

Originally Posted by shane_c

Thanks Bobblehead. Are there many ameneties nearby or are they yet to be built?

What sort of things are you looking for?

The new C-train station is scheduled to be completed Fall '07, The Don Hartmen Sportsplex is a 10 minute walk, there are 3 grocery stores within a 10 minute drive. Taradale just opened a Catholic school, and I think a public school is on the school boards wish list.

[shane_c]

Thanks for the replies. Took a run up that way this afternoon which proved pointless. Any of the builders don't seem to be able to start a place until next July because of demand. Not to mention the prices aren't much different from where we are now. Still too expensive.

You know, we came here from out east about 2 years ago looking for a better life. We both have respectable careers but it's basically at the point where it's become so damn expensive to live in this city that it's only for the wealthy and those that were lucky enough to get in before the boom. At the current prices if we are able to even get a mortgage we'll be completely house poor. That's no way to live.

So I don't know what's going to happen. Likely have to pack up and move to a cheaper province and start all over again. This friggin rots.

[FlamesLover]

I live in the N.E. (Martindale) and i really like it.

[Jonrox]

You should check out Okotoks. We moved out here 3 years ago from Calgary and absolutely love it. Okotoks has everything... Wal-Mart, Canadian Tire, Sobey's, Safeway, Blockbuster, Little Caesar's, Subway, Starbucks, Payless Shoes, Quizno's, Mark's Work Warehouse, McDonalds, A & W, Fabutan, Reitman's, Smitty's, M & M Meat Shops.... everything!!! And with the work on Deerfoot now complete, the commute is a breeze - Okotoks to MacKenzie town takes about 15 minutes... Okotoks to Shawnessey takes 12 minutes.

I work in the SE on 52nd Street and my commute is quicker than most of my co-workers who live in Calgary (25-30 minutes... the ride home is sweet, no traffic at all - feels great watching everybody stuck in traffic going north, while I go south against it all!!!)

I wasn't considering Okotoks until my wife convinced me to take a drive here one day. I was shocked at how close it actually is. And you will find that housing prices are a bit cheaper than Calgary - mostly due to lot costs being slightly lower.

You get the best of both worlds... quieter small town that feels like a suburb (that is still growing like crazy) while still being close enough to Calgary to have the benefits of the big city.

[Bobblehead]

shane, you should get a realtor. Let them know your budget, and let them find you a place - that's their job. and tey may have ideas of where to look that you haven't considered. Its worth a try before you decide to relocate, and it doesn't cost anything.

[White Doors]

Originally Posted by Bobblehead

shane, you should get a realtor. Let them know your budget, and let them find you a place - that's their job. and tey may have ideas of where to look that you haven't considered. Its worth a try before you decide to relocate, and it doesn't cost anything.

Agreed. A realtor when you are buying are well worth the cost (which is zero).

[shane_c]

And now to make things worse I get to the office this morning and get an email from our landlord saying that they are selling the house we are renting and want us out by the end of August. With the vacancy rates the way they are where the F are we going to live now.

[Tron_fdc]

This is another interesting byproduct of our economy.....in Shane's case the city has priced itself out of his capacities, and now he's forced to go to a different province to work. Definitely not what you want to hear if you're an employer in Alberta!!

That sucks man, I feel for people that are looking for a place to live right now. Have you tried the suburbs (Okotoks, Chestermere, Airdre, Cochrane)? You might also look at the hamlets around the city (Shepard, Balzac, Langdon) as the housing prices might be a little lower for older places.

[ken0042]

Originally Posted by Tron_fdc

This is another interesting byproduct of our economy.....in Shane's case the city has priced itself out of his capacities, and now he's forced to go to a different province to work. Definitely not what you want to hear if you're an employer in Alberta!!

I'm hoping it will begin to stabilize soon. Myself I am in the process of developing my basement so I can accomidate a room mate without interfering with my space. When I went to the city for the permit I was not alone; so I can only imagine how many people are doing the same thing without a permit. Because of the housing crunch I know I can be choosey as to who I get for a room mate.

In time as more of us create housing, it should help with the current shortage of places.

[ken0042]

Shane- there's a few links in this thread that may help you find a place.

[Mike Oxlong]

Originally Posted by Clarkey

Is the market really going to face a downturn anytime soon though? I think it may level off or increase at a lower rate but I doubt we will see price decreases in the real estate market. The wait and see attitude is one you might regret, you want to get in now if you can.

EXACTLY. Get in a soon as you can. CMHC is predicting that the housing prices are going to continue to increase quite rapidly until the end of 2007. The house you are looking at now might cost you $75,000 or $100,000 more in a year.

Housing prices are not going to drop in Calgary. They may slow down and level off but you will not lose money.

This sudden rise in housing prices is almost a correction of undervalued property. Even with the increse of prices as of late the affordability index is still relatively low for Calgary.

Housing Affordability Index (Q1 2006)
Detached Bungalow (a reasonable property benchmark for the housing market)
(RBC housing affordability index measures the proportion of median pre-tax household income required to service the cost of a mortgage, including principal and interest, property taxes and utilities on a detached bungalow. This measure is based on a 25% downpayment and a 25-year mortgage loan at a five-year fixed rate and is estimated on a quarterly basis. The higher the index, the more difficult it is to afford a house.)
Canada......................38.8
British Columbia.......58.1
Alberta.......................30.5
Saskatchewan..........29.3
Manitoba...................33.5
Ontario......................36.4
Quebec.....................34.8
Atlantic......................27.6


Toronto.....................40.8
Montreal...................34.9
Vancouver................64.4
Ottawa......................28.9
Calgary.....................32.7

We are still way behind Toronto and Vancouver as far as housing affordability goes. We are even slightly trailing Montreal. There is still a lot of room for price increases in this city. They are going to continue to happen. Don't wait any longer. The longer you wait to get in the more it is going to cost you.

[ken0042]

Am I reading those numbers correctly? Does it say that houses are more affordable in Calgary than in Manitoba?

Because I've been looking at the equity in my house, and thinking of getting a place in Winnipeg with zero mortgage. The only problem being I would then have to live in Winnipeg.

Originally Posted by fotze

Basement Gimp

Are you volunteering? (again?)