will

Affordability, accommodation
for an aging population and
urban concentration are the
major issues facing the real es-
tate industry in the 1990s, ac-
cording to Gino Romanese, a
Royal LePage executive vice-
president,

“These issues represent
major challenges for both the
public and private sectors,” he
said. “If we address them scon
enough, they won't be
problems — they’ll represent
opportunities for solutions.”

Romanese says demographic
changes will alter the face of
real estate as we know it: “The
preying of the. population and
declining domestic birth rates
are expected to have an impact
on the type of housing needed.
Increased immigration, as well

PAGE 8, MONEY SUPPLEMENT, 1990

. REAL ESTATE

Demographic changes
govern future markets

as domestic and offshore in-
vestment in residential hous-
ing, are expected to offset and
effects the demographic
change will have on real estate
sales activity.”
Anywhere
but here

Romanese says the “NIMBY”
{not-in-my-back-yard) mental-
ity will have to change. “Gov-
ernment agencies and consum-
ers are going to have to learn to

accept smaller, more affordable .

homes situated within their
neighborhood.”

Jobs will have to be created in
outlying areas to ease the pres-
sure on the centre core of major
cities. A viable solution to the
problem is to decentralize all
kinds of developments to a
perimeter ring 30 to40 miles or

more from the downtown core.

Home financing alternatives
will also have te be more at-
tractive. Lower mortgage inte-
rest rates combined with less
conventional lending policies
are sure to help.

Issues such as affordability in
major centres will force finan-
cial institutions to implement
more flexible lending policies
and local governments and
builders may find themselves
faced with the prospect of con-
structing smaller, more affor-
dable, perhaps subsidized,
housing.

“Both the public and private

sectors now have an oppor- - ].

tunity to come up with solu-
tions,” says Romanese. “Other-
wise, we may be faced with a
housing crisis in the future.”

House sales, prices to stay
strong in 1990: Royal LePage

“Downward pressure on in-
terest rates and a soft landing
for the economy are expected to
lay the groundwork for
moderate growth in residential
resale housing in most cities in
1990.” according to the Royal
LePage market survey of
Canadian real estate.

“New home starts, on - the
other hand, are expected to
continue to soften.”

Overall, resales are expected
to increase four per cent to
325,000 units in 1990, some
12,500 more than the 1989 es-
timate and sale prices will rise
five per cent in 1990, from
$144,500 to $151,900.

On the other hand, estimates
of new home starts in 1989 are
for 199,000 units, down 11 per
cent from the record set in
1988. For 1990, Royal LePage
says although many fore-
casters have suggested .a fur-

- ($212,000); --

ther eight to 10 per cent

' decline, its estimate is a reduc-

tion of seven per cent to
185,000 starts.

Average prices for residential
property in major cities in 1990
are forecast as follows, with
1989 comparisons in brackets:
Vancouver — $235,000
-Calgary =
$116,000 ($110,000); Edmon-
ton — $89,000 ($92,500); Sas-
katoon — $79,000 ($77,000);

Regina $76,500 ($74,000); Win-
nipeg — $88,500 ($84,000)

Hamilton — $164,000
($156,000); Toronto —
$289,000 ($273,000); Ottawa
— $143,000 ($137,000);
Montreal — $115,200
($108,650); Halifax/Dart-

mouth — $95 000 ($94, 000).
Total Canada — $151, 900
($144,000).

Community volunteer program.

helps needy with tax returns

Revenue Canada’s com-
munity volunteer program to
help elderly and disadvantaged
taxpayers complete their tax
returns is in full swing across
Canada for the 19th straight
year,

If your volunteer group would
like to participate or if you're
interested in helping as an in-
dividual, by all means plan to
join a training group soon.

[Housing loans
to your children —
should be formal

These are tough times all
around for first-time home
buyers and often the only
way young couples can get
their down-payment togeth-
er is with the help of parents:
—asagiftorloan. |

That's fine if the parents
can afford it and aren’t
threatening their own retire-
ment incomes in the process.
But there can still be un-
foreseen family problems
down the road and it makes
good sense to have some kind
of formal agreement in writ-
ing when Dad and Mom hand
over the funds,

That way everyone knows
where they stand and if an
estate problem arises or
there’s a marriage break-
down, the difficulties can be
resolved more easily,

Obviously, it’s fairly un-
-usual for parents to be able to
make an outright gift of a
house.

It’s true Revenue Canada
doesn’t currently impose a
gift tax in such cases, but it’s
still essential for title to the

helpful parents will ante up

‘best interests for the loan to

property to be abso-lutely
clear.

Whose housei is it? Is the gift
to one marriage partner or
both? What happens if
there’s a divorce or death? If
you think about the pos-
sibilities, you'll see why an
ironclad written agreement
is needed.

_Of course, outright gifts of
houses are rare. More often,

some or all of the downpay- |
ment and leave the young-
sters to handle the mortgage.

But however close the fami-
ly may be — however much
they trust each other — be
sure to have a formal written
agreement. It’s in everyone's

be spelled out and for-an
obligation to repay clearly es-
tablished.

There are several ways to
do it and you may not know
which route to take. Allin all,
it’s probably a good idea to
askvourlawyer .The fee
won't be large and it will
be money well spent.

Canadians are enjoying
good life — electronically

Canadians love their micro-
wave ovens and:video cassette
recorders. They're already
found in a majority of homes
and there’s no sign of a let-up
in the buying spree for almost
all categories of household
electronic products, according
to Statistics Canada. -

Statscan says 63.4 per cent of
Canadian kitchens now have
microwaves, 10 per cent more
than in 1988, and VCRs are in
almost six out of 10 homes,
compared with 52 percent a
year earlier.

We're also buying more
televisions — almost every
home now has a color set, but

more than a third now have
two or more, five times as many |
as 10 years ago

Almost three-quarters of
Canadian homes now have
automatic washing machines
against 60.5 per cent 10 years
ago; 42.5 per cent have auto-
matie dishwashers, up from 26
per cent in 1979 and almost 30
per cent of homes had three or
more telephones, Statscan
says.

Other ownership numbers i in-
clude: cable TV, 71 per cent of
families; compact disc players,
11.6 per cent; and one or more _
motor vehicles, over 80 per
cent.

“The Tax Professionals”

@ FINANCIAL PLANNING _
@ INCOME TAX PLANNING
|. © INCOME TAX RETURNS PREPARED ~

in Terrace,

CARLYLE SHEPHERD & CO.
CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS

contact:

JOHN G. McMYNN, c.a.

ERNIE DUSDAL cma.

4548 Lakelse Avenue

635-6126

COQUITLAM @ SMITHERS @-KITIMAT @ TERRACE © PRINCE RUPERT @ RICHMOND

John G. McMynn, C.A,

——