Edmonton takes top spot in rise in housing prices

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Edmonton takes top spot in rise in housing prices
While sales activity eases in most major markets, prices continue to push higher
ROMA LUCIW

# z( A9 v0 W& X# W  ]' e; J7 nHousing prices in Edmonton rose faster than in any other Canadian city in September, knocking Calgary to the No. 2 spot.
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0 a: g8 c$ \3 k7 qA report released yesterday by the Canadian Real Estate Association said that across the country, the frenetic pace of activity has given way to the most balanced conditions in more than five years. Although sales activity as measured through the Multiple Listing Service is easing, prices in most major markets continued to push higher in September, with Edmonton taking the top spot on the price-gainers list.
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7 Q' O8 b- C. i6 [; F$ jHomes prices in Calgary, a city awash in energy-fuelled riches, have skyrocketed in recent years as insufficient supply coupled with surging demand created the tightest market conditions in the country. While the housing crunch also bolstered Edmonton's prices, they had tended to lag Calgary's.

However, existing home prices in Edmonton surged 46.3 per cent to $278,732 in September on a year-over-year basis, while prices in Calgary climbed 45.7 per cent to average $369,928. At the same time, new listings in Calgary jumped 46.7 per cent from September, 2005, while Edmonton experienced a slimmer 16.1 per cent rise in new listings last month.

Craig Alexander, an economist at Toronto-Dominion Bank, said sellers in Calgary are likely putting their homes on the market in order to take advantage of the high prices they can fetch. "One of the dominant themes we have seen this year is the rate of sales growth is moderating, while new listings are rising," he said. "In other words, the market is trying to come back into a better balance -- even in Alberta."
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Until recently, Edmonton trailed only Winnipeg as the most affordable city in Canada to buy a house. "Edmonton is seeing some catch-up," Mr. Alexander said. "In an environment where the Alberta economy is booming, should it be the second-most affordable city in Canada? The market is saying no."
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( A8 y" c) s( yThe Greater Vancouver area was by far the priciest place to buy in September, with prices averaging $527,504, while existing homes in Toronto sold for $349,149. Prices actually fell in only four of the 25 major MLS markets: Newfoundland and Labrador, Windsor-Essex, Saint John and Durham Region.
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; C/ m" G1 G$ P" {$ g0 e) ?Still, the latest CREA housing data suggests the market continues to pull back from record levels.
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9 s4 p+ J$ F& @9 R; Q& }# x0 t! zSales of existing homes through the MLS system dropped 2.5 per cent in the third quarter of 2006 from the second. Sales fell 1.6 per cent last month from August, while new listings rose 3.5 per cent.

CREA said the decline in sales combined with the rise in new listings caused the resale housing market to become more balanced. "With the housing market becoming more balanced, price gains are slowing down in a number of major markets," said CREA chief economist Gregory Klump, adding that those trends are expected to continue into 2007. "Canada's housing market continues to head for a soft landing."
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Douglas Porter, the deputy chief economist at BMO Nesbitt Burns, said the underlying theme in the report is that, across the country, activity appears to be losing some momentum, something that should comfort the Bank of Canada. "Still," he added, "the bank is likely to renew its warning about hot home prices in its press statement tomorrow or the Monetary Policy Report on Thursday."

苹果鸭梨

英文说的很好. 可谁能给翻成中文就好了.