SHOULD YOU BUY OR RENT?

SHOULD YOU BUY OR RENT?

Is home ownership right for you? Ask yourself these questions…
Do you enjoy moving often?
Do you prefer using your savings for such things as vacations, retirement or starting your own business?
Do you enjoy not having to worry about regular maintenance and repairs?
If you answered yes to any of these questions, you may not be ready to own a home yet. While you probably have a lot of good reasons for wanting to buy a home, you also have to consider your reasons for not wanting to.
Remember that buying a home is one of the biggest emotional and financial decisions you'll ever make, so prepare yourself to make a knowledgeable decision.
Although buying a home almost always seems like a great idea, it is important to understand what homeownership involves. Of course, being a homeowner is something to be proud of but it also means having to invest money, time and energy and take on added responsibilities. So, before you decide to buy a home, make sure you're ready.
When most of us consider becoming homeowners, we immediately think of how wonderful it will be. It is true that there are a lot of good reasons for wanting to buy a home. Here are some of the main advantages of owning a home:

• Financial Security. If housing prices rise, your home can provide you with some financial security due to capital appreciation.
• Flexibility. You can decorate or renovate your home to meet your own family's personal tastes and needs.
• Stability. Having a place of your own.

Although it is nice to think about the positive aspects of owning a home, it is important to consider the downsides as well. Here are some of the main disadvantages of owning a home:

• Financial Stress. Coming up with the down payment, meeting regular mortgage payments and other ongoing costs will tie up a lot of your cash, and can put considerable stress on your finances.
• Maintenance. Keeping your home in good shape requires time and money.
• Higher Costs. You may pay more each month for housing than you did as a renter. There are also extra costs for maintenance and property taxes.
• More Responsibility. You alone are responsible for payments, repairs and maintenance.

Calgary to be Canada's fastest growing CMA by 2012

| Tuesday, 22 February 2011

Calgary will once again become Canada’s fastest growing metropolitan area over the next two years, said the Conference Board of Canada.

 

In its Metropolitan Outlook Winter 2011, the reporter stated “the continued recovery in the energy sector will boost economic growth by 3.7 per cent in 2011 and above four per cent the following year, placing Calgary at the top of the growth leaderboard in 2012.”

 

Calgary mortgage broker Taz Rajan has already seen this rebound occurring from her own experience with a 30 per cent increase in mortgage business in 2011 over 2010.

 

“I expect to see a slow and steady growth in mortgage business over the next two years,” Rajan told MortgageBrokerNews.ca. “I agree that growth in GDP and net migration to Alberta will help the province’s real estate market, and that 2011 and 2012 will be slightly better years for mortgage business than 2009 and 2010. I don’t see any dramatic increases due to the balancing out of strong GDP and migration versus the withdrawal of government stimulus, increased rates and new mortgage guidelines.”

 

Meanwhile, most of the other 27 census metropolitan areas (CMAs) will be weighed down as the nation’s economic recovery slows. Only Calgary, Saskatoon, Regina, Winnipeg, Thunder Bay, London and Sherbrooke anticipate higher real gross domestic product (GDP) growth this year compared to 2010.

 

“Most Canadian cities rebounded well from the recession,” said Mario Lefebvre, director of Centre for Municipal Studies. “This year, however, a weaker domestic economy, winding down of federal and provincial government stimulus measures, and uncertain economic conditions in the United States will result in stable or lower growth in a majority of cities.”

 

In 2011, Windsor is expected to have the fastest growing economy with GDP rising 3.9 per cent. Regina’s GDP will grow by 3.5 per cent; Saskatoon by 3.4 per cent and Edmonton by 2.6 per cent.