BMO suggests that Students need a credit card and should choose wisely

Back to School: Choose your first credit card wisely

(NC)—If you're one of the many Canadians attending college or university this fall, be prepared to face a lot of choices throughout your academic year, one of which is likely to be selecting your first credit card. It may seem daunting at first, but the trick is to keep it simple.

"It's just a matter of understanding your own needs and finding the card that comes closest to meeting them," says Mike Kitchen, vice president, BMO Bank of Montreal Mosaik MasterCard. "Consider what you will be using your card for, how you plan on managing your finances and if you want to earn rewards for things such as travel, merchandise or entertainment."

According to a recent BMO Mosaik MasterCard Student Survey, 72 per cent of post-secondary students with a credit card will carry a balance, so for many of these cardholders, a low interest rate credit card will minimize their monthly costs. Students should be sure to identify cards that have a low annual interest rate, not just a low introductory rate.

The same survey shows that one in three students applied for a credit card because it was needed to make travel reservations. "Students who need to fly between home and school may want to consider a travel rewards credit card, like our Mosaik MasterCard," Kitchen suggests.

"When you're at school you need to do your homework – this applies to choosing and using a credit card too. If you invest the time to answer basic questions about what you want from a credit card, and understand your own responsibilities, you'll get a much better sense of how well a particular card meets your personal needs," says Kitchen.

- News Canada

Mark's comments:
I believe that a post secondary student should obtain at least one or two credit cards, for the reasons above, plus you want to start building your credit history as soon as you can to assist with obtaining credit in your early to mid 20's The longer that your credit history is on file, the better credit risk you will appear to have.

All the best!

For more information please contact A. Mark Argentino

A. Mark Argentino Associate Broker, P.Eng.,
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.
2691 Credit Valley Road, Suite 101, Mississauga, Ontario L5M 7A1

BUS 905-828-3434
FAX 905-828-2829
E-MAIL mark@mississauga4sale.com
Website: Mississauga4Sale.com

Reverse Mortgage - Is it right for you?

What is a Reverse Mortgage?

First, what a reverse mortgage is NOT:

A reverse mortgage is not “a way for the bank to get your house”
It is not a traditional home equity loan
It is not based on income or credit levels
It is not available to homeowners under the age of 62
It is not free money
It is not a cure-all
It is not a decision to be taken lightly

What a reverse mortgage is: a good tool for financial planning and flexibility in the golden years. There are only a very few requirements for eligibility. The borrower must own and live in the home as a primary residence and be 62 years of age or older. If husband and wife are both on the title, both must be over the age of 62. However, visit the Reverse Mortgage Page to find out more information on this particular fact.

In addition, the home itself must be of a type that qualifies for the reverse mortgage program. The vast majority of single family homes qualify, as do most condominiums, townhomes, 2-4 unit owner-occupied dwellings and manufactured homes. Your income and credit levels, however, do NOT matter.

To go through the process of getting a reverse mortgage you will need to speak with a reverse mortgage originator or provider. This person will guide you through the preliminary steps, including counseling, home appraisals, inspections, and choice of loan specifics. It is very important to feel comfortable with your lender. Feel free to speak with as many people as you need in order to gain information and feel comfortable. Click here for reverse mortgage lenders.

There are a number of options for how to “structure” the money received.

1. Receive a one time lump sum.

2. Receive the money monthly.

3. Receive a credit line that provides flexibility.

4. Use a combination of the above methods.

Once you receive the money, there are virtually no restrictions on the way in which it can be used.

You MUST:
Repay existing debt, including the existing mortgage

You Can:

Make Home Improvements
Finance Regular Living Expenses
Ease Healthcare Costs
Take a Trip to Somewhere You’ve Always Wanted to Go
Give Gifts to Your Family and Friends

It almost seems too good to be true. There are, however, as with everything these days, costs involved. There is an origination fee, closing costs, a servicing fee, mortgage insurance, and interest. These costs come from the proceeds of the loan. You pay very little directly out of your pocket.

You should also know that you cannot lose your home at any time during the life of the loan for failure to make payments. THERE ARE NO PAYMENTS TO MAKE. The loan does not come due until you permanently leave the home or the last borrower dies. The home must be kept up to reasonable standards, it must be insured, and the property taxes must be paid.

Default risk is one of the ways in which a reverse mortgage differs from a traditional mortgage or home equity loan. With those traditional products there is a risk of default and therefore a chance you could lose your home. On the other hand, there are no payments to make with a reverse mortgage. Therefore, as long as the property is kept to a reasonable standard, you will always have somewhere to live.

In addition, you can never owe more than the value of your home. Even if you have been paid more than your home is worth, you can only owe the value of your home. When the loan comes due, you or your heirs can either pay off the loan with existing funds or sell the house in order to satisfy the loan. Excess proceeds from the sale go to your or your estate.
This article courtesy of www.reversemortgagepage.com

For more information please contact A. Mark Argentino

A. Mark Argentino Associate Broker, P.Eng.,
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.
2691 Credit Valley Road, Suite 101, Mississauga, Ontario L5M 7A1

BUS 905-828-3434
FAX 905-828-2829
E-MAIL mark@mississauga4sale.com
Website: Mississauga4Sale.com

No doubt the 2006 Real Estate Market has cooled compared to previous years

Real Estate Market has become Steady

There are concrete signs that the U.S. housing market is falling back to earth and there is widespread recognition that this will severely dampen the performance of the U.S. economy. This has led to concerns that Canada might have a similar experience. There is no disputing that Canadian housing markets have been booming in recent years with extremely high levels of starts, sales and price gains in many markets. This has periodically fuelled concerns that a housing bubble might have formed. However, TD Economics has consistently argued that Canada’s real estate markets have generally lacked the degree of speculation that dominated past boom-bust cycles and the excesses have been far less than those evident than in the United States. We still hold that overall view, but developments in a few Western cities are clearly flashing warning lights. There is no question that the recent dramatic price gains in Calgary and Vancouver are unsustainable and that these urban centres are vulnerable to significant moderation, including the possibility of a pullback in prices at some point in the future. Edmonton is also experiencing explosive price growth, but affordability remains high. In contrast, the other major Canadian real estate markets appear to be in much more balanced shape and housing activity in Central and Atlantic Canada has already cooled without prompting a price correction – supporting the view that a bubble never formed in these regions. National perspective shows continued strength

At the national level, Canada’s housing market is delivering a robust performance. Sales of existing homes are on track for another record year and strong demand has created upward pressure on prices. Resale home prices rose 12.9% in the second quarter of 2006 from a year earlier, which is marginally faster than the 12.0% gain posted in the first three months of the year and far exceeds the long-term national average of 5.6%.

The strength in resale markets has fed through to new home activity, with new home prices advancing at an 9.8% annual pace in June. This attests to the strong demand for housing, as inventories of unsold new homes are much lower than a year ago even though housing starts (i.e. new home supply coming to the market) have been at an elevated level for quite some time. Starts have dipped modestly since the start of the year, but the 236,500 units in June remain far above the sustainable 175,000 level that is consistent with current population growth and household formation.

As often happens, the national story is masking major regional developments. Housing in Alberta has soared in the past three months, while activity in Vancouver continues to look excessive. Excluding Alberta and British Columbia, the average rise in resale home prices across the other provinces is a more moderate 7.3%. Alberta is also responsible for almost half of the gain in the national average of new home prices. Moreover, the dominant trends in housing markets outside of the West have been weaker unit sales, greater new listings and more moderate price growth – all of which point to more balanced market conditions and declining real estate risks.

Given that the national averages provide little understanding of the current underlying trends, let us turn our attention to the developments at the major city level, and we will frame the discussion from west to east.

Victoria cools, but remains relatively hot

Demand conditions are clearly softening in Victoria. Unit sales have fallen in five of the last seven months on a year-over-year basis. Reduced foreign interest in Victoria’s real estate market in response to the strong Canadian dollar may have contributed to this trend. At the same time, new listings have been rising rapidly in the last few months. The new home market appears to have stabilized, with relatively flat housing starts from January-July compared with a year ago. The net effect is that the Victoria housing market has become less of a sellers’ market. This has been reflected in resale home prices, which slowed from a 17.5% year-over-year increase in the first quarter of 2006 to 12.7% in the second quarter, before strengthening to 14% in July. This suggests that the degree of speculation in the market is abating. However, with 50% of household income going to home ownership costs (mortgage interest, principal payments, property taxes and utilities), affordability is still a major issue. Price gains need to slow more in the months ahead to create a more sustainable market.

Vancouver still looks frothy

Demand for housing in Vancouver has been softening since the beginning of 2006. In six of the last seven months, unit sales have been virtually flat or negative on a year-over-year basis. This may reflect the fact that the average resale house is now priced at over half a million dollars and home ownership costs have climbed to almost 50% of median household labour income.

Supply conditions have been more mixed. There have been substantially more new listings, with increases in six out of the last seven months on a year-over-year basis. As a result, the sales-to-new listing ratio has declined and now stands at only slightly above the 0.6 mark. This suggests that while it is still a seller’s market, the balance between supply and demand has improved. However, there is still considerable tightness in the new home market. To illustrate, the inventory of unsold new homes stood at just 712 units in June – which is a record low.

There is welcome news that the rate of home price appreciation appears to have plateaued, but it has done so at an extremely elevated pace of around 20% year-over-year. Some of the market’s strength is supported by fundamentals including lower unemployment, rising income, low interest rates and scarcity of land, but the substantial double digit price gains cannot last indefinitely and they will likely be brought back to earth by an increase in supply, particularly on the new home front.

The recent trend towards weaker unit sales and rising listings is a positive development that might augur for a soft-landing if it continues. Close monitoring of this market is clearly called for.

Calgary on fire

Demand for housing has softened a bit in Calgary over the last few months. After a booming start in 2006, unit sales have dropped from a dramatic 49% year-over-year increase in January to a 5.0% decline in July. Although the Calgary housing market is still very tight, it has begun to open up. After declining for most of 2005 and 2006, new listings picked up substantially in June and July, rising 24.7% and 41.2% year-over-year respectively. This is likely a reflection of the dramatic increase in prices that has curtailed sales and boosted listings, but it has not yet tempered the explosive price gains.

As in Vancouver, the very low level of available new housing units is keeping the resale market very hot. There were only roughly 580 unsold new homes available in the April-July period. The last time inventories were this low in Calgary was in 1992. Even more amazing is that the total inventory of unsold new condos and lofts for sale from May to July stood at a mere six units.

This has resulted in a powerful sellers’ market for new homes, and while the resale market has become more balanced it has only done so in the last couple of months.

As a result home price growth has been dramatic. Indeed, resale home prices jumped 25.5% year-over-year in the first quarter and accelerated to a 43.3% in the second quarter.

So, is there a bubble in the Calgary market? It may sound strange with the recent unbelievable price gains, but housing in Calgary remains surprisingly affordable and comparable to other major cities in Canada. Indeed, Calgary housing is still more affordable than Toronto or Montreal. In the second quarter of 2006, home ownership costs were only 24% of median household labour income in Calgary. This reflects the fact that resale home price gains in Calgary in the past have been more subdued than in many other urban centres and household income growth has been exceptionally strong in recent years. Also, much of the strong demand and drain on inventories is likely warranted by the robust population growth in Calgary and the rest of Alberta. In fact, Calgary has now hit the one million person mark and about 3,000 working-age men and women are arriving in the city every month.

Having said that, the speed of the rise in prices is troubling and cannot be sustained. If prices continue to rise at a close to 40% rate, affordability will quickly become a problem and fear of being priced out of the market may encourage hasty decisions. However, if the market becomes more balanced, the rate of price growth will eventually slow (although it will remain elevated for some time as the impact of additional supply will only gradually be felt), and we would argue that a price correction is not warranted. But the market is so overheated at the moment and new home supply so tight that a bubble may be forming, or could easily develop. Based on our bubble watch indicators, Calgary is the second urban centre that merits close attention.

Edmonton also booming, but affordability remains good

Demand for housing in Edmonton is at its strongest in years, with unit sales up about 20% from the year before. Meanwhile, the supply-side of the Edmonton housing market remains very tight and has not kept up with demand. For example, there were more sales than new listings in May. We saw similar conditions in Calgary’s housing market at the end of 2005. In Edmonton this has led to a 2-year low in the inventory of unsold new homes. The tight conditions in the housing market have fuelled a frenzy of housing starts (up 19% year-over-year in the Jan-July period). Meanwhile, the strong demand and tight supply has resulted in resale home prices soaring from 13.9% year-over-year in the first quarter to about 22.9% in the second quarter and reaching 31% in July.

While this explosive price growth is troubling, housing in Edmonton is still quite affordable. Housing-related costs were just 18% of median household labour income in the second quarter of this year. So, the message is the same as for Calgary. Much of the strength is supported by economic fundamentals, but prices cannot go up at this pace indefinitely. If the pace doesn’t soften, a bubble could form. However, greater affordability and the scope for a future increase in supply lowers that risk and could lead to a soft-landing.

Saskatoon delivers strong performance

There hasn’t been much change in the state of the Saskatoon housing market, which continues to deliver a robust performance. Unit sales have remained at roughly the same levels as a year ago and demand for housing has been fairly constant, as the outflow of workers to Alberta has largely been balanced by an influx of people from rural Saskatchewan. Supply has also been largely unchanged. As a result, inventories of unsold new homes and new listings are both around their 2005 levels, but this means the market is still fairly tight and home price growth remains strong, rising by 10.8% year-over-year in the second quarter, which is virtually unchanged from the 10% in the first quarter. However, there is good reason to believe that the market may open up in the months ahead, as housing starts are currently running about 34% higher than a year ago. With houses remaining reasonably affordable, the market should become more balanced and price growth should slow before long.

Winnipeg remains the most affordable

Although the Winnipeg housing market remains solid, demand for housing is likely softening. Population growth in Winnipeg decelerated substantially in 2006 to about 0.5% annualized, which is slower than the 1% observed over the last few years. As a result, the rate of increase in resale home prices slowed from 8.1% in the first quarter to 6.5% in the second quarter from a year ago. There may be some supply-side pressures, as there are still relatively few unsold new homes available, but housing starts are up about 9% year-over-year. With home ownership costs representing only about 14% of household income, Winnipeg remains one of the most affordable cities in the country to own a home.

Greater Toronto has cooled

There is clear evidence that the Greater Toronto housing market has cooled. While demand for housing remains robust in Toronto, unit sales appear to have reached a plateau in the past few months. At the same time, supply has increased slightly. There have been more new listings on the market and the inventory of unsold new homes was slightly higher in the second quarter versus the beginning of the year. Although starts rose in the second quarter, they were down from a year ago. As a result of these various trends, the Greater Toronto housing market has moved into a balanced position favouring neither sellers nor buyers. This has led to a slower pace of home price growth. After rising by 7.4% in 2005, resale prices moderated to a gain of 5.5% year-over-year in the second quarter of 2006 and down to 4.9% in July.

Ottawa price growth slows in reaction to new supply

Over the past few months, unit sales growth have slowed, owing partly to a moderation in employment growth in the public sector. At the same time, new listings have declined, leading to a tightening in supply-demand conditions. In this situation one might expect to see an acceleration in the growth rate of resale home prices, but this hasn’t happened. In fact, resale home price growth has slowed, dropping to an average increase of 2.8% year-over-year in the May-July period. This can be partly explained by an increase in new homes, which has put a damper on prices. There are more unsold new homes than a year ago and housing starts in Jan-July are up by a substantial 21%.

Montreal market has become more balanced

Activity in the Montreal market has lost a bit of stream, but this has not led to significantly slower price growth. The rate of increase in unit sales and new listings have slackened over the past three months, with the ratio between the two statistics moving from 0.63 to 0.46, which is clearly a balanced market. Meanwhile, the number of unsold new homes has climbed significantly, reaching its highest recorded three-month average of 3,946 units in the May-July period. More than 80% of the unsold units have been in condos and lofts. The high inventories of properties available for sale have discouraged new starts, with the latter having fallen since the beginning of this year by 17% on a year-over-year basis. These trends are negative for home price growth, but their constraining influence has not yet been evident. Indeed, average resale prices in July were 8.5% higher than a year earlier. While this is strong, it does not imply that speculation is becoming a problem, and it is likely that the pace of home price growth will moderate in the second half of 2006.

Atlantic Canada cools over course of Q2

Housing market conditions in Atlantic Canada are healthy. In particular, the sales-to-new listings ratios for St. John’s, Saint John, and PEI show relatively balanced markets. Conditions in Halifax are tipped slightly in favour of being a seller’s market, but this is largely because growth in new listings has slowed faster than unit sales, with the direction of both being towards a cooling. However, this assessment is not apparent in the aggregate Atlantic statistics in the bubble watch indicators table on the next page. Just as the national housing data are being distorted by regional trends, so too is the Atlantic aggregation. Resale home prices in Halifax spiked temporarily higher by 48% in April from a year ago, dramatically lifting the price gains in the second quarter, but then price growth slowed in each of the next three months, dropping to a 3.5% pace in July. Similarly, price growth in PEI was extremely strong in the first quarter, but has been slowing steadily since February. As a result, Atlantic Canada is on track for robust price growth in 2006, but the trend is towards more moderate price growth. The tighter market conditions do suggest that Halifax may outperform the regional average in the months ahead, but the assessment is that the risks of a housing bubble remain low.

Article courtesy of TD/Canada Trust

For more information please contact A. Mark Argentino

A. Mark Argentino Associate Broker, P.Eng.,
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.
2691 Credit Valley Road, Suite 101, Mississauga, Ontario L5M 7A1

BUS 905-828-3434
FAX 905-828-2829
E-MAIL mark@mississauga4sale.com
Website: Mississauga4Sale.com

TREB (Toronto Real Estate Board) reports August 2006 was a Strong Stable Month

August Shows Strong, Stable Results

TORONTO - Wednesday, September 6, 2006 -- TREB President Dorothy Mason announced today that the Toronto resale homeowners continued its run of healthy showings in August, with 6,976 homes changing hands through the TorontoMLS system.

"Last month was the second best August ever recorded, off moderately from the record 7,498 figure achieved in 2005. In addition, the year as a whole has seen 59,488 single-family dwelling sales, up marginally from 2005's January to August performance. As people return from their summer holidays, we are looking forward to an even more active autumn market."

Prices remain stable in August, with the Average coming in at $338,192, less than one per cent lower than the July figure of $342,034. This figure is up five per cent over the $323,255 recorded during August of 2005.

Breaking down the total, 2,627 sales were reported in TREB's 28 West districts and averaged $321,415; 1,181 sales were reported in the 14 Central districts and averaged $401,244; 1,493 sales were reported in the 23 North districts and averaged $388,674; and 1,675 sales were reported in TREB's 21 East districts and averaged $275,050.

Toronto's housing market remains steady

TORONTO, September 6, 2006 -- The August performance ever with 6,976 transactions recorded during the month, Toronto Real Estate Board President Dorothy Mason announced today.

The total number of transactions was within seven per cent of the all time record of 7,498 sales set last August. Year-to-date figures show 2006 to be marginally ahead of the record pace for annual sales also set in 2005.

Positive results like these show that the market is in good shape, Mrs. Mason said. Relative to other segments of the economy real estate is very locally driven, and the Toronto Area market has long been supported by strong economic fundamentals.

Consistent activity and steady price gains over an extended period of time have shown that housing demand in the GTA is based on real need, TREB's President added. Slight moderations in sales to more normalized levels help to keep the market from overheating, Ted Tsiakopoulos, Ontario regional economist for CMHC, noted that the good overall health of the market produces a variety of benefits.

While home sales across the GTA have been healthy, listings have also been rising, said Ted Tsiakopoulos, CMHC`s Ontario regional economist. A steady increase in new home listings is a good news story for Toronto's residential real estate market. Rising new listings provide more choice for buyers and ensures discipline among those pricing their homes for sale, added Mr. Tsiakopoulos.

Some of the most active neighbourhoods during the month were located outside the city core. In the East, the Scarborough Town Centre / Woburn area E09 showed a 27 per cent overall increase in transactions compared to last August, led by a jump in condominium sales. West of Toronto, Milton W22 showed an overall increase of 72 per cent compared to August 2005, led by strong sales of detached and semidetached homes.

It's a great time to be in this market whether starting out or making a switch, Mrs. Mason said. There is a lot of choice out there as we gear up for the busy autumn market.

Toronto REALTORS® are passionate about their work. They adhere to a strict code of ethics and share a state-of-the-art Multiple Listing Service designed exclusively for REALTORS®. Serving more than 24,000 Members in the Greater Toronto Area, the Toronto Real Estate Board is Canada's largest real estate board. Greater Toronto Area open house listings are now available on www.TorontoRealEstateBoard.com.

For more information please contact A. Mark Argentino

A. Mark Argentino Associate Broker, P.Eng.,
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.
2691 Credit Valley Road, Suite 101, Mississauga, Ontario L5M 7A1

BUS 905-828-3434
FAX 905-828-2829
E-MAIL mark@mississauga4sale.com
Website: Mississauga4Sale.com

Bank of Canada stays steady on Bank Rate at 4.5% - September 6, 2006

Most recent interest rate announcement by the Bank of Canada September 6, 2006

OTTAWA - (CP) - The Bank of Canada today announced that it is maintaining its target for the overnight rate at 4 1/4 per cent. The operating band for the overnight rate will therefore remain unchanged at 4 1/2 per cent.

The Bank of Canada sites continued strength in the global economy. In Canada, the economy continues to fall in line with the Banks expectations in terms of output and inflation. Going forward, the Bank continues to expect the Canadian economy to operate at about its production potential.

The Bank of Canada's next scheduled date for announcing the overnight rate target is 17 October 2006.


For more information please contact A. Mark Argentino

A. Mark Argentino Associate Broker, P.Eng.,
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.
2691 Credit Valley Road, Suite 101, Mississauga, Ontario L5M 7A1

BUS 905-828-3434
FAX 905-828-2829
E-MAIL mark@mississauga4sale.com
Website: Mississauga4Sale.com

S&P rates Mississauga "AAA" for the third straight year!

Mississauga gets 'AAA' for effort

MISSISSAUGA BUSINESS TIMES
Aug 24, 2006

Standard & Poor's Ratings Services assigned its 'AAA' credit rating on the City of Mississauga for the third straight year, based on the City's exceptional liquidity levels, debt-free position, and strategically located economy.

According to S&P, "Mississauga's debt-free tradition continued into 2005; placing the City ahead of its domestic and international peers with respect to debt burden. This was largely made possible through the City's large cash and investment holdings, allowing it to finance its capital programs on a pay-as-you-go basis." "This rating further enhances the City's profile in the financial sector," said City manager Janice Baker. "We have been successful at keeping tax increases to a minimum for many years and we are fortunate to be debt-free."

Outside the U.S., Mississauga is only the 9th municipality to earn the coveted 'AAA' rating. The stable outlook reflects the continuation of a strong and stable economy, and is based on the prospect that there will be no deterioration in operating balances. Courtesy of the Mississauga Business Times


For more information please contact A. Mark Argentino

A. Mark Argentino Associate Broker, P.Eng.,
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.
2691 Credit Valley Road, Suite 101, Mississauga, Ontario L5M 7A1

BUS 905-828-3434
FAX 905-828-2829
E-MAIL mark@mississauga4sale.com
Website: Mississauga4Sale.com

Mississauga City Centre Skyline and Central Core Area Developing Well

This may be the future of Mississauga - The future for the downtown core looks bright.

Mississauga Business Times Where is our city's skyline? We might see a Mississauga core with real identity says U of T professor

"You're never going to see an office tower in the city centre, unless Mississauga decides they will build parking in conjunction with the developers."
Where is the Mississauga skyline?

Having surpassed the 700,000 mark in population, Canada's sixth-largest city still lacks the downtown commercial skyscrapers traditionally equated with the world's great cities. While there are plenty of condos going up, the city centre hasn't seen a new high-rise office building in more than 20 years.

"There's a real easy reason for that," says Jim Wilson, vice-president of Cushman Wakefield & LePage's Mississauga office. "That's because we've got land, and it costs more to go up than it does to go out."

Ray Wong, senior analyst with CB Richard Ellis agrees that, "in Mississauga, the land costs are a lot more affordable (than in downtown Toronto). As well the floor plates are a lot larger."

"There's not really a need to go high up," he says. "The higher up you go, the more expensive the building."

When the question is put to him, J.J. Barnicke Ltd. Chair Joe Barnicke responds, "The city can do nothing about it. If there's a market for office skyscrapers, it will be there. When you get the really large firms, if they're going to Mississauga, they're going to have their own building."

Indeed, major Mississauga-based corporations like Microsoft Canada, and Bell Mobility, have chosen to build stand-alone monuments along the 400 series of highways. Banks like RBC and TD have, similarly, moved some of their back room, processing functions out to this suburb, while their executives have remained in the Bay Street towers for that all-important presence, and to be, "where the action is."

Wong explains that in the car-intensive suburban market, it makes sense for office development to gravitate to areas like the Hwy. 10-401 nexus, where it's more accessible for employees to get to work (in the absence of a heavy-duty public transit network), above-ground parking can be provided for employees (versus them having to pay for it in the city centre), and companies can exercise better control over their facility.

"There's nothing wrong with a suburban market, and not having a full downtown. It's just based on demand," he adds. "And in Mississauga, there's a lot more options to build, with respect to land."

Jim Murray, senior vice-president with J.J. Barnicke's Mississauga office says it really comes down to one issue: parking.

"You're never going to see an office tower in the city centre unless Mississauga decides they will build parking in conjunction with the developers. The cost of parking is prohibitive," he states.

According to Murray, an underground parking space in the downtown core costs approximately $35,000, and the net return from that is about $1,800 a year in rent.

"I would say 15 years ago the most attractive node for office occupancy was the Mississauga city centre. Today, it's not even close," he continues. "The Airport Corporate Centre is more dominant, Meadowvale is more dominant."

"When the greenfield sites are gone, then there will be the rationale to invest in parking facilities and attract the critical mass to the city centre."

While it may be the general impression that Mississauga is all but built out, Wilson observes that "relatively speaking, we do have land left here for office development. We've got land on Hwy. 10 between 401 and 407 which will be the next focus of development."

Paul's Properties, for example, has just purchased land at Courtneypark and Hurontario.

He says this area is now a destination for flex office development, which from both a landlord and tenant's standpoint is "timely and relatively inexpensive."

"We haven't seen development (in the Mississauga downtown) because frankly rents have not been able to justify the costs," he adds. "In the city centre you have to provide underground or on the street parking, and because of that it costs more to build, and it takes a lot longer."

What's more, he says landlords are looking at new ways of calculating square footage (to maximize their returns), so that long-term tenants looking to renew their leases in the city centre may be in for some "sticker shock".

"Companies like having the flexibility to do a design-build, because if you're operating your own building you're not paying somebody a management fee, and it's a more efficient building," he adds.

Wilson suggests that "from an urban perspective, a lot of people mistake density for importance and significance. And a lot of people in downtown Toronto are fighting to reduce densities, and improve the balance between working and living space."

He deems the recent LEED (Leading Energy and Environmental Design) standard for environmentally-friendly construction and occupancy of buildings to be "the single most important development in North America in decades."

Within three years he feels, "probably every federal, municipal and provincial office will be mandated to be occupying a LEED-certified building."

However, with three exciting new, high end hotel/condo projects pegged for the Toronto downtown (including the Trump Tower, and the Shanghai), comes the harsh reality that Mississauga's city centre has still not attracted a second hotel to accompany the Novotel.

"That will have to come as a participation between the private sector and the public sector (in terms of parking). And I think it's coming," Murray comments. "Otherwise, you will continue to see condos."

"I could see office buildings downtown, but I question hotels," Barnicke adds. "Because if you're going to build hotels in Mississauga, it's going to be closer to the airport."

Citing the recent condo design competition within Mississauga, which produced the exciting, twisting, "Marilyn Monroe-style" Absolute building as its winner - reaching the front pages of the Toronto dailies - Dr. Alan Walks, a geography professor at University of Toronto, specializing in urban studies, says, "it looks like it is heading in that direction. I think (the city centre) will eventually have a dense, identifiable cluster of skyscrapers and office towers."

"We're likely to see a Mississauga city centre with an identity of its own."

Dr. Walks observes that while for many years, the City of Mississauga followed an approach to urban planning which "reinforced the sprawl aspect", the city reached a turning point in the mid-'90s and has since been pushing to make the downtown a mixed use, high-occupancy location.

"They've yet to be able to attract those type of uses, other than residential and retail. In the future, it's possible. There's a tendency to follow where the people are."

"So far it has been driven by condo development, but saying that, businesses will look at points of accessibility, particularly if they can make it easier by bringing in rapid transit," he continues. "So as more and more condos get built at close proximity, it will be cheaper and cheaper for office buildings to be built in that area."

Wong agrees that with the heavy concentration of condos sprouting up, office towers may follow because "people want to be close to work."

"Look at the condo development (in downtown Toronto)," he adds. "It makes the city more livable."

While acknowledging the lingering image of the Mississauga city centre as sterile and reflecting current trends from 25 years ago (with a shopping centre at its heart), Wilson feels the developers at city centre "have done a great job of infilling occupancy levels with residential units, and that the infill of development on the west side of Hwy. 403 has added to the attraction (with restaurants, movie theatres, and retail). "I see absolutely nothing wrong with residential development in the city centre," he says. "If you're going to have high-density residential development, I think the city centre is the place to have it."

"Density is happening. It is innovative, and I think Mississauga is a model a lot of cities should be following - because they do things right. I think too many people denigrate the city for a lack of character. That's kind of the Canadian way."

Dr. Walks, likewise, doesn't have any problem per se with the heavy retail uses in the city core.

"It's the way these areas have evolved, particularly with the large (Square One) parking lot between retail and city hall. If the retail abutted right at the city hall area, you'd have a lot more intimacy, and you'd achieve synergies."

"But I don't see the city centre having too many barriers, to making it a livable, synergetic location. There's a few problems." Article courtesy Mississauga News and Mississauga Business Times

For more information please contact A. Mark Argentino

A. Mark Argentino Associate Broker, P.Eng.,
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.
2691 Credit Valley Road, Suite 101, Mississauga, Ontario L5M 7A1

BUS 905-828-3434
FAX 905-828-2829
E-MAIL mark@mississauga4sale.com
Website: Mississauga4Sale.com

Housing Starts were strong in July in the Toronto housing market

The Toronto housing market experienced stron housing starts in July 2006

July home construction in the Toronto Census Metropolitan Area (CMA) remained strong, but continued on a downward trend. The seasonally-adjusted annual rate of starts was 41,600 - down slightly from 43,800 in June. For the first seven months of 2006, on an unadjusted basis, new home starts declined by over 13 per cent compared to the same period last year.


Over the past two years, the resale home market has become more balanced, meaning home buyers have benefited from more choice. Increased resale home listings coupled with high home prices have resulted in fewer pre-construction

HOUSING STARTS STRONG IN JULY

Sales of low-rise homes and lower housing starts. Condominium apartment starts, at 1,261 in July, remained strong, though not as exceptional as in July of last year when condominium apartment starts spiked to 3,387. Despite the decline, year-to-date building activity points to a second consecutive year of record condominium apartment construction. Condominium apartments are becoming an increasingly popular home ownership option for many households. The average prices and mortgage payments associated with ground-oriented homes, including single-detached houses, are too high for many buyers, especially those purchasing their first home. The average price for a completed and absorbed single-detached house through July was almost $460,000, with a monthly principal and interest payment of approximatley $2,400 (calculated using a 25 per cent down payment and a five-year fixed rate mortgage amortized over 25 years). The minimum annual income required to carry this mortgage is slightly more than $90,000 (assumes a gross debt-to-service ratio of 32 per cent), which is above the average household income in the Toronto area. This article is courtesy of CMHC


For more information please contact A. Mark Argentino

A. Mark Argentino Associate Broker, P.Eng.,
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.
2691 Credit Valley Road, Suite 101, Mississauga, Ontario L5M 7A1

BUS 905-828-3434
FAX 905-828-2829
E-MAIL mark@mississauga4sale.com
Website: Mississauga4Sale.com

Mississauga MLS Districts W12 - W20 average prices for Detached

Mississauga District average prices for Detached, semi detached, condo townhouses and condominium high-rises in graphical form

The image/chart below shows the average prices in each district of Mississauga during the last period

The prices shown in the image below will give you an idea of average prices in each district in Mississauga as provided by the Mississauga Real Estate Board using data from TREB (Toronto Real Estate Board) The latest month is shown on the image.

Click the image to see large scale image.



To see specific boundary locations for each district on the map, you may find the TREB maps here

For more information please contact A. Mark Argentino

A. Mark Argentino Associate Broker, P.Eng.,
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.
2691 Credit Valley Road, Suite 101, Mississauga, Ontario L5M 7A1

BUS 905-828-3434
FAX 905-828-2829
E-MAIL mark@mississauga4sale.com
Website: Mississauga4Sale.com

You may have noticed - Canadian Banks are now being Phished on a more regular basis - especially The Royal Bank!

Canadian Banks are now being Phished. What is Mark talking about??

Canadian Bank Clients are Targets for Phishing Scams. And Yes it's true.

A common e-mail scam known as phishing that attempts to trick clients of an online service into divulging their login information has typically been setup to target clients of E-Bay, PayPal or Citibank. We are now beginning to see Canadian financial institutions being used for phishing scams.

Users of online services should always disregard any e-mail that either requests confidential information or provides a link to a services login page. A financial institution will never request confidential information via an e-mail. E-mails of this type should be forwarded to the services online fraud investigation department.

How many times have you heard this "never divulge your personal information" line? High profile cases of identity theft are routinely reported on CNN and MSN, etc. Yet people continue to be scammed. Are people stupid? Well, not really. Perhaps some are just a little more naive than others.

The sophistication of online scams continues to improve and it's becoming more and more difficult to separate the fake from the real. While Canadian financial institutions have been comparatively small enough to fly under the "phisher radar" in the past, it appears that the easy availability of online scamming resources has made it profitable even in Canada, eh?

After all, a phisher really only needs a few people out of tens of thousands of phishing emails to hand over their credit card numbers to make it worth the effort.

What is Phishing?
Phishing occurs when you receive an email claiming to be from PayPal, EBay, a bank or any company that holds important information about you. These emails typically say things like, your account is outdated, there is unusual activity in your account or something of that nature. They will then display a link for you to go to - to update your account information or login to fix whatever problem they are reporting. Unfortunately, the site that the link takes you to is not the actual site, it is a phony site that attempts to fool you by displaying logos and trademarks of the company in question and attempting to spoof the URL that is displayed in the address bar. They want you to enter in all your account information and passwords and they record this information to later gain access to your account and your credit cards.

How do I Prevent Phishing?
Don't believe anything you receive in emails! It isn't often that any reputable company will email you telling you to update your account details. And never follow links in email. Always open your browser and type in the address - that way you know you are going to the right site. A good way to check is to cut and paste the subject of the email you receive into Google and see what comes up. Chances are someone has received this email before you and results will be shown immediately. A good site to check for Phishing attempts is FraudWatchInternational.com.

How do I Report Phishing?
Report Phishing attempts to www.AntiPhishing.org

Or report phishing to your bank, credit card company or the company that is contained in the email.

To learn more about phishing and other forms of identity theft, check out the following links:

http://www.safecanada.ca/identitytheft_e.asp

Article

For more information please contact A. Mark Argentino

A. Mark Argentino Associate Broker, P.Eng.,
Specializing in Residential & Investment Real Estate
RE/MAX Realty Specialists Inc.
2691 Credit Valley Road, Suite 101, Mississauga, Ontario L5M 7A1

BUS 905-828-3434
FAX 905-828-2829
E-MAIL mark@mississauga4sale.com
Website: Mississauga4Sale.com