New CMHC report on Regina’s housing market overvaluation receives flak

A new report by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC) may have dethroned Toronto and Vancouver as it now claims that the housing markets of Regina and Winnipeg are where “the risk of problematic market conditions is high because of price acceleration, overvaluation and overbuilding, particularly of condominium apartments in the city.”
 
The federal government’s housing agency’s latest statement, however, was faced with scepticism from the region’s industry experts, particularly the Association of Regina Realtors (ARR).
 
The group said there seems to have been a bit of sensationalism around the CMHC’s house price analysis.
 
“We’re not on the edge of a precipice and looking down. There’s nothing in the market at all that indicates that’s the case,” said ARR chief executive Gord Archibald, adding that the local housing market has been dealing with a slowdown for several years.
 
In CMHC’s defence, analyst Goodson Mwale for Regina and Saskatoon areas argued “it’s clear home builders have noticed things are cooling and have cut back, with 2014 not a particularly strong year for housing starts, and with new home starts down 29 per cent during 2015’s first quarter.”
 
The Leader Post news report said CMHC’s analysis paved the way for some observations that, on their face, seem counterintuitive.
               
“For example, it said the risk of overvaluation is low in oil-dependent Calgary and Edmonton, though it conceded the economy could lead to more homes for sale and thus put downward pressure on house price growth. It also sees low overall housing market risk in Vancouver and only a mixed picture in Toronto and Montreal, with risks that exceed those at the national level, but remain moderate nonetheless.”
 
 

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