Here is an interesting article from the Financial Times talking about the quiet move of people and companies from Hong Kong to Singapore. I say quiet, because apparently Hong Kong-based companies are reluctant to overtly signal that they are setting up offices and moving some… Read More
All posts filed under “housing”
La ville du quart d’heure, but also the value of centralization
These days, everybody seems to be talking about the 15-minute city — Bloomberg, Treehugger, the Financial Times, as well as countless others. While not a new concept, it is a moniker that is easier for most people to digest. COVID-19 has also created the right… Read More
The effects of low-income developments on house prices in Los Angeles
Richard Voith and Jing Liu of Philadelphia-based Econsult, along with a bunch of other smart coauthors, have just published a working paper looking at the effects of the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit (LIHTC) on home prices. More specifically, they looked at the impact that LIHTC-financed… Read More
Register your interest for One Delisle
Toronto will soon be home to One Delisle — the first residential building in Canada designed by visionary architect, Jeanne Gang of Studio Gang. Jeanne Gang is known for challenging the stylistic and technical parameters of architecture. Named one of the most influential people in… Read More
Moving from the city to the suburbs and back
This is an interesting story about a Toronto couple who got married about 20 years ago, initially lived in a small downtown condo, and then decided it was “time to adult” and move to the suburbs. They bought a 3,200 square foot home in Markham… Read More
Shrinking lot sizes and unit sizes
Shane Dingman’s recent piece in the Globe and Mail about shrinking lot sizes raises two interesting points. One, new low-rise lot sizes seem to be shrinking and that’s probably a normal market outcome. Similar to the way in which average unit sizes have been generally… Read More
Urbanation releases Q3-2020 market update — new condo sales reach record high
Urbanation just released its Q3-2020 market update for the Greater Toronto Area and the data is very encouraging for the new condo market. Here are some of the highlights: There were 6,730 new condominium unit sales in Q3. This represents a 30% year-over-year increase. More… Read More
Is that delay really necessary?
The big news this week in Toronto planning & development is the province’s decision to approve three downtown development projects using a tool known as a “ministerial zoning order.” The impetus for doing this was to speed up the approval and delivery of about 1,000… Read More
TikTok studios are the new multi-family amenity
I just finished reading about an apartment building in Los Angeles that is currently retrofitting its amenity spaces to include, among other things, an appropriately spread out co-working space, two podcast rooms, and a TikTok studio. This latter amenity will be a roughly 100 square… Read More
Super-prime property transactions in the first half of 2020
This is a chart from Knight Frank showing the average value of “super-prime” residential real estate transactions in 12 global markets between March and June 2020, and versus the same period last year. Knight Frank classifies super-prime real estate as having a value greater than… Read More