39 | Thursday, April 2 7 , 2 0 1 7 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com The financial and human sides to soaring house prices hot topic of conversation these days is real estate. Specifically the exorbitantly high prices of houses in Oakville and other communities in the GTA. According to the April 4 numbers released by the Oakville, Milton and District Real Estate Board, Oakville' s median residential sale price for the month of March increased by 44.77 per cent as compared to the same time last year. There are two important aspects to real estate. The f rst is f nancial. Real estate is a particular kind of investment and has all the normal invest ment characteristics similar to other asset classes like stocks and bonds. Price is determined by supply and demand. If more people want to buy houses than the supply of people selling them, then the excess demand will push prices up. It is that simple. Increased demand for homes has been impact ed by immigration, plus an interest by foreign speculators to buy houses in this part of Canada. The current economic environment has also fuelled rising house prices for several reasons. The economy has been good, and when peo ple feel fnancially comfortable they are willing to make signifcant investments, including buying a frst house, or trading up to one more expensive. Interest rates are low, and never in our coun try' s history have we been more comfortable bor rowing money. Personal debt, including mort gages and lines of credit, is at an all-time high. This perfect scenario of f nancial conf dence and low interest rates has been the magic formula A That may be a long drive considering effects with their parents after graduation. of high housing costs are being felt throughout There have been mixed reactions to the the Greater Golden Horseshoe, and the Canada 16-point housing plan Ontario Premier Kath Mortgage and Housing Corporation estimates leen Wynne introduced last week to help cool the house price spillover going as far as Sudbury the housing market. Whichever side of that and Ottawa. conversation you are on, one thing is sure, the economics of real estate values and how people If they have to move to other provinces to af live their lives are very much intertwined. More ford a home, their parents in Oakville may sell Guest Contributor people will make important life decisions based their house, to augment their retirement funds, on the value of housing. and follow the children and grandchildren to keep the family close. -- submitted by Peter Watson of Peter Watson for rising house prices. House prices have esca Investments and Aligned Capital Partners Inc, The cost in housing is also one of the ele lated to the point many buyers and sellers refer MBA, CFP R.FP, CIM, FCSI, Certified Financial ments fuelling the boomerang generation, the to them as silly. nickname for adult children who return to live Planner The fnancial implications of signifcant escala tion in house prices has encouraged more home owners to consider cashing out. The options after selling include buying a less expensive house in town or moving to a community that offers more affordable housing. Some will just rent. The other aspect to real estate is the human <o a) side. For many this will be more signifcant than I N YOU^ the current get-rich-quick excitement that has Dr. Marisa D'Angelo Dr. Shivani Saggar captured the real estate market. We offer full Family Dental S ervices in ou r new m od ern office in a c a lm a n d The motivation for most when they bought relaxing en viron m en t.W e a re a p ap e rle ss office a n d use digital x-rays.W e w e lco m e their house was to fulfl the Canadian dream kids, te e n s, ad ults a n d seniors. of home ownership. Home-sweet-home was a NEW PATIENTS a re w e lc o m e a n d w e will a c c o m m o d a t e your d en tal e m e r g e n c ie s place to live, not a speculation in real estate. We will directly bill your in su ran ce c o m p a n y a n d offer co n v en ien t even in g a n d The next generation of homebuyers will fnd w eek en d a p p o in tm en ts. the excessive cost of home ownership beyond N * . 2 5 2 5 Old B ronte R o a d , Suite # 1 3 0 their reach. 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