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Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION

Two-storey digs ride price rocket

By: Murray McNeill

Posted: 04/13/2011 1:00 AM | Comments: 0 (including replies)

THERE'S a new filly leading the local house-prices derby -- the standard two-storey home, according the latest survey by Royal LePage.

The real estate firm said Tuesday the average selling price of a two-storey home in Winnipeg increased at one of the fastest paces in Canada during the first quarter this year, jumping by 7.1 per cent to $297,125 from $277,375 a year earlier.

The only city among the 16 surveyed with a bigger year-over-year gain was Vancouver, at 9.7 per cent.

The surge in two-storey house prices is a change from previous quarters, where bungalows led the charge. But even so, the average price for a bungalow climbed 3.8 per cent to $269,250 from $259,313, and the price of a standard condo rose by four per cent to an average $167,429 from $161,000.

Nationally, it was bungalows that saw the biggest price increase, climbing 4.3 per cent to $341,355. The price of a two-storey rose 3.5 per cent to $379,388, and condos by four per cent to $237,919.

Michael Froese, marketing director for Royal LePage Prime Real Estate, said two-storey houses are popular with many families because parents prefer to have bedrooms on a separate floor from the living space.

A lot of homes built in the last couple of decades were two-storeys, Froese said, and some are coming back on the market.

That's not to say bungalows have fallen fromf favour. "By and large, bungalows are still very popular," Froese said, partly because they have bigger basements, and Winnipeggers love their basements.

He predicted high demand and tight supply will continue to put upward pressure on selling prices.

The only thing that could take the steam out of the market is a big jump in interest rates, he said, adding that's unlikely.

"There are no storm clouds on the horizon."

Meanwhile, Statistics Canada's latest monthly house-price index showed the cost of a new home in Winnipeg increased 0.7 per cent from January to February. That was nearly double the national average increase of 0.4 per cent and was the fifth biggest gain among the 21 cities surveyed.

StatsCan said local homebuilders blamed the price hike on higher costs for things like lumber and steel, on mandatory building-code upgrades and an anticipated increase in labour costs.

Winnipeg also had the third largest year-over-year gain in prices, at 4.6 per cent, eclipsing the national average hike of 2.1 per cent.

murray.mcneill@freepress.mb.ca

House prices rising in most city districts

Average selling prices in the first quarter this year, with the percentage change from a year earlier in brackets:

Area Bungalow Two-storey Condominium

Charleswood $264,000 (5.6) $303,000 (9.0) $163,000 (7.2)

River Heights $275,000 (1.1) $315,000 (5.0) $160,000 (1.9)

Southdale $264,000 (7.3) $262,000 (1.9) N/A*

Westwood $256,000 (1.2) $288,000 (3.6) $148,000 (3.2)

Northwest $265,000 (5.6) $303,000 (6.3) $210,000 (-1.9)

Northeast $270,000 (4.2) $295,000 (16.1) $138,000 (5.3)

South St. Vital $280,000 (2.2) $309,000 (7.7) $170,000 (0.8)

Fort Richmond $280,000 (3.9) $302,000 (7.9) $183,000 (13.7)

--* Not available / Source: Royal LePage

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition April 13, 2011 B5

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