All detached homes are lined with gold

… even those located just across dumpsite, incinerator, or perhaps nuclear reactors.

No end in sight for rising cost of single family homes

If it seems like high-rise condominium units are keep getting smaller and affordable single family homes are getting harder to find, it’s true.

Prophet or contrarian? Economist’s grim reading of Canada’s housing market puts him at odds with the Street

Bank of Canada

Data from RealNet Canada Inc. for Toronto, to be released Wednesday, paints a grim picture for buyers hoping to avoid condominium living in favour of a low-rise home. It’s a trend that the chief executive of Sotheby’s says he’s seeing across the country.

“It’s like a dog running away from you in the Prairies,” says George Carras, president of RealNet, in talking about the widening gap between prices of low-rise homes and high-rise homes. “This price gap between high rise and low rise housing is continuing to grow, a market condition that is the result of intensification policies in action.”

The gap hit a record in September and the year still ended with RealNet’s Low Rise Price Index at $654,147, up about 3.5% from a year earlier. The High Rise Price Index rose 0.1% over the same period to $436,564.

It gets worse for the condo owner. RealNet says average unit prices climbed 1.1%  from a year ago to $548 per square foot while actual unit sizes shrunk 1% from a year ago to 796 square feet.

Yesterday, I posted this 3 bedroom, 1 bathroom house on a 23.12 x 103 foot lot at 611 Sammon Avenue in East York.

It was a move in ready house with maybe some updates to the kitchen floor and ceiling.

It was listed at $569,900.

I thought it would go up to $665,000…

Unless this building across the street was the hospital incinerator…

This house sold yesterday…

For $580,000.

So, guess it is the incinerator.