Real estate prices helping local economy stay strong

Jim Goddard VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) - It looks like our local economy is almost bullet proof right now. Other parts of North America may be looking at a slow down, but the latest report from Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation indicates there is no sign of a slow down for Metro Vancouver. There are two really good indicators to see how well your local economy is doing, housing starts and job creation. Robyn Adamache from CMHC says they expect to see the same number of housing starts this year as 2007, which was the third highest year ever. She says 30-thousand people moved here last year and some 36-thousand jobs were created. Adamache expects after seeing housing prices go up 11% last year, you can expect prices to be 14% higher in two years. But don't blame speculators for those higher prices, "The figure we have there has been declining over the past year or so, we're looking at less than 20 percent of home sales, that are being bought and sold within a year." The Vancouver Regional Construction Association says Lower Mainland construction is at a record high right now and the outlook is very positive for workers. Courtesy of News1130