According to ATB’s monthly economic news letter The Owl, titled “Jobless Rate 2015 won’t come close to historic highs” we are in for a bit on an increase in unemployment (as high as just under 7% by the summer). The good news is it won’t be as drastic as in historical highs in Alberta such as 1984 (over 12%), 1993 (10%) and 2010 (7%). The reason given that we will not be hit quite as hard is that Alberta has a more diversified economy then in the aforementioned years of high unemployment.
The silver lining in the clouds is the balancing of the real estate market. The past few years have seen a furry of real estate activity, causing a heavily weighted seller’s market. This has driven prices upwards at a high rate, thus presenting a challenge to buyers to get into the market at a comfortable level. The recent months have caused the market to fall into a balanced market, meaning sellers are still selling relatively quickly as long as they are priced competitively, and buyers are having a better selection of homes to choose from at competitive prices. Sellers are no longer solely in the driving seat, but rather are having to cooperate with buyers in order to achieve that sale. This cooperative market is beneficial to everyone!
Check out ATB’s The Owl for further details on employment rates and economic forecasting, brought to us by Todd Hirsch and Nick Ford.
Tessa