Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton are fast approaching a housing shortage as workers flow into Western Canada attracted by well-paying jobs in the energy, mining and high-tech sectors.
According to this year's Emerging Trends in Real Estate report released by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the Urban Land Institute, even though Vancouver has some of the highest real estate prices in the country, rising development and construction costs, land scarcity and immigration are increasing occupancy rates.
The report said the real estate industry as a whole is upbeat about the sector in Canada in 2008. Canadian respondents in the survey of more than 600 real estate experts were mainly positive about next year's prospects for profitability despite the U.S. real estate market correction.
The sector's strongest areas of business activity are projected to be in real estate services, followed by commercial and multi-family development and residential and land development.
The report said that the 2010 Winter Olympics will continue to boost real estate growth in Metro Vancouver. Roughly 45% of respondents gave Vancouver a buy recommendation for hotel properties; 43.5% give it a buy rating for retail.