OT: Rent inflation - what's the cause?

[pdonk]

Originally Posted by Ralph

Is there any trend of older people or boomers moving out of the homes they have owned a long time?

SNIP

I guess what I'm asking some of you guys in the industry is....Is there a change in how people are viewing what they live in? Increasing the number of people who rent?

Everyone predicted that boomers downsizing would lead to stabilized prices and availability of family sized housing units, it has not happened to the degree necessary to keep the market in balance.

One of the issues is that not enough suitable smaller units are available in the same (sub)urban neighbourhoods at prices that make the move tenable.

Ask yourself, why would I sell my ground related house, that is likely free and clear except for TMI (that I choose if I am going to pay the M part) and move out of my community to a condo that that is smaller and costs the same as the selling price of the home I own, plus it has TMI of $1-1.75 sq ft. The financial don't always make sense.

If you move from your ground related home and rent, and invest the equity smartly, then you can be further ahead. This is especially true is a speculator heavy market like the GTA, where units tend to be cash flow negative, even with rents increasing.