Earlier this week I shared a post about media jumping on the wagon of mass hysteria about Montreal real estate prices that are about to ‘shoot through the roof’. I think it is critical that we all recognize a few things:1. There is very little new independent journalism out there…much of what we read is based on one opinion piece, an article or even simply a Twitter comment that catches attention. Attention means EYEBALLS and that leads to ADVERTISING REVENUE. Rehashing has no bearing on the worthiness, accuracy or reality of the item that initially generated the attention. Rehashing small stories without providing critical analysis creates a feedback loop, gives non-stories momentum and blows things out of proportion.
2. Montreal real estate has lagged behind Toronto and Vancouver for many reasons, one of the majors being a lack of people choosing to make this city their home for long enough to justify a purchase. Language, unstable politics, difficulty in finding employment, lower wages, education, high taxation are all barriers that certain other provinces seem(ed) to have less of, so people moved there, invested there.
3. Montreal is in an upswing now, low unemployment, higher paying jobs, booming tech sector, new business investment, a federalist government and an optimistic population. YES that will lead to an increase in housing sales, and YES that will lead to prices rising and lack of inventory and YES that will lead to more new arrivals. But to say increased sales and prices mean we are facing an invasion is an exaggeration designed to get attention.
Most people take what they see in the media as fact. That is why opinion pieces such as the shocking and downright racist piece by Daniel Germain in Les Affaires earlier this week is so dangerous. It will get noticed, it will get picked up and all of a sudden the general public will be under the opinion that we are ‘under attack’. We know where that belief leads.
In my PERSONAL OPINION, we are facing an opportunity; one that we need to meet with facts, good analysis and vision. Opportunities have costs which need to be carefully assessed and managed. Closed minds, fear and xenophobia help no one.
M Germain I denounce your racist attitude and your method of labelling Asians as ‘carp’ (bottom feeders) and I call on you to make an apology.
A recent article about a vacant institutional building not selling for 18 years because the vendors could not get the price they wanted led me to thinking about a few residential situations I have just seen. In one case, an inherited house was put on the market at a very high price after some quickie
We live in a society of great wealth but there are many people in Montreal that struggle . They are cold, hungry, living in substandard apartments and sometimes on the streets. They might be young or old, parents or singles, sometimes they are addicted and sometimes they are down on their luck or mentally ill.
While Montrealers do not suffer the same accessibility issues as their city-dwelling counterparts in Toronto and Vancouver, there are signs that our real estate market is on an upswing, both in terms of sales and prices. Only a few months ago the Quebec Federation of Real Estate Boards predicted a 7% drop in sales for
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