OTTAWA AREA HOMES

Research using realtor.com data indicates that buyers would be wise to find a deal now Key Takeaways Ready to become a homeowner? Nerdwallet and Realtor.com Chief Economist Jonathan Smoke say January and February are the best months to purchase a home. The median home sold in January sold for $7,003 less than the listing price, and home sales drop by 47 percent. Smoke says another reason buyers should act now is an upcoming hike in mortgage rates, which are expected to reach

After hitting a record high in November, the number of people working in the National Capital Region dipped slightly last month as employers shed 500 jobs, Statistics Canada said Friday. However, a decline in the number of people looking for work meant the unemployment rate dropped by 10 basis points, from 6.2 per cent to 6.1 per cent. The federal government continued its hiring binge by adding 5,900 new local employees on both sides of the Ottawa River in December. The regio

Claridge Homes says it wants to turn a barren plot of land near the Canadian War Museum into a 1,600-unit, five-tower complex aimed at mixed-income households. A rendering of Claridge Homes' proposal for its East LeBreton Flats property. The proposed LeBreton Flats development, unveiled at an open house on Monday, would include one 55-storey tower alongside three 25-floor buildings as well as a 30-storey structure. The property already features several residential buildings,

After a flurry of activity in 2016 that saw the Rideau Centre unveil a $360-million expansion and Costco open a new outlet in Barrhaven, the Ottawa retail sector is set to experience steady if unspectacular growth over the next 12 months, a prominent analyst predicts. Nordstrom opened in Ottawa at the Rideau Centre on March 6. Mid-range retailers such as clothing chain Gap and Sears department store have been steadily losing market share to discount and luxury stores for the

Canadians are increasingly tapping the ‘Bank of Mom and Dad’ for home down payments, according to a recent study. A record-number of Canadians are expected to accept help from their parents when buying a house this year in the wake of more stringent lending rules, according to RateHub. According to states released by the financial tech company, 42% of BC-based buyers received help from relatives. A shocking 45% of Quebecers received help; 38% of Albertans; 33% of buyers i

The second phase for Ottawa’s light rail transit has cleared another hurdle, with the NCC approving of the city’s construction plans on its lands in the west. The rail crosses NCC land at the Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway in Westboro, and south by Lincoln Fields to Baseline Road and beyond. One of the plan’s major features is to cut a tunnel below the eastbound lanes of the Sir John A. parkway, leaving only a quarter of the 1.2-kilometre stretch of rail above ground on the ea

The benchmark price for Ottawa homes eased up four per cent year over year to $341,400 in December, according to a survey published Monday by the Canadian Real Estate Association. That’s considerably below the 14.2 per cent gain recorded nationally by CREA, which estimated the benchmark price for homes at $582,000 in December. The benchmark price — developed monthly by the Ottawa Real Estate Board and 10 other real estate organizations — tracks housing characteristics such as

It began life 190 years ago as Bytown, founded to house labourers who had been recruited to build the Rideau Canal. For its first few decades, it was a crude, notoriously lawless frontier settlement. Even after Queen Victoria chose it as capital of the united Province of Canada in 1857, the renamed city of Ottawa lacked basic municipal services such as paved streets, piped water and sewers. Lumber, fire and politics shaped its destiny, but not always advantageously. When Alla