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Story Number: 09NY07-0141 Story Slug: Top Ten Most Affordable Markets
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Beverly Hills, CA repeats as Most Expensive North American Market,
while Charlottetown, PEI is Most Affordable Canadian Market in Annual
Coldwell Banker House Price Study2007 HPCI Includes 77 International Markets in 28 Nations Outside Canada
BURLINGTON, ON, Sept. 26 /CNW/ - "Location. Location. Location." The
age-old adage that defines home prices equates to a difference of over
$2 million(US) between North America's most expensive and affordable major
market housing according to the 2007 Coldwell Banker(R) Home Price Comparison
Index (HPCI). This annual "apples to apples" comparison of similar middle
management homes in 331 major North American markets finds that Beverly Hills
repeats as the most expensive market on the continent. An average 2,200 square
foot, 4-bedroom, 2 1/2 bath home in Beverly Hills would cost $2.21 million
U.S.
Meanwhile, at the opposite end of the continent, almost 6,000 km away
from the haute cuisine of Spago sits the dunes of Prince Edward Island, where
fresh lobster at road-side stands is the order of the day. Here the glitz of
Rodeo Drive and the Beverly Wilshire Hotel give way to leisurely strolls down
Charlottetown's seaside boardwalk, sunsets over sandy beaches and tours of the
home of Anne of Green Gables. The provincial capital was the most affordable
of Canadian markets studied, where a home with similar characteristics in
Charlottetown would cost $157,630(US). Charlottetown residents rejoice in
their city's picturesque ambience and historical significance as the cradle of
Canadian confederation. The city is a Mecca for tourism, with charming Bed &
Breakfast Inns and cruise ships bringing 23,000 annual visitors to port.
Charlottetown's home prices were just edged out of a spot on the North
American top ten most affordable markets this year, where Wichita, Kansas
secured tenth spot overall with a very comparable price of $156,500. The most
affordable North American market overall was Killeen, Texas at $136,725.
By contrast, Vancouver, British Columbia reported the costliest homes of
Canadian markets studied at $1.33 million. The price difference from Vancouver
to Charlottetown is a whopping $1,170,245(US). Similarly, Vancouver was also
edged out of a spot on the North American top ten most expensive markets this
year. This year, Boston, Massachusetts rounded out the top ten at
$1.38 million.
"Canadian prices continue to run the gamut from highly affordable in the
east coast to rapidly escalating home values in B.C. and Alberta," confirms
Gary Hockey, president of Canadian operations for Coldwell Banker Real Estate
LLC. "While our soaring loonie has made Canadian real estate a less affordable
alternative for U.S. buyers in 2007, it has done nothing to diminish the very
active trading of real estate here in Canada. Home prices are on track to
reach new records this year and again in 2008."
With the Euro also reaching record-breaking heights, Canadian home prices
stack up well from a global perspective. "When compared against the prices
reported in many international markets, our Canadian prices look like a
bargain," Hockey added.
Serving as a "snapshot" study, the Coldwell Banker HPCI evaluates average
home values for select 2,200 square foot single-family dwellings with four
bedrooms, two and one-half baths, a family room (or equivalent) and a two-car
garage(1) in 394 markets across the United States, Puerto Rico, Canada and a
sampling of countries/territories outside of North America where Coldwell
Banker has a presence.
"Real estate may be a global business, but the reality is that it's
transacted locally," says Jim Gillespie, president and chief executive officer
of Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC. "Each market has its own story to tell.
And the international marketplace is no exception. More and more people are
relocating beyond their national borders not only for corporate relocations
but also for reasons of lifestyle. Our HPCI serves as a guide for these world
travelers and interested consumers to get a sense of how much a typical
middle-management home may cost in various markets around the globe."
Dublin is the most expensive studied market outside of North America
where an HPCI subject home averages $2.1 million U.S. dollars. Coldwell Banker
charts a total of 13 markets outside of the United States which average more
than $1 million, including Milan ($1.9 million), Rome ($1.7 million) and Paris
($1.7 million). Bogota, Colombia, ($140,100) is the most affordable foreign
studied market. Several markets including Egypt's Sharm El Sheikh ($144,896)
and Granada, Nicaragua, ($158,375) join Charlottetown ($157,630US) below
$200,000.
Through the comprehensive HPCI section on www.coldwellbanker.com,
prospective homebuyers and sellers can calculate what their homes may be worth
in other areas in Canada or throughout the United States and gather
preliminary intelligence about the affordability of housing from one market to
another.2007 Coldwell Banker(R) HPCI - Highlights and Top Market Lists
- Beverly Hills, Calif., repeats as the most expensive North American
market in the study ($2.2 million US). Charlottetown, PEI remains the
most affordable of Canadian major markets reported at $157,630(US),
a near miss for the number ten spot on North America's top ten most
affordable.
- Eight of the top 10 most expensive markets in North America this year
are in California, but Greenwich, Conn., jumped from the eighth most
expensive market a year ago to second this year ($2 million). Boston
($1.38 million) is the only other market outside of California to
make the top 10 most expensive market list. Of the markets studied,
16 U.S. and 1 Canadian market (Vancouver at $1.33 million US) exceed
the $1 million average price for the surveyed home. Note: Manhattan
in New York City was not included in the study because of the lack of
comparable single-family homes.
- Canada mirrors the U.S. with its costliest market being on the West
Coast. Vancouver, British Columbia, tops the list of Canadian markets
studied, where subject homes average $1,327,875(US). The most
affordable market studied in Canada is Charlottetown, Prince Edward
Island ($157,630). The price difference from Vancouver to
Charlottetown is $1,170,245.
- The most expensive studied international markets included (prices
converted to U.S. dollars as of Sept. 7, 2007): Dublin, Ireland
($2.13 million); Milan, Italy ($1.91 million); Rome, Italy
($1.79 million) and Paris, France ($1.67 million). The most
affordable international market tracked is Bogota, Colombia, at
$140,100.
TABLE 1
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The most expensive and most affordable major markets (in U.S. dollars+)
within selected provinces/territories in Canada(3) are:
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2007 Avg. Most 2007 Avg.
Province/ Most Expensive Sales Affordable Sales
Territory Major Market Price Major Market Price Variance
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ALBERTA Edmonton $566,750 Calgary $513,250 $53,500
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BRITISH
COLUMBIA Vancouver $1,327,875 Burnaby $650,750 $677,125
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MANITOBA Winnipeg $344,868(*)
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NEW BRUNSWICK Moncton $255,925(*)
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NEWFOUNDLAND St. John's $209,000(*)
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NOVA SCOTIA Halifax $253,500(*)
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ONTARIO Toronto $862,674 Brantford $268,750 $593,924
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PRINCE EDWARD
ISLAND Charlottetown $157,630(*)
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QUEBEC Montreal $252,350(*)
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SASKATCHEWAN Saskatoon $211,666(*)
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YUKON Whitehorse $326,250(*)
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(*) Only one market included in the study.
+ Note: for purposes of comparison with other international markets,
prices are expressed in U.S. dollars. U.S. dollar prices calculated
at the rate of exchange in effect at September 7, 2007.
TABLE 2
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The top 10 most expensive and most affordable North American markets
overall in the 2007 study are:
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2007 Avg. 2007 Avg.
Rank Most Expensive Sales Price Most Affordable Sales Price
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1 Beverly Hills, Calif. $2,206,883 Killeen, Texas $136,725
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2 Greenwich, Conn. $2,018,750 Minot, N.D. $139,033
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3 La Jolla, Calif. $1,800,000 Arlington, Texas $139,175
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4 Santa Monica, Calif. $1,785,000 Canton, Ohio $146,333
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5 Palo Alto, Calif. $1,677,000 Muncie, Ind. $150,000
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6 Newport Beach, Calif. $1,617,500 Topeka, Kan. $150,075
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7 Santa Barbara, Calif. $1,599,667 Fort Worth, Texas $151,250
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8 San Mateo, Calif. $1,498,023 Tulsa, Okla. $153,750
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9 San Francisco, Calif. $1,451,250 Grayling, Mich. $155,000
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10 Boston, Mass. $1,381,250 Wichita, Kansas $156,500
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TABLE 4
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The most expensive and most affordable surveyed U.S. markets within each
state in 2007 are:
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2007 Avg. 2007 Avg.
Sales Most Sales
State Most Expensive Price Affordable Price Variance
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ALASKA Juneau $465,000 Anchorage $340,302 $124,698
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ALABAMA Mobile $232,375 Huntsville $212,183 $20,192
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ARIZONA Scottsdale $525,667 Mesa $257,467 $268,200
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ARKANSAS Fayetteville $252,950 Fort Smith $183,950 $69,000
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CALIFORNIA Beverly Hills $2,206,883 Sacramento $380,625 $1,826,258
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Colorado
COLORADO Boulder $615,000 Springs $197,500 $417,500
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CONNECTICUT Greenwich $2,018,750 West Hartford $365,000 $1,653,750
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DELAWARE Wilmington $414,500(*)
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Port
FLORIDA Key West $929,818 Charlotte $239,100 $690,718
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GEORGIA Atlanta $324,000 Macon $165,440 $158,560
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HAWAII Kihei, Maui $963,000 Honolulu $843,750 $119,250
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IDAHO Boise $250,400 Coeur d'Alene $250,370 $30
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ILLINOIS Chicago $732,333 Rockford $199,875 $532,458
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INDIANA Munster $341,667 Muncie $150,000 $191,667
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IOWA Des Moines $260,275 Sioux City $184,000 $76,275
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KANSAS Lawrence $232,300 Topeka $150,075 $82,225
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KENTUCKY Louisville $238,000 Florence $209,579 $28,421
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LOUISIANA New Orleans $310,875 Shreveport $225,750 $85,125
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MAINE Portland $354,000 Augusta $157,400 $196,600
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MARYLAND Bethesda $950,000 Hagerstown $316,450 $633,550
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MASSACHUSETTS Boston $1,381,250 Worcester $286,000 $1,095,250
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MICHIGAN Ann Arbor $303,750 Grayling $155,000 $148,750
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MINNESOTA Edina $434,975 Rochester $211,329 $223,646
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MISSISSIPPI Jackson $244,000 Tupelo $179,125 $64,875
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MISSOURI Kansas City $238,875 Springfield $189,650 $49,225
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MONTANA Bozeman $341,212 Billings $168,542 $172,670
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NEBRASKA Norfolk $212,250 North Platte $195,762 $16,488
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NEVADA Reno $384,500 Las Vegas $362,188 $22,312
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NEW HAMPSHIRE Hanover $496,000 Portsmouth $283,000 $213,000
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NEW JERSEY Ridgewood $1,006,250 Cherry Hill $287,167 $719,083
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NEW MEXICO Santa Fe $640,062 Albuquerque $317,319 $322,743
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NEW YORK Katonah $904,750 Binghamton $193,382 $711,368
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NORTH
CAROLINA Wilmington $339,082 Greensboro $182,178 $156,904
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NORTH DAKOTA Fargo $217,890 Minot $139,033 $78,857
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OHIO Cincinnati $250,530 Canton $146,333 $104,197
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OKLAHOMA Oklahoma City $193,750 Tulsa $153,750 $40,000
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OREGON Medford $433,250 Salem $311,567 $121,683
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PENNSYLVANIA Philadelphia $515,225 Erie $205,475 $309,750
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RHODE ISLAND Providence $483,333(*)
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SOUTH
CAROLINA Charleston $389,750 Columbia $198,967 $190,783
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SOUTH DAKOTA Rapid City $197,600(*)
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TENNESSEE Nashville $238,333 Memphis $191,936 $46,397
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TEXAS Dallas $302,198 Killeen $136,725 $165,473
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UTAH Salt Lake City $408,125 Provo $363,975 $44,150
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VERMONT Burlington $373,475 Rutland $291,718 $81,757
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VIRGINIA Alexandria $771,500 Lynchburg $275,269 $496,231
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WASHINGTON Bellevue $763,667 Tri-Cities $228,988 $534,679
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WEST VIRGINIA Charleston $176,625 Parkersburg $164,333 $12,292
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WISCONSIN Milwaukee $324,750 Eau Claire $158,650 $166,100
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WYOMING Cheyenne $225,956(*)
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The 2007 average price in the District of Columbia:
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DISTRICT OF
COLUMBIA $808,500(*)
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The 2007 average price in the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico:
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PUERTO RICO San Juan suburbs $357,500(*)
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TABLE 5
All surveyed international markets(3); conversions through September 7,
2007:
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2007 Avg. 2007 Average Sales
Sales Price Price in Local
Country Market in U.S. $(*) Currency(*)
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ARUBA Aruba $236,250 418.163 AWG
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AUSTRALIA Brisbane $657,464 742,750 AUD
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Sydney $874,553 998,000 AUD
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Perth $750,850 848,250 AUD
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BAHRAIN Manama-Muharraq $230,500 86,500 BD
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BELIZE San Pedro $697,500 1,395,000 BZD
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CHINA Beijing $709,687 5,372,121 CNY
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Hangzhou $870,996 6,604,235 CNY
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Shanghai $774,799 5,865,000 CNY
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Suzhou $241,275 1,825,000 CNY
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COLOMBIA Bogota $140,100 281,600,000 COP
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COSTA RICA San Jose $389,900 206,545,626 CRC
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EGYPT Cairo $328,719 1,900,000 EGP
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Sharm El Sheikh $144,896 837,500 EGP
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FRANCE Lyon $650,485 468,656 EUR
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Marseilles $547,039 394,126 EUR
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Nice $563,080 405,683 EUR
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Paris $1,677,878 1,208,863 EUR
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HONDURAS Tegucigalpa $377,500 7,182,881 HNL
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IRELAND Cork County $1,630,061 1,187,500 EUR
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Dublin $2,133,891 1,562,500 EUR
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Galway County $1,124,987 823,750 EUR
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Limerick County $1,091,283 795,000 EUR
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ITALY Milan $1,917,195 1.441.500 EUR
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Florence $1,352,167 1.016.667 EUR
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Rome $1,793,838 1.348.750 EUR
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JAMAICA St. Andrew $273,061 18,431,625 JMD
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JAPAN Tokyo $780,346 90,059,560 JPY
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MALTA Attard $274,200 84,952 MTL
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Marsascala $294,250 91,164 MTL
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St. Julians $255,500 79,159 MTL
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MEXICO Guadalajara $246,522 2,746,810 MXN
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Mexico City $277,213 3,088,777 MXN
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Monterrey $274,043 3,053,456 MXN
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NETHERLANDS Amsterdam $537,148 387,000 EUR
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NICARAGUA Granada $190,000 3,616,080 NIO
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PANAMA Panama City $201,333 204,655 PAB
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POLAND Cracow $368,527 1,028,750 PLN
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Gdansk $283,792 792,500 PLN
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Warsaw $479,000 1,337,500 PLN
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PORTUGAL Algarve $383,878 278,750 EUR
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Cascais $526,758 382,500 EUR
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Lisbon $1,053,584 765,000 EUR
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ROMANIA Bucharest $607,200 1,372,000 RON
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SINGAPORE Singapore $1,039,545 1,572,000 SGD
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SPAIN Madrid $1,135,351 829.798 EUR
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Seville $906,009 662.094 EUR
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Valencia $774,613 566.073 EUR
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ST. CROIX Christiansted $702,500 US $702,500
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TURKEY Istanbul $417,760 543088 TRY
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UNITED ARAB
EMIRATES Dubai $1,127,459 4,126,500 AED
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(*) Conversions done on oanda.com as of September 7, 2007; All currencies
listed are local to each country/territoryMethodology - 2007 Coldwell Banker(R) Home Price Comparison Index:
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Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC conducts its Home Price Comparison Index
study by compiling survey data from Coldwell Banker offices throughout the
United States, Puerto Rico, Canada and a sampling of other countries where the
Coldwell Banker system has a market presence. Companies within the Coldwell
Banker system submit data based on the average sales price of sold listings
through July 2007 or a comparative market analysis of homes previously
evaluated for the 2006 HPCI. The criteria for the HPCI subject home is:
single-family dwelling, 2,200 square feet (approximately)(2), four bedrooms,
two and one-half baths, family room (or equivalent) and two-car garage in
neighbourhoods within a market that is typical for corporate middle-management
transferees.
About Coldwell Banker(R)
------------------------
Since 1906, the Coldwell Banker(R) organization has been a premier
full-service real estate provider. In 2006, Franchise Times magazine's
prestigious Top 200 issue ranked the Coldwell Banker system number one in real
estate for the seventh straight year and number eight among all franchisors.
The Coldwell Banker System has approximately 3,800 residential real estate
offices and more than 120,000 sales associates in 41 countries and
territories. The Coldwell Banker System is a leader in the industry in
residential and commercial real estate, and in niche markets such as resort,
new home and luxury property through its Coldwell Banker Previews
International(R) division. It is a pioneer in consumer services with its
Coldwell Banker Concierge(R) Service Program and award-winning Web site,
www.coldwellbanker.com. Coldwell Banker Mortgage is one of the largest
telephone/web based lenders in the country. Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC is
a subsidiary of Realogy Corporation, the world's largest real estate
franchisor. Coldwell Banker(R) is a registered trademark licensed to Coldwell
Banker Real Estate LLC. Each office is independently owned and operated.
About Coldwell Banker(R) Canadian Operations
--------------------------------------------
Coldwell Banker(R) is a leader in Canadian real estate with over 200
independently owned residential and commercial franchise offices operating in
every province except Quebec and in the Yukon and Northwest Territories. A
marketing innovator and technology leader, Coldwell Banker pioneered Ultimate
Service(R) in Canada and has achieved a 98% customer satisfaction rating from
over 50,000 Canadian home buyers and sellers. For more information on Coldwell
Banker Canada, visit www.coldwellbanker.ca(1) The Coldwell Banker(R) Home Price Comparison Index (HPCI) is not
intended and should not be deemed to be a definitive determination of
price for any particular real estate. While the HPCI offers insight
into housing costs, Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC recommends that
potential homebuyers and sellers conduct additional research and work
with a reputable real estate professional on their specific needs.
(2) 2,200 square feet was the baseline figure used as size criteria for
the HPCI subject homes. However, it is possible that in certain
markets the size of the subject homes varied.
(3) Currency exchange rates were calculated as of September 7, 2007 on
www.oanda.com.
For further information: For Greater Perspective on Real Estate Trends &
Home Values and/or to arrange interviews with Market spokespersons, please
contact: Canada, Barbara Zaprzala, Coldwell Banker Canadian Operations,
1-800-268-9599 toll free or (905) 278-4964, barb@coldwellbanker.ca; U.S. &
International Markets, David Siroty, Coldwell Banker Real Estate LLC, (973)
407-7199, David.Siroty@coldwellbanker.com
