Dennis Philps

The Conference Board of Canada has just forecasted that Edmonton’s economy will grow a modest 3.2% in 2010 and then 4% between 2011 and 2014. With a GDP decline of 2% in 2009–the biggest drop on record, this indeed is good news! The Conference Board has also predicted that the job market will remain soft this year with an unemployment-rate increase to 7.5%. Retail sales, home resales and the construction sector will all show moderate gains.

Alberta’s oilpatch will see better days in 2010 although a full recovery will not be seen until 2011. Such a recovery will have a significant impact on Edmonton’s economy since the two are inextricably linked.

If you thought the Tiger Woods story was confusing as it unfolded, then as an Edmonton home owner you were quite possibly even more confused by two conflicting newspaper reports. The Realtors Association of Edmonton recently reported that home prices in the Edmonton area had increased over 4% in 2009 and that we were the first place in the country to show signs of an economic recovery from the dreaded recession.

Following on the heels of that optimistic report came news from the City of Edmonton that house values had decreased 10-20% and this was confirmed by the tax notices that arrived in the mail this week!

The confusion is understandable! Who is right? Which side can be trusted? Is one of the sides missing an important information to the puzzle?

The truth is that both sides are correct when the matter is brought into focus from their perspective! The Realtors Association is reporting a modest increase in the actual price of homes sold in 2009 while the City of Edmonton bases their figures on assessed home values for property tax purposes. With the dramatic downturn in 2007 and with the city only reporting annually, it is only natural that they would now be attempting to reflect a current reality.

If you are wondering the market value of your current residence, a realtor should be able to give you a fairly accurate assessment of its current worth based on recent sales data.

Confusion resolved!