![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.livabl.com\/articles\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/02\/ralph-kelly-z9fFOzL5L_Y-unsplash-1.jpg\")
<\/a>Photo: Ralph Kelly<\/a> \/ Unsplash<\/a><\/em><\/p>\nIt\u2019s no secret the pandemic has produced supercharged housing markets across the country, but it might surprise you to learn that prices in Chilliwack and Guelph are on par with Boston and Seattle, while Oakville and Mississauga have joined the list of places where resales average more than $1 million.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, read about why real estate developers decide to hold off on building until the time is right, how Toronto\u2019s benchmark home price surpassed Vancouver\u2019s, and the benefits of housing co-operatives in Livabl\u2019s<\/em> weekly roundup of Canadian housing news and trends.<\/p>\n Taking the temperature of a scorching hot housing market:<\/strong> How crazy is the nation\u2019s housing market? The Globe and Mail<\/a><\/em> highlights five signs that it\u2019s out of control, including prices skyrocketing by nearly 50 per cent during the last two years, seven additional cities joining Toronto and Vancouver with average resale prices exceeding $1 million, a growing disparity between wages and home prices, the alarming state of inflation, and how reluctant sellers have limited listings.<\/p>\n Profit-driven developers don<\/strong>\u2019t always go on green<\/strong>: Government officials across the country are examining loosening zoning rules to increase housing supply. However, flipping the switch on zoning won\u2019t necessarily translate to an immediate surge in new construction. The Vancouver Sun<\/em><\/a> delves into the role of developers, who are motivated by profits rather than the potential to help increase affordability, with construction timelines determined by market cycles rather than promptings from politicians.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n How did Toronto surpass Vancouver as Canada<\/strong>\u2019s most expensive market?:<\/strong> Like New York City or San Francisco in the United States, for decades Vancouver has been viewed as Canada\u2019s runaway leader in rampant real estate prices, with Toronto close behind. However, the Big Smoke has recently claimed top spot and the Toronto Star<\/a><\/em> explores how a combination of factors \u2014 including taxes, trees and potential tsunamis \u2014 caused Toronto to leapfrog Vancouver as Canada\u2019s most expensive city.<\/p>\n Canada can<\/strong>\u2019t expect to build its way out of housing crisis:<\/strong> For many, home ownership has gone from foregone conclusion to reasonable expectation to pipe dream, with an increasing number of people being priced out of desired neighbourhoods, cities, even provinces altogether. The National Post<\/a><\/em> examines how alternative options like housing co-operatives could address affordability and inequality issues that have contributed to a housing bubble and made it more difficult for first-time buyers and recent immigrants to access the market.<\/p>\n