Economic activity expected to spur home starts in St. Thomas region
Economic activity expected to spur home starts in St. Thomas region
The London, Ont. and St. Thomas, Ont. home building industry is looking at better times ahead.
While affordability challenges remain, stabilizing interest rates and new economic opportunities are expected to help turn things around.
“Yeah we’ve seen a slow down in starts, we’ve seen a slowdown in clients coming and asking,” said Robert Adzija, a representative for John Roberts Signature Homes. “It’s nice that the last two or three weeks we’ve seen a little more interest.”
Adzija could be found at the St. Thomas Home Show Sunday, trying to generate interest in custom build homes as the spring and summer construction season approaches.
London couple Alex and Linda Nedeljkovic took in the home show, being held at the Joe Thornton Community Centre.
They say they’re thinking about having a home built, but they’re not about to rush in to anything.
“Actually a few months now, kinda just been looking on the market and seeing what’s available and kind of pricing out homes, and seeing what’s out there,” said Linda.
“What would have been a manageable mortgage is now substantial, so you’re going to have to weigh out your options of pricing,” added Alex.
Jared Zaifman, the CEO of the London Home Builders Association, told CTV News a perfect storm of factors caused a major slowdown in the sale of new builds, including rising interest rates.
“Interest rates really, the continuous hikes had a really big impact on the industry for a long time,” he explained. “And that is the biggest thing that we’ve been sharing with our federal partners in Ottawa. And honestly, glad to see interest rates starting to stabilize.”
Just as rising interest rates and a number of other factors caused a slowdown in the home building industry, economic activity on the horizon in this region is expected to get the machines humming once again, and the shovels in the ground.
Chief among that economic activity is the Volkswagon EV battery plant being built in St. Thomas, and expected to come on stream in 2027.
St. Thomas Mayor Joe Preston said the thousands of builders and contractors working to build the plant will need somewhere to live.
“We need a lot more than just single family homes,” said Preston. “There will be markets, there isn’t an empty one sitting around, people are buying those too. But we need market-rent apartments, high density, a number of rental apartments in St. Thomas, and these builders have to help us with that too.”
NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh is pushing for special rapporteur David Johnston to 'step aside' from his role examining the issue of foreign interference before he embarks on public hearings.
New Democrat MP Jenny Kwan said Monday that Canada's spy agency has confirmed her long-held belief she is being targeted by the Chinese government, as the prime minister granted the NDP's wish to allow more party members to review top-secret intelligence.
William Karlsson, William Carrier and Jonathan Marchessault are finally getting another chance in the Stanley Cup Final, after the first one that came so quick for the Vegas Golden Knights.
Eastern Conference finals Most Valuable Player Jimmy Butler scored 28 points, and Caleb Martin had 26 points and 10 rebounds to help the eighth-seeded Miami Heat beat the Celtics 103-84 in Game 7 on Monday night and advance to the NBA Finals for the second time in four seasons.
Canadian political leaders and parliamentarians are denouncing a new law passed in Uganda that imposes harsh penalties, including the death penalty, for certain cases involving homosexuality.
There's a heightened risk of wildfires across the country during what has been one of the earliest fire seasons on record. From British Columbia to Nova Scotia, here's where the risk is highest.
New research from Penn State University found certain factors can contribute to reducing what’s known as the 'urban heat island' effect, and that climate knowledge can contribute to better city planning and design.
The rural Oxford County intersection where an OPP officer and a school bus driver were killed Monday was less than a month away from becoming a four-way stop when the deadly crash happened.
It was a night of indecision at Waterloo region's catholic school board as trustees went back and forth trying to find the best approach to fill a vacant seat.
Windsor city council voted Monday in favour of adopting a master plan with high hopes for City Hall Square and a so-called civic esplanade stretching down to the river
A united front was on full display Monday as community leaders, politicians, business people, unions and educators gathered together at Windsor City Hall to ensure the NextStar Energy battery plant deal gets closed.
Doctors in their final year of training, called residency, can choose to do a one-month rotation at the Shelter Health Initiative (SHI) caring for Windsor’s homeless population.
The body of a Winnipeg boy who fell into Sturgeon Falls on Saturday has been found following a desperate underwater search that lasted more than a day.
The Sandy Hill Child Care Centre has an extra two weeks to get its new home up to code months after a fire destroyed its original site on Wilbrod Street.
Ottawa police are praising a local dad for quickly calling for help Sunday afternoon when he accidentally locked his keys in his car, and his infant child along with them.
Ontario Provincial Police say a driver from Augusta Township is facing an impaired driving charge after someone on Highway 416 spotted a vehicle moving erratically.
The union representing the majority of Quebec's daycare workers is criticizing the government's decision to launch a skimpy 90-hour training program for people who want to be daycare workers but have no prior experience.
A Quebec driver who caused the death of another motorist when he swerved his truck to avoid hitting a family of ducks on the road has been sentenced to eight months in jail and a three-year driving ban.
A Winnipeg family is asking for help to find their missing teenage son whom they haven't seen since he left for school in the Fort Richmond area last Wednesday morning.
The body of a Winnipeg boy who fell into Sturgeon Falls on Saturday has been found following a desperate underwater search that lasted more than a day.
Danielle Smith will return to the Alberta legislature as premier after the United Conservative Party won the provincial election over Rachel Notley's NDP on Monday night, CTV News has declared.
One long-time electoral tradition came to an end on election day, when Postmedia announced there would be no printed newspaper announcing the winner in Calgary.
Danielle Smith will return to the Alberta legislature as premier after the United Conservative Party won the provincial election over Rachel Notley's NDP on Monday night, CTV News has declared.
Over 170,000 elementary and high school students weighed in on the Alberta election and the NDP had to hope the real voters were listening, because they won the kids' vote.
On Monday, Fraser Health provided two senior leaders to address the latest letter outlining risks to patients, allegations of muzzling, and pleas for help from emergency physicians in the health authority's hospitals.
The president of the BC Trucking Association is issuing renewed calls for safety after a trailer truck smashed into an overhead pass Monday morning in Langley.
