The affordability index defines “affordable” as the percentage of households living in a region with the income required to qualify for the mortgage needed to own the property. Typically, a bank wants no more than 32 per cent of income going to housing if it is to provide a mortgage.
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UDI/VANCITY HOUSING AFFORDABILITY INDEX POWERED BY URBA N A NA LYTI C S I NC.
A F F O R DA B I L I T Y I N D E X ( R E S A L E H O M E S ) Med. price
Est. mortgage payment
Req. income for 32%
M E T R O A F F O R DA B I L I T Y
District: Outer Metro
An explanation of the definitions and assumptions used in the index
Re-sale concrete condominiums
DEFINITIONS
The reason for the differences is the assumption that townhouse and single-family buyers are more likely to be move-up buyers with equity built up in their existing property.
MLS re-sale wood frame condominiums
ANALYTICAL METHODS
MLS single family
Inner Metro: West Vancouver, North Vancouver, Burnaby, New Westminster, Richmond, South Delta, Coquitlam, Port Moody and Port Coquitlam. Outer Metro: Langley, North Delta, Surrey, White Rock, Pitt Meadows and Maple Ridge.
Five-year fixed-rate 30-yearamortizationmortgages were used, taking an average of the best rates at eight banks at the time of analysis For the first-time buyer, a 10-per-cent down payment, which requires an isured mortgage and a 25-year amortization, was assumed.
PRICES
Average prices for the new home market were collected from actively selling, new multi-family projects in Metro Vancouver. Resale prices were collected from the real estate boards of Greater Vancouver and the Fraser Valley, with median sales for this index. There is not enough data to track new singlefamily home prices, so only MLS resale single-family prices are used.
OTHER ASSUMPTIONS
The affordability index assumes that a person can afford a maximum of 32 per cent of their gross family income to go toward mortgage payments. Transportation costs were also included, with estimates coming from a 2005 Greater Vancouver Regional District report, a Canadian Automobile Club survey from 2012 and a 2006 Metro estimate on commuter distances. Different amounts are used for each area.
MLS re-sale townhomes $1,099,000 MLS single family $2,250,000
Estimated monthly transportation costs (All): $383 West Van.
North Van.
A F F O R DA B I L I T Y I N D E X ( N EW H O M E S )
Burnaby
Vancouver proper
New West. Richmond
Coquitlam Port Moody Port Co. Pitt Meadows
Avg. price
Avg. $/ft2
Est. mortgage payment
Req. income for 32%
Working household at or above req. income
District: Outer Metro Maple Ridge
New concrete condominiums $289,072
623
$464
$990
$37,129
75.0%
$358
$1,024
$38,418
73.9%
$263
$1,319
$49,459
64.7%
$2,360
$88,496
36.7%
$1,732
$64,948
50.7%
$518
$1,494
$56,014
57.1%
$511
$1,787
$67,024
49.3%
$4,035
$151,321
13.1%
$2,990
$112,110
20.9%
$710
$2,380
$88,134
30.6%
$670
$2,530
$94,875
27.3%
$6,262
$234,808
3.7%
New wood frame condominiums $299,111
Surrey
Avg. size
Langley
835
New townhomes $440,079
1,672
MLS single family
Delta
$848,000
Estimated monthly transportation costs (All): $498 District: Inner Metro New concrete condominiums $505,660
A F F O R DA B I L I T Y I N D E X ( 10 % D OW N PAY M E N T O N LY )
820
$617
New wood frame condominiums $436,302
New wood-frame condominiums District Avg. Avg. Avg. Est. mortgage Req. income Working household at price size $/ft2 payment for 32% or above req. income