groupeexpertis

© Cindy Andrie

The whole world economy was hit hard in recent years and the country watched as a once vibrant housing market fell into chaos. Sales and purchase have been way down for years now. In the U.S., most regions are still trying to recover. It seems though that not everything is bad news. At a time when the U.S. seems to still be struggling with getting the housing bust under control, Canada is faring better than expected.
The construction of homes in the country rose to almost three percent. This is far better than expected and the Canadian housing market is still showing signs of continued stability. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. said last month that the housing starts rose to nearly 184, 000. This is up even further from April. Most every month proved to be better than the last and, though this isn't to say the Country has a strong housing market again, it is a promising step in the right direction.
For years now people have remained in the homes that they currently reside in or chose to unload their property and begin renting. Businesses like Calgary self storage have done quite well. People have found it far more cost effective to stick with a smaller home with lower energy costs while housing non-essential items in storage units. It seems that everyone's learned to run a little leaner. It's hoped that this period is over.

Not every area of the market has seen such growth. Robert Kavcic, an economist for BMO Capital Markets, said that, "Canadian residential construction activity remains stable at a level consistent with underlying demographic demand, and housing shouldn't be much of a driver nor much of a drag on growth in 2011." It's a first step and though multi-family homes are seeing more sales than single-family homes, the market is in the black.
Some are arguing that, even though things aren't getting worse that it means everything is better. Sales and figures are still far below what they once were but many economists argue that it has more to do with tougher lending and mortgage regulations. In March, the federal government introduced stronger rules for mortgage lenders, which also had been expected to contribute to a decline in real estate activity. It's hoped though that much of this will balance out. Seeing fewer strong sales is far more desirable than a lot of weak ones.

© stan

Realty firm Earth Infrastructure on Monday said it will invest Rs 1,000 crore over the next three years to develop three projects in the National Capital Region.
The company has plans to invest two housing projects in Gurgaon and Greater Noida , comprising about 900 apartments, and one office complex in Greater Noida.
"This year, we are going to invest in a number of projects. In the first phase, we are launching three projects in NCR … The total investment in these projects will be around Rs 1,000 crore by 2013," Earth Infrastructure Joint Managing Director Vikas Gupta told reporters here. The amount we invest will be funded through internal accruals and advances from customers, he added.
Elaborating on the forthcoming projects, Gupta said: "We will develop a premium housing project, Earth Copia, to invest Rs 400 crore in Gurgaon. It will have about 500 flats with a starting price of Rs 70 lakh."

© Michigan Municipal League (MML)

Toxic waste is making legal news in Canada as the Canadian Environmental Law Association and Sierra Club Canada have taken legal action in an attempt to block a plan to ship radioactive material through the Great Lakes. The two groups want the Federal Court of Canada to hear a judicial review of two approvals that were issued by the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission that allow Bruce Power Inc to ship and export 16 steam generators through the Great Lakes and St Lawrence Seaway and across the Atlantic to Sweden.

The environmental groups are concerned about the size and complexity of the project, and they argue that an environmental assessment should have been done before approval was granted. Groups such as the local Citizens Environment Alliance in Windsor are also worried about the potential for a nuclear accident.