As an early birthday present to himself, Sam Soucy bought a condo.
For Ottawa, a 24-hour turnaround in a brand-new condo building was once unusual, but is now growing more common. Toronto and Vancouver may be used to the “fear of missing out” mindset, but it’s a new phenomenon here. Ottawa, faced with a crunch on supply, coupled with a young work force with one of the country’s highest median incomes, has seen its condo market grow very lively.
Sam Mizrahi, the developer behind The One development at Toronto’s Yonge Street and Bloor Street, is also behind one of the few Ottawa projects set to commence construction in 2019. He said his first foray in the city – a luxury high-rise at 1451 Wellington Street in Westboro – won’t be his last, because he’s seen a change in both Ottawa as a whole and the condo market in the city in the past few years.
But for every $1-million unit sold, there are even more Ottawans looking for high-rise rental in a market, according to Mr. Shaw, that’s been pinched to less than 1-per-cent availability. The LRT, despite its recurring construction delays, will change the viewpoints of people who are thinking of living downtown, Mr. Lamb said.
Mostly it reveals the same things as Washington DC and its wealthy suburbs reveal: Theft of taxpayer money so parasite politicos, bureaucrats and their hangers on can live better than they deserve.