RIM has just announced 5000 people will be let go.
Will this have a significant effect on KW real estate? KW has always had more expensive houses than other similar sized Ontario towns. Not quite as expensive as most of the GTA but definitely more than Cambridge, London, Hamilton, Oshawa, etc. My parents sold their house in Kitchener in the early 90s for 150k, it was a typical 3 bedroom house, built in the 80s, probably about 1500 sq/ft. Just for kicks I looked on MLS to see how much houses in that neighborhood were going for today. Most of them are in the high 300s and low 400s. And this isn't even one of the nicer neighborhoods in the city.
Reading a few Globe&Mail articles today about RIM, and several of the articles had interviews with people in the RE industry who were quick to point out that RIM's layoffs won't have consequences on RE in KW, claiming the region is still a technology hotbed, but I think they're underestimating the seriousness of the situation. Granted not all 5000 of these people are homeowners, and many will find other jobs in the same town, but I can't see how this won't still have a serious impact. And who knows how many more might be let go later if the company can't turn things around.
Will this have a significant effect on KW real estate? KW has always had more expensive houses than other similar sized Ontario towns. Not quite as expensive as most of the GTA but definitely more than Cambridge, London, Hamilton, Oshawa, etc. My parents sold their house in Kitchener in the early 90s for 150k, it was a typical 3 bedroom house, built in the 80s, probably about 1500 sq/ft. Just for kicks I looked on MLS to see how much houses in that neighborhood were going for today. Most of them are in the high 300s and low 400s. And this isn't even one of the nicer neighborhoods in the city.
Reading a few Globe&Mail articles today about RIM, and several of the articles had interviews with people in the RE industry who were quick to point out that RIM's layoffs won't have consequences on RE in KW, claiming the region is still a technology hotbed, but I think they're underestimating the seriousness of the situation. Granted not all 5000 of these people are homeowners, and many will find other jobs in the same town, but I can't see how this won't still have a serious impact. And who knows how many more might be let go later if the company can't turn things around.