Canada’s federal housing agency has bumped up its forecast for housing starts in 2013 but trimmed its forecast for 2014, setting an essentially flat outlook for a once-roaring market.

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp said on Thursday housing starts will be in a range of 179,300 to 190,600 units in 2013, with a point forecast, or most likely outcome, of 185,000. That is up from its August estimate of 182,800.

The agency said there will be 163,700 to 205,700 units started in 2014, with a point forecast of 184,700. That is down from CMHC’s August estimate of 186,600.

Both forecasts represent a sharp slowdown from the 214,827 starts of 2012.

Canada sidestepped the worst of the financial crisis of the last decade because it avoided the real estate excesses of its U.S. neighbour, and a post-recession housing boom helped it recover more quickly than its Group of Seven peers.

But the housing market began to cool last year after the country’s Conservative government, worried about a potential property bubble, tightened mortgage rules.

While some economists still worry that the U.S. housing crash of the last decade may be repeated in Canada, the CMHC forecasts see homebuilding and sales leveling off, with prices continuing to notch small gains.

CMHC said existing home sales will range from 439,400 to 474,000 in 2013, with a point forecast of 456,700 units. That’s up slightly from August’s forecast of 448,900 units and about equal with the 454,005 sales in 2012. For 2014, it expects a move up to a range of 438,300 to 498,100, with an increase in the point forecast to 468,200. That’s up slightly from August’s forecast of 467,600.

Price gains are expected to slow in 2013 and 2014. CMHC’s point forecast for the average price calls for a 4.0% gain to $378,000 in 2013, and a 1.9% gain to $385,200 in 2014.

Source: Andrea Hopkins, Reuters

Quadrilaterals, cubes, polyhedrons … sound like 10th grade math class?

Perhaps, but they’re also examples of one of this fall’s biggest trends in home decor. Crisp, contemporary and pleasing to the eye, geometrics work well for tables, lighting, accessories and soft furnishings.

Nate Berkus is a fan of these modern motifs, as his fall collection at Target attests. One of his favorites is a wall-mounted art piece made of hexagonal metal. His inspiration came out of a trip to a gem and mineral show, where he saw a table of crystallized honeycombs.

“They were breathtaking,” he said.

A series of polyresin marble trays are emblazoned with a scattering of rhombuses. Check out the zig-zagged enamel photo frames here as well. (www.target.com)

Restoration Hardware’s curated “Curiosities” collection includes some Belgian “maquettes” – wooden scale models used to teach architecture. The large polygonal star or pyramidal cone would make a striking accessory. (www.restorationhardware.com)

Canadian design duo Gabriel Kakon and Scott Richler have created the Welles light fixture, a cluster of blackened steel polygons with interiors available in nickel, brass or copper. (www.gabrielscott.com)

Also in lighting, Seattle-based design house Iacoli and McAllister offers open-framed rhomboid pendants, available in different configurations, crafted in metallics as well as fun, powder-coated colors like tomato, blue and white. (www.iacolimcallister.com)

Ridgely, a Toronto studio, welds cut steel rods into crisscross shapes on screens that can be left raw or powder-coated with several different colors. They can be used as room or landscape dividers, or as wall art. (www.ridgelystudioworks.com)

Flor.com has a range of carpet tiles that replicate graphic patterns like zigzags and rectangles. (www.flor.com)

At www.overstock.com , circles are the focus on the Metro wool rug, with disc shapes in vibrant fall shades of rust, olive and steel blue on a charcoal background. The retailer’s Ivory Geometric Circles rug has a midcentury vibe with concentric seafoam, magenta, gold and olive swirls on a background of cream.

Another Canadian talent, Renato Foti, makes tables, accessories and other home decor elements out of colored glass; his Martini tables and Geo Square basins feature geometric shapes embedded in the hand-worked glass. (www.triodesignglassware.com)

New York designer Jill Malek’s Voyageur wallpaper takes non-Euclidean geometry to the next level, with a range of papers printed with lines radiating from points, like a compass gone wild. They’re available in several color combinations, including Red Eye (white on black) and CandyLand (white on red). Her Luci Della Cita wallpaper evokes city lights at night, with spherical shapes playing across a moody, out-of-focus background. (www.jillmalek.com)

You can solve for “x” with one of Modshop’s side tables, with zebrawood, hickory, rosewood or oak veneer tops on sleek, chrome, X-shaped legs. (www.modshop1.com)

Finally, if you’re the crafty type, check out Brett Bara’s tutorial on creating your own geometric patchwork wall art using triangle fabric shapes in an Ikea frame. It’s so simple that you’re guaranteed an easy “A” in this geometry class, at least.

Source: Brett Bara, Miami Herald

With a love of paisley and an affinity for mixing florals and stripes, Sarah Richardson has plenty of passion for prints that often accent rooms she helps refurbish.

The designer has brought her own distinct imprint to a new collection of about 70 fabrics for Kravet, which manufactures fabrics sold to the trade. It’s a project two years in the making she describes as a “huge dream come true.”

“What I love about fabric is it covers all the surfaces,” says Richardson, host of the new HGTV Canada series Real Potential. “It’s what you sit on. It’s what you touch and it’s what you interact with every day.

“Anyone who knows my work knows I love patterns and prints and combining a collection of different fabrics together.”

For those looking to refresh their decor heading into fall, Richardson shares tips for selecting the right hues and ways to pair fabrics and colours within a designated space.

1. Determine your design esthetic

When it comes to decorating a space, Richardson says people often ask what the best way is to create a “jumping off point” for a room.

For those ready to make the leap, she recommends finding a fabric that appeals to their individual style sensibility. This not only helps to narrow the focus on choosing the right hue, but can also help to drive the decor direction in the rest of the space, such as those who may be looking to drench walls or coverings in a fresh colour.

“I always think that you should zone in and see if you like the colours,” Richardson says.

She says she always strives to balance contemporary and traditional elements within each room she designs, a mantra she applies in selecting fabrics featuring contrasting styles within a shared space.

2. Opt for a neutral foundation

Selecting a combination of neutrals as a base for large-scale furnishings is safe and timeless.

“You know you can live with it. It’s not like doing a hot pink sofa that you know you may not love next year.”

She says there has been a shift away from beige, oatmeal and flax-toned hues as the prime neutrals.

Heading into fall, expect to see grey emerge as the big colour and neutral alternative, she adds. Richardson recommends pairing the smoky shade with soft yellow for a “fresher take” on neutrals, mixing cool and warm colours within the room.

“I tend to look to the natural landscape for all of my inspiration for palettes and for combinations.”

3. Select a standout colour

Primed to add colour to help enliven staid surroundings? By keeping big-ticket items like chairs, sofas, drapes and any other items with longevity in neutral hues, Richardson recommends opting for a lone hue as an accent to inject into the room.

“Choose one colour that you want to add to layer in to bring your neutral palette to life, and you’ve made a great dynamic statement.

Source: Lauren La Rose, Canadian Press

Condo shopping can be overwhelming – a pre-shopping checklist can help limit your stress and visits to show homes.

To create such a list, start by visiting presentation centres and model units in person. Although the Internet is a great place to do some basic research, you will learn much more by assessing the quality of materials and construction in person. This will also give you a chance to ask your questions and evaluate the quality of the responses you get. Be consistent with the questions you ask in the showrooms so you can make accurate comparisons.

When visiting, try to speak with the show home’s specialist who assists buyers with their design choices, as they are often present. Take advantage of their expertise regarding upgrades and options. This will be helpful even if you eventually settle on another development.

Before visiting, make a list of those amenities that are important to you and that you are likely to use. Remember, the cost of amenities is embedded in the condo price and the cost of maintaining them in the condo fees.

Some questions to be answered:

• Who is buying units in the condo — singles, couples, students, young families, retirees? This will determine the condo’s culture. Be careful if the units are being sold to investors as rental units; tenants as a group may be less invested in keeping the property up and more frequent turnover will subject the common areas to wear and tear.

• Consider “curb appeal.” Is impressing your visitors with a beautiful facade, entry foyer and other common areas important to you? Not every condo owner cares about the width of the corridors or the decor in the elevators, but many do.

• Is there adequate and convenient visitor parking? A good way to deter friends from coming by is making parking difficult.

• Are the elevators fast and adequate for the size of the building? This is particularly important if you want to be on a higher floor.

• Parking is key. Consider ease of access, adequate space for your car and ease of egress into traffic. Fighting your way into rush-hour street traffic can get old quickly; on the other hand, you may be on a schedule that lets you avoid rush hours.

• It may be wise to purchase a parking space or two even if you don’t have cars — they can become more valuable over time and can always be sold. Parking spaces can be significant inducements when reselling.

• Check out the storage lockers for size, location and internal organization. You don’t want to have to unpack the whole locker just to get at your suitcases in the back.

• Location, location, location. As for all real estate, condo location is paramount. However, there are many factors that determine the value of a given location to a given purchaser. Convenience generally plays a significant role and convenience is a very personal thing. Some of the following points will help clarify this.

• When examining floor plans and fact sheets, make sure you understand the positives and negatives of the layout. If you have trouble visualizing this, educate yourself by quizzing the people representing the various developments about their layouts. You will soon be doing this automatically when you see a floor plan.

Flow is very important, especially if you are used to bigger spaces. Make sure the room sizes meet your requirements. This should include the kitchen, which needs to be more comprehensive if you plan to cook or entertain. Of course, some facilities have beautiful entertaining spaces and catering services. You might prefer this format.

• If cooking is a priority, find out which appliances are included and check them out. If they don’t measure up you may need to upgrade.

• Is a balcony important and will you actually use it? If you plan to garden, make sure you know the rules governing your balcony use. If you have no interest in balcony living, smaller is better than larger as it will save you money and upkeep.

• Are your critical amenities readily accessible? Of course, accessibility will depend on your level of mobility — committed walker, cyclist or driver. Some may require facilities within their condo complex.

• Make sure you know how bright your condo will be and determine how important this is to you. Orientation of principal rooms and window height are the two biggest factors.

• Does the level of security offered meet your expectations? This applies to building access, garage surveillance, and elevator and corridor security.

• Concierge service is both a security and a convenience factor. What will the concierge do for you and during what hours? If you travel a lot, this becomes more important — who accepts the deliveries and brings in the mail?

• What are the rules about pets, both yours and neighbours? How long does it take to get Fido to the grass and what do you do in winter? Or perhaps you don’t want to interact with pets on a regular basis.

• Is the condo on a flight path or adjacent to high tension transmission lines? This may not be important to you personally but may become an important issue on resale.

• Are there lighted recreational facilities nearby that may generate noise in the evening?

• Are there local events such as exhibitions or sports events that may overwhelm traffic circulation intermittently?

Source: Marilyn Wilson, Marilyn Wilson Dream Properties Inc., Ottawa

Buyers from China, Russia, the Middle East, India and the United States are expect to be among those looking for high-end homes in major Canadian cities during the fall, says leading agent Sotheby’s International Realty Canada.

Over the year to June, sales of luxury homes worth at least CAN $1-million have risen, according to the newly-published Top Tier Report.

Single family homes in the first half of 2013 compared with the same time last year, worth more than CAN $1-million have risen by 10% in Calgary, 6% in Montreal, 5% in Toronto and are down 2% in Vancouver. Most property sold was worth between CAN $1-4-million.

Sales of townhouses worth more than CAN $1-million were up 73% year-on-year in Calgary and 21% in Toronto, but were down 8% in both Vancouver and Montreal.

But year-on-year condo sales were down in all areas, falling 37% in Calgary, 20% in Vancouver and 19% in Toronto and Montreal.

Sotheby’s President and Chief Executive Ross McCredie says, “In examining the performance of the high-end market, we feel confident that Canada’s largest urban centres remain in exceptional positions heading into fall, with healthy market fundamentals from coast to coast.”

Despite the annual fall in condo sales, many overseas buyers are still actively looking to buy.

Elli Davis, a Sales Representative from Royal LePage, Toronto, says many foreigners buy condos for their children to live in while they attend school in Canada.

“I’m seeing a lot of foreign names on showings of all of my listings. More foreign names than not.”

Canadian buyers have lagged a little behind international demand, says the bi-annual report that is claimed to be the only Canadian study that compares data for residential properties with values over CAN $1-million.

“The performance of Canada’s high-end residential real estate market in the first half of 2013 reflected a year of recalibration and overall strength.

“While international demand for luxury real estate in the major urban centres of Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Montreal had been consistently strong leading into 2013, Canadian buyers had taken time to adjust to the precautionary lending controls implemented by the Bank of Canada in July 2012.

“By June 30, 2013, sales data for the first half of 2013 reflected positive momentum in key markets compared to the last half of 2012, with variations between condominiums, attached homes and single family homes, as well as between price segments above the $1-million mark.

Mr McCredie says investors of luxury home are unlikely to be put off by short-term market fluctuations. “They’re not first-time homebuyers. They’ve seen cycles before. Most of our clients remember what it was like in the early 80s and the early 90s, when you had major corrections, so they’re not going into these markets blindly.”

In Vancouver, sales are now picking up, the report claims. The city saw 1,239 sales of homes over CAN $1-million in the first six months of the year. “Buyers are beginning to gain more confidence when making big purchase decisions and those who initially put their decision to buy on hold are now coming back on the market.”

Calgary saw 388 sales over $1 million from 1 January to 30 June. “Calgary’s high-end residential real estate market continues to display strong market fundamentals, setting records in the first half of 2013 while experiencing both a steady rise in sales volume for homes over $1-million and a strong decline in days on market for key segments compared to 2012.”

Toronto got off to a faltering first three months, but recovered later and sales of prime homes reached 2,947.

The Montreal market is stable, but there were no sales of single family, attached and condominium properties over CAN $4-million within the first half of 2013, the report admits.

Source: OPP Connect

Home sales in two of Canada’s largest cities continued their surge in August from a year earlier.

Sales in Toronto, the largest market, rose 21% from August last year to 7,569 units, the Toronto Real Estate Board said in a statement Thursday, with average prices gaining 5.4%. Vancouver existing home sales rose 52%, that city’s real estate board said Wednesday.

Housing-market data are showing few signs of a hard landing after warnings from economists and policy makers that a bubble may have been forming. Buyers have adjusted to tighter mortgage rules imposed last year, according to Diane Usher, president of the Toronto realtor group.

“Many households have accounted for the added costs brought on by stricter mortgage lending guidelines and have reactivated their search for a home,” User said in today’s statement.

Other regions and cities recording double-digit sales gains in August include Victoria and the Fraser Valley areas of British Columbia, and Calgary.

The average price of a home sold in Toronto was $503,094 in August, the Toronto realtors group said Thursday.

There are signs the country’s housing market may be losing some steam. Existing home sales recorded their smallest monthly gain in five months in July, the Canadian real estate association said Aug. 15. Banks including Royal Bank and Toronto-Dominion, the two largest lenders, also have raised mortgage rates in recent weeks to reflect higher yields in the bond market.

The Canadian Real Estate Association publishes aggregated national data around the middle of each month.

Source: Theophilos Argitis, Bloomberg News

The short answer is ‘not yet’.

Just announced today is that the Bank of Canada is holding its main interest rate at one per cent, where it has been since September 2010.

Economists widely expect the central bank to hold its trendsetting rate steady well into next year, so Wednesday’s announcement came as no surprise.

“The bank did precisely what was expected of them today: nothing,” BMO Capital Markets chief economist Doug Porter said in a note to investors.

“If anything, the tone of the statement was slightly more dovish, noting the more moderate global backdrop, less certainty on the output gap and still relatively relaxed on the household debt front.

“The bottom line is that we are still looking at a very long period of inactivity by the bank, and may well be talking about four years of unchanged rates a year from now.”

That wait-and-see approach would appear to suit Bank of Canada governor Stephen Poloz just fine. He has been on the job since early June and shows no sign of breaking from the monetary policies of his predecessor, Mark Carney, who took up a new post this summer as head of the Bank of England.

“Add it all up and this is a central bank that believes that growth will pick up in 2014 and that will eventually require higher rates, but which is happy to sit on the sidelines and wait for substantial proof such an acceleration is underway before raising rates,” CIBC World Markets economist Avery Shenfeld said in an investors’ note.

“We still look for the first hike in early 2015, with some risk of a move late in 2014 if there are upside surprises to our forecast.”

In the explanatory note to Wednesday’s announcement, the Bank of Canada said it intends no changes as long as considerable slack remains in the economy, inflation remains muted and household finances continue to improve.

Sluggish exports and business investment have slowed the country’s economic growth, the bank said.

“Uncertain global economic conditions appear to be delaying the anticipated rotation of demand in Canada towards exports and investment.”

To underscore that point, new figures Wednesday from Statistics Canada showed the country’s exports fell to $39.2 billion in July, down 0.6 per cent from the month before.

At the same time, imports grew slightly, to push the country’s merchandise trade deficit with the world to $931 million in July from $460 million in June.

Meanwhile, the Bank of Canada noted the housing sector has been slightly stronger than anticipated, while household credit has continued to slow and mortgage interest rates are higher, the bank added, all of which point to “a continued constructive evolution of household imbalances.”

The bank also said the global economy has less momentum than anticipated.

“In Europe, there are early signs of a recovery and Japan’s situation remains promising,” it said.

“In a number of emerging market economies, financial volatility has increased, adding uncertainty to growth prospects, although China continues to grow at a solid pace.”

While commodity prices have been relatively stable, the bank says geopolitical tensions — which presumably include the bloody conflict in Syria and the continued unrest in Egypt — are raising the global price of oil.

The bank took a slightly dimmer view than it has previously of short-term economic growth in the United States, said RBC assistant chief economist Dawn Desjardins.

“While today’s statement incorporated a slightly less optimistic view of the near-term outlook for U.S. growth and acknowledged that in turn, a firming in Canadian export and business investment was evolving slower than projected, the main thresholds required for the bank to start to reduce the amount of stimulus remained intact,” she wrote in an investors’ note.

The bank’s next rate announcement is scheduled for Oct. 23.

Source: Steve Rennie, The Canadian Press

With increasingly strong sales figures – especially for single detached homes in Toronto and Vancouver – and many experts predicting this momentum will continue into the fall market (despite steadily rising interest rates), a question that many sellers are asking is whether you should be “aggressive” when pricing your home.

A recent article in the Globe and Mail by Ricky Chadha, a broker with Royal LePage Estate Realty in Toronto, addresses this.

In terms of pricing your home “aggressively,” that could mean aggressively low or aggressively high. The decision to go with a higher list price versus a lower one (the latter is usually intended to create a bidding war) depends on several factors. One of the biggest, as is usually the case in real estate, is location.

Last fall, homes in high-demand areas in Toronto like the Beaches, Riverdale, East York, High Park and Leaside had sale price to list price ratios of 100 to 102 per cent. That means they sold for asking or more than asking in the majority of cases.

In contrast, some areas located in the outskirts of the GTA like Durham, York and Peel had a slightly lower ratio for sale price to list price. That said, the percentages were only slightly lower, ranging from 95 to 98 per cent of asking. In real dollars, that could equate anywhere from a few to several thousand less than the list price, depending on the price point of the home.

When advising my clients about how to price their own homes, I always emphasize the importance of not overpricing. Overpricing your home can discourage prospective buyers from even visiting, limiting the exposure that you really need. The more people viewing your home the better!

If you are worried about underpricing and leaving money on the table, don’t worry. In my experience, the market itself always works in dictating fair market value. If you’re in a hot area, a fair and even lower than expected price may even drive a bidding war to your benefit.

It’s the basic principle of supply and demand. If supply is low in your area and demand is high, then it will drive the price up. The opposite holds true as well.

Much depends on timing, and you have to get granular with your timing strategy within your community. Weekly changes to available inventory will have a significant impact on your outcome in an active market.

For example, if there are three houses listed for sale on your street at the same time, you may want to wait and see what happens with them. If you list alongside them, you’ll be competing with all those homes, and odds are that will affect the value others put on your home – usually negatively unless you have a truly star property.

Conversely, if there are no homes listed on your street, but the last home that sold went over asking, it’s a good indication of pent-up demand in your area. With that demand and no or minimal competition, it’s the optimal time to list.

While there are no guarantees in real estate, diligent planning and research can give you an accurate picture of historic trends in your neighbourhood, and an edge in determining your own strategy.

One final piece of advice on pricing: Always take a big step back from the personal attachment you have to your home when determining price. It’s human nature to put more value on your home than may be realistic because of all of the work, money and memories you have vested in it. But prospective buyers and real estate professionals don’t see it that way – they’re looking at it with an objective frame of mind. Any subjectivity they factor in to the perceived value applies to their wants and needs, not yours.

When you’re pricing your home, think like a buyer. Be realistic, do your research and be ready to list at the right time.

A housing crash based on the type of home you have? Is that really possible?

It certainly didn’t happen that way in the early 1990s. When the real estate market crashed in Toronto, the entire housing sector saw prices plunge. Even commercial real estate tanked in the high-interest rate environment.

This time around, many wonder whether a specific type of housing could falter while other categories remain strong. Most eyes are on the condo market in such a scenario.

Toronto – now the largest condominium market in North America – is the epicenter for the concern and yesterday another set of statistics showed that market foundering once again.

“A tale of two markets is exactly what we are dealing with. There are different things happening in each market,” said George Carras, president of RealNet Canada Inc., referring to the high-rise versus low-rise comparison.

His research company just looked at new homes but he says it is a pretty decent proxy for what will happen to the existing homes market down the road.

What is happening is low-rise [detached homes] sales are slowing faster than high-rise sales, yet condo prices are the ones getting hit. RealNet’s price index for a low-rise home reached $645,854 in July, up 5.3% from a year ago, while the high-rise index was $430,930, down 1.6% during the same period. The $214,924 gap between the two is the highest on record.

“It’s a complete inverse out there. A decade ago you had three low-rise choices for one high-rise, now you’ve got three high-rise choices for one low-rise,” says Mr. Carras.

High-rise sales are already falling. July sales were 34% below their 10-year average. Yet as of July 31 there are 256 high-rise developments in the GTA with 66,126 units. By the end of 2013, the market will add 17,000 condos.

In the Greater Toronto Area, provincial government policy, which encouraged intensification, has helped foster the condo market. But it’s not just a Toronto issue — the Vancouver condo market has had the same strength over the past five years.

The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver says single family detached home prices are up 16.8% over the last five years while apartment prices have risen just 0.2% during the same period.

“I don’t know about a crash in one and nothing in another,” said Doug Porter, chief economist with Bank of Montreal, talking about the two different classes of housing.

But clear differences in the market to the point they are going in opposite directions? That’s another story.

“I can definitely see that happening. A lot of the [condo] market in Toronto and to extent some other cities has been driven by geography and government policy. At some point I can see the markets going in two different directions,” said Mr. Porter.

While the last market crash, discounting the brief pullback in 2008, was driven by soaring interest rates, this one could come from oversupply in one segment of the market.

This has already begun in Quebec where the condo market is feeling the impact of collapsing prices and single family homes have managed to stay in positive territory.

Hélène Bégin, senior economist with Desjardins Group, says it comes down to a supply issue which is being felt most acutely in Montreal where 30% of existing home sales come from high-rise condominiums.

“I wouldn’t say there’s been a crash as much as an adjustment of 5% to 10% that will happen in the next year. We are just seeing the beginning of it,” said Ms. Bégin.

She says the market for single family homes has been better in terms of price because it is more balanced without a massive influx of supply.

“Condo construction slowed sharply in the first half of the year which is excellent news for market fundamentals,” she wrote in a recent report.

It’s not only a supply side issue. Ms. Bégin says demand for condos has also been hit harder because people buying in that segment of the market tend to be more marginal buyers impacted by tougher borrowing rules from Ottawa.

Consumers with less than a 20% downpayment borrowing from a financial institution regulated by the Bank Act must get mortgage default insurance. To qualify for those mortgages, Ottawa has said consumers can only amortize a mortgage over 25 years which is down from 30 years in 2012 after being as high as 40 years.

Shorter amortizations mean buyers have higher monthly payments and can borrow less.

Don Lawby, chief executive of Century 21 Canada Ltd., says the supply of single detached homes is going to keep shrinking.

“There are more and more condos being built in Toronto and Vancouver. They are just a better use of land,” he says.

The key for the condo market might be whether the people buying them, many investors, can rent them out. “If you have a whole lot of empty condos, the developers might bring prices down,” says Mr. Lawby.

But demand still appears strong from renters. Vacancies are rising but Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. says the latest statistics nationally put the rate at 2.7%, still a tight market to rent in.

And, in Toronto, rental rates are just going up. A report this week from research firm Urbanation said average rents in the city were up 4.1% in the second quarter from a year earlier.

Source: Garry Marr, Financial Post

You’ve bought an investment condo to rent out but it needs renovating. What should you do to appeal to the majority of renters? Here are some tips from Samantha Pynn, a design expert who writes for the National Post.

There are definitely dos and don’ts when it comes to designing a rental space. You’ll want to consider the needs of your dream tenant, without being so specific with your design choices that you alienate good potential renters. Like staging a home for sale, you want to remove personal furnishings, so that people can envision themselves living in your condo. Pink chairs, nude art and bar carts are not in everyone’s vision.

Like you, Susan Rogers of Susan Rogers Design Consulting (RogersDesign.ca), who designed the fabulous living room in the photo, bought this condo with her husband, Scott, as an investment property. You can checkout their fully furnished rental condo on fivehanna.com.

According to Susan, you will want to “appeal to a wide variety of tastes.” She says a rental condo “shouldn’t feel like it has been furnished with a hodgepodge of hand-me-downs, or an eclectic mix of rejects from previous design projects.” The condo needs to feel like it was especially designed just for the tenant.

With this in mind, the layout of this condo living room uses one of my favourite furniture arrangements: two parallel same-size sofas. The look is uber-chic; and, the setup, as in hotel lobbies, is great for conversation. The apartment-size sofas from EQ3 (eq3.com) were chosen for their sleek lines and reasonable price. Plus, it’s no mistake that they are upholstered in a durable dark black-brown fabric. “The sofas are practical and comfortable and their colour is neither masculine nor feminine — this was our mandate throughout the condo,” Susan says.

In keeping with their mandate, the burnt-orange carpet was the inspiration for the condo’s colour scheme.

The 9 x 12-foot carpet was bought 35 years ago for Susan’s first apartment. “Buying a good quality carpet will pay for itself over the years” she says.

The orange blends harmoniously with the floors and furniture. Plus, you’ll also notice that the living room is devoid of pattern. Not everyone is a fan of florals or stripes. In other words, steer clear of feminine colours and bold patterns.

Although they look brand new, the two chairs on either side of the credenza were purchased at Goodwill for $12 each and refinished to match the flooring.

The credenza is a quality piece from Shelter (shelterfurniture.ca). “Most small spaces lack adequate storage, so wherever possible, we added pieces that would provide plenty of storage,” Susan says. The credenza’s wood-grained front references the floors, while its white matte-lacquer frame blends with the walls and works with the white convertible coffee-and-dining table.

Yes, you read that correctly. Push a release button on the side of the table’s spring-loaded frame, and it will rise to dining height (or any height in between). The Mascotte dining table from Calligaris (calligaristoronto.ca) is a splurge, but “still less expensive than buying a separate dining table and chairs plus a coffee table,” Susan says.

When pulling together your rental condo, Anita and Peter, it will be hard not to get too personal. Take your design cues from Susan and Scott, and you won’t go wrong. None of the pieces in their space is an overbearing-statement piece, but when used together, this condo makes a statement.