economics EARLIER this month one of the daily newspapers pub- lished a photograph of two teenagers in tank tops and shorts frolicking on a Winnipeg street corner in 12 degree weather. If this is what global warming is doing to us can it be all bad? Indeed if Canada west of the Rockies is actually becoming habit- able in winter you might find that some Vancouverites will be tempted co pack up and move there. In par- ticular this idea might appeal to young people who actually want to own a home but could never afford to buy one here. It might also appeal to others who are tired of signing virtually their whole pay cheque over to the mortgage com- pany every month. But just how much cheaper are houses in the cities west of Lotus Land? In order to get an answer to this question our intrepid research department did an Internet survey of cross-Canada housing prices, the results of which are presented in die accompanying table. The table shows the prices for “typical” detached homes and apart- ments for 11 cities across the coun- try including North and West Vancouver. The typical detached home has four bedroums and about 2,500 square feet of living space. The apartment has ovo bedrooms ana about 1,200 square feet. An attempt was made to get the prices of homes in some of the nicer areas of these cities in order to make them comparable co the North Shore properties. For example the Etobicoke area was chosen for Toronte and the McKellar/ Highland area was used for Ortawa. As ihe table shows, you could save considerable money by moving to Alberta which is perhaps one rea- son a lot of people are doing just that. A typical detached home in Calgary goes for about $300,000 and in Edmonton for $250,000. Apartments are also more affordable than in B.C. at $165,000 and $140,000 respectively. In the other two prairie provinces you'll pay even less. The homes are $220,090 in Regina and $240,000 in Winnipeg while the apartments are $156,000 and $242,000. As you might have suspected, you aren't going to save much money by moving to Toronte. At $480,000, the detached home in Etobicoke is more expensive than in North Van and net much less than in West Van. The apartment is also pretty pricey at $233,006. Now it is true that you can get a comparable home for around $250,000 up in Aurora and even less if vou go out to Pickering. Bur then you're look- ing at a long commute if you work in the downtown area. Ottawa is more reasonable at $250,000 tor a west side detached home and $175,000 for an apart- ment, and again you can spend fess than that if you want to move into the suburbs. But you had better move fast because the word is that the Ottawa market is pretty hot right now with prices on their way up. The local hi-tech industry is growing by leaps and bounds and the federal government is moving into spending mode again, although some will argue that it was never really out of it. Be that as it may, those nwo forces together are appar- ently having a formidable impact on the housing market in the nation’s capital, The biggest surprise was trom Montreal where it will cost you $350,000 to buy the typical detached home and $229,000 for the apartment. And this is in the areas of Montreal West and Cotes Des Neiges which are desirable Acighbourheods but certainly not as upscale or expensive as Westmount or Outremont. The last time [ was in Montreal you couldn't see the lawns tor all the for sale signs. But I had heard that the city was making a strong economic recovery and these hous- ing prices would suggest that is indeed the case. If you are a smoker there are advantages to moving w Quebec as you can still puff away in most bars and restaurants and some public places, whereas you basically can’t smoke anymore in B.C. Now if you really want to buy cheap, the Maritimes is the place to go. In Halifax you can get the detached home for $170,000 and the apartment for $140,006. In St. John’s the apartment is alse $140,000 but the detached home is only $140,000. Of course moving to St. John’s would require some cultural adjust- ments. First of all you'd have to Jearn the language. Then you'll have to learn to dine on cod tongues and Screech and took Hike you are enjoy- ing it. So there you have it. You can sell your North Shore home and move to the prairies and pocket a good wad of a cash or move to the Maritimes and pocket even more. Or you can just stay here, make your massive mortgage payments and enjoy life on the West Coast. Trene Appelte is a real estate agent and an economist with Re/Max Crest Realty. He can be reached at 988- 4797 or by e-mail at . Cross-Canada Housing Prices City North Vancouver gs NEA Vaneole A Ree prea peat Cat Toronto Cees UAE SUSUR Areca ae Montreal All lit up ROWS of lit windows in the Capilano building at Woodcroit appear to illuminate the night sky. Betached 2 Bedroom Apartment aca es SINS 350K CEA TU Come ASS $229K NEWS photo Clacy Goodinan