Energy-efficient Building is Key for Calgary Condo Buyers, According to TD Canada Trust Poll

- Almost tied with good building security as top-ranked amenity - Lowest in importance: "owning a brand new condo" - 45% would consider buying a condo solely as an investment, 35% would not - Main reason Calgarians would buy a condo as a primary residence: less maintenance than a house CALGARY, May 7 /CNW/ - When shopping for a condo, Calgarians are as likely to look at the energy efficiency of the building as they are at its security. 97% of Calgarians say energy efficiency is important to them and 98% say building security is important. The least important amenity, at 56%, is owning a brand new condo. The findings are part of the 2008 TD Canada Trust Condo Poll. Conducted by Angus Reid Strategies between March 20 and 25, the poll looks at the attitudes of urban Canadians towards condo ownership. A total of 1200 online interviews were conducted with Angus Reid Forum panelists who indicated they are likely to consider purchasing a condominium as a primary residence. The sample consisted of 200 interviews in each of Greater Vancouver, Calgary, the Greater Toronto Area, the Montreal Metropolitan Community, Halifax and Ottawa. Calgarians are more willing than most Canadian city dwellers to consider owning a condo purely for investment reasons rather than as a primary residence. 45% of them would consider it compared with a six-city average of 38%. 10% of Calgarians already own an investment condo - the highest percentage among six major Canadian cities. By comparison, while more Vancouverites (52%) say they would buy a condo in future strictly as an investment, only 5% say they actually own one. Among Montrealers, only 3% say they own an investment condo. Across Canada, condo popularity is steadily increasing. Almost half of urban Canadians (48%) indicate they would consider buying a condo as their primary residence, up from 39% in 2007. "Living as they do in Canada's energy capital, it is no surprise that Calgarians are energy-conscious when they consider buying a condo" says Joan Dal Bianco, Vice President, Real Estate Secured Lending. "And there seems to be a trend in this direction. In last year's poll, 92% of Calgarians said an energy-efficient building was an important condo amenity. This year it was 97%." Royal Lepage's "Survey of Canadian House Prices" indicates that in the first three months of 2008, the average price of a standard condominium in Calgary was $281,807, or 7.8% higher than the same period in 2007. The year-over-year change from 2006 to 2007 for the same period was a sizzling 38.9%. When asked the main reason they would buy a condo as a primary residence, 37% of Calgarians say it is due to less maintenance. This is consistent with respondents in other cities polled, with the exception of Vancouver. In that city, 40% say affordability is key and only 20% cite maintenance. Key Findings: - At 62%, Calgary residents are the most likely among urban Canadians to say they will pay between $200,000 and $400,000 for a two-bedroom condo. The six-city total is 52%. - In Calgary, 14% say $200,000 is the most they will pay for a two- bedroom condo - the same proportion of respondents as in the high- priced Vancouver market. The six-city total is 28%. Montrealers, at 58% are most likely to want a condo in this price range, followed by Halifax residents at 52%. - 34% of Calgarians don't want to pay more than $200 in monthly condo fees, 55% will pay between $200 and $400 and 9% will pay between $400 and $600. The comparative six-city totals are 36%, 48% and 14% respectively. Only 2% of Canadians will go above $600. - Attitudes towards raising a family in a condo seem to be softening. Last year, 75% of Calgarians said they would not raise a family in a condo. This year, 71% say they would not - somewhat higher than the six-city total of 67% who say no, but still less than residents of Montreal (81%) and Halifax (79%). - No parking (89%) is the main reason Calgarians would not buy a particular condo, followed by a lack of security in the building (61%). - Like residents of all six major cities, most Calgarians are looking to spend at least five years living in a new condo. 32% would spend six to ten years, and 30% would spend three to five years. All results presented on a total basis for the six cities are weighted averages to reflect the populations of the individual cities. The margin of error for the Calgary poll is +/-6.9%, 19 times out of 20. For the total sample of six cities, the margin of error is +/-2.9%, 19 times out of 20. About TD Bank Financial Group The Toronto-Dominion Bank and its subsidiaries are collectively known as TD Bank Financial Group. TD Bank Financial Group is the seventh largest bank in North America by branches and serves approximately 17 million customers in four key businesses operating in a number of locations in key financial centres around the globe: Canadian Personal and Commercial Banking, including TD Canada Trust; Wealth Management, including TD Waterhouse and an investment in TD Ameritrade; U.S. Personal and Commercial Banking through TD Commerce Bank; and Wholesale Banking, including TD Securities. TD Bank Financial Group also ranks among the world's leading on-line financial services firms, with more than 5.5 million on-line customers. TD Bank Financial Group had CDN$435 billion in assets as of January 31, 2008. The Toronto-Dominion Bank trades on the Toronto and New York Stock Exchanges under the symbol "TD", as well as on the Tokyo Stock Exchange. The TD Economics Special Report can be found at http://www.td.com/economics/special/ca0408_housing.pdf For further information: Kelly Hechler, Media Relations, Corporate and Public Affairs, TD Bank Financial Group, (416) 982-2469

Energy-efficient Building is Key for Calgary Condo Buyers, According to TD Canada Trust Poll

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