If you thought the Hamilton investment market was hot before, a new report has added kindling to the fire, projecting 13,000 new jobs in the city over the next two years.
 
“If you are already an owner of investment property in Hamilton then you have to be happy and, if you do not, you better hurry up while investors can still cash flow and houses are affordable,” said Erwin Szeto, sales representative at Rock Star Real Estate. “Manufacturing is rebounding thanks to the weakened Canadian dollar and the resurgence of the U.S. economy.”
 
The Hamilton Chamber of Commerce report, published last week, projected there will be 300 new jobs at National Steel car and 400 new jobs at The Margaret and Charles Juravinski Centre for Integrated Healthcare.
 
“I'm often asked by investors about the job growth in Hamilton,” added Szeto. “I respond with: the 400 jobs over six years between the Juravinski Centre and the new St. Joseph's Hospital campus on the west mountain, 300 jobs for National Steel Car, and 400 direct and indirect jobs from the new Hamilton Airport terminal.
 
“But we are well short of accounting for 13,000 forecasted jobs, so that tells you how diversified Hamilton's economy is and how the job growth will come from small and medium-sized businesses.”
 
The report also projected that employment will increase in Hamilton by 1.6 per cent in 2015 and 1.8 per cent in 2016, while home sales will climb to around 15,000 units by 2016.
 
It also forecasted that average house prices will rise about four per cent to $438,000 and, that by 2016, the average price of a home will have climbed $100,000 over the average 2010 price.