-   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