By Nora McCabe

The lure of what they believed to be a bargain drew between 500 and 1,000 would-be house buyers, cheques in hand, to a new Mississauga housing development. Panicked by what real estate salesmen call a hot market and fuelled by reports that prices are skyrocketing daily, some people came to Miller’s Grove Tuesday afternoon and waited all night in the bitter cold, persudaded this was their last chance to buy a house at an affordable price.

Swaddled in sweaters, coats and sleeping bags, they lined up like determined rock concert fans, armed with lawn chairs, extra packs of cigarettes, jugs of coffee, even a television.

Minutes before doors to the sales trailer opened at 3 p.m. yesterday, it looked like the Boxing Day sale at Creeds, except that people were more polite. Real estate agent Ken Hunter said he was offered $4,000 from someone who wanted to switch places with him in the line.

Mixed in among the eager young couples, groups of immigrants, mothers and fathers with children in tow and real estate agents were the new breed of house speculators – ordinary joes who figure they will buy a new house relatively cheaply and then sell their existing house for a big profit.

There were 168 lots offered by Cadillac Fairview Corp. Ltd.’s subsidiary, Iona Development Corp. Prices ranged from $58,990 for a 900-square-foot bungalow (described by one woman as “that big closet”) to upwards of $100,000 for the 1,688-square-foot model with extras. A cheque for $2,000 or $3,000 was a deposit on a lot and a floor plan for one of the six models. However, the mortgage interest rate was unknown. It will be determined 90 days before possession, which will be any time from late November on.

House prices also varied with the closing date of the sale. People at the head of the line got earlier closing dates, saving as much as $10,000 for the same model latecomers bought. The developer’s rationale for the price variation is that it will be needed to pay rising construction costs and interest rates. Sight unseen – the lots are not even staked out, except on the developer’s mock-up map – people snapped them up. “ We got exactly what we wanted. I feel great,” said 20-year-old Nancy Lucas, who wanted 26 hours with her fiancé, Graham Jones, a 21-year-old policeman. They were first in line and paid $71,490 for a 1,260-square-foot model.

“We bought a house we can afford. We’ve been looking every day for about a month and there’s no question in my mind, this is the best deal.” Mr. Jones said. Mr. Hunter also waited all night. He had cheques from eight clients to buy houses but was told he could buy only one for himself. He bought the top model, which with all the extras he wants will cost about $100,000.

David Sadowski, who supervised the sale, said all the houses were sold in about five hours. “Just about everybody who lined up” bought a house, he said.