Canada’s employment market is now beyond hot, and has begun overheating. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) reported March reached a new record low for the unemployment rate. Labor markets running this tight are seen as overheated and contribute to even higher inflation. Experts see this reinforcing the need for higher interest rates — even endorsing a […]
Canadian households aren’t the only ones feeling credit tightening. Businesses are also reporting easy money is coming to an end — and fast. That was the consensus in the Bank of Canada (BoC) Business Outlook Survey (BOS) for Q1 2022. Businesses generally reported a tightening of conditions over the past 3 months. This is often […]
Canada’s era of cheap debt and low inflation is now firmly behind us — and it disappeared really fast. The Government of Canada (GoC) 5 Year Bond closed at the highest level in a decade today. Five Year yields are important to real estate, influencing one of the key mortgage rates. As a result, Canadians […]
Canadian households continue to see their wealth soar — as long as they aren’t young. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) released data on household wealth for Q4 2021, this week. In general, households continue to see their net worth soar, with real estate playing a big part. Canadian households under 35 years old were a notable […]
US real estate prices were still soaring ahead of the last interest rate hike. The CoreLogic Home Price Index (HPI) reported record annual price growth for February. Most of the performance is due to the South, which has seen a new wave of population growth. The firm doesn’t see this lasting much longer, though. Higher […]
Canadian real estate’s epic run is starting to lose steam, according to one of the country’s Big Six banks. BMO wrote to clients to weigh in on the choppy data two major markets reported this week. National numbers won’t be available for a couple more weeks, but there are early signs of price discovery. Higher […]
Most Canadian businesses now expect significantly higher than usual inflation. The Bank of Canada (BoC) Business Outlook Survey for Q1 2022 was released today. One of the key insights is business inflation expectations, which show future sentiment. The survey found a record share of businesses see elevated inflation for at least two more years. […]
Canadian building intentions surged higher as the economy became more dependent on construction. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) data shows building permits surged higher in February. The optimistic rise for the industry is still mostly for the construction of new housing. However, a big (but temporary) boost resulted from rising government spending as well. Canadian Building […]
Canada’s largest bank is accelerating its forecast for higher interest rates. RBC sees the Bank of Canada (BoC) doubling the overnight rate at the April meeting. The bank is also accelerating its forecast, seeing a sharp and fast tightening cycle. By year end, they expect the overnight rate to hit the highest level in over […]
Ontario’s non-resident speculation tax (NRST) is expanding in size and location. The NRST was a 15% tax on the purchase of residential real estate in the Golden Horseshoe (Greater Toronto). As of March 30, 2022, it’s now 20% and applies to the whole province. Low revenues might have some believing it hasn’t been very effective, […]
