No, we won’t call Toronto real estate a bubble today. Usually we shy away from using the B-word entirely. Canadians tend to look at you like you’ve insulted their mother when you say it. Instead we’re going to discuss the phases of a real estate bubble, and let you make a decision for yourself. Understanding […]
A few weeks ago, Bay Street’s top strategist invited me to breakfast, to talk kittens and rainbows. Kidding, we obviously talked about Canadian real estate. Most of the conversation was just a rehash of data we post here, but he did say something that stuck with me. Towards the end of breakfast he goes, “an […]
Canadian real estate owners with a mortgage are doing “very good” with their payments. The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), using Equifax data, is observing credit score improvements across the country. The average credit score of Canadian mortgage holders is improving. This may come as a surprise to some, but it doesn’t mean what […]
Peak Canadian real estate investment is behind us, according to another indicator. Statistics Canada (StatCan) numbers show residential investment as a percentage of gross domestic product (GDP) is moving lower. Taking a dive through unadjusted data, we can see this trend is primed to head much lower soon. What Is Residential Investment? Residential investment is […]
Canadian real estate buyers were “ running out of land” last year, but now they’re running out of money. The Bank of Canada (BoC) and the Office of The Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) are currently reviewing the limits of covered bonds that can be issued. Banks have become increasingly dependent on these bonds for […]
People often boast of the quality lending standards that support Canadian real estate. Every now and then, lawyer and investor Joey Evans reminds us that’s not really the case. He recently posted a great example on his Twitter account, highlighting a Toronto home. The mansion, located in the City of Toronto, had mortgage debt over 3x […]
Have you ever woke up after a night of drinking, and only had a vague recollection of what happened? Then your responsible friend sets off a chain of text messages, trying to figure out where you went wrong? Well that’s what the Canadian real estate industry just did, and man-o-man did people screw up. The […]
If the adage that real estate prices follow credit growth is true, Toronto may be in for a rough ride. Using Bank of Canada (BoC) data to estimate dollar volumes, we see less mortgages are being issued in Greater Toronto. The decline is exclusive to traditional lenders, as more buyers turn to subprime loans. The […]
The real estate industry listens very closely to central bankers, and why wouldn’t they? Monetary policy heavily influences real estate prices. However, if you really listen to the words they use, you start to realize that they all sound the same… almost all of the time, regardless of what the economy is doing. Half joking, […]
A few weeks ago, a real estate agent told me about his client. Relatively wealthy older dude, closed on not one but two townhouses he plans on flipping. After some questions regarding who financed such a deal, he explains it was a private lender. Right before adding, “don’t worry, it’s not like in the US. […]
