Australian lawmakers are learning how home prices have been inflated by money laundering. The Senate committee investigating the adequacy of anti-money laundering laws continues this week. A piece tabled is a study showing how high-profile individuals with questionable cash should have set off alarms. Instead, they were able to move millions of dollars of unknown […]
BC’s Inquiry Into Money Laundering might be wrapping up, but there’s still a lot of data to trawl through. One data set is from the Canada Border Services Agency (CBSA) and cash seized from travelers. Between April 2015 and March 2020, the agency seized well over $100 million in undeclared large cash holdings from travelers. […]
Commercial real estate has been in a bit of a rut and it looks like it’s not going to end as fast as some hope. Commercial real estate giant CBRE released its annual Tech 30 report. The firm’s assessment is these markets are in the middle of a contraction phase and have yet to stabilize. […]
Still think the Canadian economy isn’t ready for a rate hike? A new analysis from BMO helps to make a convincing argument otherwise. The Bank of Canada (BoC) last hiked the overnight rate when unemployment fell to the current rate. That was back in 2017, when the country’s interest rates were also double the current […]
The Canadian real estate market is forecast to be busy next Spring, but a hurdle just appeared. RBC Economics updated its forecast for the Bank of Canada (BoC) overnight rate in 2022. Canada’s largest bank sees inflation forcing the BoC to hike rates in April. In just five months, this would increase mortgage rates at […]
Time for your cheat sheet on this week’s top stories. Canadian Real Estate Canadian Banks Moved $167 Million From Dodgy Sources, And Even Issued Mortgages We look at one exhibit from the Cullen Commission, BC’s Inquiry Into Money Laundering in Canada. Counsel found a family was able to move $132 million from dodgy sources without […]
Canada’s unemployment fell and things sound a lot better, but it might not be what it seems. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) data shows the unadjusted unemployment rate fell in October. A deeper dive shows a drop in full-time employment was made up by a rise in part-time employment. Also, the drop in unemployed people? It […]
Canadian real estate has a rock-solid reputation with consumers but institutions are warning each other to be careful. Global credit rating agency Moody’s shared their latest Canadian mortgage market assessment. After stress testing portfolios, the agency warns mortgages are “riskier” for lenders. Big lenders are now more concentrated in BC and Ontario, where home prices […]
The US is signaling the end of easy money might be near. The Federal Open Market Committee (the Fed) announced a taper to quantitative ease (QE). The central bank plans to reduce asset purchases this month and the program could wind up by next summer. This will translate into more expensive credit and may pump […]
Greater Toronto real estate prices were cooling but have reversed course post-election. Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) data shows prices surged higher in October. Not a little either, but a typical home saw a monthly increase of nearly a year’s pay at the median wage. Stimulus driven pandemic demand met typical October inventory to […]
