Time for your cheat sheet on this week’s most important stories. Canadian Real Estate Canada’s Housing Agency Warned First-Time Buyers. Now They’re Getting Slaughtered Condo buyers were warned not to make the smallest downpayment possible, but some did anyway. Now they’re facing the potential of negative equity. In Toronto, buyers of a benchmark condo in […]
Canada’s first-time buyers may be in for some volatility, and they don’t even know it yet. Earlier this year, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) warned first-time buyers that leaving just a 5% downpayment could be problematic. If the market had a sudden sharp turn, they could suddenly see their downpayment wiped out in […]
Canadian cities are starting fewer new home building projects during the pandemic. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) data shows urban housing starts fell in Q2 2020. Despite a general slowdown, Toronto continued to push to a multi-year high for new projects started. Canadian Urban Housing Starts Fall Canada’s urban housing starts fell, as housing […]
Canadian business sentiment is still dropping, despite a partial re-opening of the economy. Bank of Canada (BoC) released its Business Outlook Survey for Q2 2020. Business sentiment has dropped to the lowest level since the Great Recession. A drop this steep usually leads a recession, and doesn’t mark the bottom – as firms try to […]
Greater Vancouver real estate sales are returning to pre-pandemic levels, but it’s not quite the same. Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) data shows June sales are almost at last year’s levels. Despite the increase, new listings are hitting the market at such a rapid pace, prices are actually falling further from the peak. […]
Toronto real estate sales are almost back to last year’s levels, but that isn’t helping prices. Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) data shows June sales volumes were down just a few points from last year. The increase in sales wasn’t enough to stop prices from slipping lower though. This is the second consecutive month […]
Canadian households cooled on borrowing, but mostly just in one segment. Bank of Canada (BoC) data shows household debt stalled in May, after peaking in March. On the breakdown, mortgage debt is seeing growth boom as hundreds of thousands of Canadians stop making payments. Consumer credit on the other hand, made the first contraction since […]
Time for your cheat sheet on this week’s most important stories. Canadian Real Estate Canadian Mortgage Debt Explodes In Growth, As Payment Deferrals Hit Over 743,000 Canadian mortgage debt is seeing growth accelerate, as hundreds of thousands stop making payments. The balance of mortgage debt reached $1.68 trillion in May, up 6.0% from a year […]
Canadian households began to sock away a little extra cash before the pandemic. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) data shows the household savings rate reached a 20 year high in Q1 2020. The rate had been growing steadily since 2018, as households diverted their spending to savings. Here’s what it means. Household Savings Rate The household […]
Canadian seniors briefly slowed down home equity borrowing last year, but it’s picking up again. Regulatory filings with the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) show the balance of reverse mortgage debt reached a new record high in April. Growth has slowed down from all-time highs, but the balance of reverse mortgage debt […]