Time for your cheat sheet on this week’s top stories. Canadian Real Estate Canadian Banks See Mortgage Arrears Surge 89% From Record Lows Canada’s banks are seeing mortgage arrears climb at an unusual pace. The arrears rate reached 0.28% in February, up 5 basis points from last year and driven by the volume of past […]
Canada’s building boom is slowing, but not in the country’s biggest markets—with a big exception. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) data shows new housing starts fell in March. Despite the drop, two of the three largest markets saw an uptick in building activity. The exception was Canada’s most expensive market, where completed and unsold […]
Canada’s seemingly stable jobless rate is hiding widening disparities among cities (and provinces), according to BMO Capital Markets. The bank’s latest Labour Market Performance Ranking shows job markets in Western Canada are largely improving, while Eastern Canada—Southern Ontario in particular—dominates among the worst-performing cities. The bank warns this divergence won’t be resolved any time soon, […]
Time for your cheat sheet on this week’s top stories. Canadian Real Estate Canadian Variable-Rate Mortgages Surge As BoC Recreates Renewal Trap Canadian banks advanced $38.3 billion (+3.3% y/y) in uninsured mortgages in January, the largest for the month on record. But this wasn’t fresh demand—it was a wave of renewals arriving five years after […]
Ontario real estate developers are raising prices despite facing some of the weakest demand on record. The reason? The Government of Ontario’s expanded Harmonized Sales Tax (HST) relief. The thinly veiled bailout is already undermining policymaker narratives few believed, with experts warning the “savings” are being rolled into higher new home prices. Ontario’s Latest Builder […]
Toronto real estate might be in a glut, but that didn’t stop buyers from paying more last month. Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) data shows prices climbed in March. Despite another monthly uptick, sales remain weak, and inventory continues to be elevated, as bearish conditions persist for the market. Toronto Real Estate Prices Rise […]
Canada’s population is shrinking for the first time since Confederation, but not all provinces are shrinking. Statistics Canada’s (StatCan) Q1 2026 population estimates show a 0.25% decline (-103.5k people) to 41.47 million, with most of the drop coming from Ontario. Meanwhile, Alberta is the sole province growing—a divergence shaped by tighter immigration policy hitting some […]
Time for your cheat sheet on this week’s top stories. Canadian Real Estate Canadian Banks See Mortgage Delinquencies Hit 2015 Recession Levels Canadian banks rarely see mortgage delinquencies surge, but they are now. The CBA national arrears rate climbed to 0.27% in January, the highest level since 2017. The banks held 13,422 mortgages in arrears […]
Time for your cheat sheet on this week’s top stories. Canadian Real Estate Canada’s Happiness Plunge: Among The Worst Places For Young Adults Canada once ranked among the world’s best places to live, but not anymore—especially for young adults. The country’s happiness score fell from 6th a decade ago to 25th in 2025, marking the […]
Ontario just announced a bailout program, selling it as a housing affordability measure. The province launched a $1.3 billion public-private partnership to buy stagnating developer inventory across Greater Toronto to convert into rentals. The plan clearly helps over-leveraged developers more than it helps with affordability. While intended to drum up investment, it may backfire by […]
