Canada Archives - Page 6 of 11

17Apr

Summer revival of pandemic-ravaged Canadian real estate seen by RBC economist Robert Hogue

[Georgia Straight - April 16, 2020] An RBC economist expects a possible summer resurgence of the real estate market in Canada. In a housing update, Robert Hogue of RBC Economics described the ravages being done by the COVID-19 pandemic on the residential property market as a “temporary shock”. “We expect stronger activity to resume once social distancing orders are relaxed though there’s great uncertainty as to when this will happen,” Hogue wrote. “Our baseline assumption is sometime in June,” Hogue continued in his [...]

Canada, COVID-19, Economic Outlook

31Mar

How will COVID-19 impact the real estate market in Canada?

[Money Sense - March 25, 2020] From cooling down sales to changing how available homes are shown, this global pandemic will change Canadian real estate in the short- and long-term. To say the events of the past few months have had an unprecedented impact on how our society functions would be an understatement. As the threat of the COVID-19 global pandemic grows across Canada and all levels of government enact policies to stop community spread via social isolation, millions of Canadians [...]

Canada, COVID-19, Economic Outlook

24Mar

Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan: Support for Canadians and Businesses

[Department of Finance Canada - March 18, 2020] Backgrounder The Government of Canada is taking immediate, significant and decisive action to help Canadians facing hardship as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak. On March 18, 2020, the Prime Minister announced a new set of economic measures to help stabilize the economy during this challenging period. These measures, delivered as part of the Government of Canada’s COVID-19 Economic Response Plan, will provide up to $27 billion in direct support to Canadian workers and [...]

Canada, COVID-19, Economic Outlook

21Mar

Trudeau unveils financial aid worth $82 billion to help Canadians weather coronavirus

[Financial Post - March 17, 2020] Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced plans to roll out a fiscal package worth 3% of Canada’s economy as it grapples with fallout from the coronavirus pandemic. The measures will be worth a combined $82 billion (US$56.7 billion), Trudeau said Wednesday in Ottawa. This includes $27 billion in direct support for individuals and companies and $55 billion in temporary tax deferrals for both households and businesses. The outlook, however, seems to be deteriorating quickly. The price of [...]

Canada, Economic Outlook

16Nov

Canadian Housing Market Trends To Look Out For In 2020 – The slowdown seems to be over.

[Huffington Post - November 3, 2019] The floodgates have officially opened for Canadian housing market forecasts for the next year. We’ve already heard that interest rates will likely sink lower in 2020 as the housing market continues to rally through the first half of the year. There’s also speculation around how the Liberals’ October election win will impact housing affordability and whether the NDP will play a bigger role in setting the housing policy agenda within the new minority government. Now the Canada [...]

Canada, Economic Outlook

06Oct

Federal election 2019: Where do the parties stand on housing and real estate?

[Globe and Mail - October 1, 2019] Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau wasted no time making real estate an election issue. On the first morning of the campaign, he stood outside a townhouse development in Victoria and unveiled his policies on housing affordability. It was an acknowledgment that the issue is top of mind for many Canadians, especially those living in urban areas where home prices have soared. In big cities and suburbs, young people worry they’ll never be able to afford a [...]

Canada

06Oct

Tories pledge to boost mortgage repayment periods for first-time buyers

[Globe and Mail - September 23, 2019] Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer said a Tory government would review the mortgage stress test and expand repayment periods, proposals that would partly reverse Ottawa’s efforts to discourage homebuyers from taking on too much debt. Mortgage brokers warned that Mr. Scheer’s plan could push housing prices higher, if consumers used their expanded purchasing power to buy more expensive homes. Much like a Liberal announcement earlier in the election campaign, the Conservatives’ housing plan is geared primarily [...]

Canada

29Sep

Non-bank lenders attract wave of money, CMHC report on mortgages says

[Globe and Mail - July 16, 2019] Mortgage Investment Corporations have provided billions of dollars in new lending to Canadian home buyers since 2016 as tougher mortgage qualification rules have driven far more business to private lenders, according to a new report from Canada’s national housing agency. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. released data Tuesday from its first survey of Mortgage Investment Corporations (MICs), which are companies that raise financing for mortgages from pools of investors. CMHC said a sample of 100 [...]

Canada

10Aug

Selling real estate? The CRA is watching

[July 18, 2019 - Advisor's Edge] When your client sells property, the transaction must be correctly defined and reported for tax purposes. Failure to do so may result in unwanted audits, potential back taxes, and related interest and penalties. Such negative outcomes occur regularly. Last spring, the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) announced updated results of its audits in the real estate sector, which resulted in over $1 billion in additional gross taxes since 2015. During the same period, CRA auditors reviewed over [...]

Canada

27Jul

Mortgage Stress Test Gets A Little Easier As BoC Lowers Rate

[July 19, 2019 - Huffpost] The Bank of Canada's posted mortgage rate is used in the stress test that many say has cooled Canada's housing markets. OTTAWA — The Bank of Canada has lowered the rate used by mortgage stress tests to determine whether would-be homeowners can qualify, marking the first drop in three years. The central bank’s five-year benchmark qualifying rate is now 5.14 per cent, down from 5.34 per cent. It’s the first decrease in the five-year fixed mortgage rate since September [...]

Bank of Canada announcements, British Columbia, Canada