Effective August 1st, 2024, the Department of Finance will now allow homeowners purchasing a newly built property and who meet First Time Home Buyer (FTHB) criteria, the option of a 30 year amortization for insured mortgages. At least one borrower to be a FTHB, defined as below: The borrower has never purchased a home before; […]

Canada’s latest employment numbers are widely seen as supporting more interest rate cuts by the Bank of Canada. The economy shed 1,400 jobs in June and the unemployment rate rose to 6.4%, up 0.2% from May.  The loss of about 3,000 full-time jobs was somewhat offset by the addition of about 2,000 part-time positions.  Economists […]

The spring home buying season never really blossomed this year. May figures from the Canadian Real Estate Association suggest buyers and sellers have been taking a “wait and see” stance. Sales in May dipped 0.6% from April and are down 5.9% from a year earlier. Prices dropped 4.0% year-over-year leaving the national average home price […]

We are pleased to inform you that today the Bank of Canada reduced its target for the overnight rate by 25 basis points to 4.75 per cent. This is the first interest rate cut since the tightening cycle began in March 2022. Although there will likely be no significant changes to fixed mortgage rates in […]

The last significant economic report before this week’s Bank of Canada interest rate announcement is in.  It effectively knocks down the last barrier to a, much hoped for, rate cut. Gross domestic product – the value of all goods and services produced by the economy – for the 1st quarter of this year grew by […]

The latest Statistics Canada inflation numbers have brought some more good news for consumers and anyone looking for interest rate relief. The annualized rate of inflation in April dipped again, falling to a three-year low of 2.7%, down from 2.9% in March. Two key components in the inflation calculation saw slowdowns last month: shelter costs, […]

The spring home-buying season is off to a soft start.  The latest figures from the Canadian Real Estate Association show both sales and prices dipped, while inventories rose in April. The numbers suggest a move toward better stability in Canada’s notoriously unhinged real estate market, and a move away from seller dominance. April sales slipped […]

Anyone who is eager for the Bank of Canada to start lowering interest rates will probably be happy with what Governor Tiff Macklem has been saying.  But it comes with a caveat. Appearing in front of the Commons Finance Committee, last week, Macklem told MPs the central bank is getting closer to cutting rates as […]

Some advocates are praising Ottawa’s move to lengthen the amortization period on insured mortgages for certain homebuyers, but say expanding the policy to all Canadians would help make home ownership more affordable. Speaking in Toronto on Thursday, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland announced the federal government will allow 30-year amortization periods on insured mortgages for first-time […]

Canada’s realtors are hinting that home prices may have found their bottom. The February numbers from the Canadian Real Estate Association show price, as measured by the Aggregate Composite MLS Home Price Index (seasonally adjusted), was flat compared to January.  That ends a five month slide in prices, which dropped 1.3% between December and January. […]