Is the golden age of high-rise condos behind us?Statistics Canada thinks that might be the case. The agency put out two reports this week in which it predicted that the shift to working from home, and the bust-out of short-term rentals amid the pandemic, will depress demand for condos in the longer run.“As working from home becomes more prevalent, we may see an increase in the demand for larger living spaces that single-family homes can offer, causing a shift in demand from condominium apartments towards single houses,” StatCan said in a rare bit of crystal ball-gazing this week.“Builders may ..read more

TORONTO — The Toronto Regional Real Estate Board says the number of homes sold in the region in June was just shy of the mark set a year ago as the average selling price rose nearly 12 per cent compared with June 2019.Home sales plunged earlier this year as the COVID-19 pandemic forced buyers to the sidelines, however, sales have picked up as businesses have started to reopen.The real estate board says there were 8,701 homes sale in June, down 1.4 per cent compared with the same month last year. The post Toronto House Prices Are Way Up Compared To Last Year appeared first on The Commercial Mor ..read more

For the past few years, you could hear the crickets chirp in the housing market in York Region, north of Toronto. Prices had come down after the province introduced a foreign buyers’ tax, and this time last year, the area was a “buyer’s market,” with relatively few sales.Today, amid a pandemic and a major economic slowdown, home sales there are almost back to pre-pandemic levels. And with fewer homes listed, the market has bounced back to “balanced” territory, real estate portal Zoocasa declared this week.“There seems to be a resurgence in demand for York Region detached properties due to ..read more

jewhyte via Getty ImagesCondo towers line the Bow River in Calgary. CMHC says the city will take longer than others for its housing market to recover from the economic downturn. OTTAWA ― Canada’s housing market is headed into a period of “severe declines″ in sales and construction, but the full effect of COVID-19 on real estate is far from certain at this point, according to a new report by the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. CMHC deputy chief economist Aled ab Iorwerth described an uneven recovery that will “vary considerably″ across different parts the country, and urged that forecasts be ..read more

OTTAWA — A new analysis of the country’s stock of affordable housing suggests the Liberals’ decade-long strategy to provide more of it is starting in a deeper hole than previously thought, and may be further behind once the COVID-19 pandemic passes.But the pandemic could also mean an opportunity for governments to pick up rental units cheaply.Carleton University researcher Steve Pomeroy, whom housing groups and governments both rely on for advice, found a decline of 322,600 affordable rental units in the private market between 2011 and 2016.Over the same period, federal and provincia ..read more

ACH-DP via Getty ImagesHigh-rise condo towers at Humber Bay Park in the Toronto borough of Etobicoke. House prices in many parts of Canada are rising amid the pandemic, even as rental rates drop. MONTREAL ― The COVID-19 lockdowns have exposed a divide in Canada’s job market, with low-income earners getting hit much harder than high-income earners in the wave of layoffs that has taken place since March. Now that divide is making itself felt in the housing market. As those on the lower rungs of the income ladder struggle to make rent, middle and higher-income Canadians are jumping back into the ..read more

MONTREAL ― Interest rates around the world have fallen sharply amid a pandemic-induced economic crisis, and the result is that it has never cost less to borrow money to buy a house in Canada.  Rates on Canadian mortgages have fallen to their lowest levels ever, with one bank ― HSBC Canada ― now offering a five-year, fixed-rate mortgage at 1.99 per cent. HSBC’s offer is “Canada’s lowest bank-advertised five-year fixed rate ever, according to our records,” mortgage comparison site RateSpy wrote on its blog, noting also that it’s the first time this type of mortgage has been offered below 2 ..read more

  CMHC Reviews Underwriting Criteria The COVID-19 pandemic is affecting all sectors of Canada’s economy, including housing. Job losses, business closures and a drop in immigration are adversely impacting Canada’s housing markets, and CMHC foresees a 9% to 18% decrease in house prices over the next 12 months. In order to protect future home buyers and […] The post CMHC Reviews Underwriting Criteria appeared first on The Commercial Mortgage Broker.com ..read more

  COVID-19: Refocusing Multi-Unit Market Refinance to Support Investments in Housing CHMC is implementing a new restriction on use of funds as a condition of insurance for market refinance loans. The restriction ensures investments focus on the supply and preservation of multi-unit residential housing in the immediate term. Effective immediately, refinance proceeds must be used […] The post CHMC Multi-Unit Market Refinance to Support Investments in Housing appeared first on The Commercial Mortgage Broker.com ..read more

Is the golden age of high-rise condos behind us?Statistics Canada thinks that might be the case. The agency put out two reports this week in which it predicted that the shift to working from home, and the bust-out of short-term rentals amid the pandemic, will depress demand for condos in the longer run.“As working from home becomes more prevalent, we may see an increase in the demand for larger living spaces that single-family homes can offer, causing a shift in demand from condominium apartments towards single houses,” StatCan said in a rare bit of crystal ball-gazing this week.“Builders may ..read more