Real Estate News
The dirty secret of the housing crisis? Homeowners like high prices
If you listen to Canadian politicians, the solution to our housing crisis seems to be some combination of immigration reform and a herculean countrywide building effort.
But Paul Kershaw, a public policy professor at the University of British Columbia and founder of the affordability advocacy group Generation Squeeze, says the emphasis on increasing housing supply obscures an issue politicians are less likely to address.
Home prices could hit peak levels by next year, set new highs in 2026: CMHC report
The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. is forecasting home prices could match peak levels seen in early 2022 by next year and reach new highs by 2026.
The agency’s latest housing market outlook, released Thursday, says despite an increase in rental housing coming on the market in 2023, supply is not forecast to keep up with demand, leading to higher rents and lower vacancy rates in the coming years.
A lawsuit wants to change the way you pay your Realtors. What to know
The buying and selling of homes in the United States could undergo massive changes this year — but what about in Canada?
The National Association of Realtors in the U.S. settled a US$418-million lawsuit, which means that the standard six per cent commission for Realtors could be on its way out.
With the spring housing market heating up, a Toronto law firm wants to see those changes come to Canada too, says Garth Myers with the Toronto-based law firm Kalloghlian Myers.
Buyers return to Toronto housing market as prices climb after sluggish period
The Ontario board found Wednesday that the average price of a home hit $1,108,606 last month compared with $1,096,519 the month before. However, the average price was still down almost 15 per cent from $1,298,666 last March, when bidding wars kept the market moving at a frenzied pace.
Canadian Real Estate Prices May Boom
Canada made headlines around the world for banning foreign real estate investors. Just 86 days later, they quietly rolled back many of the restrictions to “help” with housing. Non-resident investors can resume buying vacant land, and take larger stakes in private companies. Temporary residents are also seeing regulations loosen, dropping mandatory tax returns and residency. Instead, temporary residents can buy a home as long as their visa has 183 days or longer left at the time of purchase. It’s getting hard to argue Canada isn’t trying to stimulate demand before Spring.
Long-term prospects for Canadian home prices are positive
Despite the present softness in the Canadian housing market, several factors, including relatively low real mortgage rates, record-high immigration, institutional homebuying and investor confidence in the mortgage industry, suggest that, in the long run, the outlook for this market remains positive.
Canadian Real Estate Market Expects A Rate Cut Next Year, Making It Unlikely: BMO
Canadians believe interest rates will fall soon, and it’s now obvious in real estate. That’s the take from BMO Capital Markets, who sees this having unintended consequences. In a weekend research piece, they explain more investors are holding out for rate cuts. This will lead to maintaining lofty growth expectations and sticky inflation, making cuts counterproductive. Consequently, the bank warns they don’t see any room for interest rate cuts next year.
Canada’s Major Real Estate Markets Are Seeing Inventory Return To “Balanced”
Canadian real estate inventory is balanced for the level of demand, now that stimulus is gone. Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) data shows the sales to new listings ratio was balanced in July. It remained flat from the month before, but down more than 30 points from the peak reached earlier this year. The market hasn’t technically crashed yet, but the feeling of going back to “normal” volumes might feel that way to some.
Canadian Housing Market
Home prices in Canada continue to slip as Canada’s housing market cools off from a red-hot winter. For May 2022, the average home price in Canada was $711,316, up just 3% from last year. That marks a 5% drop from last month’s average home price of $746,146. While Canada’s average home price has risen by over $20,000 in one year, home prices have fallen considerably compared to the peak seen earlier this year.
Canadian Home Sales Slow Again
The number of newly listed homes climbed 4.5% on a month-over-month basis in May. The monthly increase was influenced by a jump in new supply in Montreal, while new listings in the GTA posted a small decline. With sales down and new listings up in May, the sales-to-new listings ratio eased back to 57.5% – its lowest level since April 2019. It was also not far off the long-term average for the national sales-to-new listings ratio of 55.1%.
Canada Market Outlook 2022
The Canadian commercial real estate industry has undeniably emerged from the pandemic remarkably well. Demand and activity are building in cities across the country and capital continues to flow into the sector. Notwithstanding any new risks that may emerge, the main detractors to economic growth in 2021, including inflation, labour shortages and restrictive lockdowns, will ease. The outlook for real estate in 2022 is positive and expectations remain high for a year of healthy returns.
