BC Market Update
Problems with Condo Insurance Laid Bare as the BC Government Investigates
Insurance companies are covering more than $100 billion worth of property in B.C., occupied by 1.5 million people. They collected $300 million a year in premiums even before they increased the rates up late last year by 40% on average. The Investigation After the...
Is the Canadian Housing Market Looking at a Crash?
Thin Ice “Canada on thin ice as it heats up” by Macro Research Board (MRB) partners paints a bleak picture as reported by Mortgage Broker News.They state the Canadian housing market is due for a crash and policymakers are staving off a massive deleveraging of the...
CMHC to Tighten Lending Standards for Insured Mortgages
Putting the Squeeze On! The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) has tightened up lending standards to make it harder for Canadians, especially first-time home buyers, to borrow money for a home purchase. Starting July 1st, at least one applicant must have a...
CPI and Deflation in Canada
What is this CPI Economists talk about the Consumer Price Index (CPI) as a tool to measure inflation or deflation, so a brief definition is in order. CPI simply takes a variety of consumer goods and services such as transportation, food, and medical care, and weights...
CIBC Report on COVID-19 Implication for Housing
CIBC Released their “In Focus” report on May 1st entitled “COVID-19 and Housing: What to Expect”. In summary, it states the housing market is currently “frozen” due to reduced transactions representing largely forced deals, which gives little useful interpretive...
Bank of Canada Makes First Rate Cut Since 2015
Reprinted with permission from The Green Mortgage Team & Kyle Green Today, (on March 4th), the Bank of Canada dropped the overnight lending rate by a whopping 0.5%. This is the first-rate cut the Bank of Canada has had since 2015 when falling oil prices caused the...
Update on BC Money Laundering Inquiry
And the Hearings Began The Cullen Commission began hearings from stakeholders, including the BC Real Estate Association, the federal government, and more than a dozen others as it begins to assess the impacts of money laundering in the province. After the initial...
Breaking News: Coronavirus Impacts on our Economy
This morning on 2/10/2020 at a breakfast meeting at an Economic Club in Calgary AB, Minister of Finance Bill Morneau stated the coronavirus will have a "significant impact" as the outbreak and widespread quarantine efforts are having ripple effects around the world....
The Evolving Story of Airbnb
Why Are Airbnb’s Necessary Most communities view short-term rentals as a necessary component of the housing markets and tourism industries. International tourism is at record levels and the demand for accommodations in major tourist destinations can often outstrips...
Tightening Environmental Standards Affecting Builds
What is the Impact of the New Environmental Standards As changing environmental standards force developers to alter how they build their properties, the cost of building is increasing. Attaining permits and sorting through regulation and red tape is putting more...