Taghousing market

Multigenerational Housing: What We Can Learn From the Old Country

Parents are helping their adult children buy homes now more than any other time in history. It makes sense: housing is unaffordable, so why wouldn’t baby boomer parents help lighten the load? There’s a similar trend picking up steam however that’s a little more surprising: parents and children buying multi-unit homes together.

It makes a ton of sense if you think about it. Two or three unit homes could solve a lot of problems for multigenerational families. Interestingly enough, as novel as it sounds, there’s nothing new about this idea. In fact, it’s been happening in Europe for centuries.

Posted 1 month ago1 Comment Bank News

Home Prices Heat Up Despite High Interest Rates

Some weird stuff is happening in the world of real estate. As you likely know, the Bank of Canada has steadily raised interest rates over the past year in hopes of cooling inflation. This was also supposed to cool the housing market. Conventional wisdom dictates that higher rates would result in more mortgage defaults, more housing supply, and lower home prices. Oddly enough, none of that is happening.

Posted January 30, 20231 Comment Consumer Debt

The News Says Home Prices Are Falling… But Are They?

At work, on Twitter, on the news – wherever you are, it seems like everyone is talking about home prices plummeting. That’s the big headline. It’s a neat and tidy story that seems to make sense on the surface: home prices skyrocketed. Then rates went up. Then home prices started slipping. It’s the kind of story that gets clicks and sells newspapers. But if you look beneath the surface you’ll see the full story – one that’s a lot more optimistic, and one that the media often fails to report.

Posted November 1, 20222 Comments Mortgage Trends

Insights From A Top Canadian Economist: Part 1

Two weeks ago, I attended the National Mortgage Brokers Conference and had the pleasure of seeing one of the most trusted economists in the country speak: Benjamin Tal. Ben is the Deputy Chief Economist at CIBC. I’ve been following him for over 20 years, as have many Canadians, and for good reason; not only is he exceptionally skilled at simplifying complex concepts; he’s also exceptionally skilled at getting it right.

Posted May 6, 2022 Mortgage News

The Tide Turns for the Canadian Housing Market

Just a few months ago, all anyone could talk about was the red hot housing market. Sky high property values. Historically low interest rates. It’s amazing how quickly the conversation can change. As expected, the market has cooled. And while we’re not necessarily in a buyer’s market just yet, things are certainly trending that way. If you’re looking to purchase an additional property, or you’re a first time homebuyer, this could pose an opportunity.