Canadians Slow to Automate Financial Services + MORE Feb 1st

People are increasingly open to purely automated banking and investment services. But Canadians also lag the world in robo-advice acceptance, finds a recent survey. Accenture Financial Service’s 2017 consumer study reveals that 6 in 10 Canadians (59%) would use entirely computer-generated support for banking. The consulting firm attributes this to the growing need for “greater control over [our] service experience,” adding that “improved speed and convenience is the main reason consumers will turn to automated servicing.” There are case studies of this throughout mortgage industries abroad; Quicken Loans is a perfect example down south. U.S. borrowers closed more than $6.5 billion worth of its “digital” Rocket Mortgage in 2016, despite Quicken not having rock bottom rates, nor READ MORE

When Vancouver slammed the door on foreign buyers last year there was a great deal of concern that they would simply shift their attention east to another overheated market: Toronto. But a new study suggests Ottawa’s new tougher mortgage rules will have a bigger impact on the Toronto market.
New research by Ipsos Public Affairs found that while some foreign buyers did migrate across the country, fears that it was helping fuel the sizeable price gains in the city are largely unfounded.
.cbR{box-sizing:border-box;display:block;width:100%;margin:1em 0;border:1px solid #bbb;padding:.5em}@media (min-width:480px){.cbR{width:250px;margin:0 0 1em 1em;float:right}}Canadian real estate market outlook 2017 – MoneySense
No surge of foreign buyers
Presenting their findings today at the Toronto Real Estate Board Market Year in Review and Outlook 2017, the research firm says based on its survey of 3,500 realtors operating in the GTA there has been no surge in foreign interest in Toronto. Only 10% of realtors in Toronto received calls from foreign buyers who were previously looking at Vancouver, since that city imposed its strict rules to curb foreign investment…

In Episode 4 of the Canadian Couch Potato podcast, I answered the following question from a listener named Jakob:
I’m currently investing with all my ETFs in RRSP and TFSA accounts. This year, however, I’ll finish paying off my mortgage, so I will have more surplus cash and will have to start using taxable accounts. I have been reading your blog posts about adjusted cost base, and they’re helpful, but it still sounds like a pain to track and calculate. I’d consider paying some extra fees for help with this. What options do I have?
Investing in a non-registered account involves a lot more hands-on work than RRSPs and TFSAs. While there’s no such thing as a maintenance-free taxable portfolio, you can certainly make your life easier with a few simple strategies:
1. Consider alternatives to ETFs.
Make no mistake: ETFs are generally tax-efficient and they can be a great choice in non-registered accounts. But if you’re a novice index investor, consider other good products that require a lot less recordkeeping…

Manulife Bank has rolled out another balance sheet product in the broker channel: the Manulife One for investment properties. We’ll call it the “M1R” (M1 for rentals) for short. It’s an important product that broadens choice for broker customers, as there are few other automatically readvanceable HELOCs for rental properties (Scotia STEP being its main competition in the broker space). “We are very pleased to be expanding further our commitment to mortgage brokers across Canada and appreciate the confidence they are showing in partnering with us,” said Jeff Spencer, Manulife Bank’s VP, Retail Sales & Distribution. This is the second balance sheet READ MORE