First National mortgage volumes fall 12% as housing activity slows + MORE Aug 1st
B.C. home sales struggle in May as mortgage rates rise and labour market stays weak + MORE Jun 14th
House rich, cash poor: When a reverse mortgage might make sense Jul 14th
Haventree Bank launches direct-to-consumer digital bank + MORE Jul 8th
CMHC reports annual pace of housing starts down in May compared with April Jun 17th
Part 2: Beating the Math: How Buyers Can Win in a Broken Mortgage Market
– canadamortgagenews.ca
If you are a first-time buyer trying to get into today’s market, you cannot wait for the government to save you. Take back control of your own life. There are old-school strategies and a few specific tools you can leverage to force your way through the door.
1. “House Hacking” (Rent a Portion Out)
This isn’t a new concept. Exactly 31 years ago, I bought my first house, and the only way I could make the math work was by renting part of it out. Having a tenant pay down my mortgage is exactly how I built my equity. Look for properties with secondary suites or basement apartments. Use that projected rental income to help you qualify for the mortgage and cover your carrying costs.
2. Maximize the RRSP Home Buyers’ Plan (HBP)
The government recently enhanced this, and it is a game-changer.
The Limits: You can now withdraw up to $60,000 per person (or $120,000 per couple) from your RRSP entirely tax-free…
Take a look at just about any housing affordability index in the country and you’ll notice something pretty quickly: they almost always focus exclusively on home prices and mortgages. Rental units simply aren’t included.
The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) has acknowledged this gap, which overlooks roughly one-third of Canadians who rent. Its newly released comprehensive housing affordability index changes that by including both owners and renters, while also expanding its focus beyond a handful of major metro areas. The result is a more complete view of housing affordability across the country.
What’s included in the new CMHC housing affordability index?
Pull up a standard housing affordability index and you’ll find it primarily looks at housing prices and vacancy rates. The goal of any of these indexes is to show how much disposable income it would take to afford buying a home.
But what if you have no intention of purchasing a house, condo, or apartment? That’s where the new CMHC housing affordability index comes into play…
