Mortgages in Canada can be a murky subject – one that we hope to shed some light on with a series of highly informational articles.
Latest News
Planning to use your home equity in retirement + MORE Jun 2nd
How much of your net worth is wrapped up in your home? According to Statistics Canada, the median net worth for senior families in 2023 was $1,109,700. The most common type of asset for Canadians was a family home, with a median value of $500,000.
Since home equity makes up such a significant all.... More »
How much do you save with bi-weekly payments? + MORE Feb 7th
For years, we’ve been told to pay our mortgage bi-weekly. Magically, it will pay your mortgage off faster. Hmm, let’s put that to the test.
(SPOILER ALERT!) Around 10 years ago, I wrote an article showing some simple but effective math to explain this. I’m constantly getting e.... More »
With mortgage rates back on the rise, two-thirds of Canadians plan to delay their home purchase + MORE Jun 9th
Over two thirds (68%) of Canadians say they plan to wait until mortgage rates drop before they decide to purchase a house..... More »
Birch Hill and Brookfield to acquire First National in $2.9B deal + MORE Jul 29th
Founders Smith and Tawse to retain minority stakes as mortgage lender enters new chapter.... More »
Canada’s Best Credit Cards for People with Bad Credit 2020 Jul 19th
Conventional wisdom may lead you to believe that if you have bad credit, you should swear off credit cards. But if you want to improve your credit score you’ll have to show you can handle credit responsibly—and the only way to do that is (you guessed it) to have a credit card. Used properly, it .... More »
IMF Cautions Against Relaxing Mortgage Rules, Says Market Still Heated in Canada
– ratesupermarket.ca
The housing market remains the biggest threat to Canada’s economic health. That is according to a report by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), published this week after an official visit to Canada.
They are responding to calls by several real estate boards in Canada to ease the new B-20 stress-test guidelines that were brought into effect in January 2018.
The new rules raise the bar for a borrower’s mortgage affordability. Now borrowers have to prove they could afford their mortgage even if rates were two percentage points higher than their contract rate or the Bank of Canada posted five year fixed rate, whichever is higher. This has had a cooling effect on the two hottest real estate markets in Canada, Toronto and Vancouver. Both cities real estate boards have said the rules are “hurting” Canada’s economy.
The Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) says B-20 needs to be “revisited.” They say it’s discouraging otherwise qualified buyers to get into the market.
But the IMF disagrees…
Latest in Mortgage News: HSBC Offers Record-Low 10-Year Fixed Rate
– canadianmortgagetrends.com
Earlier this month, Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz called on banks and other lenders to start pushing longer-term mortgages. Last week, HSBC responded by offering a record-low 10-year fixed rate of 2.99%. That means the peace of mind of knowing mortgage payments won’t change for 10 years can be had for just a quarter-point […]
Broker Lender Market Share – Q1 2019
– canadianmortgagetrends.com
The leaders lost ground in the broker channel last quarter. The top five lenders reportedly accounted for the lowest combined market share in two years. That came as mortgage growth is trying to halt its long industry-wide descent. Here’s a look at individual lender performance in the broker space, in Q1: Rank Broker Channel Lender […]
