To get corporate taxes down, U.S. might cut back on mortgage interest deduction + MORE Aug 4th

If you’re going through a rough patch or just want to save money, sometimes living with mom and dad doesn’t sound like a bad idea. But before you get to comfortable, a new study says your parents just may be more willing to give you some cash to move out instead.
According to a new CIBC poll, the majority of Canadian parents (76 per cent) with grown children said they are willing to provide financial support to help their child move out, get married, or move in with a partner.
Out of those parents, 47 per cent said they would help their child in the form of cash, 28 per cent would let their adult child and his/her partner live with them, and 25 per cent would act as a guarantor on a mortgage.
But when asked to choose between letting their adult child and partner live with them, or helping them financially to move out, 65 per cent of Canadian parents would rather give the gift of cash.
While the national average cash gift sits at $24,125, those with household incomes of more than $100,000 gift nearly double that amount ($40,558), with as many as 25 per cent giving over $50,000…

The new CEO of Home Capital Group (TSX:HCG) says ensuring the company, which nearly collapsed earlier this year, has the right corporate culture is critical to its future.
In his first day on the job Thursday, Yousry Bissada said while the lender’s core executive team is strong, there is still much to be done to rebuild its business.
“We still have a lot of hard work ahead of us, but it is going to be a different kind of challenge,” Bissada told a conference call to discuss the company’s second-quarter results.
“We’re in a position where we can look forward and make fresh decisions about the kind of company we want to be.”
Home Capital flirted with disaster earlier this year after Ontario’s securities regulator alleged the company failed to satisfy its disclosure obligations in a scandal about falsified loan applications that began in 2014.
The news sank Home Capital’s stock and the plunge only worsened as customers pulled their deposits, a key source of funding for the alternative mortgage lender, sparking a liquidity crisis…

The Trump administration is considering reducing the annual $1 million mortgage deduction cap for U.S. homeowners as a part of its broader tax reform, despite earlier promises to protect the tax advantage, Politico reported on Friday.

Canadian housing markets can be difficult to gauge, with new housing policies being implemented, news of sales decreasing, interest rates recently increasing, and more hikes being forecasted in the near future.
And in the current conditions, some potential home buyers may be conflicted; they may have a down payment, but they are not ready to buy.
So in the meantime, where can you park your down payment and get a higher return later?
In Canada, you can get away with as low as five per cent down to qualify for a mortgage, but if you’re willing to wait a little longer to buy a home, there are plenty of investment options where you can potentially grow your down payment, such as ETFs and stocks. However, those are much riskier investments.
Sure, with risk comes reward, and there is no such thing as a risk-free investment that will give you a high return. But with a house down payment, presumably, it’s cash you’ll need in the short term. So it’s best to keep that money relatively safe, in an account or investments that won’t likely drop in value any time soon…