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CMHC raising rates for mortgage insurance, expects small impact Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. is raising the rates it charges to insure mortgage loans by an average of 15 per cent. The federal agency said Friday that the new premiums will go into effect May 1 and apply to new mortgages, not those already insured. RBC senior economist Robert Hogue said the increase will add to the debt of homebuyers because the insurance premiums are typically rolled into their mortgage. “The poor first-time buyer gets to be the target once again of the various tweaks in mortgage rules,” Hogue said. He estimated that for a first-time buyer, puchasing a $240,000 condo and putting five per cent down, will have to take on around $900 more in debt under the new rates. However, Hogue noted that spread over the 25-year life of a mortgage, the increase in monthly payments will be small. How much the rates will increase depends on how much a prospective homebuyer is putting down on a purchase. Financial ins

Mortgage insurer CMHC primes market for announcement Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., the Crown corporation that Finance Minister Jim Flaherty has been seeking to rein in, says it will be making an announcement later this week. Image Source The mortgage insurer, which appointed former investment banker Evan Siddall as its new chief executive officer at the start of the year, would not comment on the substance of the announcement. The Globe and Mail reported in December that there has been pressure on CMHC to raise its premiums, a move that could add to the cost of a home for some buyers. CMHC has not raised its premiums since the late 1990s, and actually lowered them between 2003 and 2005. Mortgage insurance is mandatory in Canada for buyers whose down payment is less than 20 per cent. The insurance covers the lender, or bank, in case the homeowner defaults. While premiums are technically paid by the lenders, the cost is passed along to borrowers. Premiums vary depending on the size

TD Bank, IMF say Canadian real estate 10% overvalued CBC.ca The International Monetary Fund agrees, estimating Canada’s real estate is 10 per cent too expensive, according to an assessment of the Canadian economy released today. Affordability is falling as prices rise, but TD expects price hikes to slow Many experts and economists, from the OECD to the IMF, agree the Canadian housing market is overvalued – the question is by how much. According to TD economist Diana Petramala, the figure is 10 per cent. The International Monetary Fund agrees, estimating Canada’s real estate is 10 per cent too expensive, according to an assessment of the Canadian economy released today. The truth is it’s either 90% overvalue or it’s still undervalue … It looks as if people think Canadian real estate is still a steal. That’s key … Demand, baby, it’s demand that matters, not what Joe can afford. So, what 10% ? Utter nonsense. Another nonsense … Toronto house prices could slip in 2015, TD Bank predicts The

Apparently you may be able to get real house for that kind of money if you have “insider contacts” in City of Toronto ? More city homes go up for sale, but you wouldn’t know it For sale signs, even MLS photos go missing on four latest offerings This week, four more Toronto Community Housing Corporation properties were put up for sale. But most people would be hard-pressed to know that. 1318 Gerrard Street East E01 – Greenwood-Coxwell For Sale  $295,000 Contractor/Renovator prospect! This brick semi detached home is a fixer upper opportunity to create a charming house for your family or to create promising resale value. Deep fenced in sloped backyard. Located close to Greenwood park and just steps away from the ttc and restaurants on Gerrard street. By week’s end, not one of the houses had a For Sale sign out front. There were no virtual tours to be watched online. The MLS listings — the most basic tool in every realtor’s property marketing arsenal — didn’t even feature exterior photos,

Average GTA house price hits $547,107 as market starts to thaw Listings showing signs of picking up as prices continue to soar The Toronto real estate market is showing signs of stirring from its deep freeze, with new listings starting to pick up — and an almost 8 per cent spike in prices — as of mid February, year over year, according to figures released Wednesday. The Toronto real estate market is showing signs of stirring from its deep freeze, with new listings starting to pick up — and an almost 8 per cent spike in prices — as of mid February, year over year,  according to figures released Wednesday . Some 2,767 properties were sold during the first two weeks of February, up just 1.3 per cent from the same period a year ago, says the Toronto Real Estate Board. But the average sale price was up 7.8 per cent to $547,107 from the $507,474 recorded in the first two weeks of February 2013. “Price growth well above the rate of inflation will be the norm for the remainder of the year,” sa

Observers Say Market is Vulnerable to a Sharp Correction Yeah, right … Dream on. Minister Jim Flaherty scolded the country’s biggest banks for fueling record-high housing prices by cutting mortgage rates, his campaign to prevent a bubble is gaining traction. Aunt Jim scolding her banker girls … Canada’s fragile economy means the Bank of Canada can’t safely raise interest rates, depriving policy makers of a traditional tool to keep the market from overheating. Instead, they have used a combination of tighter lending rules and verbal warnings, including the unusual rebuke of the banks in March 2013, to try to keep prices in check. While it isn’t clear whether those moves have been enough, many credit Mr. Flaherty for taking some of the froth out of the market. “The reality on the ground is that the government has definitely achieved a soft landing in housing,” said David Rosenberg, chief economist at Toronto money manager Gluskin Sheff + Associates Inc. But many observers, including prom

So far, only “Q(estions)”, no “A(nswer)” yet. Vancouver Villa VANCOUVER — In this city of million-dollar fixer-uppers and $1.6 million west side building lots, real estate is a religious pursuit, a hunt for the minimally affordable. So, a two-day conference bringing together about 2,500 real estate executives from across Canada, is bound to be of interest. The Vancouver Real Estate Forum, which begins Thursday at the Vancouver Convention Centre, promises to focus on “Practical Issues and Strategies.” Among a list of confirmed discussion topics that relate specifically to this province: • Is B.C. “open for business? How does B.C.’s resource sector affect the real estate market?” • The changing Vancouver office market. • “A global perspective on Vancouver real estate.” Perhaps that latter topic will prompt discussion of the fact Vancouver is among the world’s least affordable cities for residential real estate. That is, prices make no sense when put against local wages; annual median fam

Story from  http://www.theglobeandmail.com/  … Aggressive development: Inside the building and selling of a Toronto condo tower A man who makes a living helping the country’s largest bank avoid risks is preparing to double down on a market that many people believe is on the verge of a nasty fall. Babak Habibzadeh, a 29-year-old risk manager with Royal Bank of Canada, lives with his parents and bought his first condo two years ago. He rents it out and has been delighted with the returns to date. So today he’s buying another – a one-bedroom-plus-den, 601-square-foot unit on the 18th floor of a yet-to-be constructed building in Toronto called Core Condos that is scheduled to open in 2017. He’s not yet sure if he will rent it out or live in it, but says it will be a sound investment either way. “Are you excited?” the saleswoman asks him as he plows through a stack of paper in the sales office, outlining the $360,000-plus deal. “In three years I will be,” he says. Toronto’s condo boom has g

But still totally possible … Story from  http://www.cbc.ca/news/ B.C. property market hazy after ‘millionaire visa’ scrapped Tens of thousands of applications from wealthy investors scrapped after two years on hold Real estate agents in Vancouver say property prices could take a hit, after Canada scrapped a program which allowed wealthy immigrants to fast-track the visa process. The Immigrant Investor Program, launched in 1986, offered visas to business people with a net worth of at least $1.6 million who were willing to lend $800,000 to the Canadian government — for investment across Canada — for a term of five years. By 2012, the scheme had to be temporarily frozen due to a huge backlog of applications from wealthy mainland Chinese hoping to come to B.C. Now, the government has announced it will end the program for good and scrap all 59,000 applications backlogged worldwide. The decision came less than a week after the South China Morning Post published a series of exclusive investig

Don’t believe the economists … They know nut, according to realtors, of course. And according to me … No comment. Toronto’s  Huge  House Price  Spikes Starting To Alarm Economists Huffington Post Canada  – ‎Feb 12, 2014‎ “Accelerating home prices in Toronto risk straining affordability further, causing a correction when interest rates normalize and the market is trying to absorb a record number of newly built condos,” BMO senior economist Sal Guatieri wrote. Surging  Toronto home prices pose big economic risk in 2 to 3 years: BMO The Globe and Mail  – ‎Feb 10, 2014‎ “In Canada, accelerating home prices in Toronto(7.1 per cent year-over-year in January) risk straining affordability further, causing a correction when interest rates normalize and the market is trying to absorb a record number of newly built condos … Home prices  rise in January, economists still cautious The Globe and Mail  – ‎Feb 12, 2014‎ “Home price gains are still exceeding income growth by a considerable margin, espe

Condo and townhouse construction helped push up housing starts in Toronto in January, while it slipped sizably in the rest of Canada. Toronto condo and townhouse construction defies national decline Condo and townhouse construction helped push up housing starts in Toronto in January, contrary to most of the rest of the country where they slipped below expectations. Condo and townhouse construction helped push up housing starts in Toronto in January, contrary to most of the rest of the country where they slipped below expectations. In fact, the decline in starts across most of Canada were so sizable, “housing is tracking as a drag effect on the economy in the first quarter of the new year,” according to Scotiabank economics. There’s no way of knowing how significant a role weather played, notes Scotiabank, although one thing is clearer: that the record year of condo sales across the GTA in 2011, when more than 28,000 units sold, is now playing out on the ground and bolstering building,

… even those located just across dumpsite, incinerator, or perhaps nuclear reactors. No end in sight for rising cost of single family homes If it seems like high-rise condominium units are keep getting smaller and affordable single family homes are getting harder to find, it’s true. Prophet or contrarian? Economist’s grim reading of Canada’s housing market puts him at odds with the Street Bank of Canada Data from RealNet Canada Inc. for Toronto, to be released Wednesday, paints a grim picture for buyers hoping to avoid condominium living in favour of a low-rise home. It’s a trend that the chief executive of Sotheby’s says he’s seeing across the country. “It’s like a dog running away from you in the Prairies,” says George Carras, president of RealNet, in talking about the widening gap between prices of low-rise homes and high-rise homes. “This price gap between high rise and low rise housing is continuing to grow, a market condition that is the result of intensification policies in acti

Who says so ? Barbara Yaffe of Vancouver Sun: – Don’t bank on Vancouver’s real estate bubble bursting Is it a bubble? Is it a balloon? No, it is Canada’s real estatemarket, and it finally looks as though it may be losing some of its zip.Is it a bubble? Is it a balloon? No, it is Canada’s real estate market, and it finally looks as though it may be losing some of its zip. An assortment of gurus have suggested recently that, where the housing market is concerned, we are all in for what is known as a “soft landing”. That is, instead of a balloon bursting, as though pricked by a pin, the market is to deflate with a soft, slow pffffft. That said, Vancouver’s housing sector often does its own thing, making the extrapolations of national analysts and experts something of a mug’s game.

CMHC says so … Canada’s federal housing agency nudged up its forecast for housing starts and prices in 2014 and said sales and construction will be steady to higher in 2015 as an improving economy tempers the impact of rising mortgage rates. The view from the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp suggests the nation’s once-roaring housing market is settling into a soft landing, with construction moderating to more sustainable levels and sales and prices ticking slowly higher. The CMHC said on Thursday housing starts will be in a range of 176,600 and 199,800 in 2014, with a point forecast, or most likely outcome, of 187,300 units, relatively unchanged from 187,923 units in 2013. That is up slightly from CMHC’s October estimate of 184,700 starts. The agency said there will be 163,200 to 206,600 units started in 2015, with a point forecast of 184,900. Both forecasts represent a sharp slowdown from the 214,827 starts of 2012, when the market was at record highs and the government intervened to

Toronto home prices surge, again ‘outpacing family incomes’ Toronto home sales edged down in the bitter chill of January, but prices surged, again throwing up red flags. Sales fell 2.2 per cent from a year earlier to 4,135 as new listings plunged 16.6 per cent, the Toronto Real Estate Board said Wednesday January price gains strain affordability in big city housing markets The monthly tally of sales numbers and prices is rolling in from local real estate boards in Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and other cities and the picture forming is that house hunters weren’t all that much deterred by Mars-like cold temperatures, and paid up for most housing types. Another month, another healthy hike in how much a house will cost you in Canada’s biggest and priciest cities. A new report from TD Bank says home prices have become stretched but not to the heights some outside observers suggest they have. Low interest rates mean many can afford to carry bigger mortgages, TD reiterated. Home prices stretc

I won’t even consider paying $200,000 for this thing just a decade ago … I am serious. Anyway, TD Bank, IMF say Canadian real estate is only 10% overvalued The International Monetary Fund agrees, estimating Canada’s real estate is 10 per cent too expensive, according to an assessment of the Canadian economy released today. So, don’t worry, buy. You’ll get it back in no time … Sale of the Week: the bidding war over this $900,000 west-end home shows how renovations pay off Address:  65 Dovercourt Road Neighbourhood:  Niagara Agent:  Nuria Cano Ortiz, Keller Williams Referred Realty, Brokerage The Property:  On the tail end of Dovercourt Road, this fully renovated brick semi stands out among shabbier piles. It’s situated on a deep lot (17.5 feet by 127 feet) near one of the trendiest strips of West Queen West. The open-concept design gives it a studio feel. Also nice: its pot lights, 1,800 square feet of hardwood floors, three bedrooms, two bathrooms and finished basement. Unseen in these

$102,100 premium gets home on a popular west Toronto street 108 PALMERSTON AVE., TORONTO ASKING PRICE  $699,900 SELLING PRICE  $802,000 PREVIOUS SELLING PRICE  $187,700 (1995) TAXES  $4,128 (2013) DAYS ON THE MARKET  Seven LISTING AGENT  Kimmé Myles, Royal LePage Real Estate Services Ltd., Johnston and Daniel Division The Action:  Last fall, when homes were hard to come by on this popular downtown street, buyers fought over ones like this detached dwelling. Strategic pricing under $700,000 brought 150 parties through the doors between mid-week showings and weekend open houses. Six would-be buyers presented offers, including one $102,100 over the list price. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/ Luxury real estate market on fire with double-digit gains RE/MAX also pointed to the growing number of millionaires in Canada, up 6.5 per cent to 298,000 people in 2012 compared to a year earlier, citing the CapGemini report. These days, what they call luxury are mostly fixer-upper detached homes in d

Wiarton Willie sees shadow, forecasts 6 more weeks of winter Canada’s major prognosticating rodents provided a split decision on whether the country is in for an early spring or six more weeks of winter. Ontario’s Wiarton Willie emerged from his cozy den Sunday morning and immediately spotted his shadow, which according to groundhog folklore means Canadians can expect six more weeks of what has already been a long, cold, snowy winter. Nova Scotia’s Shubenacadie Sam was the first groundhog out, delivering a promising forecast for winter weary Canucks after he did not see his shadow — signalling an early spring. Wiarton, Ontario, Mayor John Close (right) laughs after listening to groundhog Wiarton Willie’s weather prediction in Wiarton on Sunday, Feb. 2, 2014. (Frank Gunn / THE CANADIAN PRESS) Shubenacadie Sam a lone harbinger of spring Shubenacadie Sam Shubenacadie Wildlife Park, N.S. – pronounced “Shoo-ben-ack-a-dee” – has a Twitter account @ShubenacadieSam and a live webcam people can

A tour of Ford Country: the 13 notable places that gave rise to our divisive, duplicitous mayor Etobicoke is a study in contrasts, a not-quite-suburb where extreme wealth and persistent poverty often share the same street. No one straddles these two worlds more comfortably than Rob Ford, a rich kid with a working-class sensibility. Here, we map out the notable places that gave rise to our divisive, duplicitous mayor 1 | 233 Edenbridge Drive Among the mansions of Humber Valley Village, one of Etobicoke’s ritziest neighbourhoods, sits Rob Ford’s modest yet surprisingly valuable white-brick house (last assessed at $888,000). The average household income in the area is $165,390, and 43 per cent of the population speaks a native language other than English, the most common being Italian, Ukrainian and Polish. 2 | 280 Scarlett Road A mere 350 metres from Ford’s house, this Esso Station and Tim ­Hortons is his favourite place to pick up Gatorade and coffee. Also where Ford’s north Etobicoke b