Finance is a serious topic of discussion right now, one which will become even more topical as the holiday season approaches. The country often views the upcoming time of year as one that boosts the economy as consumer shopping increases, often on credit. But with Canadians only just emerging from the hurdles of the recent recession, are we ready to add more debt to our lives? Or will we instead be counting our pennies, replacing credit with cash? Perhaps this will be another year of cutting costs as we purchase gifts, throw parties and search for that perfect holiday [...] Continue Reading…

The housing market remains hot in the fourth quarter as the loonie continues to be strong and the Bank of Canada announced no plans to increase overnight lending rates, putting all previous speculations to rest. This is great news for the economy and the real estate market as consumer demand continues to grow.

According to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), single home starts climbed in September to reach this year’s highest level while urban starts declined by 5.2% and urban multiple starts decreased by 21.4%. Overall, the seasonally adjusted rates of housing starts reached 150,100 units in September [...] Continue Reading…

How understanding the market and your finances can save you in a bidding war

We may be experiencing a balanced market, but with continued low mortgage rates and moderate price increases, the demand for resale housing has expanded in the past few months. And often with demand comes the all dreaded bidding war – which is alive and well in Canada, especially in such large and booming metropolitan markets like Vancouver and Toronto.

So what exactly is a bidding war and how do we find ourselves in the middle of one? Bidding wars occur when there are multiple strong offers [...] Continue Reading…

The Canadian housing market has been making a steady comeback over the past few months and the August CMHC monthly housing statistics prove that housing starts are making a sharper jump than expected in the real estate market. In addition, low mortgage rates are still the norm. So with the Canadian housing market gaining ground as it recovers from the economic downturn of months past, now may be an excellent time to buy, build or sell.

Economists had predicted housing starts to increase to approximately 139,000, but with home starts in August jumping more than 12% compared to July, CMHC [...] Continue Reading…

Now that the kids are back in school and the holidays are around the corner, it may be a good time to tackle those projects you were putting off all summer; projects you may have been putting off because your current income hasn’t allowed you to proceed.

What if you had access to additional funds at great mortgage rates that you could borrow at your leisure? Believe it or not, the money you put into your mortgage every month can not only work to pay off your home but can provide you with the ability to contribute to any investment [...] Continue Reading…

Are you still thinking about refinancing your mortgage? After many years paying moderate to high interest rates on mortgages, we have finally seen a break over the last few months. While rates aren’t the historic lows we saw a few months ago, they are still lower than average, for now, causing many Canadians to hope they didn’t miss the boat.

Perhaps you personally know people who currently have low mortgage rates and are enjoying lower monthly payments after reviewing their mortgages and taking advantage of the all-time low rates offered a few months ago. It’s natural to be [...] Continue Reading…

Have you thought of accelerated mortgage payments when determining your repayment options? Ideally, you’ve done your research and shopped around for the mortgage rates with an amortization period that suits your lifestyle and long term plans. But the next step to finalizing your loan is determining your repayment schedule. Many home owners think of the traditional monthly mortgage payment when they think of repayment. But what if you had the option to pay off your mortgage in far less time than you would with traditional payment terms?

Mortgages often stretch out for 25 years or more and many homeowners [...] Continue Reading…

The CMHC (Canadian Housing and Mortgage Corporation) which provides mortgage insurance to Canadians with less than 20% deposits on home purchases, completed an on-line survey of 2,507 recent mortgage consumers — all prime decision-makers — and the result is a unique perspective on attitudes and behaviours.

Their key findings include:

Mortgage Clients are Optimistic

An overwhelmingly high proportion of mortgage consumers (nearly 90%) believe that homeownership is a good long term investment and this optimism is fairly consistent across the country. Another indicator demonstrating confidence in the future is that almost 70% of purchasers are of the opinion that now is [...] Continue Reading…

Royal Lepage recently released their Market Survey Forecast and House Price Survey which found that it Canada’s resale housing market had recovered lost ground in Q2 2009 and is well positioned to stabilize for the remainder of the year, after a very slow start.

As the economy begins to stabilize and consumer confidence improves, house prices are expected to appreciate slightly in much of eastern and central Canada. Greater than national average price declines are predicted for the western cities that saw the greatest price inflation earlier in the decade, including Edmonton, Calgary and Vancouver.

“Given the [...] Continue Reading…

By Dwight@RateSupermarket.ca

It comes as no surprise that the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) predicts a continued slow-down in the real estate and building markets in Canada for the second quarter 2009.

Remember that recession thing that’s wreaking havoc across the globe?

Well, the CMHC recently released its outlook on the second quarter of 2009 (April-June) and, if you’re in the mood for positive thinking, things are forecasted to turn around … in 2010.

Housing starts in Q2 of 2009 are expected to be 141,500 nationwide, while they’ll see positive growth by this time next year, to the tune of an additional [...] Continue Reading…