Category: Real Estate

B.C. homeowner groups can fine defiant short-term rental hosts $1,000 a day

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B.C. homeowner groups can fine defiant short-term rental hosts $1,000 a day
VANCOUVER — Homeowners groups in British Columbia will soon be able to fine owners or residents up to $1,000 a day for defying the corporation’s bylaws on short-term rentals. The B.C. government says the regulations for the so-called strata corporations will be changed as of Nov. 30 to help the associations address short-term rentals, such as those arranged through Airbnb and other vacation websites.... Read More

CMHC looks to make it easier for self-employed to obtain a mortgage

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CMHC looks to make it easier for self-employed to obtain a mortgage
OTTAWA — Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. is making changes intended to make it easier for the self-employed to qualify for a mortgage. The national housing agency says it’s giving lenders more guidance and flexibility to help self-employed borrowers. Self-employed Canadians may have a harder time qualifying for a mortgage as their incomes may vary or be less predictable. CMHC... Read More

Quebec’s Caisse de depot pension fund investing $250 million in Avison Young

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Quebec’s Caisse de depot pension fund investing $250 million in Avison Young
MONTREAL — The Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec pension fund has made a $250-million preferred equity investment in Avison Young, a commercial real estate services firm. Avison Young says the money will help fund acquisitions and hiring as part of its global expansion, while a portion will also be used to buy back shares held by Parallel49 Equity and others. The Caisse invested... Read More

CREA reports June home sales down 10.7% from year ago, but up from May

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CREA reports June home sales down 10.7% from year ago, but up from May
OTTAWA — The Canadian Real Estate Association says the number of homes sold in June was down 10.7 per cent from a year ago. The result was a five-year low for the month of June. However, sales volume was up 4.1 per cent when compared with May. The association says it was the first substantive month-over-month increase this year. The national average... Read More

B.C. real estate market tips to balance amid new mortgage rules: association

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B.C. real estate market tips to balance amid new mortgage rules: association
VANCOUVER — The British Columbia Real Estate Association says tighter mortgage rules and lower demand are bringing the provincial housing market into balance. The association says 7,884 units were sold within the Multiple Listing Service across the province in June, a 32.5 per cent decrease from the same month last year. The average residential price was down 1.3 per cent... Read More

CMHC reports annual pace of housing starts in Canada jumped higher in June

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CMHC reports annual pace of housing starts in Canada jumped higher in June
OTTAWA — Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. says the annual pace of new home building increased in June, boosted by a jump in multi-unit projects. The federal housing agency says the seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts increased to 248,138 units in June, up from 193,902 in May. The increase came as the seasonally adjusted annual rate of urban starts... Read More

Royal LePage report says pace of rising home prices slowed in second quarter

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Royal LePage report says pace of rising home prices slowed in second quarter
TORONTO — A report by Royal LePage say the pace of rising home prices slowed in Canada in the second quarter due to softness in the Greater Toronto Area market. The real estate brokerage firm says some regions in the Greater Toronto Area saw prices fall compared with a year ago. Royal LePage chief executive Phil Soper says new federal mortgage... Read More

Bank of Canada widely expected to get back on its rate-hiking path

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Bank of Canada widely expected to get back on its rate-hiking path
OTTAWA — After waiting for half a year, Stephen Poloz appears ready to get back on his rate-hiking path this week. Recent signals from the Bank of Canada governor, combined with strong economic data, have experts widely predicting Poloz will raise his trend-setting rate Wednesday from its current level of 1.25 per cent. Citing a cautious, data-dependent approach, Poloz hasn’t touched the rate since he increased it in January, a move that followed... Read More

June home sales slightly higher in the GTA compared to June 2017

Editor
June home sales slightly higher in the GTA compared to June 2017
TORONTO — The pace of Toronto home sales picked up last month, in a sign that the market is rebounding from recent regulatory changes and higher borrowing costs. The Toronto Real Estate Board (TREB) revealed Thursday that home sales in the Greater Toronto Area rose 2.4 per cent to 8,082 in June, up from the 7,893 homes that changed hands the same month a... Read More