As expected, the Bank of Canada kept its key interest rate on hold last Thursday, even amongst growing concern over consumer debt. This rate has stood at a near record low of 1.00% since September of 2010 in an effort to boost economic growth. Nothing in the statement suggests a change in the rate anytime soon. In fact, the tone … Read More
Home Ownership Becoming More Affordable, Reports Show
Housing affordability appears to be improving in Canada, according to RBC’s quarterly numbers released on Wednesday. RBC’s chief economist, Craig Wright, believes that continued low interest rates this year will help keep housing prices and costs reasonable in the near term. RBC’s report also showed that the financial burden of owning a home declined for the second straight quarter in … Read More
Harper Government Makes Moves to Protect Consumers
The Harper government announced Sunday that it would be moving forward with several measures to help Canadian consumers achieve greater control over their own finances. In a release posted to the Department of Finance Canada website, the Honourable Ted Menzies, Minster of State (Finances) and Shelly Glover, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance, announced that measures would be taken to ban … Read More
How to Avoid Mortgage Fraud
Real estate fraud is happening at an alarming rate in Canada, according to a recent report published in the Vancouver Sun. The report from consumer credit company Equifax uncovered roughly $400 million worth of mortgage fraud in Canada last year. And many experts believe that’s just the tip of the iceberg. These figures represent only frauds that Equifax was able … Read More
Mortgage Changes Could Happen Before March
Tougher mortgage requirements could be on the horizon for Canadian homeowners, according to analysts surveyed by a recent Reuters poll. This comes on the assumption that housing prices will cool off this year. Experts anticipate that housing prices will climb just 0.1% this year, a considerable decrease from the 0.9% year-to-year increase seen in 2011. Ten out of 14 economists … Read More