by Andy Blatchford The Bank of Canada is maintaining its trend-setting interest rate as its careful assessment of the timing of future hikes continues amid a backdrop of moderating growth. The central bank, which kept its rate at 1.25 per cent Wednesday, said slower first-quarter growth of about 1.3 per cent was largely a result of housing markets’ responses to … Read More

by Greg Quinn and Erik Hertzberg Canadian new home prices fell for the first time since 2010 in February, led by a drop in Toronto as buyers were squeezed by higher interest rates and tougher mortgage regulations. Prices in the nation’s largest city fell 0.6 percent, the second monthly decline and the biggest in eight years. Builders also charged the … Read More

by Chris Fournier Scott Hannah says low borrowing costs and rising home prices have lured Canadians into a debt trap they may not escape if looming economic threats materialize. Hannah, president of the Credit Counselling Society, is seeing an influx of clients as higher financing costs begin to bite and people find it harder to manage. Phone calls were up … Read More

by Natalie Wong Toronto’s housing market has seen a stunning slowdown in the past year. Now one brokerage has cataloged the damage for 988 homeowners who got caught in the eye of the hurricane. In the space of four months last year, the homeowners lost a collective C$135 million ($107 million) as the median house price slid 18 percent, a … Read More

If you’re having difficulty qualifying for a mortgage due to bad credit, are fresh out of school, or maybe just don’t have enough of an employment history for some lenders. Don’t despair… co-signer might tip the scales in your favour. Robb Nelson, CEO of FamilyLending.com, says a co-signer often tips the scales from ‘no’ to ‘yes’ with many lenders. Often, … Read More