by Ephraim Vecina Roughly 1.34 million homes across Canada lie empty or merely hold temporary occupants, according to a report by Point2 Homes. The 2016 figure, the most recently available batch, represented 8.7% of the units available in the national market. This share was noticeably larger than the 8.4% proportion seen a decade prior, and was far larger than the 2.8% … Read More

by Neil Sharma The two frontrunners in next month’s federal election are appealing to Canadians concerned about the state of the environment. As an election promise, the Conservatives are offering tax credits for renovations oriented towards energy-efficiency, which leader Andrew Scheer says will help the country meet its target for reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The tax credit would allow up … Read More

The Canadian press As Canadian home prices rose from 2014 to 2017, many households tapped the growing value in their homes for other spending, according to study by Bank of Canada economists. About two million households used home equity lines of credit (HELOCs), but another 380,000 got mortgage financing to raise equity, taking advantage of interest rates that fell in 2015, the … Read More

by Ephraim Vecina Canadians continue to be anxious about inflation and rising costs of living, despite household debt easing slightly by the second quarter of the year. According to fresh data from the Credit Counselling Society, the Canadian household debt ratio shrunk to 177.1% of disposable income during Q2 2019, slightly lower than the previous quarter’s reading of 177.6%. The CCS … Read More

by Ephraim Vecina After three straight months of stagnant levels, the Canadian workforce saw the addition of 81,000 new jobs last month. The increase far surpassed earlier predictions of roughly 20,000 new workers, and contributed to the massive 471,300 new jobs in the economy during the past year alone. This was the largest 12-month gain since 2003, keeping the unemployment rate … Read More