Category Archives: Residential Mortgages

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 2011, thanks to “softer” home prices and higher household incomes. The report found that all categories of housing in the nation, including condominiums and two-storey family properties, have since risen on the affordability scale. Which is great for homeowners, but even better for home hunters. According to the Canadian Real Estate Association, the Canadian housing marketing is predicted to see a 0.3 percent increase in unit sales.  Continue reading →

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 unsolicited credit card cheques, and that a shorter cheque hold period would be instituted later this year. It is believed that these changes will provide Canadian’s with more timely access to their own money. A new Mortgage Code was also announced. Continue reading →

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 to uncover within their client holding.

Data from the report revealed that nearly two-thirds of all fraud committed in Canada last year was real-estate related, thanks in part to more stringent lending practices. In fact, mortgage fraud increased by 150 percent in 2011. Continue reading →

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 polled by Reuters answered “yes” when asked if they thought Ottawa would step in and tighten mortgage rules within the next 12 months. If Finance Ministry Jim Flaherty were to adjust requirements it would be his fourth intervention in the nation’s real estate market in as many year.  Continue reading →

Should You Pay Off Debt or Invest in Your RRSP?

With the RRSP deadline looming, many Canadians are trying to make sense of their investment options. Personal debt levels in Canada have hit record highs, most of us don’t have a pension to fall back on and our retirement savings are far from adequate. Which leads us to the perennial problem: Should Canadian’s focus on paying off their mortgage and lowering debt or invest in RRSPs?  Continue reading →