17 Oct

Legalized Marijuana and the Canadian Housing Market

General

Posted by: Livian Smith

DLC BLOG
Legalized Marijuana and the Canadian Housing Market

October 17th will be an important day in Canada’s social history. It’s the day when we are going to have legalized marijuana across the country.

We will be the second major country in the world to do this. How does this affect mortgage brokers like myself? When someone comes to me to obtain financing for a home purchase and the sellers have disclosed that they smoked pot in the house or grew a few plants , how will this affect their home purchase?

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17 Oct

A bride and a mortgage broker

General

Posted by: Livian Smith

DLC BLOG
A bride and a mortgage broker – Our House Magazine

Dominion Lending Centres’ leading lady in the new national commercial campaign has a few questions of her own. As a young Canadian looking to get into the housing market, Laura Steponchev has a candid Q&A with one of our pro’s.

You could say Laura Steponchev is a pretty typical Canadian millennial. The aspiring actress moved to Toronto from Regina five years ago to pursue her career. And over the years, she’s moved around quite a bit. Steponchev lived on her own for a while, and loved it, but paying the bills was tough and she needed to be more reasonable. She got a roommate, but he moved in with his fiancé, and she moved out of that condo and into an old house in Greektown with four other roommates. She eventually met her boyfriend, and they soon moved in together. The couple decided they wanted a place of their own, so they moved into his parents’ house in the ‘burbs.
“Living with your partner comes with its own troubles, but living together with your inlaws – that’s a whole new ballgame,” she said.
Steponchev wants to get into the market, but she’s got a lot of questions.

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17 Oct

Four-Month Home Sales Gain Ends in September

General

Posted by: Livian Smith

Dr. Sherry Cooper – Chief Economist, Dominion Lending Centres
Four-Month Home Sales Gain Ends in September

Canadian home sales declined for the first time in five months led downward by weakening activity in Vancouver and Toronto. Statistics released today by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) show national home sales fell by 0.4% from August to September. While housing activity has picked up since the first half of this year, it remains well below the boom levels of 2014 to early-2017.

The September slowdown was reported in just over half of all local markets, led by Vancouver Island and Edmonton, along with several markets in Ontario’s Greater Golden Horseshoe (GGH) Region. The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver reported a 17.3% decrease in sales in Metro Vancouver from August to September, while y/y sales dropped a whopping 43.5%. Last month’s sales in Metro Vancouver were 36.1% below the 10-year September sales average. Newly listed homes have been rising providing more choice for potential buyers. But with tepid demand, home prices in Metro Vancouver are under downward pressure.

Monthly sales gains were most evident in the Fraser Valley and Montreal. The Montreal housing market has been strong for well over a year.

On a year-over-year basis, national sales declined 8.9% last month. About 70% of local markets were down on a y/y basis, let primarily by declines in major urban centres in British Columbia, along with Calgary, Edmonton and Winnipeg.

As interest rates are rising, the new mortgage stress tests are becoming more restrictive.

New Listings

The number of newly listed homes rose 3% between August and September, led by the Lower Mainland and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). More than half of all local markets posted a monthly increase in new listings, which was offset by declines of more than 3% in more than half of the remaining local markets.

With sales down slightly and new listings up, the national sales-to-new listings ratio eased to 54.4% in September compared to 56.2% in July and August. The long-term average for this measure of market balance is 53.4%.

Based on a comparison of the sales-to-new listings ratio with the long-term average, about three-quarters of all local markets were in balanced market territory in September 2018.

There were 5.3 months of inventory on a national basis at the end of August 2018. While this is in line with the measure’s long-term average nationally, the number of months of inventory is well above its long-term average in all Prairie provinces and in Newfoundland & Labrador.

Home Prices

The Aggregate Composite MLS® Home Price Index (MLS® HPI) was up 2.3% y/y in September 2018. The increase was in line with those posted in each of the two previous months. Benchmark home prices fell by 0.26% from August to September (see Table below). Downward price pressure in much of B.C. continues.

Following a well-established pattern, condo apartment units posted the most substantial y/y price gains in September (+8.4%), followed by townhouse/row units (+4.5%). Meanwhile, one-storey and two-storey single-family home prices were little changed on a y/y basis in September (-0.3% and -0.3% respectively).

Trends continue to vary widely among the 17 housing markets tracked by the MLS® HPI. In British Columbia, home price gains are diminishing on a y/y basis in the Lower Mainland (Greater Vancouver (GVA): +2.2%; Fraser Valley: +8.5%). Meanwhile, prices in Victoria were up 8.7% y/y in September. Elsewhere on Vancouver Island, they climbed 13.2%.

Among the housing markets in the Greater Golden Horseshoe region that are tracked by the index, home prices were up from year-ago levels in Guelph (+8%), Hamilton-Burlington (+6.1%), the Niagara Region (+5.9%), the GTA (+2%), and Oakville-Milton (+1.4%). By contrast, home prices slipped lower in Barrie and District (-3.6%).

Across the Prairies, benchmark home prices remained below year-ago levels in Calgary (-2.6%), Edmonton (-2.6%), Regina (-4.7%) and Saskatoon (-1.9%).

Home prices rose by 6.9% y/y in Ottawa (led by a 7.9% increase in two-storey single-family home prices), by 6.1% in Greater Montreal (driven by a 7% increase in townhouse/row unit prices) and by 3.4% in Greater Moncton (led by a 10.3% increase in apartment unit prices).

Bottom Line

Housing markets continue to adjust to regulatory and government tightening as well as to higher mortgage rates. The speculative frenzy has cooled, and multiple bidding situations are no longer commonplace in Toronto and surrounding areas. The housing markets in the GGH appear to have bottomed, and supply constraints may well stem the decline in home prices in coming months. The slowdown in housing markets in the Lower Mainland of B.C. accelerated last month as the sector continues to reverberate from provincial actions to dampen activity, as well as the broader regulatory changes and higher interest rates.

The cost of owning a home in Canada is at its highest level in 28 years and likely to get only more expensive as interest rates continue to rise (see chart below). Homeownership costs, including a mortgage, property taxes and utilities, took up 54% of a typical household’s pre-tax income in the second quarter, according to the Royal Bank, compared to 43% three years ago.

While rising prices was the culprit behind the loss of affordability between 2015 and 2017, mortgage-rate increases accounted for the entire rise in carrying costs over the past year. The country’s central bank has hiked interest rates four times since July 2017 which has filtered through to higher borrowing costs for homeowners.

I expect the Bank of Canada to proceed with further rate hikes taking the overnight rate up from 1.5% to 2.25% in the first half of 2019. This will keep upward pressure on mortgage rates and increase the cost of homeownership even more across Canada.

Higher housing costs cannot be blamed on speculators. Recent analysis by Bloomberg using Teranet Inc.’s land and housing registry shows that condo flipping was never pervasive in the Vancouver and Toronto housing booms and that condo-flipping has diminished since late 2016. This suggests that stricter measures to curb speculators will not make those cities more affordable.

Rents Rising in GTA

Recent data have also shown that Toronto’s rental market continues to tighten as demand for housing in the city soars from millennials, down-sizing baby boomers and an influx of new tech and financial-services workers. High home prices, rising mortgage rates and new government regulations have priced out many buyers, pushing them into the rental market.

Rents in the GTA have risen sharply over the past two years as vacancy rates decline. More upward momentum in purpose-built rental construction is required to meet overall demand.
The total inventory of purpose-built rentals coming under construction rose to 11,172 units, according to Urbanation, a real estate consulting firm that specializes in the condo market. That’s the highest level in more than 30 years and 56% more than last year. Just 60 such buildings have been completed since 2005.

At the same time, construction starts of rental buildings slowed to 826 units in the third quarter, dropping from a recent high of 2,635 starts in the second quarter. The Ontario government’s broadening of rent controls to all newly constructed units is a deterrent to the volume of new supply necessary to meet the city’s rental housing demand.

Dr. Sherry Cooper
Chief Economist, Dominion Lending Centres

17 Oct

The Downsizing Dilemma

General

Posted by: Livian Smith

DLC BLOG
The Downsizing Dilemma

With almost 50% of homeowners ready to retire and wishing to stay in their home and 30% of those people with most of their money tied up in home equity, the downsizing dilemma is real. Can they afford to stay in their home or is downsizing the better option.

In the past, retired couples or a widow would keep their clear title home and use pension and investment income to live. They would only sell the family home and move into a retirement home when health issues forced the move or upon death of both people. Times have changed.

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17 Oct

Why We Chose a Mortgage Broker –

General

Posted by: Livian Smith

Why We Chose a Mortgage Broker

Lindsay Austin and her husband never imagined they could get a home with a lakefront view. Their real estate journey began in 2012, when the couple purchased their first place, a townhome in Kelowna B.C. with the help of a Dominion Lending Centres Mortgage broker.

By 2017, they were ready for something bigger and better. So the couple reached out again to their mortgage broker, who was there to lend a hand. After months of searching, the couple found their home. A one-acre property just outside the city overlooking Okanagan Lake. They purchased the home for $618,000 and moved in just before the summer.

“It’s rural, a little out of town. It’s exactly what we need,” Austin said, noting her mortgage broker was patient and right by their side as they spent months searching for the right place.

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17 Oct

Fixed-rate mortgage: What lenders you should do it with and why

General

Posted by: Livian Smith

DLC BLOG
Fixed-rate mortgage: What lenders you should do it with and why

25-year amortization or 30 years? Insured or Uninsured? With an A Lender or B Lender? These are just a few of the questions people have to decide on when they are pursuing a mortgage. But the biggest question of all: Fixed Rate or Variable Rate?

With the instability of the market, and the Bank of Canada’s continuous rate hikes, many people now are flocking towards a fixed rate mortgage over a variable rate. What this means is that they are choosing to essentially “lock in” at a rate for the term of their mortgage (5 years, 10 years, 1 year…you name it). Now there are benefits to this…but there are also disadvantages too.

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9 Oct

Cash Back and Decorating Allowances on New Build or Pre-sale Purchases

General

Posted by: Livian Smith

DLC BLOG
Cash Back and Decorating Allowances on New Build or Pre-sale Purchases

As the market shifts, developers will increase their incentives to buyers with cash back and decorating allowances on new build or pre-sale purchases. It is very important to review those options with your real estate agent representative and vital to consult with your Dominion Lending Centres mortgage broker. Although these offers may seem attractive, they can impact your financing and could cost you thousands of dollars.

Before you write a contract on a new build or pre-sale, ensure you have set up your team including a real estate agent and mortgage broker. Always consult with them to ensure you have sound advice. Do not rely solely on the developer’s sales representative.

.

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5 Oct

What should come first, the house or the car?

General

Posted by: Livian Smith

DLC BLOG
What should come first, the house or the car?

So you just got a shiny new car, and now you want a shiny new home to go with it. Will that new car payment affect your mortgage pre- approval? The short answer… absolutely it will.

Recently, I have encountered many people looking to pre-approve for a home purchase that do not qualify. While it may be in part because of the mortgage “Stress Test” rules, a good portion is due to large debt obligations such as car loans. I have witnessed applicants that have brand new car loans/leases with huge payments and not one gave thought as to whether it would affect their ability to qualify for a mortgage.

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5 Oct

Mortgage Insurance 101

General

Posted by: Livian Smith

DLC BLOG
Mortgage Insurance 101

For a first-time home buyer, the types of insurance surrounding a mortgage can be confusing, so it’s important to know what insurance covers what.

There are 3 main types of insurance to know about when buying a home.

Mortgage Default Insurance – If you put less than 20% down on a home you are buying, Government rules are you must pay for Mortgage Default Insurance which covers the lender should you default on your mortgage payments.

There are three mortgage default insurers in Canada – Canadian Mortgage & Housing Corp. (CMHC), Genworth or Canada Guaranty) The purchase of this insurance solely benefits the bank/lender.

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5 Oct

What To Look For In A Mortgage Broker

General

Posted by: Livian Smith

DLC BLOG
What To Look For In A Mortgage Broker

Are you on the hunt for a mortgage broker? Or you need a mortgage broker but just don’t know it yet! Either way, this article is for you!

First up, where do you find a Mortgage Broker?

The easiest (and one of the best places to start) is with referrals from a realtor, family, friends, or co-workers. But this is just the start! There are thousands of independent mortgage brokers out there for you to partner with. So, what should you look for? That’s part 2.

What to look for in a Mortgage Broker?

When you are looking for a mortgage broker AND looking to buy a home that can lead to a very stressful time in your life. To make it easy, here are a few things that a broker should be doing for you:

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