Mortgage rules requiring more than 5% down on Canadian homes over $500K

Starting this month you'll need to put upwards five per cent down on a home selling for more than $500,000 in Canada. The new mortgage rules, announced last December by Finance Minister Bill Morneau, dictate that buyers must put down 10 per cent down on the portion of the home's price above $500,0000. The move's intended to keep housing prices affordable for anyone wishing to enter some of Canada's hottest real estate markets.
Buyers can still put down five per cent for homes $500,000 and under. For example, if you want to buy a $750,000 home, you'll need to have a minimum down payment of $50,000, which is what you get when you add five per cent of $500,000 and 10 per cent of the remaining $250,000.

Homes that cost more than $1 million still require a 20 per cent down payment.

Source: CBC News http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/toronto-new-mortgage-rules-1.3448550 

How virtual reality could better connect buyers with properties for sale

Canadian real estate could soon be donning headsets and touring upcoming condo developments in virtual reality by turning floor plans of new developments into 3D, immersive mockups that can be experienced in virtual reality, according to the founder of a Toronto-based technology firm. Potential buyers can now, from the comfort of their own home, view any floor plan that they want, with the finishes they want, and feel like they're actually inside that home.

Rather than building model suites, the building company uses technology to create virtual reality mockups of its upcoming development providing a significant cost saving for the company.

While the appeal of immersive tours for foreign buyers is obvious, REALTORS note that the technology has benefits for local home buyers, as well. For example, it can help a home-hunter narrow down his or her list of options, ultimately cutting down on the amount of time spent driving around town touring homes.

Source: CTV news

First-Time Home Buyers Take Financially Fit, Well-Informed Approach

First-time homebuyers are doing their homework and making responsible financial decisions entering Canada's housing market, according to a new study released by Genworth Canada.  The 2015 Genworth Canada – First-Time Homeownership Study shows that the typical first-time homebuyer is well-educated, employed, consulting with mortgage industry professionals and purchasing a home within financial reach.

Source: Genworth Canada

 

Is it time to sell your rental property? Or time to buy another?

According to Statistics Canada, 69 per cent of Canadians own homes, so most of us have reason to worry about the fate of the housing market.
One in 20 Canadians own rental real estate according to the Financial Industry Research Monitor. An Altus Group study shows that for households earning more than $100,000 per year, rental real estate ownership is twice that of the general population – about 10 per cent.
So the question is: buy or sell?

Buy

The supply and demand dynamics appear good on the surface for Canadian rental properties. Vacancy rates are below two per cent for cities like Toronto and Vancouver, according to CMHC. Rising real estate prices have likely helped to buoy demand for rentals, with price increases well in excess of the salary increases for average families in recent years. Some of those average families are now opting to rent instead of buy and that bodes well for landlords given that vacancies are often the biggest risk with a rental property.
Millennials are clearly helping to drive rental demand. Home ownership is unreasonable in many Canadian centres, so rental properties – particularly condos suitable for a single person or young couples – have got to benefit.

Sell 

The Bank of Canada has expressed concerns over potential real estate corrections in certain cities, specifically singling out Toronto. “The adverse impact of the oil price shock in Alberta and continued robust price growth in Toronto . . . suggest[s] a risk of a correction,” said the Bank.

Source:  Financial Post - Mortgages and Real Estate

Can Home Staging Really Win Over Buyers?

Home staging can influence buyers’ perceptions of a home and even motivate them to pay more, according to the National Association of REALTORS®’ 2015 Profile of Home Staging, a survey of more than 2,300 REALTORS® representing buyers and sellers.

   2015 Profile of Home Staging

Source: http://www.realtor.org/reports/2015-profile-of-home-staging

Study suggests first-timers fueling market

According to a new survey by the Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals (CAAMP), it seems that those responsible for keeping the housing market alive right now are actually the first-time homebuyers.

Even with the housing market prices currently at an all-time high, those purchasing a home for the first time are making up 45 per cent of the 620,000 homes sold over the past two-plus years in Canada.

The latest CAAMP consumer survey report released revealed that, even though 18 per cent of down payments are still being loaned to buyers (usually from parents), 53 per cent are using money that they themselves or their co-buyers have saved.

Source:
Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals 

and

http://www.postcity.com/Eat-Shop-Do/Shop/August-2015/Real-Estate-Study-suggests-first-timers-fuelling-market/

Canada housing agency softens outlook for starts for 2015, 2016

OTTAWA, - Canada's federal housing agency gave a cooler outlook for housing starts this year and next, saying that lower oil prices are contributing to differences across the country's regional markets.

In addition, with the inventory of completed but unabsorbed homes above the historical average, the pace of new construction is expected to moderate over the next couple of years, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) said in a report.

Canada avoided the worst of the global financial crisis and its housing market has accelerated in the years since, helped by low interest rates. While some have raised the possibility the sector is due for a painful correction, policymakers still foresee a soft-landing on the national level.

The CMHC forecast that housing starts will range between 166,540 and 188,580 units in 2015, with a point forecast, or most likely outcome, of 181,618.

For 2016, CMHC expects a range of 162,840 to 190,830 starts, with a point forecast of 181,800, below the previous point forecast of 185,100.

"Lower oil prices are contributing to disparities between provincial housing markets," Bob Dugan, the CMHC's chief economist, said in a statement.

A slowdown in housing starts and resales in oil-sensitive provinces such as Alberta will be partly offset by increased activity in other provinces such as Ontario and British Columbia, which should benefit from cheaper energy prices, a weaker Canadian dollar and low mortgage rates, Dugan said.

The CMHC upped its price forecast for existing home sales compared with three months ago, predicting a price range between C$402,139 ($326,835.99) and C$439,589 in 2015, with a point forecast of C$422,129. That is modestly higher than the point forecast of C$414,200 was given in February.

Next year's point forecast was also raised slightly, to C$428,325 from the previous C$420,900. Still, with the recent decline in the price of oil, a major export for Canada, there is more downside risk to the forecast than upside, CMHC said.

Source: http://realty.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/residential/canada-housing-agency-softens-outlook-for-starts-for-2015-2016/47426726