TORONTO’S CONDO MARKET TO ‘GET WORSE’ AS PRE-CONSTRUCTION STARTS ‘FALLING OFF A CLIFF’: EXPERT
Real estate markets will feel the downstream effects from a slowdown in Toronto’s condo market, according to one real estate expert who expects fewer completions of new units over the next few years. Last month, Bloomberg News reported that Toronto’s condo developers saw sales of new units in the first half of the year fall 57 per cent from the previous year, marking the slowest pace in 27 years amid high interest rates and a pullback in demand. Additionally, a report by CIBC Economics and...
read moreB.C. LANDLORD CAN INCREASE RENT 23.5% BECAUSE OF VARIABLE MORTGAGE: ARBITRATOR
A potentially precedent-setting ruling from the Residential Tenancy Branch has prompted B.C. Minister of Housing Ravi Kahlon to review regulations for special rent increase applications from landlords. At issue is a recently published May 8 ruling that allowed a landlord to increase rent by 23.5 per cent for four tenants. The landlord claimed that their increase in mortgage financing costs, due to a sharp rise in interest rates in 2022, “could not have been foreseen under reasonable...
read moreREAL ESTATE INSOLVENCIES IN CANADA SET TO SURPASS LEVELS OF GLOBAL FINANCIAL CRISIS
Residential property developers are facing rising insolvencies as they struggle with higher borrowing and construction costs – and industry experts warn the trend is likely to worsen as interest expenses remain elevated. The number of insolvent real estate companies and projects has been rapidly climbing over the past year and is now on track to surpass levels of the global financial crisis, according to data from the federal Office of the Superintendent of Bankruptcy. “This has been a long...
read moreWEEK OF AUGUST 12 2024 NEWSREEL WITH VANESSA TOPPLE
This week we once again head out west as another NDP government program causes heads in the media to explode....
read moreA QUARTER OF EMPLOYED CANADIANS NOW WORK FOR THE GOVERNMENT
Canadian employment doesn’t look like it moved much, but under the surface was a giant shift. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) data shows the number of jobs virtually unchanged in July, growing 1.7% (+345k jobs) over the past year. As a result, the unemployment rate was also flat at 6.4%, adding 0.9 points from last year. Mostly boring until you dive into the details that show the public sector now accounts for most jobs, overseeing 1 in 4 employees in Canada. Canada’s Private Sector Suffers A...
read moreMISSISSAUGA LAUNCHES $44 MILLION PROGRAM TO BOOST AFFORDABLE RENTAL HOUSING
Mississauga city council has approved a $44 million Community Improvement Plan (CIP) aimed at increasing the supply of affordable rental housing, including financial support for developers committed to constructing affordable rental units. “The availability of affordable rental housing is a critical issue in Mississauga. Through financial incentives, we aim to address some of the financial challenges developers face,” said Andrew Whittemore, Commissioner of Planning and Building. “We listened...
read moreWHY CANADIAN LANDLORD GROUPS SAY PUSH TO VOID ‘NO PET’ CLAUSES IS ‘UNFAIR’
As a petition is being pushed to end pet restrictions in rental housing, some organizations representing landlords in Canada are cautioning voiding such clauses in the proposed federal renters’ bill of rights could create conflicts. Last month, Humane Canada started a parliamentary petition asking the House of Commons to include a specific provision for tenants with pets in the proposed bill of rights, calling for “no pet” clauses to be voided “so that tenants with pets are no longer excluded...
read moreU.S. PROPERTY GIANT HINES HAS $2 BILLION TO SHOP FOR HOUSING DEVELOPMENT PROJECTS IN CANADA
Real estate giant Hines Interests LP is looking to invest up to $2-billion in Canada, and high on its shopping list is land for rental housing developments. The Houston-headquartered firm, which owns and manages about 850 properties in 30 countries, views apartment building developments as a top investment in Canada given the country’s shortage of affordable homes. Its significant pool of capital will let it compete for deals at a time when the commercial real estate sector is reeling from...
read moreTINY SHARE OF CANADIAN HOMES ARE AIRBNBS THAT HAVE POTENTIAL TO BE LONG-TERM HOUSING
A recent StatsCan study indicates that an estimated 0.69 per cent of the country’s housing stock in 2023 was short-term rentals that had the potential to be long-term housing. Less than 1 per cent of the country’s housing stock are Airbnbs and Vrbo rentals that could be turned into long-term rentals or permanent housing, according to a Statistics Canada study. Housing experts have been trying to understand how short-term rentals (STRs) affect the housing market given that rental vacancy rates...
read moreWEEK OF AUGUST 5 2024 NEWSREEL WITH VANESSA TOPPLE
This week we cover the governments addiction to taxes, fees and regulations....
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