February 26th Mortgage Industry Update
February 26th, 2019 Mortgage Industry Update
The Bank of Canada announced on January 9th that it’s overnight lending rate will remain at 1.75%. The prime rate remains 3.95%. The common prediction currently stands at the Bank of Canada will very gradually increase rates in 2019.
Additionally this week:
– Some 29% of respondents to a recent Ipsos survey say they are likely to buy a home in the GTA this year. That’s up from 26% last year, which has been commissioned by the Toronto Real Estate Board since 2016. 10% indicate they are “very likely” to follow through this year.
– CREA: Average price of a Canadian home has fallen by 5.5% to $455,000 over the past 12 months from January. 23,968 properties were sold through the Multiple Listing Service in January, down 4% from 24,977 a year earlier.
– CHMC: Non-individual ownership (corporations) of residential property is highest in B.C. at 9.8%, followed by 7.4% in Ontario, and 7.9% in Nova Scotia. At the metro level, non-individual ownership is at 5.6% in Vancouver, 4.2% in Toronto, and 9.9% in Halifax.
– Teranet-National Bank Composite House Price Index: Canadian home prices fell in January for the 4th consecutive month led by weakness in major Western Canadian cities. Prices fell 0.1% last month from December 2018. Prices fell in 4 of the 11 markets surveyed.
– Sotheby’s International Realty Canada: 52% of buyers who made a down payment had part of it funded by a gift inheritance or some other contribution from a family member, but of those 52%, only 17% was a gift of over 30% of the total down payment.
– Recent analyses by the Bank of Canada have found that alternative lenders now account for approximately 8% of all mortgages nationwide, with the segment’s share of the market virtually doubling since 2015. Common assumption is due to harder qualification rules within major banks.
Stay tuned for the next update!
For any questions and concerns please do not hesitate to call Harpreet Singh The Mortgage King at (416) 795-1919.