Mortgage changes target ‘reckless’ buyers: Flaherty

Times Colonist-  Jim Flaherty, the Finance Minister, says he is targeting “reckless” speculators who buy up multiple condominium units in the country’s biggest cities with new rules introduced yesterday that will make it tougher for Canadians to get a mortgage.

The reforms were submitted after nearly a week of non-stop warnings from people ranging from a prominent money manager to former Bank of Canada governor David Dodge about an impending housing bubble. The concern was that the real estate market was getting ahead of itself, as buyers took advantage of record-low interest rates to acquire homes.

In introducing the tougher mortgage requirements, Mr. Flaherty said there was “no clear evidence” of a real estate bubble in this country, the kind of which sideswiped the U.S. economy and sparked the worldwide financial crisis…

Mortgage changes target ‘reckless’ buyers: Flaherty

Resale house prices up almost 20% in January

Times Colonist- Resale housing prices in January were up almost 20% from a year ago, the Canadian Real Estate Association reported Wednesday.

The average national price rose 19.6% to $328,537 in January, compared with $274,711 a year ago, the national realtors’ association said. At its height, the average price rose to $341,079 in October 2009.

Home resales dipped 2.8% on a seasonally adjusted basis to 43,910 units in January, down from a record 45,154 units the previous month, but they are still up 58 per cent on an unadjusted basis from a year earlier, CREA said.

Ontario accounted for about half the decline. Activity was also lower in British Columbia, Alberta and Manitoba, but reached a new high in Quebec…

Resale house prices up almost 20% in January

How the new mortgage rules break down – FP Posted

Financial Post- For those thinking about buying their first home, the most important of the three new mortgage rules is the one related to qualifying for a five-year mortgage. Here’s Eric Lascelles of TD Securities with a look at what this means for someone thinking about buying a home worth $337,000, the value of an average house in Canada…

How the new mortgage rules break down – FP Posted

Summary of Flaherty’s mortgage changes

Financial Post- On Tuesday, the Department of Finance announced three changes to the standards governing government-backed mortgages, that come into force April 19. Here are a summary of the changes…

QUALIFYING FOR A FIVE-YEAR RATE

The adjustments to the mortgage framework will require mortgage insurers to ensure that new borrowers qualify for a five-year fixed rate mortgage when calculating the gross debt service and total debt service ratios. The measure is intended to protect Canadians by providing them with additional flexibility to support mortgage payments at higher interest rates in the future… (Summary cont’d)…

Summary of Flaherty’s mortgage changes

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