CREA unveils BlackBerry app for home buyers – The Globe and Mail

Anyone looking to buy a house in Canada this spring can now use a BlackBerry to search the Canadian Real Estate Association’s popular listings service – and to connect directly to a real estate agent anxious to close the sale.

CREA unveils BlackBerry app for home buyers – The Globe and Mail

10 ways to avoid buying the wrong house

the star- The most common mistake home buyers make is that they buy with their heart instead of their head. This often means they pay more than they should or are disappointed when they uncover defects in the home or find out the neighbourhood isn’t quite what they thought.

Here are 10 ways to prepare yourself…

10 ways to avoid buying the wrong house – Moneyville.ca

First-time homebuyers expect a break

Calgary Herald- First-time homebuyers in Alberta, more than in any other Canadian province, expect to pay less than the asking price for their home.

The first TD Canada Trust Home Buyers Report, released Monday, says 71 per cent of those surveyed in the province expect to pay less than list price, compared with 65 per cent nationally. Among Alberta buyers, the report says, only 26 per cent expect to pay list price, with only three per cent expecting to pay more.

The report surveyed Canadians who have purchased their first home in the past two years or who intend to purchase a home in the next two years…

First-time homebuyers expect a break

New rules crimp home buying power

The Globe and Mail- The GTA’s new homes market has reached a significant milestone. Anyone with a family income of less than $100,000 a year and a down payment of 10 per cent or less doesn’t have a snowball’s chance in July of qualifying for a mortgage on any condo with a price tag greater than $410,000 or a detached home costing more than $450,00.

To put this into perspective, at the end of March, the last month for which up-to-date figures are available, the average new GTA condo sold for $420,097 and the average new home cost $490, 395. Nor can would-be home buyers find much relief in the resale market. The average price for homes sold in April through the multiple listing service was $437,087.

Nor do the months ahead hold any hope of relief. With increases in interest rates forecast and with house prices certain to continue to rise as long as demand outstrips supply, and other factors such as the harmonized sales tax, ever larger municipal development charges plus rising land and construction costs are factored in, the cut-off point for family incomes needed to qualify for mortgages is certain to rise…

New rules crimp home buying power – The Globe and Mail

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