For the last three years Canadians have enjoyed record low interest rates. At one point they dipped to 2.25 percent, but now sit at the current three percent, in effect since September of 2010. Long term mortgage rates have gone up and down, and right now it is possible to lock into a rate at less than three percent.
Saskatchewan’s housing affordability picture is continuing to improve for most of the different real estate sectors. The last quarter of 2011, the second in a row to see such improvement, though promising, still had the province falling behind Calgary and Edmonton, noted RBC Economics Research.
“Come Dine With Me Canada” is coming to Edmonton. Based on a British series, the half-hour reality show hosts contests for home dinner party planners. Each week five different competitors plan a dinner party that is rated by the other diners. Over the space of five nights we get to follow the action as it moves from one house to another. The winner takes home a $1,000 prize along with national exposure on the W Network.
Daryl Katz, owner of the Edmonton Oilers and a frequent face in the news because of the downtown arena debate, just got $920 million richer. He sold a large portion of this pharmacological business to McKesson Corporation. That means that Medicine Shoppe Canada and Drug Trading Company Limited will be under the control of owners south of the border. Katz retains the Rexall and Rexall/Pharma Plus brands.
Stephen Mandel, Edmonton’s mayor, thinks the city should get into the waste management business. This developing field could help the city get rid of its waste problem and put money in the city’s coffers. Mandel thinks that a city owned firm could prove to be a leader in the field and make billions of dollars at the same time.
The National Bank and a firm known as Teranet co-opt to publish their House Price Index that tracks home values in an assortment of Canadian locales on a monthly basis. Up until this report, there were six cities in total. Now, with the addition of Quebec City, Hamilton, Edmonton, Winnipeg and Victoria, there are 11 cities used to produce a country-wide picture.
Homes in Canada’s already strong real estate market are becoming more affordable. RBC’s third quarter report shows that the affordability measure improved, unlike the lagging first and second quarters of this year. The index numbers fell, meaning that in most parts of Canada, homeownership is still within the grasp of many.
The Conference Board of Canada just released its Metro Resale Index for the month of September. The report noted that while sales in the housing market were relatively balanced, the prices on homes were continuing to rise. Of the 28 markets studied, 25 of those were considered balanced. August saw 24 balanced markets. Prices in those markets did show year-over-year increases.
Sometimes people find themselves with a mortgage that has the makings of disaster. Usually this happens in a fluctuating economy, like now, where rates are extremely low and, at least in the United States, many homes are worth less than the balance on those mortgages. But there are some things you can do to minimize the financial damage.
The good news: September housing starts in Canada have increased by 7.3 percent as compared to a year ago. This is even better news for certain provinces, as they witnessed even stronger growth during the month.
