Analysts are predicting a cooler housing market in 2018, with falling prices in the first few months of the year. But what is it that will pull prices downwards? It’s impending mortgage rule changes that are to blame, according to a recent Reuters poll of Canadian analysts. Beginning January 1, a new mortgage stress test will require all uninsured mortgage borrowers to qualify against the Bank of Canada’s five-year benchmark rate, or at their contract rate plus an additional 2... [read more]

Jennifer Johnson felt she didn't have time to wait. The single mom of two children, she watched as house prices in her Ajax, Ont., neighbourhood soared year after year. "When houses were starting to go up 20 per cent each year, I was worried about my kids' futures," says Ms. Johnson, a global bid manager and proposal writer. So, in 2014, with her own house paid off, she decided to take the real estate plunge again, buying her son, Braden, then 10, a home in Ajax for... [read more]

For the seventh consecutive year, Toronto’s Bay Street has been named Canada’s most expensive in JLL Canada’s annual Most Expensive Streets for Office Space in Canada Report. With a four-per-cent increase in average rent from $67.31 per square foot in 2016 to $70.14 in 2017, Bay Street once again outranks other major city streets. Vancouver’s Burrard Street remains the second most expensive street at $61.52 per square foot, while Montreal’s Des... [read more]

RE/MAX VOTED CANADA’S MOST TRUSTED REAL ESTATE BRAND Market research firm BrandSpark surveyed 5,000 Canadians for their “Most Trusted Awards,” which looks at Canada’s major services and retail categories, and the votes are in! RE/MAX is named the “Most Trusted Brand for Real Estate.” We did it! It may not come across as a surprise to all of you, but it sure feels good to be recognized. RE/MAX won by the largest margin of any of the brands in the... [read more]

With tighter mortgage regulations coming in January, some uncertainty surrounds the real estate market in 2018. Real estate expert Karyn Filiatrault spoke with CTV’s Your Morning on Monday, to share the five real estate trends she expects in 2018: Condo popularity will surge: “We have baby boomers that are downsizing and are liking the low-maintenance lifestyle,” she said. “We have families that have been priced-out (of the household) market--they’re moving... [read more]

OTTAWA -- Foreign buyers make up a minuscule portion of the overall housing market in this country, new research shows, but what they own is more expensive and newer than the average Canadian homeowner. And there are indications foreign buyers are moving out of the traditional bases of Toronto and Vancouver and into new cities. Non-residents owned 3.4 per cent of all residential properties in Toronto and 4.8 per cent of residential properties in Vancouver, according to new housing statistics by... [read more]

With home prices on the rise in Toronto and Vancouver, buyers are looking to other Canadian cities where they can get more bang for their buck. According to the RE/MAX 2018 housing market outlook report, smaller cities in Ontario and BC have seen a surge of demand in the past year. “Buyers leaving the GTA and Greater Vancouver have contributed to increased demand and considerable year-over-year average price increases in Kelowna (9 per cent), London-St. Thomas (18 per cent),... [read more]

  1. Less Competition You’re not the only homeowner who’s considered taking your home off the market during the holidays—most don’t want the hassle. And most new sellers will decide to wait until the first of the year or even springtime to put their homes up for sale. That’s great news for you because you won’t have to compete with dozens of other homes just like yours to get buyers’ attention. Reduced inventory means more buyers checking... [read more]

In the unfortunate circumstance that a homeowner is past-due on their monthly mortgage payments, they pave the way for a “foreclosure” on their property. In today’s market, banks and other lenders do not turn to foreclosure to take away the homes of homeowners who are in arrears. Instead, they perform a "Power of Sale" which is wholly different from a Foreclosure. What is a Foreclosure? Foreclosures are laborious, grueling, and costly to both the... [read more]