If high-end buyers get discouraged by heavy upfront taxes, they don’t move.
And when they don’t move, the mid-range homes they would have vacated never come to market.
Its a domino effect.
Read moreIs the dream of Home Ownership dead for Young Canadians?
A new global study suggests what many of us in real estate have been watching unfold in real time: Canada’s biggest cities are now among the hardest places in the world for young people to buy their first home…..
Read moreOntario’s Housing Boost: HST Break for First-Time Buyers
In a bid to boost housing starts, the Ontario government just announced a major win for first-time home buyers. They are removing the eight per cent provincial portion of the HST on new homes up to $1 million.
What was first announced in the 2025 Fall Economic Statement, could provide up to $80,000 in savings off the cost of a new home. When you combine it with the federal government’s five per cent HST rebate, the total savings could reach $130,000. This provides major savings for buyers trying to get into their first home. The province plans to align eligibility with the federal guidelines, applying the rebate to agreements of purchase and sale entered into between May 27, 2025, and 2031, with construction starting before 2031 and substantial completion before 2036. The property must also be used as the buyer’s primary residence.
However, affordability remains an uphill climb. The Bank of Canada cut the over night lending rate by .25% to 2.25% this week but the five-year bond yield which drives fixed mortgage rates actually went up. So while the tax relief helps, the lending environment remains challenging.
First-time buyers who typically make up about 35% of new home purchases will continue to face the toughest path, with the cost-to-income ratio still well above historic levels.
Although housing will continue to be challenging for first time buyers, we are finally starting to see coordinated efforts by two of the three levels of government to keep housing with the reach of young professionals and families, particularly in the GTA. Now if we could only get the municipalities on board to lower levies and development costs that would signal a BIG WIN. These changes represent small steps, but steps in the right direction.
Brandt Morris | The Morris Code | Live. Buy. It.
MARKET UPDATE FOR THE WEEK ENDING FEBRUARY 23RD, 2018
Should you list low and generate multiple offers, or should you list the property at what you think its worth? That seems to be a popular question in the office this week. There are many factors to take into consideration. The location, the condition of the property, and the price point. When you look at new listings coming out at least eight out of 10 properties have an offer date. What we are not seeing as much these days are bully offers. Buyers seem to be a bit cautious and would rather wait. After much discussion it comes down to the agent and the Seller making the decision.
There was a big sigh of relief as more listings came to market across the 416. The downtown core saw freehold listings jump by 60 percent compared to the week before and.....
Read moreMARKET UPDATE FOR THE WEEK ENDING FEBRUARY 9TH, 2018
The media likes to sell sob-stories to survive. The TREB market report was released this week and the news release in the media was all doom and gloom. Well not so in the City of Toronto. The average selling price at the end of January was $766,616, up 5.5 percent from a year ago which was $727, 928. The number of new listings came in at 2,776 for the end of January slightly lower than a year ago at ....
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