Todays news from the Canadian Real Estate Association

Today, the government announced its intent to raise the minimum down payment requirements on homes valued over $500,000. Requirements will remain at 5 per cent down payment for homes under 500,000. Any amount over $500,000 will require a 10 per cent down payment. For example a $700,000 home will require a $45,000 down payment, 5 per cent on $500,000 and 10 per cent down on the remaining $200,000. The announced changes will take effect on February 15, 2016.

The government cites its desire to “contain risks in the housing market” as the reason for its decision.

As you know, the issue of an increase to minimum down payments is something CREA has effectively and successfully fought against since

Study after study suggests that Canadians are having a tough time paying off their mortgages, as debt levels continue to hit record levels year after year. Why?

Could it be that there are more opportunities to spend? Could it be that some people don't want to pay off their mortgages faster?

Or are some professionals advising alternate investment strategies, suggesting that paying off the mortgage is not the best financial strategy?

BIG MORTGAGES AFFECT RETIREMENT

Rebecca and Darcy are in their mid-50s and are starting to think about retirement planning; they would like to retire in the next five years.

One of their biggest hurdles is a $225,000 mortgage. Currently, their $2,200 monthly payment would have the mortgage paid off in 10 years.

Home prices in British Columbia are growing rapidly, and more and more having kids is seen by many as a luxury.

Home prices in British Columbia are growing rapidly—particularly in Vancouver, where the average price is almost double that of the national average—and more and more, having kids is seen by many as a luxury rather than a given.

Almost two-thirds of families in this province—65%—say the cost of home ownership has had an impact on their ability to start or expand their families, according to the results of a RateSupermarket.ca poll.

The majority of families across Canada feel the same way, but the national average is nine percentage points lower at 56%.

“While it’s no surprise that kids are hard on the wallet…it is disheartening

Rising sea levels are a growing threat to coastal real estate, according to a report in the Toronto Star.

Nationwide, as many as 28,000 homes could be underwater by 2050 – either temporarily, due to storm surges, or permanently, thanks to sea-level rise, the Star reported. And a recent report from Climate Central predicted that 737,000 Canadians would be affected by sea-level rise if average global temperatures rise by 2 degrees.

It’s not just the Maritimes that are at risk, the Star reported. Vancouver’s climate adaption strategy has estimated that $25 billion worth of real estate is threatened by sea-level rise this century – and that’s not even counting city infrastructure. Making improvements to dikes along the British Columbia coast could run up

Mobile deposit technology to be rolled out

The Canadian real estate market may be poised for transformation with the introduction of mobile-driven deposits, set to help investors avoid the snafus that too often scuttle deals.

ExactDeposit will be launched via a pilot project through Royal LePage Atlantic and other local brokerages before it is rolled out across Canada to follow.

“Mobile payments for real estate deposits have never be possible before,” says Chris Ryan, founder and director of ExactDeposit. “We are the first of our kind.”

The technology has been designed to offer greater convenience and efficiency to investors, Realtors and real estate brokerages.

“[The transaction] can be completed from anywhere, using a smartphone, laptop or

Foreign investor stats revealed

Foreign owners made up a bigger share of the condominium markets in Toronto and Vancouver over the last year, according to the nation’s housing agency.

Foreign owners of condos comprised 3.5 percent of the market in Vancouver and 3.3 percent in Toronto, according to a report from Canada Mortgage & Housing Corp. which surveyed property managers. That’s up from 2.3 percent in Vancouver last year and 2.4 percent in Toronto, Canada’s largest city. When narrowing to the downtown core, foreign buyers made up 5.4 percent of Vancouver condo buyers this year versus 3.4 last year and 5.8 percent of Toronto condo buyers versus 4.3 percent.

Politicians have been under pressure from many quarters including Vancouver Mayor Gregor

Homes sold last month sat on the market for an average of 45 days

There are more homes for sale in the city than last year and they're sitting on the market for longer, while selling for less, according to data from the Calgary Real Estate Board. (Sheryl Nadler/CBC)

Home sales and prices continued their year-over-year decline in November, according to the latest aggregated data from the Calgary Real Estate Board.

A total of 1,263 homes were sold in the city last month, down 28.7 per cent from November 2014.

Average sale prices were off 5.1 per cent year-over-year, sliding to $460,859.

Median prices, meanwhile, were down 4.2 per cent to $410,149.

The number of active listings stood at 5,316, up 31 per cent from a year earlier, while the

Canada’s most expensive housing market will continue to see price gains well ahead of the rate of inflation for the next two years, according to a report from a group which represents credit unions in British Columbia.

Central1, which acts as an association for credit unions in B.C. and Ontario, now says the median sale price of a home in Greater Vancouver will climb another 6.1 per cent in 2016 after a 4.5 jump this year. In 2017, the organization is predicting a 3.8 per cent increase.

“Metro Vancouver home prices have remained in the spotlight, keeping the housing affordability debate percolating in the news and social media,” wrote economist Bryan Yu, the author of the report.

His forecast comes as the Real Estate Board of Greater

Condo living definitely has its perks. You can take advantage of amazing locations in the heart of urban centres close to public transportation. You can be a part of a community and you don’t have to spend your days doing yard work or home maintenance. But, best of all, you can enjoy convenient amenities like fitness centres, party lounges and pools, all at your doorstep. Sounds great, but how does this affect your bottom line? When purchasing a condo you want to consider your monthly strata fee.

What are strata fees and how are they determined?

Your monthly strata fee is money that’s used by the strata corporation to pay the common expenses of the development. Your individual fee is assessed by taking the total cost of the strata’s expenses and

This week, the provincial government released its 2015/16 Second Quarterly Report: an update on where provincial finances are at six months into the fiscal year and where the economy is heading.

The news is not very good. 

B.C.'s economy is expected to do better than other provinces this year, but that's largely because of weakness elsewhere (especially in resource-dependent provinces like Alberta). Private sector forecasters have lowered their projections for this year's economic growth in B.C. to 2.2 per cent (from 2.7 per cent this time last year). Projections for next year are more optimistic (2.6 per cent) but they should be taken with a grain of salt, given the record of overly optimistic forecasts in the last few years.

1. No recovery