Blockbuster September Jobs Report – Further Fuel For Rising Interest Rates Statistics Canada released the September Labour Force Survey this morning, providing some unmitigated good news on the jobs front. Employment rose by 157,000 (+0.8%) in September, the fourth consecutive monthly increase. The unemployment rate fell by 0.2 percentage points to 6.9%. Employment gains in September were concentrated in full-time work and among people in the core working-age group of 25 to

What is All the Policy Hysteria About? Today the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) released statistics showing national existing home sales hit another all-time high in March. What was arguably more noteworthy was that new listings hit their highest level on record in seasonally adjusted terms in March. Prices continued to rise as sales dwarfed the new supply. The number of homes sold across the country rose 5.2% on a seasonally adjusted basis. The actual (not seasonall

by Alisa Aragon-Lloyd, as seen in “New Condo + Condo Guide” Most people believe that being mortgage-free is their plan for retirement. That means paying off your mortgage as fast as possible becomes the priority and having other forms of investments are considered only after your property is paid off. It is important to decide what option will give you the balanced diversification and protect you from the real estate market and economic fluctuations. One strategy is to be mor

Much has changed since the Bank of Canada’s last decision on January 20. While the second pandemic wave was raging, new lockdowns were implemented in late 2020, and there were fears that the economy, in consequence, was likely to grow at a 4.8% annual rate in Q4 and contract in Q1. Instead, the lockdowns were less disruptive than feared, as Q4 growth came in at a surprisingly strong 9.6% annual rate–double the pace expected by the Bank. Rather than a contraction in Q1 this ye

The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) released statistics showing national home sales hit another all-time high in January 2021. Canadian home sales increased 2.0% month-on-month (m-o-m) building on December’s 7.0% gain. On a year-over-year (y-o-y) basis, existing home sales surged 35.2%. As the chart below shows, January activity blew out all previous records for the month. The seasonally adjusted activity was running at an annualized pace of 736,452 units in January,

Traditionally, each spring, mortgage rates start to move, followed by a spring buying rush, with a lag in the summer, and then a second rush in the fall. This past year we saw everything upended. The spring buying season started with a positive outlook and abruptly came to a complete stall as the world figured out how to cope and live through a pandemic. This pause resulted in a fall season with strong home buyer demand eclipsing numbers seen in past years, trickling over int

By Alisa Aragon 2020 has been an unprecedented year, with so many changes and unknowns. COVID-19 has had a huge impact on our national economy, with the government having to step in, unemployment at a record high, lenders’ helping with mortgage payment deferrals and historically low interest rates. The continuous growth of the housing market is what is helping our economy recover. The economic recovery will depend on the development of the pandemic and the vaccine. Economists

1. Order Online – Most people already order online to avoid getting stuck in the hustle and bustle of holiday shoppers. However, before you do any transactions ensure that you are ordering from a secure and trusted source. Any websites that provide order tracking will also save you stress as you can keep an eye on your package and know when it will arrive! 2. Be Thrifty – Start early and keep an eye out for special sales! Many retailers have Black Friday and Cyber Monday sale

Vancouver has always been a challenging city to get a foot in the door. Add on a pandemic, and it gets even more complicated. HAVAN’s Home Buying Forum, typically held in-person each spring, but cancelled due to COVID-19, led to HAVAN producing a series of information videos to ensure first-time buyers have access to the knowledge they need to buy smarter. HAVAN has captured the industry experts who typically present at the forum, in a series of nine 10-20 minute Home Buying

This Wednesday, the Bank of Canada will release its interest rate announcement and the October Monetary Policy Report. Most people expect the overnight rate to remain at 0.25%, where it has been since the pandemic hit. A few have suggested that the Bank could take a page from Australia and reduce overnight rates by 15 basis points. I don’t think so. Canada’s economy is not as similar to Australia’s as you might think. Yes, both countries speak mostly English, are commodity ex

By Alisa Aragon While COVID-19 has had a huge impact on the Canadian economy in the first half of this year, after businesses started reopening, the housing market began picking up. Many home buyers resumed their home searches, and homeowners looking at upsizing to a larger home started listing their homes for sale. With interest rates at historical lows, this is a good time for buyers to get into the market. The Bank of Canada reviews its benchmark rate about eight times a y

The Bank of Canada under the new governor, Tiff Macklem, wants to be “unusually clear” that interest rates will remain low for a very long time. To do that, they are using “forward guidance”–indicating that they will not raise rates until capacity is absorbed and inflation hits its 2% target on a sustainable basis, which they estimate will take at least two years. As well, they indicate that the risks to their “central” outlook are to the downside, which would extend the peri