OTTAWA (Reuters) – Canadian new home prices rose more than expected in January and hit a record high, but the pace of growth was the slowest since March, adding to evidence that the housing sector is starting to cool. Statistics Canada’s new housing price index, released on Wednesday, rose 0.2 percent in January from December. […]

The Canadian housing sector continued to show solid growth in February as housing starts moved up about 6.5 per cent from the previous month. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. said the seasonally adjusted annual rate of starts came in at 181,900 units, up from 170,600 units in January. CMHC said the rise was due primarily […]

When mortgage rates are falling, banks will vie for your business. But in times like these when rates are rising, you have to shop around and negotiate to get the best rate. This was the situation I faced in 1994 when we bought our first home. This strategy saved us tens of thousands of dollars […]

The Bank of Canada is sticking to its ultra-low interest rate policy to help the recovery, despite mounting evidence the economy is performing better. And economists said the central bank’s surprisingly “dovish” statement suggests Canadians will be able to borrow at historically low interest rates for months to come. The bank’s decision Tuesday keeps its […]

Canada’s economy ended the year with a bang in 2010, setting the stage to a strong start this year that likely bodes well for jobs, corporate profits and government finances. Statistics Canada said Monday the economy expanded a surprisingly sprightly 3.3 per cent in the last three months last year, a full point more than […]

Canadians experienced less financial strain to own a home in the final months of 2010, according to a report from Royal Bank of Canada. On Thursday, RBC Economics Research said the affordability of home ownership improved in the final three months of last year for the second straight quarter. However, it warned that this reprieve […]

Shrugging off concerns last year that the housing market would falter, Ontario’s resale activity accelerated and property values resumed appreciation in the fourth quarter of 2010, according to the latest Housing Trends and Affordability Report issued today by RBC Economics. “Ontario’s slowdown in activity last spring and summer largely reflected transitory factors, including the introduction […]

TORONTO, Feb. 24 /CNW/ – Canada’s housing affordability continued to improve in the fourth quarter of 2010, thanks in part to slight decreases in five-year fixed mortgage rates and minimal home price appreciation across the country, according to the latest Housing Trends and Affordability report released today by RBC Economics Research. “Some of the stress […]

The resiliency of the Canadian housing market has to impress even the most cynical observer. And while the consensus even among industry insiders is the days of double-digit percentage price increases are over, nobody is expecting an American-style housing collapse in Canada. “The fear proved to be unfounded,” says Pascal Gauthier, a senior economist at […]

OTTAWA — The “overexuberance” in consumer spending that lifted Canada out of the recession at the end of 2009 and early in 2010 is well behind us, according to a report released Tuesday that suggests that most cities will see growth slow this year. Only nine of the 27 census metropolitan areas studied for the […]