Finance Minister Jim Flaherty announced three new rules for Canadian mortgages on Monday because he believes they will "protect the stability of the economy."
This is because according to the Bank of Canada Canadians "domestic debt burden is the highest on record. "
The three new rules for the mortgage industry will come into effect March 18. This is what they have changed:
1)Mortgage amortization periods will be reduced from 35 years to 30 years.
2)The maximum amount Canadians can borrow to refinance their mortgages will be lowered from 90 per cent to 85 per cent of the value of their homes.
3)The government will withdraw its insurance backing on lines of credit secured on homes, such as home equity lines of credit.
It is the third time in three years that Flaherty has tightened credit rules while interest rates remain historically low.
This move is said to prevent huge problems for people that are over leveraged when interest rates eventually go up. Flaherty is hoping that these moves will create more equity in peoples homes which will give home owners more stability.
Flaherty made this stunning comment on what people may be spending their line of credits on! "They are used to buy boats and cars and big-screen TVs, and that's not the business mortgage insurance was designed for," Here's a stunning statistic that spurred these changes "Canadian household debt is now at $1.4 trillion"
Many experts have said that they believe these changes will have little effect on the housing market because most of these rules with the exception of the 30 year amortization were already being applied by most banks. Naturally for people that are trying to leverage themselves for Real Estate investing these rules will make it harder but there are still plenty of opportunities out there!
Tuesday, January 18, 2011
Monday, January 10, 2011
Another strong year for Ottawa area home owners!
Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 620 residential properties in December through the Board's Multiple Listing Service® system compared with 687 in December 2009, a decrease of 9.8 per cent. The total number of residential properties sold through the Board's Multiple Listing Service® system in 2010 was 14,199, down 3.6 per cent from 2009. The average price for 2010 was $327,225, an increase of 7.7 per cent over 2009.
Of December's sales, 192 were in the condominium property class, while 428 were in the residential property class. The condominium property class includes any property, regardless of style (i.e. detached, semi-detached, apartment, stacked etc.) which is registered as a condominium, as well as properties which are co-operatives, life leases and timeshares. The residential property class includes all other residential properties.
"2010 was an interesting year because of the introduction of HST. This, and changes to mortgage regulations affected spring and summer home sales, pushing many buyers and sellers into the market earlier in the year," said Board President Joanne Tibbles. "However, we see from these numbers how stable Ottawa's housing market remained, partly due to our diversified employment base that continues to weather unstable economic conditions with relative ease. Sales may have declined from what was, in fact, a record year in 2009, but prices have continued to rise at a healthy rate, demonstrating continued demand for resale housing in Ottawa," she added. The average sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in December in the Ottawa area was $324,556, an increase of 5.6 per cent over December 2009. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $254,776, an increase of 3.5 per cent over December 2009.
The average sale price of a residential-class property was $355,860, an increase of 7.8 per cent over December 2009. The Board cautions that average sale price information can be useful in establishing trends over time but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The average sale price is calculated based on the total dollar volume of all properties sold.
courtesy of the Ottawa Real Estate Board.
Of December's sales, 192 were in the condominium property class, while 428 were in the residential property class. The condominium property class includes any property, regardless of style (i.e. detached, semi-detached, apartment, stacked etc.) which is registered as a condominium, as well as properties which are co-operatives, life leases and timeshares. The residential property class includes all other residential properties.
"2010 was an interesting year because of the introduction of HST. This, and changes to mortgage regulations affected spring and summer home sales, pushing many buyers and sellers into the market earlier in the year," said Board President Joanne Tibbles. "However, we see from these numbers how stable Ottawa's housing market remained, partly due to our diversified employment base that continues to weather unstable economic conditions with relative ease. Sales may have declined from what was, in fact, a record year in 2009, but prices have continued to rise at a healthy rate, demonstrating continued demand for resale housing in Ottawa," she added. The average sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in December in the Ottawa area was $324,556, an increase of 5.6 per cent over December 2009. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $254,776, an increase of 3.5 per cent over December 2009.
The average sale price of a residential-class property was $355,860, an increase of 7.8 per cent over December 2009. The Board cautions that average sale price information can be useful in establishing trends over time but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The average sale price is calculated based on the total dollar volume of all properties sold.
courtesy of the Ottawa Real Estate Board.
Friday, November 5, 2010
November brings balanced market to Ottawa.
Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 1,042 residential properties in October through the Board's Multiple Listing Service® system compared with 1,197 in October 2009, a decrease of 12.9 per cent. Year to date, the number of properties sold has declined 2% compared to the same period last year, a record setting year. Of those sales, 221 were in the condominium property class, while 821 were in the residential property class. The condominium property class includes any property, regardless of style (i.e. detached, semi-detached, apartment, stacked etc.) which is registered as a condominium, as well as properties which are co-operatives, life leases and timeshares. The residential property class includes all other residential properties. "Six months ago we were in a strong seller's market, now we have moved into a more balanced market position," said Immediate Past President Rick Snell. "Some properties are still receiving multiple offers but this is happening much less often than was the case in the spring."The average sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in October in the Ottawa area was $340,719, an increase of 6.8 per cent over October 2009. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $263,292, an increase of 13.4 per cent over October 2009. The average sale price of a residential-class property was $361,560, an increase of 5 per cent over October 2009. The Board cautions that average sale price information can be useful in establishing trends over time but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The average sale price is calculated based on the total dollar volume of all properties sold.
Courtesy of the Ottawa Real Estate Board.
Courtesy of the Ottawa Real Estate Board.
Friday, October 22, 2010
In law Suites can now be legal.
Have you ever wanted to bring down your mortgage payments? Most people have experienced that feeling at the end of the month were there is more month than there is money. What if you could have an extra $1000 a month to pay down your mortgage, pay bills or even create a savings account for that next large purchase.
The City of Ottawa with the exception of Rockcliffe Park, now allow secondary suites or "in-law suites". So home owners can now build one with a building permit of course. If you have an existing one that is deemed to be illegal you can now get it approved by the city as long as it is up to building and fire codes. The secondary suited or "in-law suite" can be up to 40% of the overall upper floors. A suite can be built in a garage, and each half of a semi-detached can have its own secondary suite. A legal duplex is allowed one secondary unit making it into a triplex. Something to keep in mind about this is that these rules do not apply to condos for obvious reasons or row houses.
So if you have ever wanted to become a real estate investor this is excellent way of creating wealth were you thought you had none. Your house often deemed to be your largest asset is really a liability as you are constantly paying into it. Yes in the long term you will likely make money on it but that might not be until retirement. By creating a secondary dwelling you can change the money from flowing into upkeeping your house into flowing into your pocket!
Have you ever wanted to bring down your mortgage payments? Most people have experienced that feeling at the end of the month were there is more month than there is money. What if you could have an extra $1000 a month to pay down your mortgage, pay bills or even create a savings account for that next large purchase.
The City of Ottawa with the exception of Rockcliffe Park, now allow secondary suites or "in-law suites". So home owners can now build one with a building permit of course. If you have an existing one that is deemed to be illegal you can now get it approved by the city as long as it is up to building and fire codes. The secondary suited or "in-law suite" can be up to 40% of the overall upper floors. A suite can be built in a garage, and each half of a semi-detached can have its own secondary suite. A legal duplex is allowed one secondary unit making it into a triplex. Something to keep in mind about this is that these rules do not apply to condos for obvious reasons or row houses.
So if you have ever wanted to become a real estate investor this is excellent way of creating wealth were you thought you had none. Your house often deemed to be your largest asset is really a liability as you are constantly paying into it. Yes in the long term you will likely make money on it but that might not be until retirement. By creating a secondary dwelling you can change the money from flowing into upkeeping your house into flowing into your pocket!
Thursday, September 16, 2010
September Real Estate Update
Better supply of properties for sale brings balance to housing market; prices rise steadily
Ottawa, September 3,2010 :After an HST- influenced dip in sales in July, August saw a return to a more normal number of sales. Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 1,122 residential properties in August through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service® system compared with 1,211 in August 2009, a decrease of 7.3 per cent. Of those sales, 266 were in the condominium property class, while 856 were in the residential property class. The condominium property class includes any property, regardless of style (i.e. detached, semi-detached, apartment, stacked etc.) which is registered as a condominium, as well as properties which are co-operatives, life leases and timeshares. The residential property class includes all other residential properties.
“The number of sales year-to-date is slightly ahead of last year’s sales for the same period, and last year’s sales volume was the highest ever. This shows the stability of the Ottawa Real Estate Market. ” said Immediate Past President Rick Snell. “The market is in a balanced position in relation to the number of homes for sale and the demand for properties. This is a good market for both buyers and sellers. I expect to see a normal fall market with longer selling times and stable prices,” he added.
The average sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in August in the Ottawa area was $321,969, an increase of 2.1 per cent over August 2009. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $262,999, an increase of 16.8 per cent over August 2009. The average sale price of a residential-class property was $340,294, an increase of 0.1 per cent over August 2009. The Board cautions that average sale price information can be useful in establishing trends over time but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The average sale price is calculated based on the total dollar volume of all properties sold.
courtesy of the Ottawa Real Estate Board
Ottawa, September 3,2010 :After an HST- influenced dip in sales in July, August saw a return to a more normal number of sales. Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 1,122 residential properties in August through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service® system compared with 1,211 in August 2009, a decrease of 7.3 per cent. Of those sales, 266 were in the condominium property class, while 856 were in the residential property class. The condominium property class includes any property, regardless of style (i.e. detached, semi-detached, apartment, stacked etc.) which is registered as a condominium, as well as properties which are co-operatives, life leases and timeshares. The residential property class includes all other residential properties.
“The number of sales year-to-date is slightly ahead of last year’s sales for the same period, and last year’s sales volume was the highest ever. This shows the stability of the Ottawa Real Estate Market. ” said Immediate Past President Rick Snell. “The market is in a balanced position in relation to the number of homes for sale and the demand for properties. This is a good market for both buyers and sellers. I expect to see a normal fall market with longer selling times and stable prices,” he added.
The average sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in August in the Ottawa area was $321,969, an increase of 2.1 per cent over August 2009. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $262,999, an increase of 16.8 per cent over August 2009. The average sale price of a residential-class property was $340,294, an increase of 0.1 per cent over August 2009. The Board cautions that average sale price information can be useful in establishing trends over time but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The average sale price is calculated based on the total dollar volume of all properties sold.
courtesy of the Ottawa Real Estate Board
Monday, August 9, 2010
Ottawa still a great place to own a home!
Still a seller’s market in Ottawa; prices rise steadily
Ottawa, August 5,2010 :Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 1,149 residential properties in July through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service® system compared with 1,578 in July 2009, a decrease of 27.2 per cent.Of those sales, 294 were in the condominium property class, while 855 were in the residential property class. The condominium property class includes any property, regardless of style (i.e. detached, semi-detached, apartment, stacked etc.) which is registered as a condominium, as well as properties which are co-operatives, life leases and timeshares. The residential property class includes all other residential properties.
“Last July saw a record high number of sales in Ottawa, which was the result of pent-up demand as the market came out of a downturn. What we see this year is a return to more seasonal sales volumes,” said Board President Pierre de Varennes. “The ratio of listed properties to sold properties indicates that Ottawa remained in a seller’s market last month, and sale prices continued to rise at a steady pace, as they generally do here in the national capital,” he added.
The average sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in July in the Ottawa area was $321,827 , an increase of 7.1 per cent over July 2009. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $249,674 , an increase of 15.2 per cent over July 2009. The average sale price of a residential-class property was $346,638, an increase of 7.1 per cent over July 2009. The Board cautions that average sale price information can be useful in establishing trends over time but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The average sale price is calculated based on the total dollar volume of all properties sold.
Ottawa, August 5,2010 :Members of the Ottawa Real Estate Board sold 1,149 residential properties in July through the Board’s Multiple Listing Service® system compared with 1,578 in July 2009, a decrease of 27.2 per cent.Of those sales, 294 were in the condominium property class, while 855 were in the residential property class. The condominium property class includes any property, regardless of style (i.e. detached, semi-detached, apartment, stacked etc.) which is registered as a condominium, as well as properties which are co-operatives, life leases and timeshares. The residential property class includes all other residential properties.
“Last July saw a record high number of sales in Ottawa, which was the result of pent-up demand as the market came out of a downturn. What we see this year is a return to more seasonal sales volumes,” said Board President Pierre de Varennes. “The ratio of listed properties to sold properties indicates that Ottawa remained in a seller’s market last month, and sale prices continued to rise at a steady pace, as they generally do here in the national capital,” he added.
The average sale price of residential properties, including condominiums, sold in July in the Ottawa area was $321,827 , an increase of 7.1 per cent over July 2009. The average sale price for a condominium-class property was $249,674 , an increase of 15.2 per cent over July 2009. The average sale price of a residential-class property was $346,638, an increase of 7.1 per cent over July 2009. The Board cautions that average sale price information can be useful in establishing trends over time but should not be used as an indicator that specific properties have increased or decreased in value. The average sale price is calculated based on the total dollar volume of all properties sold.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Green Houses Important Topic
Solar Panels For Urban Homes.
With so much talk today about the environment, people have been searching for alternative energy sources. Most of the time these options are just to costly for the average home owner. However with housing costs rising and energy costs racing to do the same builders and homeowners have begun to put solar panels on the roofs of there homes. Making possible for the Jones' what was once only seen on commercial sites.
It used to be with builders perhaps the upgrades would include a jacuzzi tub or a walk out basement door. Today you can put a solar panel on your roof that could cut your hydro costs by as much as 80%.
Now, builders are not the only people doing just this. You also have professional companies doing it for your existing home or if you prefer to do it yourself or DIY you can purchase solar panels for as little as $200. Solar Panels is an easy way for us to subsidize our living expenses. We will begin to see more and more of them on all types of buildings from commercial to residential. This will definitely help to alleviate the stress on the power grid on hot humid afternoons when everyone has their central air and fans going full blast. So have your cake and eat it to by running the A/C off the power from your very own solar grid!
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