Featured
Lender’s Title Insurance – An Important Risk Management Tool
At CMI, we require lender’s title insurance on the properties we lend upon. A form of indemnity insurance, title insurance protects lenders and homebuyers from defects in a title to a property. It is paid for by the borrower. A clear title is necessary for any real estate transaction. Title insurance will protect the lender…
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Changing the Canada Mortgage Bonds Program
The recent federal budget stated “[t]he government intends to undertake market consultations on the proposal to consolidate the Canada Mortgage Bonds within the government’s regular borrowing program, including on an implementation plan that would ensure stable access to mortgage financing. The government will return in the fall economic and fiscal update on this matter.” Background…
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Budget 2023: What does it mean for housing finance?
The 2023 federal budget’s discussion of housing affordability largely focused on previously announced housing and housing affordability measures. There was one new housing measure: an additional $4 billion over seven years, starting in 2024-2025, for Indigenous Housing. Some other measures, while less immediate, will be of interest to mortgage brokers. 1.Lowering the criminal rate of…
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Fed hikes interest rates despite banking troubles
At the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) meeting on March 22, the US Federal Reserve increased interest rates by 25 basis points. The Fed’s view is that inflation remains too high and the labour market continues to be very tight; however, problems in the banking system are expected to result in tighter credit conditions for…
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Overcoming Housing Affordability Challenges
Movements in the rental market are great indicators of the state of housing affordability. When people can’t afford to buy, they rent, and when there’s an influx of renters in a sector with limited housing supply, landlords are able to charge more. The apartment-hunting platform, Rentals.ca, reported that, on average, Toronto tenants are allocating 42%…
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Rethinking the Renovation
Do Home Improvements Improve Value? According to a CIBC poll, only 32% of homeowners who’ve decided to renovate came up with a detailed budget. That’s only half the story. Of those who recently renovated, 39% went over budget. The same study found that 49% of Canada’s homeowners planned to renovate in 2019, a four-point increase…
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The Right Rate: Fixed or Variable?
In a statement released in July of 2019, the Bank of Canada (BOC) reported positive trends in the national housing market. “At the national level, the housing market is stabilizing, although there are still significant adjustments underway in some regions.” With real estate prices fluctuating in recent years, exacerbated by the expanded mortgage stress test…
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