Former Goldman Sachs investment banker appointed to head CMHC

Canada named Evan Siddall, a former official with Goldman Sachs Group Inc., as chief executive officer of the country’s government-owned housing agency. Siddall, who has been a special adviser to the Bank of Canada Governor for the past two years, will serve a five-year term at Canada Mortgage & Housing Corp. starting Jan. 1, the […]

The #1 Rate Indicator Right Now – Ask a Vancouver Mortgage Broker

Abnormally low inflation is keeping Stephen Poloz awake at night. The Bank of Canada (BoC) admitted as muchon Wednesday. Analysts took the BoC’s headline comment (“downside risks to inflation appear to be greater”) as a sign that rate hikes will be a 2015 story. But, for now, there is one key indicator that trumps Canadian CPI inflation, and […]

Consumer confidence nears year high as Canadians put faith in rising house prices- Ask a Vancouver Mortgage Broker

The share of respondents who think real-estate prices will increase over the next six months rose to 40.3 from 40.0 the previous week, reaching the highest level since March 2012 Canada’s economic mood rebounded last week as consumers head into the holiday season buoyed by rising house prices, according to the Bloomberg Nanos Canadian Confidence […]

Five things to do if you are over-extended on your mortgage – Ask a Vancouver Mortgage Broker

Mortgage default may be rare in this country, but nearly 9% of indebted households need 40% or more of their gross income to pay their debt service charges, says the Bank of Canada Financial System Review. If you can see problems coming, then you can take action to avoid foreclosure, which happens when lenders run […]

Mortgage rates today are way below normal. Or are they?- Ask a Vancouver Mortgage Broker

Finance Minister Jim Flaherty called Canada’s low interest rates an “anomaly” last week, echoing warnings that other government officials have been making since 2009. But one of the country’s best-known economists believes today’s rates are closer to normal than many think. Benjamin Tal, deputy chief economist at CIBC, caught viewers off guard in a recent […]

Why no rate hike means variable mortgages are safe again – Ask a Vancouver Mortgage Broker

Garry Marr | More from Garry Marr | @DustyWallet A signal from the Bank of Canada that it is not raising its key lending rate any time soon, coupled with the likelihood of falling mortgage rates, could be enough to keep the latest housing rally going. Bank of Canada drops rate guidance, lowers growth forecast There’s been a sea […]

Bank of Canada drops rate guidance, lowers growth forecast

OTTAWA — There has been a sea change at the Bank of Canada. No longer are policymakers setting a specific monetary course for interest rates. Instead, for the first time in 18 months, they have dropped any reference to borrowing costs eventually rising — adopting a neutral position and waiting to see which way economic […]

A Side Effect of Rate Warnings – Consult with Adil Virani, Vancouver Mortgage Broker

“The longer it (low interest rates) goes on, the more people can start to think this is normal and it’s not normal; it’s very, very far from normal.”— Julie Dickson, OSFI Superintendent, Sept. 23, 2013 via MortgageBrokerNews.ca When people hear an authority—like the head of Canada’s banking regulator—make these statements, it compels many to lock in […]

Bank of Canada’s Poloz upbeat about economic growth – Ask a Vancouver Mortgage Broker

Bank of Canada‘s Poloz upbeat about economic growth BARRIE MCKENNA AND BRENT JANG-  OTTAWA/VANCOUVER — The Globe and Mail Bank of Canada Governor Stephen Poloz is painting a brighter picture for the Canadian economy while tossing aside concerns over a housing bubble. Canada is on its “way home” to more natural economic growth as central banks prepare […]

Why there’s no reason to panic about rising rates – Consult with a Vancouver Mortgage Broker

Garry Marr | More from Garry Marr | @DustyWallet There is a simple answer to all this hysteria about mortgage rates going up. Don’t lock in your rate. I know it’s almost heresy to have a floating rate in a mortgage world dictated by Finance Minister Jim Flaherty, who thinks nothing about calling up the banks and telling them […]

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