U.S. and Canada are altering the way housing finance works so taxpayers aren’t stuck bearing the brunt of risks

Canada and the United States are both contemplating changes to the way we finance housing Last Wednesday Scotiabank sold the first Canadian bonds backed by consumer lines of credit in 12 years. The highly rated issue sold at market, according to a Bloomberg report, at an impressive 78 basis points over similar-term Canadian government bonds. […]

Yields Spike. Fixed Rates May Follow – Ask a Vancouver Mortgage Broker

By Rob McLister, Editor, CanadianMortgageTrends.com   Yields Spike. Fixed Rates May Follow If you’re house hunting or thinking of refinancing, and you don’t have a mortgage rate hold, consider getting one. Canada’s 5-year bond yield just pierced a 3-month high. That means—barring a big reversal—there’s a good likelihood that fixed rates will ratchet higher. (Bond yields steer fixed […]

10 Quick Quotes from CAAMP’s Econ Panel

10 Quick Quotes from CAAMP’s Econ Panel This year’s CAAMP economic roundtable in Vancouver included chief economists from Scotiabank (Warren Jestin), National Bank (Stephane Marion) and Laurentian Bank (Carlos Leitao). Most of their discussion revolved around risk in some way or another. Here’s a quick rundown of 10 comments they made that stuck out: “The biggest risk […]

5 reasons why a fixed-rate mortgage could be your best bet

It’s a decision that millions of Canadian homeowners struggle with repeatedly during their time as homeowners: Do they choose the security of a fixed-rate mortgage, or opt for the flexibility (and usually lower cost) of a variable rate and hope that rates don’t spike higher? But right now, conditions in the mortgage market mean homeowners […]

Is it time to lock into a fixed-rate mortgage?

It’s one of the most agonizing decisions homeowners make: Do you go fixed or variable? Mortgage, that is. The decision could end up costing – or saving – big bucks on what is often the single biggest purchase many will make. Research shows that, in the past, a variable-rate mortgage has been cheaper than a […]