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Buyers Forgoing Home Inspections in Competitive Ontario Housing Market

The best way to describe the Ontario housing market today? Sizzling, on fire, red-hot. From its major urban centres to the rural communities, every corner of the province is witnessing record sales activity and exorbitant price growth. For years, only the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) and Ottawa enjoyed a red-hot real estate activity in Ontario. But…

Canadian Real Estate Renovation Trends

Canadians invest in home renovations to improve quality of life, not to add value in current Canadian real estate market Challenging Canadian housing market conditions put additional importance to home renovations since the start of COVID-19, both for those looking to stay and those selling More than half of Canadians renovated their home in 2020…

5 Reasons Your House Is Not Selling

If you’re shopping the housing market, scrolling the daily real estate listings becomes second nature. Wake up, now what? Check the listings. Lunch break at work, check the listings. Email notification from your real estate agent? Check the listings. LISTINGS ARE LIFE. The new ones immediately catch your eye and ignite a flicker of excitement…

Canadian Real Estate and the New Mortgage Stress Test (June 1)

Homebuyers entering in the Canadian real estate market are facing a slightly bigger obstacle starting today, with the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) implementing a higher threshold for the mortgage stress test. Under the new rules, the minimum qualifying rate for uninsured mortgages – those where buyers have a down payment of 20 per cent or more…

How Do You Buy A Home in a Seller’s Market?

It’s expected that the majority of Canadian housing markets will sit in seller’s market territory in 2021. This is great news if you already own a home and are considering selling it. On the other hand, those who have their sights set on buying their first home this year will face some challenges. How do you…

7 Tips to Make Moving With Kids Easier

Let’s face it, moving is hard for everyone. Big moves bring up all sorts of feelings, from stress to uncertainty, and excitement. Luckily, there are a few actions you can take before the big day to make moving with kids easier on them – and you. Tips for moving with kids Little People, Big Dreams…

What are the risks of selling a home yourself?

We’ve all seen the videos, read the stories, and gasped at the images of people who thought they could conquer a project that would have been better left to the professionals. There are entire Pinterest boards reserved for those who have failed, and compilation videos on YouTube. While we are always ones for instilling confidence…

Mortgage Pre-Approval: What Lenders Want to Know

A mortgage pre-approval is an important first step in the home-buying process. Having a pre-approval in hand tells you how much you can spend on a home, and it locks in the current low interest rate for up to 120 days, so you can shop the market knowing you’re insulated from rate hikes in the near future. If the…

Will the Bank of Canada hike interest rates in 2017?

The Bank of Canada’s latest interest rate announcement has been trending since its last announcement six weeks ago – and for good reason. The big banks often follow the Bank of Canada’s lead when it comes to setting their interest rates for mortgages, home equity lines of credit and other loans. While the Bank didn’t…