Author: homegoal.ca

Canada’s housing market is set to experience changes in 2025 due to economic uncertainty, shifting immigration policies, and evolving real estate trends. In its Housing Market Outlook for 2025, the CMHC has indicated that, while the economy is expected to grow at a modest pace, factors like lower mortgage rates and updated mortgage rules will drive a recovery in housing sales and prices. However, affordability challenges and regional differences will create an uneven recovery across the country.  The CMHC developed a tiered set of forecasts, ranging from a slower recovery due to economic challenges to a stronger rebound driven by…

Fresh off putting its multi-building Yonge Corporate Centre on the market earlier this month, Toronto-based Cadillac Fairview — the wholly-owned real estate subsidiary of the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan — has now also put two office towers in downtown Vancouver on the market. The two towers are located at 700 West Pender Street and 750 West Pender Street in the heart of downtown Vancouver, and make up the entire block between Howe Street and Granville Street. Both towers rise 16 storeys, with 700 West Pender housing 141,772 sq. ft of Class B office space and 750 West Pender housing 141,758…

Canadians are paying a lot more for a lot less, even when it comes to construction investment. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) data shows that investment in building construction ended the year much higher in December. Before getting too excited, a quick dive past the headlines into the agency’s data in real (inflation-adjusted) terms tells a very different story. The vast majority of investment growth is being consumed by inflation. Since rates hit a record low in 2020, over 70% of investment in building construction growth was non-productive. Bluntly put, the stimulus is making each dollar less effective at actually producing…

Short-term rentals (STRs) have become a significant and controversial part of the global housing market, and Canada is no exception. With platforms like Airbnb and Vrbo, many homeowners have capitalized on the booming tourism sector by offering their properties for short stays. However, this growth in STRs raises important questions about their impact on long-term housing availability.  According to recent data from Statistics Canada, as of 2023, there were 107,266 short-term rental units across the country that could potentially serve as long-term dwellings. This represents about 30.2% of all STRs in Canada. These units are typically entire homes listed for…

No BS. No Fridge Magnets. No Such Thing as a Bad Question. A Weekly Real Estate Advice Column from the BREL team. Dear HOMEROOM, My girlfriend and I saved some money to buy a new home. With a little help from her parents, we can do it. Her parents live out of the country, so they want us to buy a home with an in-law suite where they can stay when they visit. They are retired and miss their daughter, so sometimes their visits last two or three months. Do you think this is a good idea? – Homeowner or…

Realtor.ca has introduced two new features for property listings in Saskatchewan. Updates include the addition of a publicly displayed “conditional sale” status and enhanced search fields to provide more detailed information about property locations, according to a press release from the Saskatchewan Realtors Association (SRA). Realtor.ca Conditional sale status now displayed   Saskatchewan listings on Realtor.ca will now show a “conditional sale” status when an offer has been accepted but the sale has not yet been finalized. Previously, listings remained active on the site until a sale was firm. “Saskatchewan’s housing market has been experiencing record demand for the past…

Calgary’s real estate market is one of Canada’s most dynamic, offering a range of housing options that cater to diverse lifestyles and budgets. Unlike other major Canadian cities, such as Toronto and Vancouver, where high property prices often push buyers into small condos, Calgary offers a unique mix of urban high-rises, inner-city infill homes, master-planned suburban communities, and even sprawling estate properties. This variety makes Calgary an appealing destination for buyers seeking affordability, space, and strong long-term value. The city’s economy, historically driven by the energy sector, is diversifying, attracting new residents and investors.  Jesse Davies, leader of the Jesse…

With much of the GTA waking up to a fresh blanket of this morning, many of us will be walking — and shovelling — through a winter wonderland today and tomorrow. Everyone knows (or should know) that big fines are in store if you fail to shovel the snow outside your home. But what if you rent your property? Is it still your responsibility, or your landlord’s? That’s the $500 question. According to Section 20(1) of the Residential Tenancies Act, “a landlord is responsible for providing and maintaining a residential complex, including the rental units in it, in a good…

While homeownership is getting further out of reach for many, rental affordability is improving across the United States. So how large is the gap between renting and buying right now?  At the start of 2024, average 30-year mortgage rates were high at around 6.6%, but many were hopeful that interest rates would decline after the Federal Reserve lowered its federal funds rate. Rather than improving, current mortgage rates are higher than they were a year ago. Fannie Mae predicts the year will finish with rates around 6.5%, not much lower than in early 2024, and not likely low enough to…

Montreal’s real estate market kicked off 2025 with a bang, marking the completion of a two-year recovery. With January sales and prices climbing at a steady pace, the city is once again one of Canada’s hottest housing markets.   Sales rebound to pre-pandemic levels   RBC economist Robert Hogue writes in his monthly housing report, “Another strong advance in January effectively sealed the deal on a two-year-long market recovery in Montreal.” By his count, seasonally adjusted and annualized resale transactions surpassed 54,000, bringing activity back to pre-pandemic levels—when the city was already booming.   The Quebec Professional Association of Real…