Photo Credit: Luiz Souza
In The News
November 10-15, 2019
Toronto & GTA
Canada’s National Housing Agency: Toronto Real Estate Market Now In Full Recovery Mode
CMHC has noted that home purchase activity has increased as overvaluation eased during the first quarter of 2019. The Toronto region “was recently named the fastest-growing city in Canada and the US, and the vacancy rate remains low at just 1.1%.”
Councillor calls on city to mull vacancy tax after man does own study of empty condos
Ward 9 representative, Ana Bailao, is calling for a tax on vacant properties in the City of Toronto after Jaco Joubert set up a camera to take photos of 1,362 units across fifteen condo towers at two different times of the year and determined that 5.6 per cent units were vacant.
Canada
B.C. creates new Crown agency to regulate real estate industry
The new crown agency, BC Financial Services Authority (BCFSA), to oversee the real estate industry in B.C. is a combination of the Office of the Superintendent of Real Estate (OSRE) and the Real Estate Council of B.C. (RECBC).
Canada needs to ditch its addiction to real estate and start investing in technology
Investment in machinery, equipment, and research and development has almost halved in comparison to investment in the national real estate industry which double to nearly eight per cent of the overall economy in the past decade.
B.C. Housing Transparency Rules 'Another Crushing Blow' To Vancouver Luxury Market
Amendments to the Business Corporations Act in B.C. will require private businesses to keep and maintain transparency records of beneficial owners.
Short-term rental tax barely helps address B.C. housing crisis, experts say
Despite every dollar from the short-term rental tax being placed into initiatives to construct affordable housing, it does not begin to put a dent into the housing crisis experienced in B.C. “21 per cent of B.C. renters spend more than half of their income on rent and utilities, while the Canadian average is 18 per cent.”
USA
Bidding wars for homes hit a decade low
According to business activity at Redfin, multiple offer scenarios decreased 39 per cent in October from the same time last year. “The supply of homes for sale priced below $200,000 fell 15 per cent annually in October, according to realtor.com.”
NAR's ban on pocket listings leaves major loophole, consumer advocates say
The National Association of Realtors (NAR) have voted to limit pocket, or exclusive listings, which will require brokers and salespersons to upload a property listing onto the MLS within 24-hours of it being marketed by any means.
Co-living real estate trend has renters saving thousands
Millennials, downsizers, and others priced out of rental markets in urban centres are turning to co-living arrangements, according to Zumper. “The number of co-living units available from house companies in the U.S. is slated to triple to 10,000, according to a co-living trend report from real estate firm Cushman & Wakefield.”
High-End Homes Start to Move in Manhattan After Stagnant Few Months
Within the past week, twenty contracts were signed for homes priced over $4 million dollars in Manhattan. The average days on market for luxury property has increased to 487 days from 444 days from the same time period last year.
U.S. Fed buys $1.8 billion of mortgage bonds, sells none
The Federal Reserve bought $1.754 billion of agency mortgage-backed securities during the week and did not sell any mortgage securities.
International
Greece's Eurobank selling 84 million euros property portfolios to Brook Lane
Greece’s HFSF owns 2.4 per cent of the Eurobank and it is making a move to sell two real estate portfolios worth a combined $122 billion Canadian while planning to put a third up for sale.
At US$145,000, Malaysian homes get cheaper for foreign buyers. Will locals pay the price?
The threshold for property purchases by foreigners in Malaysia has been lowered to US$145,000, nearly a 40 per cent decrease. This move has been completed in order to solve the glut of high-rise inventory.
U.S. Buyers Flock to London for Luxury Homes for Less
Increased taxes on the purchase of real estate in concert with Brexit uncertainty has sent prices in the London down since 2014 and the lagging value of the pound has presented opportunity for buyers from the U.S. Buyers from the U.S. have become the second most active group of international buyers.
New Zealand's median house price at record high after passing $600k for first time
The median price of a house in New Zealand broke through $600,000 for the first time, an increase of 8.2 per cent in October.
Goliaths of India Property Rise as Slowdown Swallows Small Firms
As many as five hundred private developers are facing bankruptcy during India’s credit crisis and unsold inventory. Now, consumers are pouring into the nation’s publicly traded developers, setting up the stock market for its “biggest annual gain since 2017.”
Bengaluru to take 15 months to clear unsold housing stock, Delhi-NCR needs 44 months: Anarock
Real estate projects in India have a glut of unsold inventory that will take a minimum of fifteen months to get absorbed by consumers.
