New federal incentive for first-time home buyers to launch Sept. 2 – Globe and Mail
The federal government released new details of its First-Time Home Buyer incentive Monday, including that its ultimate cost to home buyers will rise or fall in direct proportion to the value of the property. The program will launch Sept. 2 – more than a month before Canadians head to the polls – according to new details released.
Canadian Home Affordability Sees Biggest Improvement In A Decade – Huffington Post
It’s a bit premature to say houses in Canada are affordable again ― in fact, it’s way too premature to say that ― but … the latest housing affordability monitor from National Bank of Canada shows the cost of owning a home, relative to income, saw its steepest drop in a decade in the second quarter of this year. The last time affordability improved this much, it was due to a sharp slowdown during the financial crisis of 2008-09. This time around, it’s falling mortgage rates, combined with rising wages. It took 45.1 per cent of an average household’s income to afford the mortgage on a median-priced home in the 11 major cities covered by the report, down from 48.7 per cent in the space of just three months. Still, it’s well above the 30-per-cent mark that is generally considered affordable.
Commentary: The critical line in this article (and unlike its misleading headline), is: “Most potential buyers excluded by (the mortgage stress test) still are,” [National Bank economists] wrote. CHBA will continue to call on the current government and opposition parties alike to adjust the stress test to better align it with current market conditions and the plight of first-time buyers. Learn more about CHBA’s recommendations to improve housing affordability by reading CHBA’s submission for the House of Commons Finance Committee’s consultation for Budget 2020
The Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, today announced the creation of a new advisory committee to help promote apprenticeships and skilled trades across Canada … The advisory committee will lay the groundwork for a national campaign to encourage apprenticeships and promote the skilled trades as a career of choice. They will lead consultations, explore partnerships, and provide advice to the Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Labour.
Commentary: CHBA welcomes the creation of a new advisory committee to help promote apprenticeships and skilled trades across Canada. The Association is looking forward to consulations on how the new strategy can promote the skilled trades for young people in the residential construction industry. According to BuildForce Canada’s Residential Summary 2018-2027, the residential construction industry will need to attract and train approximately 137,000 workers over a ten-year period (2019-2028) to keep up pace with anticipated retirements and increased demand.
Are you concerned about housing affordability? – Affordability.ca
As the Association gears up for the 2019 federal election campaign, a new blog post on affordability.ca is encouraging Canadians to share their stories on the website. The post states that “[t]here are many factors affecting Canadians’ ability to afford their own homes. Tell us about your experience. Are you facing any roadblocks as you try to become a homeowner? What are they? If you bought a home not long ago but faced challenges along the way, please share what they were.”
