News

CHBA Home Buyer Preference Survey – The Largest Market Research Study in Canada SIGN UP ENDS DECEMBER 8TH The CHBA has launched the fourth National Home Buyer Preference Survey in partnership with Avid Ratings Canada, and this is a valuable opportunity for home builder members from our local HBA. If you participate in the survey, […]

On Wednesday, October 26th at the Net Zero Energy Housing Council meeting, members were the first to get a look at the new Net Zero Home branding. It included the new Program name, logo, and tagline as well as key messaging such as the “elevator pitch” and some language/copy on the main benefits of these […]

Looking for a rewarding career with great prospects for employment today and in the future? Then take a close look at the residential construction industry. Building and renovating homes combine practical skills with creative thinking. It is a great fit for those who thrive on challenges, who like working with others, and who love seeing […]

Some Fixes to Recent Mortgage Insurance Rule Changes As you are aware, on October 3rd, Finance Minister Morneau announced a tightening of rules on mortgage insurance. CHBA is concerned that these new rules go too far, and will harm markets that are already challenged while doing little to address the ongoing supply pressures evident in […]

By Jason Miller   BELLEVILLE – The city’s building department is working in conjunction with a provincially-run agency to stop illegal builds like the dream log home of a Napanee couple bilked out of $850,000 in construction costs and left without a place to call home. “They left them with the walls of a log cabin, no […]

Home Hardware Announces Geerlinks Home Hardware Building Centre as Store of the Year   St. Jacobs, ON, May 2, 2016 – Home Hardware Stores Limited is pleased to announce the recipient of the annual Walter J. Hachborn Store of the Year Award. Now in its 19th year, the award pays tribute to the top store […]

Understanding the importance of building permits Building permits are a formal permission for the construction, demolition or alteration of a home, and acquiring them can be a complicated process. Bryan Tuckey So, you’ve decided to renovate. A home renovation is a great way to increase the value, not to mention your enjoyment of your home. […]

Nothing is ever free, someone has to pay. Therefore when Ontario’s Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing announced on Monday that it will be proposing legislation for “inclusionary zoning” my first reaction was: ‘new homebuyers are going to have to pay more.’ While Monday’s official press release sounds good, it is very concerning to anyone […]

Understanding the true cost of an underground economy By Anita De Vries   Cheap is expensive. That was the message given to Parliamentary Assistant Laura Albanese on Monday, January 11, as she began consulting with the building industry on the Underground Economy. The residential construction sector comprises almost 30% of Ontario’s underground economy, which amounts […]

Province aims to tackle underground economy TORONTO—The province is looking for input from Ontario’s construction sector on ways to deal with the underground economy. In particular, Ontario is hoping to gather feedback from individuals who work in residential construction on how to prevent illegal practices that contribute to the underground economy such as under the […]

40 years of protection and advice BY HOWARD BOGACH   A few months ago, I took the trip of a lifetime and travelled throughout various parts of Asia. I made my way around Macau, Vietnam, Phnom Penh, Ho Chi Minh City, Siem Reap, Hanoi and Hong Kong. I noticed a stark contrast in building standards; brand new condominium towers not far from run-down shanty homes. It was a blunt […]

Review of Tarion long overdue Agency which is supposed to fight for new home buyers victimized by shoddy workmanship, often doesn’t By: Rosario Marchese   If you haven’t bought a new house recently, you may not have heard of the Tarion Warranty Corporation, and you may not care about the provincial review of Tarion announced […]

The New Home HST Rebate – Beware the Traps for the Unwary By: Carl Irvine, Jamie M. Wilks The New Home HST Rebate In Ontario, the purchase of a new (or substantially renovated) house or condominium (collectively a “Home”) is subject to Harmonized Sales Tax (“HST”). However, a new Home buyer may be entitled to […]

Ontario says cities outside Toronto cannot charge land-transfer tax Ontario backs down on municipal land transfer taxes, as they would add thousands to the cost of homes. By: Rob Ferguson Cities and towns outside Toronto will not be allowed to charge local land transfer taxes on property sales that would add thousands of dollars to […]

The underground economy – work undertaken on a “cash-deal” basis – is a growing critical concern of renovator members. According to the CHBA’s Winter 2011 Pulse Survey, over the last two years, the number of renovator members who reported it as a critical problem has risen from 17 per cent to 54 per cent today. […]

By: Tamsin McMahon Canada’s housing market is set to cool over the next two years as the frantic pace of both new home construction and existing home sales in some markets slows down, the country’s housing regulator predicts. National existing home prices will end this year at an average of $437,000, Canada Mortgage and Housing […]

The Ministry of Government and Consumer Services has recently confirmed that it will undertake a review of the protections offered to new home buyers under the Ontario New Home Warranties Plan Act (known by many as Tarion). In the context of this review, Justice Cunningham, former Associate Chief Justice of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, will […]

The highlights of CMHC’s First-Time Homebuyers Survey The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) has released the results of its 2015 First-Time Homebuyers Survey. The survey was conducted online last April and there were 788 participants from across Canada. They had all purchased their first home in the last year and were one of the […]