I actually saw a blurb that the BOC or maybe it’s the federal government, might interfere directly in the currency market by SELLING our currency to try to decrease it’s value so that they can leave interest rates. So think about it, they lower interest rates and that causes a housing bubble, solution change mortgage rules because the economy needs the lower rates, that still isn’t enough so further tighten mortgage qualifications. Lower interest rates are still not enough to weaken currency which is hammering our economy, can’t lower interest rates anymore, solution, sell our own currency. Does anybody really know what they’re doing because I sure can’t figure it out. This won’t end well.

“For loans with a fixed rate term of less than 5 years and for all variable rate mortgages, regardless of the term, the qualifying interest rate is the greater of the benchmark rate, and the contract interest rate. For loans with a fixed rate term of five years or morw, the qualifying rate is the contract interest rate.”

I suppose this makes the five-year fixed the most popular mortgage term as we move forward.

If II opt for the three-year fixed term which is available today at 4.15% (RBC), the lender will determine if I can afford the payments using the current five-year fixed rate of 5.25%. If I opt for the five-year fixed they may qualify me using the special discounted rate currently offered on that product of 4.15%. Same scenario regardless of where I shop including a broker. Seems like a sound policy to me.

The first three weeks of April should be brisk at financial institutions, with everyone rushing out to get pre-approved before the cutoff date. The latter part of April and the month of May is shaping up to be a gong show for housing bids, as people face off against each other with their respective debt service ceilings. Then we’ll see another rush in June – right before interest rates get hiked. I think if you were planning to sell this year, you’ve got a 3-5 month window of peak opportunity (Mar-July).

Average house price $93000, that was probably census data from year 2000 and cited by someone in 2005???

Although it is wikipedia I almost spit out my coke.

Thanks for the props.

The Shelter Foundation is a terrific organization that does amazing work across Canada to support women and children who are fleeing abusive situations. It’s near and dear to my heart because I happen to know and love some women who have been subjected to abuse at some point in their lives. Guess what. You likely do as well. Sadly, we all do, because abuse against women is still all too common.

The Shelter Foundation has raised over $10 million dollars for shelters and violence prevention programs since its inception with momentum really building in recent years. It’s unique in that every penny of administrative costs are absorbed by Royal LePage, so every dime of every contribution we make finds its way directly into a shelter to do its work. Better yet, the foundation provides an opportunity for donors to direct their dollars to specific shelters. Consequently, every dollar raised or donated in Saskatoon is put to work in Saskatoon at either Interval House or the YWCA Crisis Shelter.

I am always reluctant to raise our involvement with the Shelter Foundation. I’m sure you can appreciate the conundrum in attempting to promote a worthy cause through ones business without coming off as braggadocious, or worse, to appear to be exploiting such terrible circumstances. At the same time, there is a growing passion inside of me to accelerate our efforts and do more, so I know I need to find ways in which I can comfortably discuss the foundation and the work that we’re doing to support it here in Saskatoon. Thank you for opening that door for me today.

This RBC study doesn’t suggest that these people think the average price is $182K, rather that they plan on investing $182K on average. Keep in mind that we’re also talking about a provincial study. The average selling price of a home between the two provinces is about $217K, and first-timers normally spend below the average.

Let me guess; you got laid off?

Nice to see you.

…it is almost like someone is manipulating the market with artificially low interest rates in order to spur economic growth…oh wait…that is exactly what is happening!

Bubble here we come!

“you are free to dispute me”

I know I’m free to do this, that’s what I just did.

Quite frankly, your numbers were cherry picked to highlight a point. You chose from the start of the fall boom until now. To get a true picture of relative ’seasons’ you would need to include another of the same… season. But to compare spring to fall just isn’t that meaningful.

If you ran a graph of the stock market from march 2009 when it bottomed out until now you could draw the conclusion that the stock market has to be the greatest investment ever, I mean it pretty much does nothing but go up! However, if you pulled the graph back to start of 2008 you would have a completely different perception. What you have done is the equivalent of drawing a graph from march 2009 until today.

Not to say your data is incorrect, I’m sure it is accurate. It just doesn’t have enough context to aid in analyzing a decision that involves several hundred thousand dollars.

Ya know, boom and bust cycles co-exist with monetary expansion (credit easing) and monetary contraction (credit tightening). Credit easing is like taking a manic’s drugs away, and credit tightening is prescribing the manic drugs. For the past couple years the real estate market has had no proper dose of calming drugs (fundamentals).

Mortgage innovations over the past years has been like an intern trying to find a better drug therapy for the manic’s desired lifestyle at the manic’s expense. Well, now that the intern sees that the doctors were right about the correct fundamental drugs. The intern agrees that due to the manic’s condition, the manic cannot sustain the lifestyle he seeks. The manic needs to be returned to the proper drugs with an increased dosage to get him to the rational state that will allow him to maintain proper levels of food, shelter, and water.

Like it or not, the new rules are an increased dosage of fundamentals. LOL

The dynamics have changed in 2 months?!
If everything changes every 2 months with minor rule changes that must mean a lot of people are living on the edge of being able to afford anything.

Maybe the dynamics have changed, but the fundamentals haven’t?
Probably all along for a few years now the fundamentals haven’t been up to matching the perceived local value of a 1950’s style house that wouldn’t have fetched more than $100,000 a few short years ago, but now is $250,000?

To me, sales look to be trending downward, and new listings are trending upwards since the announcement. In a normal season; which I think is illustrated in the graph from Dec09 to the announcement, sales and new listing trends are somewhat tracing each other in the same direction. The trend tracements of sale and new listings stops and does not continue after the announcement.

Again, if you wish to dispute me. You are free to insanely go back multiple years.

I’m tossing the survey in the garbage.

Anyhow, looks more like people are running to exit the market to me.
Nice fresh daily sales vs new listings graph at http://twitpic.com/17kg7b.