The IMF has recently issued another warning about Canada’s high housing prices and the levels of consumer debt, and has urged the Canadian Government to introduce more tightening to mortgage lending.  The upcoming Federal election may save us from the Government acting too quickly, but don’t hold your breath.  If the price trends in Vancouver and Toronto continue, I suspect they will act now and not wait until after the election.  It is possible that we may see a ‘qualifying’ requirement upon your mortgage renewal. 

In the meantime, below are some solutions that may help with your next home purchase or refinance:

• 90% rental offset:  This treatment of unauthorized or legal suites can make a huge difference to obtain the financing required or obtain a variable rate mortgage.
• New low fixed rate with cash back: Currently I have a lender willing to provide cash back with 5 year fixed rates as low as banks rates. Requirements are more difficult, but this is a great offer for those who qualify.
• Construction draw mortgages:  A great product for customers looking to build their home and allows great flexibility to meet your builders draw requirements.
• Private lending options: This can be a great solution to access up to 90% of the equity in your home to bridge time to allow customers to qualify back to discounted rates or to pay off debts which are at much higher rates.

The Bank of Canada kept rates on hold last week but fixed term bond yields have increased over the past three weeks.  This may indicate that a jump in fixed term mortgage rates is on the way. 

(Surrey, BC) – In February, sales of all property types in the Fraser Valley increased by 21 per cent in one year with demand for two property types in particular - single family detached homes and townhomes - outpacing supply.

Last month, the Fraser Valley Real Estate Board processed 1,337 sales on the Multiple Listing Service® compared to 1,102 sales in February of last year. New listings in February totaled 2,610 which added up to 7,864 active listings, up from January’s 7,307 but a decrease of 4 per cent compared to February 2014’s 8,210 active listings.

“It was our busiest February since 2007,” says newly elected Board President Jorda Maisey. “In my community of Langley, the average number of days to sell a detached home is now less than one month and it’s a challenge finding the right product for some of our buyers, however every area is different. To understand the market for your home in your neighbourhood, talk to your REALTOR®.”

A measurement the real estate industry relies on to gauge the health of the housing market is the ratio between sales and active listings. For the Lower Mainland, the balanced range is between 12 and 20 per cent; which means when it’s less than 12 it favours buyers and greater than 20 it favours sellers. The ratio in February for single family detached homes was 26 per cent; townhomes 22 per cent and apartments 12 per cent.

Maisey adds, “Our best seller in the Fraser Valley remains the single family detached home, followed by townhomes in part because almost half our buyers are families with children, but also because these products are so much more affordable in the Fraser Valley. With a typical townhome costing less than $300,000 and interest rates so low, many first-time buyers are finding they can get more for their money here.”

The MLS® HPI benchmark price of a Fraser Valley single family detached home in February was $581,400, an increase of 4.2 per cent compared to February 2014 when it was $558,100.

In February, the benchmark price of townhouses was $297,200, a decrease of 0.6 per cent compared to $298,900 in February 2014. The benchmark price of apartments also decreased year-over-year by 1.8 per cent, going from $193,200 in February 2014 to $189,700 in February 2015.

Across Fraser Valley, the average number of days to sell a single family detached home in February was 41 days, ten days faster than last year. Townhouses on average took 55 days to sell; one day faster than last February, while Fraser Valley apartments sold on average in 70 days, on par with February 2014.

CMHC announcing fee 15% fee increases begining may 1st. Now is the time to get pre approved and take advantage of the current lower rates.

UPDATE: Since the CMHC premium hike, the largest private mortgage insurer, Genworth, has announced that its premiums will increase to match CMHC’s effective May 1.

The Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation has announced 15 per cent increases to the premiums on its mortgage insurance. These will come into effect for new CMHC-insured mortgages taken out May 1, 2014 or after.

• If you already have a CMHC-insured mortgage or mortgage approval, your premiums will stay the same.
• If you refinance and still require CMHC insurance, your premiums will then go up.
• If you submit an application to CMHC before May 1, your premiums will be at the old rate. Therefore, if you plan to buy a home soon and have a down payment of five to 20 per cent, you can save yourself about $5 per month by buying and nailing down your mortgage before the May 1 deadline. Check with an independent mortgage broker to find out how much you qualify to borrow so you can search within your price range.
• If you take out a mortgage after May 1 that requires CMHC insurance , these will be your premiums.

Mortgage insurance is required on all mortgages that meet these criteria:

• Down payment of 5-to-20 per cent of home’s value
• Maximum amortization period: 25 years
• Maximum home price: $999,999
• Maximum amount to refinance a mortgage: 80 per cent of home’s value

You can only qualify for CMHC insurance if your maximum gross debt service (GDS) is 39 per cent and your maximum total debt service (TDS) is 44 per cent. These numbers refer to the percentage of your income needed for all housing costs (GDS) and the percentage required for GDS plus other debts (TDS). Some lenders may have more stringent guidelines.

Again, a mortgage broker can give you guidance.

Please find attached a copy of CMHC`s "just released" Housing Market Outlook for Canada for Q1 2014.  BC specific information is on page 8.

Date Released: First Quarter 2014

Canadian Housing Market: Housing starts

to remain stable in 2014 and 2015 

 

Housing starts: While housing demand will be supported by an improvement in fundamentals, total housing starts will remain more or less stable over the forecast horizon.With a relatively high number of units under construction in some local markets, builders are expected to adjust the pace of new activity in order to manage their inventory levels. 

Click CMHC Housing Market Outlook Q1 2014 for the full report.

 

Fraser Valley's housing market quiet, yet stable in 2013

Want to learn more about our discount commission model? Check out our new Prezi Presentation located on our "Home" page or Click Here. Great saving for our Sellers and always offering FULL Buyer's Realtor fees for our fellow Realtors. Check it out and let us know your thoughts. ;-)

Just update our website with a new auto search page for all Langley Houses, check it our here: http://www.surreyhomesales.com/LangleyHouses.ubr

Time to list your home is now! The 3 year sales volume trend shows FVREB sales spiking between Feb and May. To ensure that you are well positioned and get ahead of the curve list your home now before the inventory swells in Feb and Mar. Call Scott and Marcella at 604-595-2896 for more info and a free market evaluation.

Click here to view the stats

Well were staring to get a bit nervous, tomorrow is the start of the big ride!! Always so much to do at the last minute. I would like to make a shout out to Arlen Quashie for all his excellent advice and letting me use his newer bike, my family Marcella, Kat and Sue for putting up with my constant training, Mom & Dad for thier constant support and of course everyone who has supported with donations and encouragement….together we can! 

Still $500 short of my goal so any last minute donations are greatly appreciated ;-) I believe you can donate right up to Sunday by using the link HERE!

Thanks again everyone!


 

Training update. Havent been able to ride outdoors this week due to weather so I have focused spinning (riding bike on rollers indoors). Sat I got in 1 hour in the am and another 1.5 hours session in the evening while watching hockey game on my computer LOL. Sunday was a day of rest and then this afternoon another 1 hour cruising in top gear ;-)! Cant wait to get back out on the road and my goal is to do a min 40km ride this week. A special thank you to Natasha Williams who's donation pushed me to 16% of my goal. Click below if you can help and thanks again everyone!