Continuing weakness in the U.S. economy may force the Bank of Canada to put interest rate hikes on hold after September, notes a new report from CIBC World Markets Inc. “North America’s story is again darkening,” says CIBC’s Chief economist in the latest Global Positioning Strategy report. “We were looking for a material second-half slowdown […]

The Bank of Canada today announced that it is raising its target for the overnight rate by one-quarter of one percentage point to 3/4 per cent. The Bank Rate is correspondingly 1 per cent and the deposit rate is 1/2 per cent. The global economic recovery is proceeding but is not yet self-sustaining. Greater emphasis […]

There will be fewer homes sold this year, but for more money than initially thought, the Canadian Real Estate Association said Friday. CREA downward revised its 2010 housing market forecast after a weak spring buying season in four of Canada’s most crucial markets. National sales activity via the Multiple Listing Service is now expected to […]

A chill swept Greater Victoria’s summer real estate market last month when both the volume of sales and average prices dropped significantly. In July, 527 properties changed hands — down 43.5 per cent from the same month in 2009 during a red-hot market. The total value of July sales through the Victoria Real Estate Board […]

Home buyers can expect more choice and lower prices in the second half of 2010, while sellers can expect fewer offers for their homes, says one of Canada’s leading real estate brokers. “Accurate pricing is going to be really key,” said Phil Soper, president and chief executive of Royal LePage Real Estate Services. In its […]

Canada enjoyed another big month for employment in June, churning out a whopping 93,200 new jobs — almost all in Ontario and Quebec and all in the services sector. The strong performance brings the jobless rate to 7.9 per cent, the first time it has been under eight per cent since the depths of the […]

There is a lot to consider when deciding whether to go for a fixed or variable rate mortgage — not least, your tolerance of risk and your ability to sleep at night. Generally, fixed rate mortgages charge a higher rate and cost more, but payments are fixed for the term of the mortgage so you […]

TORONTO — The harmonized sales tax about to take effect in British Columbia and Ontario is proof of Benjamin Franklin’s assertion that “in this world nothing can be said to be certain, except death and taxes.” Funerals are just one of many services and goods previously exempted from provincial sales taxes that will be subject […]

Buyers backed away from Canada’s housing market in May, driving sales lower in what is traditionally the busiest month of the year for the country’s real estate agents. The housing market has been key to Canada’s economic recovery, as low  interest rates and pent-up demand drove buyers into the market after months of stagnation in […]

  Ottawa — Bank of Canada governor Mark Carney has had a busy time of it since taking over as the country’s central banker 27 months ago, mostly tackling the financial crisis, mapping out the road to recovery and reassuring Canadians that at the end of the day the bank’s extraordinary policies would work. The […]