Measures for individuals Alternative minimum tax (AMT) rules expanded to apply to more high-income earners. Qualifying family members measure for RDSPs will be extended by three years to 2026, and expanded to include siblings 18 and older. The maximum educational assistance payment (EAP) withdrawal for the first 13 weeks of enrollment increased to $8,000 (full-time […]

Federal Budget 2023…Press the Snooze Button As promised, there would be nothing much in this year’s budget for fear of stimulating inflation. The federal government faces a challenging fiscal environment and a weakening economy. Ottawa promised it would err on the side of restraint. Instead, Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland announced a $43 billion increase in […]

The government of Canada just dropped its 2023 budget. Like last year, there were no major mortgage bombshells. Below is a quick rundown of the budget updates with lending relevance. Rate and inflation impact We haven’t had a chance to dive deep into the inflation ramifications but suffice it to say, the budget’s projected $43 […]

Housing Marketing Could Be Poised For a Spring Rebound The Canadian Real Estate Association says home sales in February bounced 2.3% from the previous month. Homeowners and buyers were comforted by the guidance from the Bank of Canada that it would likely pause rate hikes for the first time in a year.  The Canadian aggregate benchmark […]

Further Decline in Inflation in February Will Keep the Bank of Canada On Hold in April All eyes will be on the Federal Reserve tomorrow when they decide whether to hold rates steady because of the banking crisis or raise the overnight rate by 25 basis points (bps). Before the run on Silicon Valley Bank, […]

Weathering a Turbulent Market In spite of predictions to the contrary, COVID-19 did not bring the mortgage sector to a screeching halt. Throughout 2021, despite new virus variants and a roller coaster of lockdowns, the volume of mortgage deals kept brokers working overtime to keep up with the demand. This year is shaping up to […]

Our team wanted to give you a big hello and hope you had a wonderful week. In case you missed it, we wanted to take a moment to share an article from Zolo, discussing the emerging housing trends in 2023 so far. Some key findings from this report include that: 55% of Canadians create a […]

According to the Canadian Real Estate Association, the Spring market is anticipating a drop in home prices edging down approximately 6% from 2022, putting the average home price at $662,103 in 2023. The downward trend stems from rising interest rates and continued uncertainty in the marketplace. In some cases, sellers have taken their homes off […]

Did you know? March is fraud awareness month in the mortgage industry, which makes this is a great time to talk about title insurance! As our insurance experts, FCT is a leading provider of title insurance and has some helpful information for you:  For those who don’t know, title fraud can impact both homebuyers and […]

New research shows that the bank of mom and dad or other family support is more important than ever for Canadians getting into the housing market. The research comes from Zolo, a national real estate marketplace, which goes as far as to say borrowing from family is “becoming mandatory” to enter the market. Zolo’s insights are […]