Stephen Punwasi

Canadian bank loans to real estate developers doubled in a year, after taxpayers de-risk lenders. Even without defaults, households will pay.

BMO expects the Bank of Canada to hold rates in June as a weak economy has yet to slow inflation, while gov spending plans may accelerate it.

Canada’s surging rents have more to do with financialization than fundamentals, according to a new University of Waterloo study. Researchers from the School of Planning conducted a deep dive into Toronto’s rental market and found the most aggressive rental hikes came from large financial landlords. By using techniques like vacant units, algorithmic pricing, and systematic […]

Canadian politicians are promising to build millions of homes—an unrealistic plan not grounded in reality. The good news is the country doesn’t need millions of homes to correct the housing shortage, according to BMO Capital Markets. In a new report, the Big Six bank argues that decades of underbuilding is a myth, and the issue […]

Canadian mortgage borrowers waiting on the central bank may be disappointed by its latest move. The Bank of Canada (BoC) cut its overnight rate by 0.25 points to 2.75% on Tuesday. Many professionals applauded the decision, believing it would improve mortgage affordability. Unfortunately, that may not be the case, as the decision boosted inflation expectations […]

Canada’s sharp policy turns have dramatically impacted the quality of life. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) data reveals that most people are highly satisfied with life and that share was rising in Q4 2024… but only for seniors 65 and older. The general sentiment in the country continued to erode, especially amongst the critical demographics of […]

Canadian real estate sales are returning to normal, but prices suffered another setback last month. Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) data shows the price of a composite benchmark, or typical, home, fell in December. Despite demand returning and an ambitious start to 2024, the year closed out with losses doubling the rate seen a month […]

Canadian real estate has seen some positive growth but won’t recover to peak valuations for another half decade. That was the take from BMO Capital Markets, who sees demand getting a boost from a few factors including cheaper, easier credit. However, they don’t see home prices returning to their peak until 2029, as a combination […]

Canada’s central bank is still trying to reel in the mass liquidity injections it made in 2020. A new report from National Bank of Canada (NBF) explains they see quantitative tightening (QT) making progress in 2025. The Bank of Canada (BoC) policy reverses liquidity introduced during quantitative ease (QE) in 2020, and will raise borrowing […]

The number two at Canada’s central bank just made it clear she isn’t a policy cheerleader, like the Governor has been in recent months. Bank of Canada (BoC) Deputy Governor Carolyn Rogers addressed finance professionals at the Economic Club of Canada last week, explaining the usual mortgage market risks. It got more interesting when she […]