Why more Canadians are raiding their RRSPs

Why more Canadians are raiding their RRSPs

For the past 22 years, the Home Buyers’ Plan has helped more than 2.5 million Canadians borrow money from their RRSPs to help make the dream of home ownership a reality. However, the $25,000 maximum that can be withdrawn per person doesn’t give prospective homeowners a lot to work with.

The reasoning behind this plan is fairly straightforward. First-time home buyers (or anyone who hasn’t owned his or her primary residence in the past five years), are permitted to take up to $25,000 from their retirement savings without penalty as long as it is paid back within 15 years, which starts two years after the withdrawal occurs.

If you are buying with your spouse or common-law partner, it is possible to withdraw…

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Calgary real estate slides again in November as prices drop 5.1%

Homes sold last month sat on the market for an average of 45 days

There are more homes for sale in the city than last year and they're sitting on the market for longer, while selling for less, according to data from the Calgary Real Estate Board. (Sheryl Nadler/CBC)

Home sales and prices continued their year-over-year decline in November, according to the latest aggregated data from the Calgary Real Estate Board.

A total of 1,263 homes were sold in the city last month, down 28.7 per cent from November 2014.

Average sale prices were off 5.1 per cent year-over-year, sliding to $460,859.

Median prices, meanwhile, were down 4.2 per cent to $410,149.

The number of active listings stood at 5,316, up 31 per cent from a year earlier, while the…

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Real estate, low dollar keep B.C. in the black

The B.C. government expects to finish the fiscal year next March with a $265 million surplus, thanks to surging property transfer tax revenues and a lower Canadian dollar that helps everything from tourism to the movie and TV industry.

Government revenues have declined due to lower natural gas, metals and other natural resources, Finance Minister Mike de Jong said Tuesday in his second quarter financial update. But with a continued hot real estate market in southwestern B.C. and housing starts running above average, property purchase tax revenue is $150 million ahead of the February budget forecast.

Retail sales are running 7.2 per cent ahead of last year for the period of April to August, with vehicle and parts sales up 9.5 per cent and food and…

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Kamloops Real Estate Sales - November 2015

The Kamloops and district real estate association have just released the latest statistics for home sales in November.
Aberdeen proved to be the top seller this month with 20 sales. Sahali with 14 sales including 2 sales over the $600,000 mark and Juniper Heights with 11 sales also including 2 over $600,000 scored highest for total value of sales.

Why not have a look at the communities and see what is currently for sale on our KAMLOOPS COMMUNITIES real estate page.

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British Columbia house prices forecast to keep climbing into 2017

Canada’s most expensive housing market will continue to see price gains well ahead of the rate of inflation for the next two years, according to a report from a group which represents credit unions in British Columbia.

Central1, which acts as an association for credit unions in B.C. and Ontario, now says the median sale price of a home in Greater Vancouver will climb another 6.1 per cent in 2016 after a 4.5 jump this year. In 2017, the organization is predicting a 3.8 per cent increase.

“Metro Vancouver home prices have remained in the spotlight, keeping the housing affordability debate percolating in the news and social media,” wrote economist Bryan Yu, the author of the report.

His forecast comes as the Real Estate Board of Greater…

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Understanding Strata Fees

Condo living definitely has its perks. You can take advantage of amazing locations in the heart of urban centres close to public transportation. You can be a part of a community and you don’t have to spend your days doing yard work or home maintenance. But, best of all, you can enjoy convenient amenities like fitness centres, party lounges and pools, all at your doorstep. Sounds great, but how does this affect your bottom line? When purchasing a condo you want to consider your monthly strata fee.

What are strata fees and how are they determined?

Your monthly strata fee is money that’s used by the strata corporation to pay the common expenses of the development. Your individual fee is assessed by taking the total cost of the strata’s expenses and…

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Five signs the B.C. economy is weak and what this means for Budget 2016

This week, the provincial government released its 2015/16 Second Quarterly Report: an update on where provincial finances are at six months into the fiscal year and where the economy is heading.

The news is not very good. 

B.C.'s economy is expected to do better than other provinces this year, but that's largely because of weakness elsewhere (especially in resource-dependent provinces like Alberta). Private sector forecasters have lowered their projections for this year's economic growth in B.C. to 2.2 per cent (from 2.7 per cent this time last year). Projections for next year are more optimistic (2.6 per cent) but they should be taken with a grain of salt, given the record of overly optimistic forecasts in the last few years.

1. No recovery…

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Toronto passes Vancouver as focus of Chinese investors

During a recent visit to New York, Simon Henry chatted with a real estate broker who was trying to negotiate the sale of a Manhattan apartment to a wealthy buyer from China. The seller refused to drop below $5.2-million (U.S.) and the buyer was equally adamant that he wouldn’t go above $5-million.

The frustrated broker couldn’t understand why the buyer was being so intractable. The Chinese businessman explained that he was buying the apartment for his daughter to live in while she attended school and he insisted on strictly adhering to the budget he had set.

“Anything over $5-million, I’m afraid it will go to her head,” he said.

As the co-founder of the Shanghai-based real estate portal Juwai.com, it’s the type of anecdote that Mr. Henry hears…

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How transportation impacts real estate prices

Being around public transportation wasn’t always a good choice when it came to real estate. After World War II, downtown living was frowned upon and people flocked towards the suburbs in order to find larger and greener land. As a result, real estate prices rose outside the city.

Fast forward to today and we’re seeing the opposite effect. People want to live in the downtown core and public transportation is at the forefront of political debate.

Billions of dollars are being spent on new subways and streetcars in cities like Toronto and Vancouver. Calgary and Ottawa are also beefing up its public transit service in response to a higher demand from residents.

In fact, every major city across Canada has plans to focus on public transportation. It’s a…

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Canadian home sales rebound in October

Ottawa, ON, November 16, 2015 - According to statistics released today by The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA), national home sales increased in October 2015 from the previous month.

Highlights:

• National home sales rose by 1.8% from September to October.
• Actual (not seasonally adjusted) activity was little changed (+0.1%) compared to October 2014.
• The number of newly listed homes was up 0.9% from September to October.
• The Canadian housing market remains balanced overall.
• The MLS® Home Price Index (HPI) rose 6.7% year-over-year in October.
• The national average sale price rose 8.3% on a year-over-year basis in October; excluding Greater Vancouver and Greater Toronto, it increased by 2.5%.

The number of homes trading…

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