Ottawa tops the list for homes selling over asking in Ontario

[Eaglelord17]

I think there is also something to be said for a free market economy, and the ability for people to manage their wealth ( Even if it is in the form of home equity).

So do you believe we have a free market economy, or do you believe we have controls on it? Either our current system is Socialist as we have restrictions on who the banks can lend money to, restrictions on how you buy homes, etc. or it isn't (and the answer is it isn't as a Socialist housing system would be more like what Nunavut has on the go).

Look at the interest rates, we should be at about 5% right now, not .25%, that is direct market manipulation. That alone would be enough to cause the housing market to cool off very quickly. But the precious economy would have to function as it should and punish those who overreached.

There is a distinct issue with the housing market, not found in pretty much any market other than the food market, and that is that it is a necessity of life. For that whole reason there needs to be reasonable controls on it.

 

[Bluebulldog]

Look at the interest rates, we should be at about 5% right now, not .25%, that is direct market manipulation. That alone would be enough to cause the housing market to cool off very quickly. But the precious economy would have to function as it should and punish those who overreached.

I think this has been the main reason why the BOC hasn't pushed prime higher....we don't want to recreate what occurred South of the border in 2008.

There is a distinct issue with the housing market, not found in pretty much any market other than the food market, and that is that it is a necessity of life. For that whole reason there needs to be reasonable controls on it.

Not necessarily arguing on that one, BUT ...I think the entire process needs an overhaul, including real estate law as a practice.

 

[Eaglelord17]

I think this has been the main reason why the BOC hasn't pushed prime higher....we don't want to recreate what occurred South of the border in 2008.

100% we would have a recession and it wouldn't be a good one. Unfortunately the solution was to gradually raise interest rates, we aren't interested in doing that. If all we are doing is prolonging the inevitable and refusing to do anything to fix it/reduce the harm of it, then we should just accept what is coming to us.

 

[OceanBonfire]

...

However, there are some really crummy real estate agents and practices taking place as well.

Real estate agents make used car salesmen and lawyers look honest by comparison.

Too many of them are flipping homes for a while now:

'Housing porn': Vancouver home flipped 3 times in 3 years, most recently for $6.3M

A series of multimillion-dollar home sales involving the same Vancouver property is raising eyebrows.

bc.ctvnews.ca

And rent in Vancouver is now on average more expensive than in Toronto:

Rent in Vancouver $330 more expensive than Toronto, study suggests

Vancouver has once again topped the list as the most expensive city in Canada for renters, with tenants forking over up to $330 more per month on a one-bedroom suite than they would at a Toronto rental unit of the same size, according to a pair of new studies.

bc.ctvnews.ca