The Canadian Real Estate Association published national resale data for October early last week. Both sales volumes and average prices were about 7% higher than a year ago. The MLS Home Price Index rose by 5.5%.

CAAMP’s Fall survey report and analysis was published last week. It forecasts that the rate of growth in mortgage credit in Canada will likely slow over the next year.

CIBC Economics published research last week which looks behind the official immigration statistics and indicates that the number of non-permanent residents in Canada has been significantly under-counted, making suggestions of overbuilding less valid.

Statistics Canada released inflation data for October on Friday. Headline inflation was 2.4% (annualized) and core inflation (which excludes some volatile items) was 2.3%, well above the Bank of Canada’s estimate.

The benchmark government of Canada five year bond yield ended the week at 1.52%, unchanged from the previous week.

Annual State of the Residential Mortgage Market in Canada Significant Statistics

During 2014, 31% of Canadians obtained their mortgage from a mortgage broker,61% directly from a bank.

For mortgage holders who renewed their mortgage in the last 12 months, 78% saw a reduction in their rate.

Mortgage discounting remains prevalent across Canada, for a 5 year fixed mortgage the average discount was 1.85%.

69% of all outstanding mortgages are fixed rate, 24% variable and 6% combination.

For the past 12 months 76% are fixed rate.

In the past year, 38% of mortgage holders either increased their amount of payment, made a lump sum payment or increased their frequency of payments.

85% of all homeowners in Canada have 25% or more equity in their homes.

Mortgage credit growth will continue to slow, averaging 4.5% by end of 2015. Mortgage credit growth has averaged 8.1% per year during the past decade

70% of homeowners see their home as a place to live, 30% see it as an investment.

11% of all homeowners took out equity from their property last year with an average take out amount of $58,000.

Debt consolidation and renovation are the top two areas where money was used.

The average mortgage interest rate in Canada is 3.24%.

Spousal Separation – Maximum Loan-to-Value (LTV) In situations where two parties are on title to a property in the process of a legal separation where one party will keep the existing property, the following guidelines will now apply:

Applications may be submitted as a purchase loan up to 95 per cent LTV The following criteria will apply: Both parties must be on title to the property prior to the legal separation

The following documents confirming

the sale price and transfer of title must be on file: Finalized separation agreement

Offer to purchase Since this purchase transaction is non-arms length,

a full internal appraisal is required.

The mortgage cannot be used to payout debt unless it is joint debt.

The mortgage cannot be used to provide funds for renovation.

The guidelines are specific so please consult with a mortgage broker to get the paperwork correct!