Selected Updates on the National Housing Market
As we get closer to the federal election, housing has become a hot topic on the campaign trail. And understandably so, consdiering the rapid changes it has seen in recent months. For instance, the home rental niche may take the back seat compared to the usual home buying and home selling trends. However, the latest news in the industry is shifting to topics about rentals and how it affects the choices of today’s Canadian market and homeowners.
According to the Better Dwelling website, the NDP housing plan that includes rental subsidies is something that key industry players are closely looking into and taking into consideration:
“Only 17 days until the election, and all parties are promising helicopter money for housing. The NDP plan, with rental subsidies, is probably the most well-intended one. Rather than using tax dollars to help buy investments, they're focusing on core needs. Even if they're only looking to help low-income renters, there are broad implications for both non-subsidized renters and homebuyers.” - Via betterdwelling.com
Livabl.com, on the other hand, recognises the trend and sees that renting is not going anywhere any time soon especially for the growing number of Canadian homeowners. The prospect of renting in connection to bringing in more retirement income gets a highlight in their report:
“A new survey from Canada’s largest bank has revealed that more and more Canadians would consider downsizing or renting instead of owning so they could generate more income in retirement.
Results from the 2019 RBC Retirement Myths & Realities Poll found that 52 per cent of non-retired respondents aged 50-plus said they would downsize or rent instead of owning, up from 36 per cent in 2018. This was a Canada-wide average, with respondents in British Columbia and Ontario being more likely to consider downsizing or renting and Quebec respondents being less likely to consider those options.” - Via livabl.com
Even with the heightened interest in rentals, there is another side of the coin that is noteworthy in the Canadian housing market today. Zoocasa.com reiterated that even though many homeowners are considering home renting, there is also a rising demand for detached houses in big cities, such as Toronto:
One sign that buyers are returning with larger budgets is the uptick in demand for single-family detached houses, which led the GTA market in terms of sales growth.
It is interesting to note that market conditions for detached houses have tightened over the past year. In many of the regions surrounding the City of Toronto, detached price growth was above the rate of inflation on an annual basis,” stated Jason Mercer, TREB’s chief of market analysis.
TREB also points out that strong population growth is fuelling demand for housing throughout the region, with the most recent data from Statistics Canada recording the highest 12-month increase ever, which will contribute to pressure on rental and ownership housing. - Via zoocasa.com
The ever-changing Canadian housing market makes you realise nothing is permanent in the industry.