Tag: housing

Renters in Canada Face Toughest Market in Decades Amid Surging Demand, High Prices: CMHC

Renters in Canada are facing the toughest market in decades as surging demand and high prices meet some of the lowest national vacancy rates in decades, according to the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC). The national average vacancy rate for purpose-built rental apartments declined to 1.9 percent last year—the lowest level since 2001, the housing agency…


Conservatives Lead Liberals by 8 Points as Inflation, Housing, and Health Care Become ‘Most Important Issues’: Poll

The federal Conservatives have gained an eight-point lead over the Liberals as over 70 percent of Canadians do not think the minority government is focused enough on addressing cost of living, housing, or health care, according to the latest poll by Abacus Data. The survey, conducted online with 1,500 Canadian adults from Jan. 27–30 and…


Tories Lead Liberals by 8 Points as Inflation, Housing, and Health Care Become ‘Most Important Issues’: Poll

The federal Conservatives have gained an eight-point lead over the Liberals as over 70 percent of Canadians do not think the minority government is focused enough on addressing cost of living, housing, or health care, according to a poll by Abacus Data. The survey, conducted online with 1,500 Canadian adults from Jan. 27–30 and in partnership…


Capitol Report: Biden Says Time to End COVID Emergency Amid Calls to End Sooner; Santos Steps Away From Committees

After three years, the White House plans to end the COVID-19 emergency. House Republicans agree and are pushing a bill to do just that, but only sooner. Many have been calling for Rep. George Santos (R-N.Y.) to step down. On Tuesday, Santos said he will step down—but not from his House seat. Activists are calling…


Homeless Fixes Not Working in California

Commentary Some things new laws just can’t fix. You first must change the old laws. That’s turning out to be the case with the drive to build new housing to deal with homelessness. Senate Bill 9 was passed in 2021 and is called the Housing Opportunity and More Efficiency Act, or HOME Act. Here’s the…


Housing Will Remain Depressed

Commentary With the Federal Reserve (Fed) committed to raising interest rates still further, the future of the housing market remains problematic. The higher mortgage rates rise, the less affordable housing will become for the average American. Buying and building will accordingly fall even farther than they already have. In time, however, a counter-trend will likely…


Capitol Report: Will McCarthy Be the Next Speaker of the House?; Biden to Appear With Mitch McConnell in Kentucky

Congress is gearing up for what’s expected to be a historical vote for House speaker. Rep. Kevin McCarthy (R-Calif.) proposes key rule changes. What are those and why are some Republicans still not convinced? President Joe Biden is returning to a changed Washington. What’s at the top of his New Year’s to-do list as Republicans take…


Canada Economic Outlook for 2023: How Bad Could a Likely Recession Be?

News Analysis A trio of economy-related questions being asked as the calendar turns to 2023 are, how bad will the potential recession be, by how much will inflation come down, and will the Bank of Canada have to start cutting interest rates? A recession for an open, medium-sized economy like Canada’s seems unavoidable given that…


What to Do If Your House Won’t Sell

Commentary Due to the Federal Reserve increasing interest rates at a record pace, the housing market has come to a standstill. While we aren’t seeing dramatic discounts yet, significant price decreases are on the horizon as sellers will be forced to lower their prices to sell their homes. This is great news if you’re a…


$97.2 Billion to Build Homes for the Homeless?

Commentary California and its cities are being hit with a spate of proposals to deal with the homelessness problem. New Mayor Karen Bass of Los Angeles even declared a state of emergency on the crisis. At the state level, the California Homeless Housing Needs Assessment, in the summary of a new report, calculated the problem…