'He's in our hearts': Family and friends still seek answers one year after Nathan Wise’s disappearance
It’s been a year since Nathan Wise went missing and his family is no closer to finding out what happened to him.
The Bank of Canada's decision to delay a rate hike for five more weeks will add fuel to Canada's scorching housing market as buyers scramble to clinch deals before borrowing costs rise, realtors said.
The Bank of Canada held its overnight rate at a record low 0.25% on Wednesday, but warned multiple increases would be coming soon. The U.S. Federal Reserve separately also said it would start hiking soon.
"Any hint of interest rate increases, any hint that it's about to go up, makes people nervous," said Lisa Bednarski, a Toronto real estate agent. "They want to buy before their buying power diminishes."
Canada's housing market has been on a tear throughout much of the pandemic, with prices up 39% nationwide from February 2020 to December 2021. In November and December alone, home prices jumped 4.5%, compared with a 3.7% gain in all of 2019.
Forecasts are mixed for 2022, with the Royal Bank of Canada seeing home prices up 3% this year and brokerage Royal LePage forecasting a 10.5% gain.
While the early rush was mostly end users seeking out larger properties with space for offices, gyms and living, by mid-2021 investors had taken hold of the market, according to agents. A recent Bank of Canada study found investors now account for more than 20% of home purchases.
Supply, meanwhile, has reached historic lows, realtors say.
With few options on the market, many end users are holding back - especially current owners who already have a foothold in the market, said real estate agent Peter Kiriazopoulos.
Investors are another story.
"My investor clients - they're not too picky," said Kiriazopoulos, who sells in Toronto's suburbs. "They just want to move so they can close at a lower interest rate."
Right now, a typical Toronto area home may have 15 buyers putting in offers. A hike would have cut that by a third, said mortgage broker Ron Butler. Instead, all those bidders will be ready with their best offer for another five weeks, he said.
"It is a little sprinkle of lighter fluid," said Butler. “In the psychology of the public, it’s a moment of relief.”
The Bank of Canada acknowledged low interest rates play a role in home-price escalation, along with increased investor interest, but suggested the solution was outside their policy mandate.
"The bank's view is that the most important thing that will restore balance to the housing market in Canada is an increase in supply," Senior Deputy Governor Carolyn Rogers told reporters on Wednesday. "Supply has not kept pace with demand."
But some economists disagree. Derek Holt, head of capital markets economics with Scotiabank, expects prices to surge again over the next few weeks until the Bank hikes, likely on March 2.
"The Bank of Canada seems to be dramatically downplaying the role of easy money as a contributor to hot housing markets," Holt said.
It’s been a year since Nathan Wise went missing and his family is no closer to finding out what happened to him.
Dozens of Ontarians are expressing frustration in the province’s health-care system after their family doctors either dropped them as patients or threatened to after they sought urgent care elsewhere.
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
Amazon's paid subscription service provides free delivery for online shopping across Canada except for remote locations, the company said in an email. While customers in Iqaluit qualify for the offer, all other communities in Nunavut are excluded.
The fire burning near Fort McMurray grew from 25 hectares to 5,500 hectares over the weekend.
Russia’s President Vladimir Putin began a Cabinet shakeup on Sunday, proposing the replacement of Sergei Shoigu as defence minister as he begins his fifth term in office.
Police are searching for a male suspect after a man was “slashed in neck” on Sunday morning in downtown Toronto and died.
There were some scary moments for several people on a northern Ontario highway caught on video Thursday after a chain reaction following a truck fire.
Health Canada announced various product recalls this week, including electric adapters, armchairs, cannabis edibles and vehicle components.
English, history, entertainment, math and geography: high school trivia teams could be quizzed on any of it when they compete at the Reach for the Top Nationals in Ottawa in June.
An Ottawa pizzeria is being recognized as one of the top 20 deep-dish pizzas in the world.
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A Listowel, Ont. man, drafted by the Hamilton Tigercats last week, is also getting looks from the NFL, despite only playing 27 games of football in his life.
The threat of zebra mussels has prompted the federal government to temporarily ban watercraft from a Manitoba lake popular with tourists.
A small Ajax dessert shop that recently received a glowing review from celebrity food critic Keith Lee is being forced to move after a zoning complaint was made following the social media influencer’s visit last month.
The Canada Science and Technology Museum is inviting visitors to explore their poop. A new exhibition opens at the Ottawa museum on Friday called, 'Oh Crap! Rethinking human waste.'
The Regina Police Service says it is the first in Saskatchewan and possibly Canada to implement new technology in its detention facility that will offer real-time monitoring of detainees’ vital health metrics.
Just as she had feared, a restaurant owner from eastern Quebec who visited Montreal had her SUV stolen, but says it was all thanks to the kindness of strangers on the internet — not the police — that she got it back.