Real Estate Insiders, this is a big one! Welcome back to our August recap covering everything from why office-to-apartment conversion is harder than it sounds, to saving taxes on your primary mortgage, to what happens to greedy mortgage lenders. Grab yourself a coffee and let’s dive on in!

Starbucks Isn’t The Reason You Can’t Afford A Home

While ten-dollar coffees don’t help, they’re not the reason young buyers are facing the most expensive housing market in history. It mostly has to do with construction and regulation. Read more about the challenges these buyers are facing and why the solution may take time. 

Why Are Houses So Expensive?

Neighbourhood Capital Protection: A Fancy Word For “NIMBY-ism”?

This blogger feels that de-zoning America is not the way to increase supply and create affordable housing. Instead we need to get creative with new developments moving forward to see what works. Singapore and Germany are examples of two vastly different housing policies that both seem to be successful in their own way.

Read: Home Is Where The Cartel Is

CRA Clapping Back At Landlords Who Claim A Loss

The CRA is sending out letters asking landlords who have claimed a loss on their rental property to explain how they plan to make their unit profitable in the coming years. The main reason for this is to see what the owner’s intentions are for the property and not to fund the lifestyle of speculators. Find out why you might want to think twice before claiming a loss on your investment property.

Read: Investor Home Owners Looking For A Tax Break On Losses Wait For CRA’s Tap On The Door

A Warning To Lenders: Don’t Take Advantage Of Mortgage Holders

Canada’s financial consumer watchdog released guidelines to help large mortgage holders who are being burdened by the increased costs associated with inflation and interest rates. While these guidelines aren’t specific, there may be repercussions for lenders who won’t play ball.

Read: Watchdog Unveils Guidelines To Support Mortgage-Holders Under Financial Stress

Did We All Miss The Housing Market Correction?

You would think with the inflated prices on homes from the pandemic—mixed with the rapid and substantial rise in interest rates over the past year—that we would see a major market correction. However there is a statistic that may be holding it at bay, and that is housing inventory! Being the lowest on record, we may have already experienced the worst of the market correction.

Read: Is That It For the Housing Market Correction?

Converting Office To Apartment Complex Is Just That—Complex!

This blogger explains why increasing inventory by converting unused office to apartments is anything but a simple solution.

Read: A New York Property Developer Explains Why Converting Offices to Apartments Is So Complex

VTB: The Right Tool For Me?

VTB or Vendor Take Back Mortgage may be making a comeback as interest rates continue to climb. When done right, this method of financing could be a win-win for both sides. Would you be a good candidate to hold or receive a VTB on your next real estate transaction? Find out here.

Read: The Return Of The Vendor Take-Back Mortgage

Multiple Offer Disclosure Form Introduced In British Columbia: Is Ontario Next?

Have you ever been curious if the number of offers received on a property was legit? This form will list each offer received and name of the brokerage it came from in an effort to improve transparency and trust in real estate transactions.

https://realestatemagazine.ca/b-c-boards-introduce-new-disclosure-form-for-multiple-offer-situations/

Selling An Occupied Rental Property: Stuff You Should Know!

If you own, buy, or sell an occupied rental property in Canada there are certain regulations and procedures that could result in heavy fines if not followed. Learn about them here, because knowledge is power!

Read: Selling Your Occupied Rental Property

The Ultimate Garden Suite: Q&A Session

Manny from Garden Suite answers the top 10 most frequently asked questions about mini homes!

Tired Of Being Unable To Deduct Anything From Your Primary Mortgage? Read This!

Implemented and executed correctly, this method will see your mortgage principal drop while allowing you to write off a significant amount of interest costs. Don’t just take our word for it—read all about it here.

How to Turn Your Mortgage into a Tax-Deductible Machine

Are You Wealthy? Find Out Here!

Wealth isn’t necessarily dictated by the number of zeroes in your bank account. There are many forms of wealth and the customization of the word to fit your lifestyle is what can lead to true happiness. Discover some other non-traditional forms of wealth and how to obtain them.

Read: Some Other Forms of Wealth

Fail To Plan, Plan To Fail

A shortage of municipal planners across Ontario does not bode well for the housing shortage in the short or long term, creating longer wait times for all developments. If you were thinking of going back to school, this may be the perfect time!

Read: Shortage of Planners Does Not Bode Well for Home Building Industry

The Pros & Cons Of Owning A Rental Property

Many of the pros and cons can be quantified on a spreadsheet, but some important ones are behavioural and depend completely on the person or situation. If you have or are thinking of getting a rental property, read this!

Read: The Pros & Cons of Owning a Rental Property

The Race To More Supply: How Does Your City Stack Up?

If you’re like us and from Windsor, the answer is “not well”. Read here to see how cities are doing in meeting their projected housing targets and some of the obstacles standing in their way.

Read: How Each Ontario City Is Doing On Hitting Provincial Targets For Building New Homes