3 HOUSING EXPERTS WEIGH IN ON WHAT’S MISSING IN NEW BRUNSWICK HOUSING POLICY
A rent cap, tax reform and funding for a broader spectrum of housing are three of the keys to solving New Brunswick’s housing woes, according to people with close eyes on the sector. “The crisis is continuing,” said Julia Woodhall-Melnik, a housing researcher with the University of New Brunswick in Saint John. Rents are up about 10 per cent in the last year, encampments have grown around cities and unaffordability has increased in rural areas, she said. Woodhall-Melnik is in...
read moreBLUE MOUNTAIN COUNCIL REJECTS RENTAL HOUSING PROJECT … AGAIN
For the second time in two weeks, Town of the Blue Mountains council has rejected a developer’s request for help to speed up a proposed rental housing project. At its recent meeting, in a 4-3 vote, council rejected a new motion to explore all planning process options available to move forward a proposal to build a significant rental housing project not far from the Village at Blue. Councillors Paula Hope, Gail Ardiel, June Porter and Alex Maxwell combined to vote against the resolution that...
read moreCANADIAN TEMPORARY RESIDENT GROWTH FALLS 48%, LONG “OVERDUE”: BMO
Canada’s policymakers went from explaining that millions of temporary residents are needed, to cheering on the reversal of their policies over a few short months. Statistics Canada (Stat Can) data shows the flow of non-permanent (temporary) residents slowed in Q2 2024. After doubling in a couple of years, the temporary population remains robust but marks a stark shift in policy. Consequently, one of the country’s largest banks is telling investors to pay close attention, as it can mean big...
read moreEDMONTON RESIDENTS EVICTED BY FEDS FROM AFFORDABLE GRIESBACH RENTALS
Rows on rows of aging red brick townhomes sit around a quiet grassy courtyard in a residential area of north Edmonton. Empty, lifeless.Until a few months ago this part of the Griesbach neighbourhood was bustling with activity: groups of children playing and roaming the vast green space, birds singing, adults walking dogs after work. One of these townhouses was Laidler’s home for more than a decade.Hers and 173 other families were evicted by their landlord, federal Crown corporation Canada...
read moreINVESTORS CONTINUE TO DEMONSTRATE CONFIDENCE IN MULTI-SUITE RESIDENTIAL AND INDUSTRIAL SECTORS
According to Morguard’s 2024 Economic Outlook and Market Fundamentals Second Quarter Update, the Canadian commercial real estate sector showed positive momentum in the second quarter, the multi-suite residential rental property investment remained largely stable due to healthy fundamentals and there was a surge in industrial investment property transactions. In terms of the rest of 2024, further rate cuts by the Bank of Canada and a continued easing of inflationary pressure are anticipated and...
read moreTORONTO CALLS ON RESIDENTS TO WEIGH IN ON A NEW RENOVICTIONS BYLAW
The city of Toronto is set to gather feedback from the public this month on a plan for a new bylaw that would crack down on illegitimate evictions. City staff hope the feedback from both tenants and landlords will help in drafting the renovictions bylaw. Renovictions occur when a landlord illegitimately evicts a tenant, claiming they require a rental unit for renovations or repairs. That can lead to significant rental increases or refusing to allow tenants to return to their homes, according...
read moreCANADA TO ROLL OUT NEW STEEL TARIFFS, HOME BUILDING COSTS TO RISE
Canadian home building costs surged as rates were cut, and stimulus fueled record demand. Policymakers assured households that it was just supply shortages and the inflation was transitory. Supply chains will scale up and prices will come down, eventually. That day is finally here for steel. It turns out that was never the goal. Earlier today, the Government of Canada (GoC) announced it will impose import tariffs for steel imported from China, the world’s largest producer. The politics of the...
read more‘DEMAND, DEMAND, DEMAND’: INVESTMENT RED HOT IN CALGARY’S RENTAL REAL-ESTATE MARKET
Investment in Calgary rental properties almost doubled over the first six months of 2024 — a response to the city’s skyrocketing population and rent prices, one expert says. The data comes amid Calgary’s third-highest six-month stretch of commercial real estate investment since 2013, showing the greatest amount of interest in rental properties and industrial land. But while greater investor interest in rental properties could be a positive signal for renters weary of increases to their monthly...
read moreB.C. LANDLORD CAN INCREASE RENT 23.5% BECAUSE OF VARIABLE MORTGAGE: ARBITRATOR
A potentially precedent-setting ruling from the Residential Tenancy Branch has prompted B.C. Minister of Housing Ravi Kahlon to review regulations for special rent increase applications from landlords. At issue is a recently published May 8 ruling that allowed a landlord to increase rent by 23.5 per cent for four tenants. The landlord claimed that their increase in mortgage financing costs, due to a sharp rise in interest rates in 2022, “could not have been foreseen under reasonable...
read moreWHY CANADIAN LANDLORD GROUPS SAY PUSH TO VOID ‘NO PET’ CLAUSES IS ‘UNFAIR’
As a petition is being pushed to end pet restrictions in rental housing, some organizations representing landlords in Canada are cautioning voiding such clauses in the proposed federal renters’ bill of rights could create conflicts. Last month, Humane Canada started a parliamentary petition asking the House of Commons to include a specific provision for tenants with pets in the proposed bill of rights, calling for “no pet” clauses to be voided “so that tenants with pets are no longer excluded...
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