Craig Doherty REALTOR® I Sotheby's International Realty - Lions Bay, Howe Sound, Sea to Sky, West Vancouver, Squamish

Easy "Greening" For Your Home

Posted on May 25, 2015

Now is a great time to take steps toward saving energy and reducing the environmental impact of running a home. While replacing those old leaky windows and installing ceiling fans are great ideas, there are also small things that can be done around the house to lower energy consumption and reduce your carbon footprint. Here are some simple, sustain...

"No Need For Immediate Housing Policy Shift" - Finance Minister

Posted on May 23, 2015

Finance minister Joe Oliver says that there is no need for the federal government to make any immediate shifts in housing policy. Speaking Thursday at the Bloomberg Canada Economic Summit Mr Oliver said that if a need arises the government will act as appropriate. He also paid tribute to the work of the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation for m...

PM & BC Premier say "No" to taxing foreign investors

Posted on May 16, 2015

Both the prime minister and premier of B.C. have both ruled out taxing foreign investors in a bid to curb rising house prices in Vancouver.

Stephen Harper said the Conservative government would not introduce the measure; he also spoke of concern at the level of household debt, including mortgages in some households. He also reiterated that he believ...

Buyers Prefer Quality Over Size

Posted on May 14, 2015

Canadian homebuyers are willing to compromise on the size of their new home but some things are not negotiable. That was one of the findings in a survey of 12,000 homebuyers conducted by the Canadian Home Builders’ Association. Its inaugural survey of the preferences of recent homebuyers found that 35 per cent would like a single-family detached 2...

Can't Have a Debate Without Data

Posted on May 12, 2015

I read this brief article on Canadian Real Estate Wealth:

"MP Calls For Data on Foreign Ownership: Kennedy Stewart, the MP for Burnaby, has once again called for a housing study to be conducted by government agencies and for these to include data on foreign ownership.

Stewart says that CMHC and Statistics Canada need to do the work as cities don’t ha...

Why Rates Won't Rise...Anytime Soon

Posted on May 11, 2015

Warren Jestin, the chief economist for ScotiaBank, said Canada’s central bank likely won’t raise interest rates, possibly until the end of next year.

Jestin pointed to several reasons behind his forecast, each of which he said led to the Bank of Canada’s concern for the economy, which, in turn, is keeping rates low.

The first concern is the low value...