A balanced market is a healthy and sustainable market. Thankfully, we are just now starting to see signs of the market returning to “normal”. There is still plenty of activity and sales happening but not at the feeding frenzy pace we’ve come to see in the past several months. We are witnessing fewer offers on homes, offers now including subjects, and sale prices coming closer to the asking number.
Top 3 Things You Need To Know that may help you to navigate the turning market.
- Where is the marketing going? the real estate market is starting to return to a more normalized setting. Buyers and sellers will have more time to shop for homes and to conduct their due diligence such as including subjects to their offers. As for prices, we have not yet seen a decline but we should expect some changes soon.
- Buy/Sell Now Or Wait? the answer is, it depends… What is your motivation for moving? If you are a first time home buyer, it may not be a bad idea to wait just a little longer. Soon you may have more listings to choose from and less competition to navigate through. If you are selling and moving, remember, you are buying/selling in the same market so there is not a lot to be gained by waiting in this case. If buying before the new proposed stress test is your motivation, then acting now could be the right choice. The new stress test of 5.25%, if implemented by OSFI, will reduce your buying power by 4%-5%. Canadians with uninsured mortgages may need to qualify at 5.25% even if the actual or contract rate is lower. This will prevent some from making the jump from a condo to a townhome or a townhome to a single family house.
- AccessingYour New Found Home Equity – many choose to start working on home improvements during the spring and summer months. If you were planning on accessing your home equity to help fund your projects, now may be a good time to do so. The combination of high home valuations and low interest rates create a great borrowing opportunities, when done responsibly.
If you have any questions, please reach out by phone or email and we’ll be happy to provide as much information as possible.
