Relax….it’s looking like we can all breathe again. After a fast paced, whirlwind market the past while, things are finally starting to slow down a little. This is great news for those who have been waiting to buy or sell but were intimidated by the high price tags of homes due to competition, bidding wars and “bully” offers.

Home sales in the Greater Toronto Area have taken a decided downturn. The month of June 2017 has shown us a lower number of home sales than for the past several years in the same month. This could be partially due to new Government regulations imposed recently on home sales, as well as a long time coming increase in The Bank of Canada’s Interest Rate.

Ontario has now imposed a Non Resident Speculation tax (read: foreign buyer) on home purchases in many of the higher populated cities in Ontario. British Columbia did this prior to Ontario and this tax promptly cooled the hot BC real estate market. It looks like it may be starting to have the same effect on Toronto’s as well. Another tax in the works is a Vacancy tax, in which property owners who are not occupying their house(s) and instead buying for investments will be subject to this extra tax. These and several other recent regulations will be coming into play or have been implemented already. And it appears that if the aim is to cool down the market, it’s working.

Another reason for this swing could be the increase in the Bank of Canada’s interest rate. Although a quarter point may seem such a minuscule percentage, it can add up to big bucks by the time you’ve finished paying off your mortgage over 25 or 30 years. This new higher interest rate also means it is more difficult to get approved for a mortgage in the first place. Higher interest rate equals higher mortgage payments.

Many real estate experts are predicting that this market stabilization period will be short lived, and before long we will see it take off again. Although nobody has a crystal ball, if you’re thinking of buying, this might not be a bad time to do it. Even if the market stays calmer for longer than predicted, buying now means months if not years of paying down your mortgage, therefore contributing to an investment.

So if you’ve been wanting to move, get going! Give Augusta Movers a call and book that moving truck, before the market swings again.