Which of the MLS should be dealt with by accredited specialists and which shouldn’t, is the the debate which worries professional housing agents. While agents normally welcome competition, 85.9% believe that that ‘the push to foster increased competition in my industry will result in lower customer service standards,’ due to potential entrance of amateur service providers, who wouldn’t be able to offer the fundamental safeguards to protect consumers. The market is already highly competitive according to most agents, with less than 2% stating there was no competition, within the housing brokerage climate.

The survey also tried to find in what way real estate specialists help buyers and sellers in completing their transactions. There were many options given, but the essential three items were: Optimizing and protecting client’s monetary well-being, carrying out the transaction in a timely manner and providing the full package of brokerage services. From the results we can see that most realtors have or have in the past helped a customer avoid financial problems, with less than 1% saying they haven’t. “This financial support is given frequently” stated over half of the realtors, though 37.1% said they gave this support often. When looking at the market side of their obligations, the survey showed that professionals were active in this area. Some of the ways professionals market real estate are through MLS Toronto, open home, websites including their own and advertising properties locally.

Membership of Royal LePage for an average of 15 years was a frequent answer when professionals were directed to answer questions on professional development, along with visiting formal courses and seminars up to four times per year.

This survey was Internet based in April 2010, the full details can be found on the Royal LePage Real Estate Advisors website.

Comparing the Canadian market against the rest of the world, looks like Canada doing much better and there are several points why. Speaking to the experts, most say that this recovery is mainly due to the low interest rates put in place by the Bank of Canada. When looking at the rates in the USA, although we see low rates as well, they didn’t have the same result as seen in the Canadian real estate market.

The Canadian mortgage area was not as damaged with sub prime mortgages as seen with the US market. Canada gave these subprime loans to between 5 and 10% of the borrowers, unlike the US who’s subprime loan market was a gigantic 22%.

The Canadian banks also have frequently satisfactory reviews, according to the World Economic Forum, Canadian banks are the solid in the world. Furthermore, the tough financial stand has also helped Canada avoid the subsequent credit crunch.

Since last summer our economy has seen jobs appearing so despite the fact we had a jump in unemployment like the US, it has improved quicker. In addition, Canada’s social setup helped to reduce personal bankruptcies.

In conclusion the Canadian real estate market is unquestionably very solid. Unfortunately with news this good people are starting to mutter about the prospect of bad news, in the not so distant future, for the housing market. I don’t think this is the way forward, for a number reasons.

Interest rates are being kept stable until at the summer, we were told by the Bank of Canada. Rates will rise as summer arrives and we have already seen some mortgage rates increasing a bit. We are also coming closer to the removal of the First-Time Home Buyers’ Tax Credit, which is in all likelihood going to have an impact on the real estate market. Since the autumn 2009 we have seen a shortage of new listings on the market; this is no longer the issue. Jay Banks of Vancouver Lofts notes: “There has been an enlarging influx of new listings over the last 2-3 months, which has helped to stabilize the inventory level.”

More levelled sales and prices of properties settling at reasonable figures, is probably going to be the outcome of all these points starting to come together.

There are many seperate types of listings within MLS and the concern surrounds which of those listings should mainly be dealt with by accredited professionals. Over three quarters of those who expressed their concerns, were disturbed by the fact that by not regulating listings, the service and safeguards to customers could fall dramatically. Deregulation will open the market to more competition, but the majority of agents think the market is already extremely competitive with very few only seeing it as only competitive and even less seeing it as not competitive.

The survey also tried to discover in what way real estate professionals help buyers and sellers in completing their transactions. When a client is looking to buy or sell a house, the majority of professionals gave the following as their main considerations: Optimizing and protecting client’s monetary well-being, carrying out the transaction in a timely manner and providing the full package of brokerage services. Over 99% of those realtors polled, said that they had helped their clients avoid the financial pitfalls with buying and selling a property. More than half of those polled helped clients very often, with just over 37% saying they helped often. When looking at the market side of their obligations, the survey showed that agents were active in this area. Over three quarters of those agents said they often used methods including MLS Toronto, conducting an open home, websites and local advertising.

Lastly, the question about experience and continued education revealed that agents have been members of Royal LePage for 15.5 years on average and almost 90% of them participate on formal conferences, seminars or courses one to four times a year.

This survey was web based in April 2010, the full details can be read on the Royal LePage Real Estate Advisors website.

There are hundreds of tiny projects within the action plan which implement spending to aggregate sales in the market. The Gross Domestic Income (GDI/GDP) in Canada stands at over 4%, due to the stimulus package, higher than the USA and one of the largest worldwide.

Tax strain and how to cut it

Cutting taxation is a large part of the Action Plan. The tax cutting lures related to the real estate market are: – House improvement tax credit: $2.5 billion (for the year 2009-2010). – $15 million to be allocated for the expansion in Home Buyers’ Plan withdrawal limitations. – $175 million allocated for First-time Home Buyers’ Tax Credit.

These three tax discount lures have already been smoothly carried out and millions of Canadian citizens already benefit from some of these. Since earlier in the year, whilst not the most conspicuous, the First-time House Buyer’s Tax Credit helped boost a very quick property rebound all over Canada. Property owners making use of the property renovation credit have noticed their positions strengthened when coming to sell their homes, along with an increase in the market value of the property.

Stimulating housing builds

In spite of the fact that some realtors specializing in resale homes are not too inspired about new construction, in the long term it is definitely important for a healthy real estate environment and also for real estate agents themselves. The new build construction has been boosted by many causes which include direct spending from many projects and the tax relief earlier mentioned.

There are around 7,000 housing and infrastructure projects originating from the plan, of which more than 4,000 have already commenced. Over the fiscal years 2009-2010 about 300 social housing projects will be initiated with over $1 billion dollars of the plans cash.

But the actual overall budget for this category is in excess of $9.5 billion. These actions are indeed appealing for realtors because of the consequences on the local real estate market. In one of our earlier articles Move Ontario we discussed the details on how infrastructure projects influence values of properties in their vicinity. Social housing increases the supply of homes and affects both the resale and rental market, introducing more affordable properties for low income social groups.

This is especially important mainly for realtors that specialize in directly influenced neighbourhoods lying within the effective closeness of a particular project. Projects that require builds help the labor market, providing jobs, therefore money in your pocket, which leads to the ability to purchase your own home, which leads to more housing needed; a profitable circle alround.

The Action Plan and its strength

The slump is now seeing an upward turn with the real estate market being one of the first areas to see a return. The kick start to the housing market is accepted to be evoked by the monetary policy according to many realtors. Nevertheless, fiscal stimulus plays its own bit. Although the plan is very expensive we can say it has a confident effect on the real estate sector and we know that a healthy real estate market is an indication of a healthy national economy.

Scrutinizing the Canadian market against the rest of the world, sees Canada doing much better and there are several reasons why. Speaking to the professionals, many say that this recovery is primarily due to the low interest rates put in place by the Bank of Canada. This low rate supported the Canadian real estate market and even though the US tried to do the same thing, they didn’t see the same results:

High risk loans for mortgages was common in the US unlikeCanada. Canada gave these subprime mortgages to between 5 and 10% of the borrowers, unlike the US who’s subprime loan market was a gigantic 22%.

Canadian banks are regularly held up as as the most secure in the world by the World Economic Forum. In addition, the solid financial position has also helped Canada avoid the subsequent credit crunch.

Even though jobs were lost and the unemployment figures increased, the figures were not as terrible as they were in the US and recovery has been seen since Summer 2009. Personal bankruptcies are smaller due to the social order in Canada

To sum up, the Canadian real estate market is on a steady footing. It is so positive, in fact, that there are people in the background whispering of a new and more dangerous real estate bubble ahead. From my own thoughts of the real estate market I don’t believe this for a minute.

The Bank of Canada gave word to keep the rates of interest stable until summer 2010. Of course we have already seen mortgage rates starting to increase and many professionals say we will see the rates increasing as the summer approaches. The First Time Home Buyers’ Tax Credit is going to stop soon, despite there is no official date it finishes it can’t stay for ever. We also have seen, the shortage of new properties listed, which we have been enduring since the autumn of 2009, is slowly letting up. Jay Banks of Vancouver Lofts says: “Over the last few months, the real estate market has seen an jump of new listings on property agent’s books, which has steadied the situation.”

More levelled sales and prices of properties settling at tolerable figures, is probably going to be the outcome of all these points starting to come together.

The low figures have already been in operation for 6 months and the bank expect to keep it for another 8 months at least. As any real estate agent would tell you, one of the major factors in the property market recovery and continued prosperity in that area are these low interest rates.

Nevertheless, there are already voices shouting for an interest rate hike. While we are seeing a massive bubble forming around the world this is making some people decidedly uncomfortable. Rather than risk the bubble bursting, many reckon it can be headed off by hiking interest rates. Taking this into account, even with increasing prices in the housing market and faster turnover, the experts still agree that the Bank of Canada has made the right decision.

We need to look at the logic of why the experts don’t believe the interests rates should increase and the main reason is that although the BoC indicated a 2% rise in the third quarter of 2009 the actual GDP growth is completely different. While there are still large debts within the domestic industry, experts believe that increasing interest rates will damage the recovery which is already tortuously slow.

Also, financial indicators don’t show any signs of growing leverage (the risky use of debt to raise return on investments). There is more confidence around due to inflation running at roughly -1%. The other ingredient, is all this is the housing market, which doesn’t seemed to have crashed as expected. Property prices are growing nicely with a good supply on offer on realtors books. A backlog of properties that are now selling are causing an increase in prices as properties are more and more in demand.

It’s more than feasible that the Bank of Canada will not break its promise and will hold down interest levels for at least eight more months. This means reassuring news to any probable condo buyer.

The bank is expecting to keep the current rate until at least June 2010 which will mean the level will have been low for over a year. As any real estate agent would tell you, one of the major factors why the Canadian real estate market has seen a good rebound from the recession, is the attractiveness of these low interest rates, which is allowing consumers to buy properties.

However, there are already voices crying out for an interest rate increase. While we are seeing a large bubble forming around the world this is making some people decidedly uncomfortable. Rather than risk the bubble bursting, many think it can be headed off by increasing interest rates. Despite rising prices and a quicker pace in the real estate trade, most of the experts say it is not the time to raise rates.

We need to look at the logic of why the experts don’t believe the interests rates should increase and the main reason is that although the BoC predicted a 2% rise in the third quarter of 2009 the actual GDP growth is completely different. One of the other aspects concern the domestic industry which is still observing very high levels of trade deficit and therefore a slower improvement.

The use of leverage, which is a means of using debt to increase investment, is still poor and there are no signs of it increasing. There is more calmness around due to inflation running at roughly -1%. Lastly the housing market has remained fairly steady without the massive fall that has been feared by all. Prices are growing, but the stock flow remains stable. With the housing downturn last winter there was a backlog of properties which are now selling, as the demand is larger so the prices rise.

It’s more than plausible that the Bank of Canada will not break its promise and will hold down interest charges for at least eight more months. At least now the house buyer can feel assured in purchasing their new property.

On the other hand, the American tax credit can be as high as 10% of the real estate’s value, to a maximum of $8,000. In Canada the amount is deducted from the tax base whilst in the USA it is deducted from income tax owing of the consumer. When the tax owing doesn’t exceed the maximum plan then the new property purchaser can look forward to the money being cashed back to them. This tax credit is open to those who haven’t owned housing in the three years prior to taking advantage of the tax credit.

While the Canadian real estate market recuperation is credited by professionals generally to the Bank of Canada interest rate cut, the (still quite shaky) recovery of the American market was indeed fueled by their gigantic tax credit. The American plan decreased the pressure of finding a down payment for a property and paved the way for first time buyers to get on the property ladder. Seeing the benefit of the US incentive, the first thought is shouldn’t Canada be looking more closely at these ideas?

What Canadians need to ask themselves, is “do we require it”? Whilst both Canada and the US have both been in recession there has been a marked dissimilarity in the result of it. The Canadian market bounced back within a few months with the main losers being housing investors and estate agents; but the Americans have seen the decline hit home owners with a lot of short sales and forclosures.

Now we need to think about public funds and debts. In the US there is a massive budget deficit and with over a million taxpayers claiming this aid it impacts on lost tax revenue.

To study the rest, please follow our original article “Is the First Time Home-Buyers Tax Credit Really as Good as It Sounds?” Thank you.

There are hundreds of little projects within the action plan which provide spending to amass sales in the market. Reaching around 4.2% of Canadian GDP, it is one of the largest stimulus packages around the globe, surpassing even what is spent in the USA.

Tax responsibility and how to lower it

Perhaps the most important part of the Plan is tax reduction. The tax reduction inducements related to the housing market are: – Property renovation tax credit: $2.5 billion (for the year 2009-2010). – $15 million to be assigned for the increase in Home Buyers’ Plan withdrawal restrictions. – $175 million assigned for First-time Real Estate Buyers’ Tax Credit.

These three tax reduction inducements have already been smoothly carried out and millions of Canadian citizens already benefit from some of these. Since earlier in the year, whilst not the most important, the First-time Property Buyer’s Tax Credit helped energize a very quick property rebound all over Canada. In addition, the property renovation credit has helped people to increase the value of their property and strengthen their position in the very competitive environment of the resale housing market and improved the overall quality of housing stock.

Thoughts on how to stimulate the housing developments

In spite of the fact that some realtors specializing in resale homes are not too inspired about new developments, in the long term it is definitely important for a healthy real estate environment and also for real estate agents themselves. Notwithstanding the previously mentioned tax relief, which stimulate private property ownership and stimulate the construction industry and thus the whole economy, construction has also been encouraged by direct spending on thousands of projects.

Beginning with over 4,000 projects, the action plan aims to start another 3,000 bringing the number to 7,000 housing and infrastructure projects. There is an additional 1 billion dollars (for the fiscal year 2009-2010) being allocated for approximately 300 social housing projects.

The resources for this area is greater than $9 million. Realtors are finding these measures encouraging due to the property market impact. In one of our recent articles MoveOntario2020 we discussed the details on how infrastructure projects affect values of properties in their vicinity. Social housing broadens the supply of homes and alters both the resale and rental market, introducing more affordable real estate for low income social groups.

This is especially valuable mainly for realtors that specialize in directly influenced neighbourhoods lying within the effective closeness of a specific project. All these inducements have a knock on effect towards the average person; increased housing means more construction jobs, which mean more dollars in your pocket and the ability to finance your own home.

How successful is this action plan?

The slump is now seeing an upward turn with the property market being one of the first areas to see a revival. A lot of realtors believe that it was the monetary policy which helped to kick start the real estate market. Despite this, monetary stimuli also plays a part. The national economy is shown by a healthy housing market, so any monies put into the property market, however pricey, will show as a healthy economy.

Good conditions in the Canadian market are indicated by several factors. A big improvement in listings stock from the spring was expunged within a very short time span. It goes hand in hand with the stock of unabsorbed newly constructed homes, which dived mainly due to the certain reductions in developers’ margins. There is little in the way of hidden stock of foreclosed homes. These hidden listings represent the biggest problems in the US market.

Although the reasons behind the health of the real estate market is in dispute, it is accepted that the incentives given to buyers over the last year have helped it. In Canada the tax encouragement packages do not have an expiry date, whilst in the US these are only for a restricted time.

We are talking about RRSP withdrawal limit increase, first-time home buyers’ tax credit, home renovation tax credit or energy and home retrofit tax incentives and rebates, not to mention local encouragements. The Canadian property market was in a fantastic situation compared to the rest of the world, made even better by the dynamic thinking attitude of the Bank of Canada.

The upward flow of the property market are what are demonstrated with these points. Even though the situation looks great, as with anything there is always some things to stay away from. The condo outlet in Canada is a cause for worry Scotial Capital experts think. Thirteen per cent of property construction is condo builds. This market for some reason is not selling as well forging a build up of unsold apartments. The Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation have published estimated statisics about these apartments and professionals think there is a growing pressure for condo prices to drop to halt this build up.

Real Estate investor portfolio’s should contain house from Canada as it has brilliant potential. The condo market is an area that investors need to observe closely. Whether the property market continues in an upward path or starts dropping down depends on the federal government. The effect of all these property incentives are not going to go on endlessly. Trying to get everyone to take up these inducements now could lead to an issue with listings at a later time. Therefore these policies should be taken away cautiously and gently.