Mortgage Report – May 12 Not So Timely: The government’s 5-year bond yield, which heavily influences fixed mortgage rates, peaked in October 2018. Since then, it has collapsed 212 basis points. Meanwhile, big banks have lowered 5-year posted rates just a stingy 30 basis points. The banking regulator (OSFI) considers that a problem and proposed to de-link the mortgage stress...
Mortgage Report – May 11 Hitting Triples: Borrowers would love to see 5-year fixed rates under 2% and eventually they’ll get there. But for now, banks are “reducing mortgage rate discounts to conserve profitability,” as Deloitte put it in a recent report. Alas, we’ll have to make do with the historically low rates we already have. And for all you...
The Daily Mortgage Report – May 4 Variable Advantage Fades: The lowest widely available 5-year fixed rates are now just 20 basis points more than the lowest variable rates. That differential has shrunk considerably in the last month or so, causing some would-be variable takers to give up and go fixed. RateSpy simulations confirm it would now only take two...
9:09 p.m. Update Southbound Fixed Rates: Lender after lender has announced fixed-rate drops this week. And with Canada’s 5-year yield closing at a record low today, it’s no coincidence. It was the first time ever that our 5-year bond closed below 0.40%. Prerequisite for Recovery: “…We need monetary stimulus to reach the ultimate borrower,” said BoC chief Stephan Poloz today....
Today’s Rate Menu: After a three-week hiatus, variable mortgage rates are back down to prime – 0.50% (a 1.95% effective rate, including cash back) in some provinces—but only if you need a default-insured mortgage. The lowest widely advertised uninsured rates remain HSBC’s 2-year fixed at 2.34% and the fully open Tangerine HELOC at 2.35%. Sales Should Surge Post-Reopening: Home purchases...
RBC Cuts Again: The nation’s biggest mortgage lender dropped six “Special Rates” today: 1yr: 3.14% to 3.04% 2yr: 2.79% to 2.69% 3yr: 2.99% to 2.89% 4yr: 3.04% to 2.94% 5yr: 3.24% to 3.09% Variable: Prime + 0.25% to Prime +0.00% Quick take: Despite the fact that prime + 0% is nothing to write home about, any improvement in variable-rate pricing...
Oil Bloodbath: Crude posted its largest price decline in history today, down 300% in the May futures contract. How is it possible to fall more than 100%? Oil futures traded below $0 a barrel for the first time in history. People weren’t even willing to take a barrel of oil (for May delivery) for free. The June contract was down...
Record Broken: Canada’s 5-year bond yield moves fixed mortgage rates and it closed at another all-time low today. That coincides with a roughly three-week low in risk/liquidity premiums. Together, these two factors are driving fixed mortgage rates lower, with numerous lenders trimming rates 5-15 bps this week. More Hope: “With a vaccine more than likely out of reach for this...
After slashing rates three times in March and buying billions in bond market instruments to further suppress interest rates, the Bank of Canada pressed <Pause> today. Here’s what happened and how mortgagors should respond. Rate Announcement:No change Overnight rate:0.25% Prime Rate:2.45% (seePrime Rate) Market Rate Forecast:No change until at least 2022 BoC’s Headline Quote:“The Bank’s Governing Council stands ready to...
Falling Back to Earth: Fixed mortgage rates are at multi-week lows. In the last week, multiple big lenders have cut 5 to 15+ bps. The key reasons: rates are descending in the fixed-income market (where lenders fund most of their fixed-rate mortgages), and credit spreads are narrowing (meaning lenders are paying smaller risk and liquidity premiums to investors to obtain...
log in
