Concerns varying among Sask. housing experts amid possible interest rate increases
Concerns varying among Sask. housing experts amid possible interest rate increases
Concerns varying among Sask. housing experts amid possible interest rate increases
The possibility of increased interest rates is causing concerns for homeowners across Canada, but fears of rising costs are differing in Saskatchewan, according to market experts in the province’s two largest cities.
As speculation about interest rates continue, one-in-four Canadians fear they will have to sell their homes if rates continue to rise, according to a recent survey from Manulife Bank.
However, the head of Regina’s homebuilders association said while inflation is top of mind for homebuyers in the province, the financial impact is relative to the housing market.
“If you had a $300,000 mortgage, in Regina, your mortgage monthly payment would go up by $130, and that’s not nothing, but that should be manageable,” Stu Niebergall, president and CEO of Regina and Region Home Builders' Association, said.
If the Bank of Canada increases interest rates by the supposed 0.75 per cent, Niebergall said he expects many in Regina would be able to absorb that cost.
“I believe the one-in-four Manulife is speaking about is really capturing the concerns and the fears within many other markets within Canada, you think of Vancouver or Toronto,” he said.
He stresses that Saskatchewan has some of the lowest average housing prices in the country.
“You know, we didn’t see through the pandemic, the dramatic increases and housing prices that we saw in the rest of the country,” Niebergall explained.
While Niebergall said that residents in his association in Regina are not overly fearful, the Saskatchewan Realtors Association said the strain is already being felt by residents in Saskatchewan’s other major city.
“I think everybody’s feeling the pressures from inflation and interest rates rising, and so we’re hearing anecdotally, absolutely that there’s a lot of pressure out there,” Chris Guerette, the CEO of the Saskatchewan Realtors Association (SRA), said.
“It’s costing a lot more, today, to live stats quo than it did last year, yet you're not getting more out of it.”
She said the fear from homeowners in Saskatoon, and Saskatchewan in general, is that with the pivot to working from home, people have had to adjust their current living situations already, and now with increases in rates, further adjustments will have to be made.
“That’s the big question, what does this look like in Saskatchewan, we don’t know, but we do know there will be an impact.”
The Manulife Bank of Canada Debt survey polled 2,001 Canadians in all provinces between ages 20 and 69, with household income of more than $40,000. The survey was conducted between April 14 and April 20, 2022.
G7 leaders opened their summit Sunday with a discussion about shaping the global economy at a time when conflict and unrest are driving up prices and access to key goods around the world.
Russia attacked the Ukrainian capital early Sunday, striking at least two residential buildings, the mayor of Kyiv said, as elsewhere Russian troops fought to consolidate their gains in the country's east.
The latest on the G7 summit: U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken says Western sanctions on Russia over its invasion of Ukraine are having 'a profound impact.'
New research looking at the frequency of heavy rainfall across the globe shows that a drastic increase in downpours is expected over the years to come.
Cat and dog owners who cuddle their pets when infected with COVID-19 could end up making the animals sick with the virus, according to a Canadian study.
The higher parts of Angelique Beauchemin's land, she said, are sinking an inch or two a year as they slope ever more steeply toward the river. While she's not a scientist, she says her biggest fear is that one day there will be a landslide and the white house at the top of the hill where she's lived for decades will tumble down.
Hundreds of protesters descended on the U.S. Supreme Court on Saturday to denounce the justice's decision to overturn the half-century-old Roe v. Wade precedent that recognized women's constitutional right to abortion.
The federal public safety minister says he is 'deeply committed' to enhancing oversight of the RCMP by strengthening the role of the national police force's management advisory board.
When Ennio Muzzolini walked into Christies Mayfair Bakery in 1965 interested in purchasing the small bakery on 33rd Street, he never imagined he’d one day be looking on as hundreds of people lined the block to get their hands on a baguette, cinnamon bun or wood-fired pizza.
Using a trailer or an RV is an easy way for people to get out of the city and into the outdoors, but with soaring gas prices, the cost of driving with one has gone up drastically.
Quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell threw for 321 yards and Malik Henry scored a third-quarter, go-ahead touchdown for the Calgary Stampeders in a 30-23 win over the visiting Edmonton Elks on Saturday.
Nearly 100 Ukrainian members of Calgary’s community marched in protest calling for the release of Azovstal Iron and steel workers, defending Mariupol from Russian attacks.
After the U.S. Supreme Court stripped away constitutional protections for abortion Friday by overturning Roe v. Wade, NDP Leader Rachel Notley demanded that everyone running to become the next leader of the UCP clarify their stance on the issue.
Fans leaving the Garth Brooks concert at Commonwealth Stadium Friday night were happy and smiling, despite some logistical issues that delayed the show and frustrated some.
A Member of Parliament from rural Alberta went live on Facebook Friday to celebrate a United States Supreme Court vote to end constitutional protections for abortion.
Hundreds of people gathered in front of Edmonton City Hall Saturday to celebrate the first large Pride event in the city in four years, and the first one in Churchill Square in eight.
Tens of thousands of people are expected to march in today's Pride parade in downtown Toronto, marking the return of in-person festivities for the annual LGBTQ celebration.
As the first sustained heat of the season settles in across B.C.'s south coast, Environment and Climate Change Canada has issued a special weather statement advising people of high temperatures and humidex values through Monday.
Metro Vancouver is experiencing its first stretch of hot summer weather this weekend and people are scouring stores looking for air conditioners and fans to cool off – some being met with empty shelves.
The family of a Vancouver police officer who died by suicide is suing the department, alleging she endured sexual assault and exploitation enabled by an "unsafe workplace culture and insufficient policies and procedures," court documents show.
The higher parts of Angelique Beauchemin's land, she said, are sinking an inch or two a year as they slope ever more steeply toward the river. While she's not a scientist, she says her biggest fear is that one day there will be a landslide and the white house at the top of the hill where she's lived for decades will tumble down.
Environment and Climate Change Canada (ECCC) issued a heat warning for the islands of Montreal and Laval in addition to the Vaudreuil and Valleyfield-Beauharnois areas.
A 15-month dispute in British Columbia's film and television industry has ended with the ratification of a new contract for creative and logistical staff working on productions shot in the province.
The inquiry into Nova Scotia’s 2020 mass shooting, says four pages of handwritten notes that sparked a political firestorm in Ottawa this week, weren’t immediately submitted when subpoenaed by its investigators.
After a week of criticism and anger at the Mass Casualty Commission in Nova Scotia, and outcry in a rural area of New Brunswick, there are questions about the RCMP’s role in community policing.
With hundreds of students from India who attend Northern College, and other professionals from India who've moved to the city to work, organizers said they felt it was time to bring everyone together to celebrate their culture with the rest of the community.
