The BIS has flagged Canada for having vulnerabilities connected to credit, property prices and the prospect of rising interest rates. The Bank for International Settlements has issued a warning to Canada regarding a potential financial crisis and national banking risks.
Category: Housing
Snap, Twitter, Facebook: Doug Kass’ Views
Doug Kass shares his thoughts on what might be a catalyst for housing, and wonders about whether the Snap IPO will be more like Facebook’s or Twitter’s. Doug Kass shares his views every day on RealMoneyPro.
Action Alerts PLUS: Markets Stage Late Retreat
This commentary was excerpted from the Weekly Roundup sent to subscribers of Action Alerts PLUS , a charitable trust co-managed by Jim Cramer and the AAP staff . Click here to learn about this actively traded stock portfolio.
Australia Mortgage Lending Standards in Regulator Crosshairs
Australia’s securities regulator said Thursday it is looking at mortgage lending standards across the banking sector after taking civil court proceedings against Westpac Banking Corp. The Westpac case “sends a message to the broader sector” that the Australian Securities & Investments Commission is prepared to “take anyone on,” Chairman Greg Medcraft told a parliamentary committee. ASIC yesterday announced proceedings against Westpac, the country’s second-biggest bank, over alleged failures to properly assess whether borrowers could afford their mortgages.
People on the move 03/02
Submit professional appointments, management-level promotions and significant awards for individuals , along with photos as a .jpg attachment, via email to peopleonmove@orlandosentinel.com . Nyma Whitmire , community volunteer, was appointed to serve a three-year term on The Albin Polasek Museum & Sculpture Gardens board of directors.
San Francisco home prices see big drop in January
The Arden, one of Mission Bay’s newer condominium towers, makes a virtue of the neighborhood’s horizontal emphasis zoning rather than trying to hide that it doesn’t exist. The Arden, one of Mission Bay’s newer condominium towers, makes a virtue of the neighborhood’s horizontal emphasis zoning rather than trying to hide that it doesn’t exist.
Canada Banks Push Back Against Taking on More Mortgage Risk
Canada’s financial industry is urging the federal government to consider alternatives to proposals that could require them to take on a greater share of mortgage defaults through a deductible — calling it one of the biggest shakeups to hit housing finance in 50 years. “This submission has questioned whether a deductible is the most effective way to rebalance risks within the housing finance system,” the Canadian Bankers Association said in a report on Tuesday.
How Owning or Selling a Home Affects Your Taxes
Owning a home is exciting, challenging and the biggest investment of many people’s lives. It’s also a good way to reduce your tax bill.
Twin Records for Hong Kong Property Flout Bid to Tame Market
Hong Kong’s property market is setting new records, quashing attempts by the city’s leaders to tame surging home prices. Existing home prices reached an all-time high in the week ended Feb. 19, according to the Centaline Property Centa-City Leading Index, which tracks sales of secondary homes.
Brief-Waterstone Financial Quarterly Earnings Per Share $0.23
WASHINGTON, Feb 24 The new U.S. Federal Communications Commission chief will move to block broadband privacy rules, approved by the Obama administration, that subject broadband providers to stricter scrutiny than websites, a spokesman said on Friday, in a victory for internet providers like AT&T Inc, Comcast Corp and Verizon Communications Corp.
CN power outage halts train movement in Ontario
Feb 24 Passenger and freight train service across south-eastern Ontario were halted on Friday following a power outage at Canadian National railway’s rail traffic control center, a CN spokesman said. “Our crews have been working to restore those systems and that is fully underway.
Housing Boom Fades in Tokyo With Glut as Chinese Sales Slow
In the Kachidoki area facing Tokyo Bay, home to the city’s hottest market given its proximity to venues for the 2020 Olympic Games, real-estate broker Hayato Jo has a wall full of notices of apartments for sale, with a 20 percent increase in the number of people looking to sell in the area in the past year. Prices in the neighborhood, which surged 25 percent since Tokyo won the Games in 2013, have started to fall from their peak.
US Treasury Yields Rise; All Eyes On Fed Minutes
To read Chairman Yellen’s remarks, visit Before the Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, U.S. Senate, Washington, D.C. on February 14, 2017, and Chair Yellen submitted identical remarks to the Committee on Financial Services, U.S. House of Representatives, on February 15, 2017 . The Fed minutes due to be released later on Wednesday could either reinforce or undermine recent hawkish comments from central bank policy makers.
Ahead of the Bell: US home sales
The National Association of Realtors reports on January sales of existing U.S. homes Wednesday at 10 a.m. Eastern. Economists forecast sales will tick up to a seasonally adjusted 5.55 million, up from 5.49 million in December.
Pending Home Sales Rise More Than Expected
Contracts to buy previously owned U.S. homes rebounded in December following a drop a month earlier, the National Association of Realtors said on Monday. The NAR said it pending home sales index, based on contracts signed last month, rose 1.6 percent to 109.0. Analysts polled by Reuters had forecast a 1.0 percent increase in December.
U.S. pending home sales increased in December
More Americans signed contracts to buy homes in December. The increase possibly reflects more people scrambling to purchase homes as mortgage rates have been rising and increasing the costs of ownership.
Two school teachers who retired before 30 with $1 million…
Each in their early 30s , the couple were able to quit their jobs as public school teachers in August 2015 and retire after just eight years in the workforce. By living frugally and finding a good side hustle – in their case, real estate – the couple was able to achieve financial independance relatively quickly.
3 Dumb Mortgage Moves
Interest rates have been inching up, with the 30-year fixed mortgage rate recently approaching4%. According to the Federal Reserve and general expectations, they’ll continue rising in the coming years.
Why San Fernando Valley home sales dipped in 2016
The San Fernando Valley’s resale housing market flirted with record low level sales in 2016, because inventory remained scant and prices climbed out of reach for many potential buyers, a trade association said Thursday. Last year sales of previously owned homes fell 4 percent from 2015 to 5,863 transactions, the second lowest level since full-year record keeping began in 1985, according to the Van Nuys-based Southland Regional Association of Realtors.
Hong Kong’s Housing Curbs Could Help End Singapore’s Slump
So says Cushman & Wakefield Inc., which expects the slide in the city-state’s home prices to end this year as foreign investors turned off by Hong Kong’s move to increase the stamp duty for overseas buyers look to Singapore instead. Desmond Sim, head of research for Singapore and Southeast Asia at CBRE Ltd., said Singapore house prices are approaching their trough, with a forecast price move of flat to minus 2 percent.
Crackdown on Aussie Banks Boosted Mortgage Standards, APRA Says
Australian banks have “appreciably improved” their mortgage-lending standards, the nation’s regulator said, as it left the amount of additional capital banks are required to hold as a buffer against the build-up of credit risk at zero. The pace of lending to property investors is currently at around half of the regulator’s recommended levels, and higher-risk mortgages — such as those with loan-to-value ratios of over 90 percent — had fallen, the Australian Prudential and Regulatory Authority said in its annual report on the operation of the counter-cyclical capital buffer.
Home Sales Surge
John Bowman of Old Dominion Realty shows a late-18th century house in Port Republic to David Shank of Mount Crawford and Marta Ruiz, 16, a Spanish foreign exchange student the Shanks are hosting. John Bowman of Old Dominion Realty shows a late-18th century house in Port Republic to David Shank of Mount Crawford and Marta Ruiz, 16, a Spanish foreign exchange student the Shanks are hosting.
Li Ka-Shing Sees Hong Kong Property Prices Rising Amid Curbs
Hong Kong’s richest man Li Ka-shing expects property prices in the city will rise “a little bit” this year, even as the government takes steps to cool the world’s costliest real estate market. The government in November increased the stamp duty to 15 percent for all residential purchases, excluding first-time buyers who are permanent residents.
Manhattan Resale Home Prices Tumble the Most in Four Years
Manhattan resale home prices tumbled by the most in more than four years, a sign that sellers are lowering their expectations in a slowing market where buyers have the option to walk away. The median price of previously owned condominiums and co-ops fell 6.3 percent in the fourth quarter from a year earlier to $900,000, according to a report Wednesday from appraiser Miller Samuel Inc. and brokerage Douglas Elliman Real Estate.
Gold and Silver Stocks Surge Higher, but Can This Relief Rally Last?
Up until August, precious metals like gold and silver were the stars of 2016. In many instances, you could have thrown a dart and picked a gold or silver miner that had at least doubled in value this year.
Britons Hoard Cash as Economic Uncertainties Prompt Caution
Britons are holding onto their cash in a sign that they may be hunkering down in the face of economic uncertainties, according to the British Bankers Association. Personal deposits grew an annual 4.8 percent in November, data compiled by the BBA show.
Mortgage Rates Today, Wednesday, Dec. 28: Slight Decreases;…
Thirty-year and 15-year fixed rates reversed course from yesterday and fell slightly, while 5/1 ARM rates notched up again Wednesday, according to a NerdWallet survey of mortgage rates published by national lenders this morning. November saw newly built, single-family home sales rise by 5.2 percent, according to data released last week by the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Census Bureau.
Dow Pares Earlier Losses as Stocks Stay in the Red
The Dow Jones index of 30 blue-chip stocks climbed to within 19 points of the 20,000 milestone on Wednesday before retreating. The Nasdaq slid from a record opening of 5,499.
Singapore Defaults Seen as Bellwether for 2017 Asia Distress
Despite a modest rebound in resource prices, restructuring specialists including KPMG and Hogan Lovells Lee & Lee see more Asia-Pacific commodities and shipping companies being pushed into delinquency. Law firm DLA Piper said there could be choppy waters ahead on rising interest rates and President-elect Donald Trump’s overhaul of trade with China.
U.K. House Prices May Barely Rise as Brexit Weighs on Economy
U.K. house prices may only eke out a modest gain next year as economic growth weakens and a pickup in inflation squeezes consumers, according to Halifax. The mortgage lender sees housing demand easing in 2017, partly as tax changes and stricter underwriting standards restrict buy-to-let investment.
Related Article: What to Watch Wednesday: Pending Home Sales Index
On Wednesday investors await the pending home sales index. Released by the National Association of Realtors at 10 a.m. ET, the pending home sales index for November is expected to rise 0.5% month over month.
Valley homes sales set to end 2016 on sluggish note
The San Fernando Valley’s residential real estate market is limping toward the end of a sluggish year, with sales likely totaling less than in 2015, the Southland Regional Association of Realtors said this week. Last month Realtors logged 457 sales of previously owned houses, one fewer than in November of last year, the Van Nuys-based trade group said.
Mortgage rates’ rise continues, reaching highs not seen in more than two years
House hunters might need to start adjusting their expectations as the days of ultra-low mortgage rates could finally be winding down. With homeownership hovering around a 50-year low, the American dream of owning a home seems like an unattainable goal to some, as prices are rising, supply is dwindling and mortgage rates have climbed to heights not seen in more than two years.
Ahead of the Bell: US home sales
The National Association of Realtors reports on November sales of existing U.S. homes Wednesday at 10 a.m. Eastern. SALES PULLBACK: Economists surveyed by the data firm FactSet predict that sales of existing home retreated 1.8 percent last month to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 5.5 million.