Below are the details on some key factors in our economy. Take a look and let me know what you think. Feel free to to contact me if you have any questions.
Bank of Canada Interest Rate
| June 4, 2009 |
0.25% |
| July 21, 2009 |
0.25%* |
| September 10, 2009 |
Next meeting date |
Source: Bank of Canada
*Bank of Canada statement included reference to hold rate to end of second quarter 2010
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Bank Prime Lending Rate
| June 5, 2009 |
2.25% |
| July 22, 2009 |
2.25% |
| September 11, 2009 |
Next meeting date |
Source: Bank of Canada
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US Federal Reserve Board Discount Rate
| June 24, 2009 |
0.00% 0.25% |
| August 11, 2009 |
0.00% 0.25% |
| September 22, 2009 |
Next meeting date |
Source: US Federal Reserve
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Exchange Rate $CDN($US)
| July 30, 2009 |
.9223 $CDN($US) |
| August 14, 2009 |
.9093 $CDN($US) |
| August 28, 2009 |
.9132 $CDN($US) |
Source: Bank of Canada
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Government of Canada Bonds
| Bond Type |
July 29, 2009 |
August 12, 2009 |
August 26, 2009 |
| 1 year Treasury Bill |
0.59% |
0.57% |
0.53% |
3 year Benchmark
Bond Yield |
1.94% |
1.80% |
1.79% |
5 year Benchmark
Bond Yield |
2.66% |
2.62% |
2.65% |
10 year Benchmark
Bond Yield |
3.53% |
3.52% |
3.39% |
Source: Bank of Canada
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Total New Housing Starts (Seasonable adjusted and annualized)
| Province |
May
2009 |
May
2008 |
June
2009 |
June
2008 |
July
2009 |
July
2008 |
| Newfoundland/Labrador |
2,800 |
2,900 |
2,900 |
2,800 |
2,900 |
1,800 |
| PEI |
800 |
700 |
1,000 |
600 |
600 |
400 |
| Nova Scotia |
2,900 |
3,800 |
2,700 |
3,900 |
3,300 |
3,400 |
| New Brunswick |
3,700 |
5,100 |
3,300 |
4,600 |
3,800 |
3,200 |
| Quebec |
40,100 |
50,300 |
37,900 |
46,500 |
46,200 |
43,900 |
| Ontario |
44,500 |
71,200 |
45,800 |
82,000 |
39,100 |
59,200 |
| Manitoba |
3,700 |
7,200 |
5,000 |
5,500 |
4,000 |
3,400 |
| Saskatchewan |
3,000 |
6,500 |
5,100 |
10,800 |
3,600 |
4,700 |
| Alberta |
14,200 |
35,500 |
20,000 |
23,600 |
17,600 |
29,000 |
| British Columbia |
11,700 |
38,000 |
14,100 |
35,600 |
13,100 |
37,300 |
| Canada |
127,400 |
221,300 |
137,800 |
215,900 |
134,200 |
186,500 |
Source: CMHC Housing Now – August 2009 and August 2008.
This seasonally adjusted data goes through stages of revision at different times of the year.
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Average MLS resale price for local markets
| City |
July 2008 |
July 2009 |
| Halifax |
$236,514 |
$243,524 |
| Saint John, NB |
$154,273 |
$156,010 |
| Montréal |
$272,039 |
$280,890 |
| Ottawa |
$295,134 |
$300,635 |
| Toronto |
$371,410 |
$395,414 |
| Hamilton/Burlington |
$281,580 |
$296,591 |
| Winnipeg |
$195,964 |
$206,135 |
| Saskatoon |
$292,428 |
$283,619 |
| Calgary |
$402,788 |
$381,740 |
| Edmonton |
$335,100 |
$324,744 |
| Vancouver |
$575,526 |
$584,105 |
| Victoria |
$487,864 |
$475,490 |
Source: Canadian Real Estate Association
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Housing Affordability Index
| Detached Bungalow |
| |
Average Price |
Qualifying Income |
Affordability Measure |
| Province |
Q1 2009 |
Y/Y % ch. |
Q1 2009 |
Q4 2008 |
Q1 2009 |
| British Columbia |
480,700 |
-6.4 |
97,200 |
65.0 |
59.0 |
| Alberta |
336,100 |
-9.1 |
74,200 |
37.8 |
33.2 |
| Saskatchewan |
291,400 |
-0.4 |
67,700 |
45.3 |
42.0 |
| Manitoba |
219,400 |
0.7 |
55,400 |
38.2 |
35.3 |
| Ontario |
306,400 |
-2.5 |
72,700 |
42.8 |
38.6 |
| Quebec |
191,500 |
1.5 |
46,700 |
34.8 |
32.3 |
| Atlantic |
182,200 |
5.2 |
46,200 |
34.2 |
31.3 |
| Toronto |
417,900 |
-3.9 |
93,100 |
51.4 |
45.9 |
| Montreal |
235,700 |
0.8 |
55,300 |
39.7 |
36.5 |
| Vancouver |
575,200 |
-9.6 |
114,300 |
69.3 |
62.6 |
| Ottawa |
317,500 |
1.9 |
77,600 |
42.8 |
39.1 |
| Calgary |
391,800 |
-11.5 |
82,400 |
40.9 |
35.1 |
| Edmonton |
328,300 |
-7.1 |
73,900 |
38.0 |
34.0 |
| Canada |
293,800 |
-3.1 |
67,200 |
43.4 |
39.4 |
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| Standard Two-Storey |
| |
Average Price |
Qualifying Income |
Affordability Measure |
| Province |
Q1 2009 |
Y/Y % ch. |
Q1 2009 |
Q4 2008 |
Q1 2009 |
| British Columbia |
530,500 |
-6.3 |
107,600 |
72.7 |
65.3 |
| Alberta |
358,800 |
-9.7 |
80,900 |
42.3 |
36.2 |
| Saskatchewan |
301,000 |
-5.2 |
72,100 |
47.3 |
44.8 |
| Manitoba |
236,300 |
3.5 |
59,200 |
41.4 |
37.8 |
| Ontario |
348,900 |
-2.0 |
83,200 |
49.2 |
44.2 |
| Quebec |
225,100 |
-1.8 |
55,400 |
42.0 |
38.4 |
| Atlantic |
207,400 |
5.7 |
54,000 |
40.0 |
36.5 |
| Toronto |
494,600 |
-3.3 |
110,600 |
61.6 |
54.6 |
| Montreal |
299,100 |
-1.1 |
69,300 |
50.2 |
45.7 |
| Vancouver |
632,900 |
-9.5 |
125,800 |
77.5 |
68.9 |
| Ottawa |
318,500 |
2.8 |
81,000 |
44.3 |
40.8 |
| Calgary |
290,700 |
-12.4 |
84,600 |
42.6 |
36.0 |
| Edmonton |
365,300 |
-7.7 |
83,100 |
44.2 |
38.2 |
| Canada |
330,100 |
-3.4 |
76,200 |
49.7 |
44.7 |
Source: RBC Financial Group Housing Affordability Index, July 2009. Index based on a 25% down payment and a 25 year mortgage loan at a five year fixed rate. The higher the index, the more difficult it is to afford home. An affordability index of 50 means that homeownership costs including mortgage payments, utilities and property taxes take up half of a typical household’s monthly pre-tax income.
Cheers,
Pat
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