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To the relief of agents and brokers, the real estate market in Canada has rebounded with many prospective buyers looking for homes. New immigrants are the main shoppers in the housing market, usually having money to settle when they arrive. The first decade of the new century hasn’t been a smooth ride in most industries, and the old maxim that you can't go wrong with real estate went out the window. If you're stuck with property that can't be sold at a profit then things have gone very wrong if you were counting on a transaction involving the sale of your house or a piece of land. Those who took out mortgages and found a pink slip in the pay envelope were also out of luck with their dream home, and likely had to consider apartment-dwelling. Canada hadn't engaged in the kind of rampant excesses practiced in the U.S., where fraud, greed, and incompetence caused widespread foreclosures after mortgage loans were given to those who couldn't afford them, banks failed, and defaults were occurring at an astronomical rate. At the same time, the American auto industry collapsed, the stock market plummeted and unemployment was out of control. Residual effects are always felt in Canada when recession hits the U.S. but the atmosphere is less drastic when it comes to evictions or owing taxes. Polite arrangements are the way of the world in Canada, but Americans are faced with heavily-armed officers coming to get taxes or remove somebody from a property during foreclosure. As the most jailing society in the world, the U.S. has strict laws for the most mundane of economic mistakes while the corporations are perceived as entities who can take away much money as they can carry without any repercussions. So now it has to be business as usual: townhouses, condos, and houses need to be built and sold just as much as people need to have places to live, even if Ottawa has to put incentives in place for new home buyers. The Canada Revenue Agency has done just such a thing with a tax break called the Home Buyers' Plan, a tax shelter for people buying their first home. It allows a qualified person to withdraw up to $25,000 from his RRSP to build or buy the home; a spouse can do the same so a couple could have a potential $50,000 that wouldn't be included in that taxation year. The amount must be paid back within 15 years, usually at a set amount per year. To qualify for the Home Buyers Plan it has to be your first home in Canada, you have to be a resident of Canada, file taxes every year, and have a written agreement to buy a home in Canada (among other requirements). Once qualified, there are a lot of issues that require advice when you're a new home buyer; this can include information and tips on loans from real estate agents, seeing a choice of starter homes from the MLS listings, or finding out about down-payment gifts or grants. Surveys, inspections, property tax, and lawyers are costs that must be factored into the equation. Once you know all the extra costs then you can decide what kind of mortgage payments you're comfortable with. It's a good idea to view open houses in a number of different areas and housing types. Some research has to be done to find out what homes are selling for in each neighborhood so that you'll know the numbers when it's time to negotiate. Be aware that prices and demand fluctuate with the seasons, and you'll get a better deal in December and January than you would in June or September. Then you should make a deal only when you've found the right house to suit you. Toronto SEO Consultant Pat Boardman presents these observations about the real estate market in respect to firms that are respected Related Articles -
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