The editorial readily admits it would be the country’s “most unpopular tax,” but suggests it’s a discussion worth having due to the enormous tax-free gains being made by today’s sellers.
Latest in Mortgage News: Rising Prices Spur Talk of Capital Gains Tax on Home Sales
The Department of Finance actually tracks the revenue the government is missing out on by not taxing home equity on principal residences: $7.1 billion this year alone.
Here are some of the other impacts COVID-19 has had on homebuying and selling decisions:
Latest in Mortgage News: 4 in 10 Buyers Open to Purchasing a Home “Virtually”
Four out of 10 Canadian homeowners said they were “open” or “somewhat open” to buying a home while only being able to view it through electronic means. A third (33%) said they would not purchase a home virtually.
The report reiterated the agency’s forecast that house prices could decline anywhere from 9-18%, adding that oil-producing regions could see declines up to 25%.
Latest in Mortgage News: 2.5 Years for Home Prices to Make New Highs, Says CMHC
“Following large declines in 2020, housing starts, sales and prices are expected to start to recover by mid-2021 as pandemic containment measures are lifted and economic conditions improve,” said the housing agency’s chief economist, Bob Dugan.
Both RBC and BMO cut a number of their posted mortgage rates this week, which should cause the mortgage stress test to fall from 5.04% to 4.99%, according to RateSpy.com.
Latest in Mortgage News: Stress Test Rate to Drop
“It’ll mark the first time since January 2018 (when OSFI’s stress test began) that this benchmark rate has been under 5%,” the site noted. “And, if one more bank matches BMO’s and RBC’s 4.94%, it could drop another 5 basis points.”