Housing Bubble? Bunk!

Is the bursting of a housing bubble in Canada about to blow away the value of your home?
Bunk, says the Conference Board of Canada.
In a report to be released Monday, the Ottawa-based independent think tank says bubble fears are overblown.
That’s an important conclusion not only for homeowners in Canada but also for policy makers in Ottawa. Continue reading Housing Bubble? Bunk!

NDP Convention: 3-02-13 Resolution on a National Strategy for Affordable Housing

The NDP convention considered the following:

3-02-13 Resolution on a National Strategy for Affordable Housing

Submitted by Dartmouth—Cole Harbour

WHEREAS, access to safe, affordable housing is a right for all Canadians; and

WHEREAS, Canada is the only G8 country to have no long-term plan for housing;

BE IT RESOLVED, that the following clause be added to section 3.5 of the policy book.

New Democrats believe in:

implementing a national strategy to ensure secure, adequate, accessible and affordable housing for Canadians in partnership with provinces, municipalities, Aboriginal communities, non-profit and private sector housing providers and civil society organizations, including those that represent groups in need of adequate housing.

MP Andrew Cash (Davenport) spoke in favour.

 

 

Motion passed.

NDP Convention: 3-61-13 Resolution on Social Housing

3-61-13 Resolution on Social Housing

Submitted by the Quebec Section

BE IT RESOLVED that the NDP continue to remind Canadians that housing is fundamental right for all, and undertake to protect this right and enshrine it as a justiciable right under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the NDP call on the federal government to maintain investment in social housing at current levels, and additionally to maintain and increase funding for the Homelessness Partnering Strategy (HPS).

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that a registry of the social housing units available in Canada be created, and a mechanism for controlling transactions on social housing units funded by the CMHC be instituted.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that an NDP government would adopt a law requiring that the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) work in conjunction with other involved stakeholders to develop a national housing strategy.

This motion was ruled dealt with in a previous motion.

Housing bubble crisis? Maclean's vs. The Bank of Canada

Two national institutions, the Bank of Canada and the newsmagazine Maclean’s, are out with new publications today with starkly different conclusions about the real estate market and household debt in this country. As it’s still relatively early, I have yet to read either but look forward to doing so. In the meantime,  we’ll let BMO Capital Markets deputy chief economist Douglas Porter officiate on the substantive issue at hand: Housing crisis or no? Here’s his thoughts from his morning comment (with his emphasis but my hyperlinks): Continue reading Housing bubble crisis? Maclean's vs. The Bank of Canada