As we close out what has been a strenuous year for all of us, we’re ending our monthly roundups for 2020 with some positive news that perfectly sums up what has been a strange year for the BC real estate market.
This month’s news update will look to both the present and the future as we take a look at the latest changes when it comes to open houses, as well as the end of year projections from the BCREA.
Our latest news update still comes to you from a place of uncertainty. With the pandemic still holding its grip on the housing market, and the economy at large, predicting even as far as next year remains a tricky proposition.
However, the news in the present does present some opportunities for homeowners and buyers alike. Let's take a look.
For this month’s roundup we figured that everyone could do with a healthy dose of positivity! Something that it seems has been in short supply throughout 2020, with that in mind, here’s a look at some of the positive recent trends in BC real estate.
Covid-19 is continuing to impact the housing market often in unexpected ways - in particular, changing the ways in which both buyers and sellers are organizing their priorities and desires.
In this post we’re going to highlight one example that is indicative of a larger future trend that will be worth watching over the coming months.
On July 1st the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) new mortgage rules came into effect. These changes are meant to reduce the risk of taxpayers footing the bill for bad loans, as well as protecting homebuyers who would be likely to take on too much risk in an economic downturn.
These rules include:
As buyers and sellers return to the market (and with open houses and presentation centres now reopening, albeit with pandemic related safety measures in place), it’s a good time for everyone in real estate to consider if the near future will look different.
In particular, we’re going to look at how the priorities for buyers might change, and how that could affect the market.
It has been a challenging time for everyone these last few months, and some restrictions are being lifted in BC. But what does this mean for resuming viewings in the BC real estate market?
Social distancing is still of course in effect, and employers are required to develop a COVID-19 Safety Plan that outlines the policies, guidelines, and procedures they have put in place to reduce the risk of transmission. This means identifying protocols that everyone at the workplace must follow to keep people safe.
We hope that everyone reading this is staying safe and coping with these difficult and stressful times—understandably this month’s roundup will be dominated by the facts of the exceptional circumstances we find ourselves in.
Writing a roundup of real estate news invariably involves projection. Always trying to look forward and see how the market will shift, and give our customers the best advice on what to do with their property searches—but this month, the theme of the news is definitely one of uncertainty and calls for stability.
