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If the Canadian Housing Bubble Pops, the Stock Market Will Suffer

Correction in Toronto and Vancouver Real Estate Will Hurt Stocks

In sharp contrast to the U.S., the Canadian housing market has been on a tear over the last decade, especially in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) and greater Vancouver area.

Unfortunately, many economists believe Canadian real estate has been growing too fast and created a bubble. If it bursts or even corrects, it could have a lasting, negative impact on the Canadian stock market.

While the broader Canadian economy has not been doing well, one of the bright spots has been the real estate market. Defying all odds, the Canadian housing market has been climbing higher and higher, reaching new sales and price records on an almost monthly basis.

To cool the red-hot growth, the federal government reduced the maximum amortization period from 35 years to 25 years, raised the minimum down payment for government-backed mortgages to 20%, and ensured the maximum insurable house price was limited to under $1.0 million. But that hasn’t helped much. Canadian housing prices continue to climb. The average price for a home in Canada climbed 5.4% year-over-year to $456,722.1

Much of that growth comes from two of Canada’s biggest metropolitan areas. In August, the average sale price for a property in Toronto increased 17.7% to $710,410.2 The average selling price for all residential properties in Vancouver soared 31.4% year-over-year to $933,100.3 To put those prices into context, it would take 23 years to save up for a down payment in Metro Vancouver.4

Suffice it to say, there are growing concerns about the health of Canada’s housing market. In fact, economic vulnerabilities caused by imbalances in Canada’s real estate market is one of the Bank of Canada’s greatest concerns. As it should be. You can tighten the mortgage rules all you like, but soaring property values and artificially low interest rates just lead to people borrowing more and taking on additional debt.

If the Canadian housing bubble pops or even corrects, it will seriously undermine Canada’s big banks, which are heavily exposed to the residential property market. Plunging real estate prices will be felt far beyond the financial sector. It will also impact home improvement stores and retailers. As we learned when the U.S. housing bubble burst in 2008, the ripples are felt everywhere.

With the oil market getting squeezed and the economy being propped up by real estate, a correction in housing prices could cripple Canadian households. While Canadian housing prices are at record highs, so too are Canadian debt loads.

A real estate correction means the average Canadian’s net worth would tank, but their debt level is fixed. The value of your house will drop but what you owe will stay the same. Falling housing prices would lead to a spike in loan losses from unsecured household debt and household loans secured by other collateral.

Learn-To-Trade.com, Toronto’s Leader in Stock Market Trading Courses

There is more to the Canadian housing market than real estate. And when it comes to a correction, there is more to consider than just Canada’s big banks. In fact, if Canada’s real estate market pops or even experiences a serious correction, the country’s stock market will take a major hit.

For investors with the right trading tools, though, they can still learn how to catch a falling knife. Learn-To-Trade.com is the leading and oldest provider of stock market trading courses in Canada.

Led by licensed industry professionals, Learn-To-Trade.com’s comprehensive stock market trading courses teach investors of every skill level about trading strategies that can help them profit whether the markets are going up, down, or sideways.

At Learn-To-Trade.com, we understand people learn at different speeds; that’s why we offer a unique Lifetime Membership, so you can re-attend any part of the program as many times as you like.

To learn more about Learn-To-Trade.com’s stock market trading courses, contact us at 416-510-5560 or by e-mail at info@learn-to-trade.com.

 

Sources:

  1. “Canadian home sales decline further in August” crea.ca, September 15, 2016; https://creastats.crea.ca/natl/index.htm.
  2. “GTA Realtors Release Monthly Resale Housing Market Figures,” Toronto Real Estate Board web site, September 7, 2016; https://www.trebhome.com/market_news/release_market_updates/news2016/nr_market_watch_0816.htm.
  3. “Metro Vancouver home sales return to typical August levels,” Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver web site, September 2, 2016; https://www.rebgv.org/sites/default/files/8.%20REBGV%20Stats%20Pkg%20August%202016_0.pdf.
  4. Kershaw, P. and Minh, A., “Code Red: Rethinking Canadian Housing Policy,” Generation Squeeze web site, May 25, 2016; https://d3n8a8pro7vhmx.cloudfront.net/gensqueeze/pages/107/attachments/original/1464150906/Code_Red_Rethinking_Canadian_Housing_Policy_Final_2016-05-24.pdf?1464150906.
George Karpouzis

George Karpouzis is the co-founder of Learn-to-Trade and has been personally providing education and mentoring to over 3000 members since 1999. George has been trading in the stocks, options, futures and forex markets using technical analysis since 1986. With the help of advancements in trading technology the Learn To Trade program is now accessible worldwide. His background and passion for teaching brings an invaluable asset to our members. George is constantly striving to improve the program content and develop new strategic relationships for the benefit of the members.

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