Housing affordability improved across the country in January amid softening mortgage rates, according to an analysis by Ratehub.ca. While purchasing a home remains out of reach for many Canadians, housing affordability improved across the country in January amid softening mortgage rates.the minimum income required to purchase an average-priced home fell in each of the 13 markets examined from December 2023 to January of this year.
Ratehub.ca calculated the income required to purchase an average-priced home based on a mortgage with a 20-year downpayment, 25-year amortization, $4,000 in annual property taxes and $150 for monthly heating. The mortgage rates used – 6.16 per cent in December and 5.71 per cent in January – were the average of the Big Five banks' five-year fixed rates at the time. Average home price data were from the Canadian Real Estate Association 's average home price index.
But Ratehub.ca notes that the affordability break for buyers "could be short-lived", pointing to CREA data showing national buying conditions are tilting back in favour of sellers over buyers. This Canadian influencer is child-free by choice: 'I most certainly never had that maternal instinct' Dollarama will pay out $2.5 million in class-action lawsuit settlement over 'oversight' in EHF price display