Yes, the prices of homes in Canada for sale are still dropping, so are the Interest Rates!

As a mortgage professional in the real estate industry, there are a few common things I hear about homes in Canada for sale every day. Things like – “House prices are dropping further,” “Now is a good time to buy with low prices and interest rates,” “Now is a good time to sell before the price drops even further,” etc, etc.  But what does this all really mean to the seller and to the buyer?

People who have bought a property at a height of the boom stand more to lose as the prices drop. Several reputable economists have predicted that while prices of homes in Canada for sale has dropped significantly last year, it will get even worse first quarter of this year before it picks up again. Where I notice most disagreements is the time when things will start to go up… Some say late this year, others say not after 2010.

Interest rates may have dropped but with listings increasing as we approach the nicer weather in spring, I think we’re headed the same price route as we saw in 2008 – down… All I can say to that is I wish that if people really do not need to sell, they should take their off listings so the market is less saturated with them. If more of these occur, maybe, just maybe, the market might go up earlier than predicted.

Still, I personally think it is a good time to buy if you are looking at owning the property long term (minimum 5 years). True, the prices of homes in Canada for sale may drop further, but it won’t be dropping forever and with the interest rates so low, now is the best time to buy while lenders are handing out very low fixed-rate mortgages.