According to recent Bank of Canada data, total Canadian residential mortgage debt hit an all-time high in March, and there is every reason to expect that that high has since been exceeded. As reported in Better Dwelling, an online real estate newsletter, Canadians now owe over $1.67 TRILLION in residential mortgage credit.
Just considering the increase in mortgage debt over the last 12 months, that figure alone is over 5% of Canada’s entire Gross Domestic Product, and represents the largest one-year mortgage debt increase ever.
This explosion in debt has implications for homeowners and policymakers, and also for mortgage lenders, especially non-institutional lenders that typically advance loans under second and third mortgage security. Such security is the first to face jeopardy in any correction in housing prices.
Experienced advice is crucial in navigating an increasingly “frothy” real estate market.