RICHMOND HILL, ON, March 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- As the U.S. housing market falters, with the demise of Subprime lenders such as Accredited home lenders and New Century Mortgage the latest figures show all aspects of the Canadian market going strong with experts predicting a refinance boom.
Alex Haditaghi, CEO of MortgageBrokers.com says the housing market was "quick out of the gate this year," driven by many aspects including moderate interest rates, high employment, continued strong immigration to Canada and strong consumer confidence. We expect a very healthy 2007 for both the housing and Mortgage market.
Haditaghi's enthusiasm echoes reports released by Remax, CIMBL, and Bank Of Nova Scotia. Adrienne Warren an economist for Bank of Nova Scotia called the Canadian market "the rabbit that just keeps on going and going." Although the market is likely to cool some by the end of the year, home resales set a record in January and housing starts hit a 29-month high with the assistance of mild weather, Warren said.
Prices remain great as well, Warren noted. "The trend in national new- and existing-home prices, while off the highs of last spring, is still averaging about 10 per cent year-over-year." The Canadian market is in a very different situation than the United States.
The U.S. is currently burdened with higher default rates as a direct effect of the amount of high-risk subprime loans. In Canada subprime loans make up 5 percent of outstanding mortgages compared to the 20 percent in the United States. At the present time Canadian Default rate is around 0.5%
The Canadian market has remained robust, with the highest number of home sales in its history between 2001 and the present. The housing market has become stronger and more insulated as immigrants continue to flood into the country, ultimately buying homes and local economies continue to diversify.
Undoubtedly, the strong Canadian housing market will create a resurgence of refinancing as well. With approximately 95% of Canadian mortgage terms at 5 years or less, there is sure to be a huge refinance opportunity created in Canada. As real estate continues to be a solid investment more borrowers will look at refinancing to get into better terms or to utilize their equity.
Additionally, up and coming companies such as MortgageBrokers.com with unique business models that are built for slower times could benefit from this turmoil in the market, Mr. Haditaghi said. Such opportunities could range from buying portfolios of assets, intellectual property rights, and picking up talent, he said.
About MortgageBrokers.com-
MortgageBrokers.com is a fast-growing mortgage brokerage and technology corporation dedicated to re-branding the over 40,000 small and medium mortgage broker (SME) firms in North America and offering these entities scalability through a centralized shared services platform. MortgageBrokers.com allows these SME brokers to continue owning their own businesses while working under one recognizable brand. By taking advantage of centralized services such as payroll and accounting, compliance, marketing, technology, HR and lead generation our brokers are able to improve access to the customer through strategic alliance partnerships. We also create the opportunity to leverage our national teams origination with lenders, establishing higher referral fees from lenders and, creating the ability to earn ownership in a publicly-traded entity for eventual career exit strategy.
MortgageBrokers.com Inc.
