Highlights:

• This week’s spate of U.S. economic news told the tale of a tepid U.S. recovery, still-benign inflation pressures and a Fed that is poised to stand pat for some time to come.
• U.S. retailers suffered an unexpected drop in sales in December of -0.3% and -0.2% excluding autos. Q4 results still point to a recovery in retail spending, but a relatively shallow one in light of the precipitous slump in sales during the recession.
• U.S. CPI headline and core inflation rose by a modest 0.1% M/M in December and the 12-month trend in core prices was stable at 1.8%.
• Bolstered by this week’s reports, the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield fell to a one-month low. What is good for bonds is often bad for the USD, which continued to shed ground against a number of major currencies.
• In Canada, housing developments moved to centre stage again, with evidence that new homebuilding activity continued to gear up and resale activity stayed strong in December.
• Remarks by a Bank of Canada Deputy Governor this week reinforced the view that regulatory changes, not rate hikes, would be used to address an overheated housing market if future conditions warrant.
• The Canadian trade balance worsened unexpectedly in November, moving back into deficit territory on the back of a 3.9% M/M surge in imports.

Summary:

This would indicate to me that we could see extended amortizations scaled back further in which case, a 35 year could be reduced to a 30 year, and this of course would affect the mortgage amount that one could qualify for. Down payments could be affected, and/or sources of down payment, and variable rate mortgages may have restrictions to those with little down payment.
The report is also an indicator that we might not see rates go up as early or by as much as originally speculated. However, for anyone about to get into the market and buy, or about to refinance an existing mortgage, now couldn’t be a better time to secure your options and make plans.

Tags: Abbotsford, Fraser Valley, Langley, Market Trends, Real Estate, Realtor