variable-rate deals. “We believe the housing market is playing a weird game (of) musical chairs right now,” Eisner told the Financial Post. “In this game, no one is willing to stand up until they have a guaranteed new chair to sit in. When we see ten or 15 bids on a home, we know there are ten to 15 homes that haven’t been listed yet. Once the market begins to roll over, it will move quickly as everyone swaps chairs.”
Meanwhile,mortgage expert Rob McLister is of the view that housing markets in Canada are also suffering from a lack of quality listings. “Supply is coming back to some of Canada’s hottest markets. We need to see more of that,” he said. “Otherwise, it’s going to be another lopsided spring market. Until housing inventories rebound materially, sellers will remain in control.”
He added that mortgage demand is expected to remain strong through spring, as a result of low inventory, subsiding Coronavirus infections and strong employment momentum, among others. However, this housing fever will be brought to a halt if the country’s central bank launches more aggressive moves over the coming months. “If (the Bank of Canada) hikes are anywhere near the 175+ bps that’s priced in, the housing market’s going to hit a brick wall,” McLister said. “I suspect that kind of move would take at least 18 months, if it happened.”
