Canadian existing home sales rose 0.3 percent in August from the previous month, as the lowest mortgage rates since at least 1973 stoke demand.
Sales rose to 42,965 units last month, holding at about the five-year high set in May, the Canadian Real Estate Association said from Ottawa Tuesday.
The housing market is holding up, supporting Canada’s economy as it grapples with a drop in energy prices. The Bank of Canada cut interest rates twice this year to support incomes and spending, keeping mortgage rates at the lowest in decades.
“The continuation of low interest rates is supporting home sales and price trends, and is likely to keep doing so for some time,” CREA chief economist Gregory Klump said.
The Bank of Canada’s 5 Year Conventional Mortgage Rate Index has been at 4.64 percent since April, the lowest in records dating to 1973.
Full article at: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-09-15/canada-august-existing-home-sales-rose-0-3-realtor-group-says
