Market Media Monday - December 22, 2025

A curated list of recent headlines relevant to real estate in Canada or locally, with short excerpts. Click each headline link to read the full article on the source site.

[ Canadian Real Estate Prices Accelerate Declines Into Winter ] 
"Canadian real estate is in for a long winter if last month was a preview of things to come. Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) data shows home prices fell further in November, after a small drop in new listings was met with a much bigger drop in sales. Prices haven’t just rolled back to the lowest level in nearly five years—the monthly declines are once again getting larger. "

[ Canada's housing market stuck in 'holding pattern,' says CREA ] 
"Home sales in Canada barely moved in November, but the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) forecasts that the market will bounce back in the spring following a “holding pattern” heading into 2026."

[ Canadian Home Sales Holding Steady Heading into 2026 ] 
"“At this point it’s looking like the mid-year rally in housing demand has veered into more of a holding pattern heading into 2026, coupled with what looks like some price concessions in November in order to get deals done before the end of the year,” said Shaun Cathcart, CREA’s Senior Economist. “That said, the Bank of Canada’s clear signal that rates are now about as good as they’re likely going to get is the green light many fixed-rate borrowers have no doubt been waiting for, so we remain of the view that activity will continue to pick up next year.”"

Improve your indoor air quality with plants

According to a number of studies, plants in your house not only add a bit of life and decoration, but can also improve your indoor air quality depending on your selections.  Most plants have some air filtering capacity, removing toxins from the air as they 'breathe' from day to day.

Doing some reading online, lists of best plants differ according to research and writer, but there are a few "usual suspects" that show up on many, if not all, lists.

1. Spathiphyllum (Peace Lily, pictured)
This plant shows up on most lists I have seen, as a tough and hardy plant with numerous air filtering qualities, credited with removing alcohols, acetone, industrial solvent trichloroethylene, benzene (an ingredient used to make dyes, lubricants, rubbers, and detergents), and formaldehyde.

2. Dracaena
Another low maintenance plant and regular on the lists, the Dracaena is said to be very efficient at removing formaldehyde from the air in your home, as well as other VOCs, including benzene, trichloroethylene, and xylene. One important note is that you should keep it out of reach of any pets, as it can be toxic to animals when ingested.

3. Bamboo Palm
The bamboo palm is another plant said to have a high ability to remove formaldehyde from the air, as well as benzene and trichloroethylene.

4. Snake Plant
According to NASA, the snake plant is one of the best houseplants for absorbing airborne toxins, including formaldehyde, nitrogen oxide, benzene, xylene and trichloroethylene. (You'll notice there are some regulars on the list of household toxins, too)  The snake plant is also said to be one of the higher producers of oxygen during the night.

5. Hedera helix (English Ivy)
English Ivy is another popular plant that helps filter toxins in your home's air.  It is said to be effective for benzene, formaldehyde, xylene and toluene, and other studies have indicated that English Ivy may help reduce mould in your home.

If you'd like to read more about plants that can help with indoor air quality, here are a few links to get you started:

[Healthy houseplants]

[The Top 10 Plants for Removing Indoor Toxins]

[9 Low-Maintenance Indoor Plants That Might Clean Your Air]

Market Media Monday - December 15, 2025

A curated list of recent headlines relevant to real estate in Canada or locally, with short excerpts. Click each headline link to read the full article on the source site.

[ Canada's housing market poised for a reset in 2026, with modest price growth and increased activity ] 
"After a tumultuous 2025 marked by economic and political shifts, 2026 emerges as a crucial reset year for Canada's housing market. According to the Royal LePage Market Survey Forecast, Canada's residential real estate market is expected to post modest price gains next year and an increase in sales activity, as buyers continue to move off the sidelines."

[ Home prices in Toronto and Vancouver expected to drop as the rest of Canada sees a hike: LePage ]
"The latest annual report from real estate company Royal LePage is forecasting a modest hike in home prices of one per cent by the fourth quarter of 2026. But that overall figure is hiding a significant drop in two of Canada’s most expensive cities, Toronto and Vancouver."

[ Canadian Real Estate Investors Captured Nearly 75% of Ownership Growth ]
"Canadian real estate investors may be a bigger problem than even the most aggressive assumptions. New data from Statistics Canada’s (StatCan) Canadian Housing Statistics Program (CHSP) shows investors captured a greater share of the total housing stock in most provinces in 2023. That isn’t surprising, but the math for that to work out is: Investors had to account for 3 in 4 new owners—driven by Ontario, where investors represented 84% of net growth."

[ Bank of Canada Confirms Rate Floor, And It’s Bad News For Real Estate ]
"Canada’s central bank delivered a harsh reality check for real estate bulls hoping for cuts. The Bank of Canada (BoC) held its overnight rate at 2.25% this morning, citing recent revisions to economic data that show the economy is doing better than expected. However, they view the broader economy not as a typical business cycle contraction, but as a structural shift towards lower growth. This meeting wasn’t just a pause; it was a recalibration of policy that makes this the floor for interest rates."

[ Toronto rent hasn’t been this low since the pandemic ]
"Toronto’s average monthly rent across all homes—$2,521—fell 4.8 per cent in 2025 compared with the year before, hitting its lowest level in more than three years, according to a new report from Rentals.ca. One-bedrooms in the city are currently going for $2,222, down 6.4 per cent, while two-bedrooms now cost about $2,828, down 8.5 per cent."

Market Media Monday - December 1, 2025

A curated list of recent headlines relevant to real estate in Canada or locally, with short excerpts. Click each headline link to read the full article on the source site.

[ Here's what experts predict will happen to Ontario's housing market in 2026 ]
"As we approach December, experts are releasing their predictions for the sector in the coming months, including RE/MAX, which just dropped its 2026 Canadian Housing Market Outlook."

[ BoC expected to hold in December as GDP improves—but underlying weakness lingers ]
"Stronger-than-expected GDP data has strengthened expectations that the Bank of Canada will hold its policy rate in December. Third-quarter GDP rebounded 2.6% q/q annualized, well above forecasts, while September posted a modest 0.2% gain following August’s decline."

[ City staff to evaluate 900 rental complexes as Hamilton’s ‘safe apartment buildings’ bylaw takes effect ]
"A new Hamilton bylaw meant to crack down on shoddy apartment building conditions takes effect in January to the applause of tenant advocates but irritation of a local landlord association."

[ Ontario takes control of real estate regulator ]
"The Ford government announced Friday it has appointed an administrator to take control of the Real Estate Council of Ontario (RECO), following an independent audit into the real estate regulator’s handling of what it describes as iPro Realty's "misappropriation" of funds."

Market Media Monday - November 24, 2025

A curated list of recent headlines relevant to real estate in Canada, with short excerpts. Click each headline link to read the full article on the source site.

[ Annual home sales fall in October as CREA expects lower rates to boost market in 2026 ]
"The Canadian Real Estate Association says the number of residential properties that changed hands in October was lower compared to a year ago, as prices also fell . . . But home sales ticked up 0.9 per cent on a month-over-month basis, marking the sixth such increase in the past seven months."

[ Shedding light on Canada's Emerging Trends in Real Estate ]
"Housing supply and affordability issues are top-of-mind for many people, while retail, student and seniors housing, self-storage and industrial properties are demonstrating resilience and, in some cases, outperforming expectations."

[ Canada emerges as a 2026 standout as real estate investors seek stability and yield ]
"Canada is one of the most appealing real estate markets heading into 2026, offering investors stability, strong demographic drivers and a supply environment that remains far tighter than most global peers. Although the broader economy has shown signs of strain and uncertainty around trade policy continues, the underlying fundamentals of the country’s property sectors remain supportive of renewed capital deployment, according to Colliers’ 2026 Global Investor Outlook released today (Nov. 19)."

[ Opinion: Sluggish homebuilding could stall Canada’s economic recovery ]
"At a time when Canadians are grappling with historic housing supply and affordability challenges, the data show that homebuilding continues to come up short in some parts of the country, including in metro regions where most newcomers to Canada settle."

[ Canadian mortgage delinquency rate falls for first time in 3 years: CMHC ]
"Canada’s housing agency says the number of homeowners behind on mortgage payments has fallen for the first time in three years, though delinquencies are still trending up in Ontario and British Columbia. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. says the national mortgage delinquency rate was 0.22 per cent in the second quarter, down from 0.23 per cent in the first."

[ headline link ]
"excerpt"

Remember to turn off your outdoor taps for winter

Do you turn off your outdoor water taps and drain them before winter?  If you don't, you can get lucky for a time, but you may suddenly find yourself sending out an SOS like this one I once saw on Facebook:

"OMG - outside tap blew up and water is spewing everywhere & flooding towards house!! I DON'T know where shut off valve is!!"

If you've ever frozen a bottle of water and noticed how the bottle has bulged, you understand to some extent why this happens. Unlike many liquids that shrink in volume when frozen, water actually expands, causing the bottle to bulge - or break if it is inflexible material like glass. 

When this happens inside plumbing, the push of the water expanding as it freezes into ice can burst a pipe. In the example above, my friend was lucky that the burst was outside the house and the water was spewing into the yard. They were also lucky that it happened while they were home or it could have still flooded back into the house, but it would have been much worse if the freeze had occurred a bit further into the pipe because water would have been flooding directly into their basement.

Frozen pipes are always a nuisance and can happen anywhere plumbing is running on or close to exterior walls, but outdoor taps are especially risky because by their nature they extend beyond the interior of the house and are exposed to the outdoor temperatures.

So, if you haven't already, go figure out where the shutoff valves are for your outdoor taps and turn them off, then open the taps outside to drain any water still inside and confirm they are off.

#Terminology Tuesday: Escape Clause

A sale-of-property condition allows a buyer to make an offer on a property with a condition on selling their property, rather than waiting until they are sold first. This is the most usual situation where we may see an 'Escape Clause'.

Because selling a property can take longer than other conditions, such as mortgage or home inspection, a seller is often not keen on accepting this condition from a buyer.  After all, you're then stuck in limbo with a conditional sale until the buyer gets their own property sold. If they don't successfully sell and end up giving up, then you can find yourself without a buyer and a lot of wasted time.

An Escape Clause helps to mitigate this risk.  The standard wording from the Ontario Real Estate Association's clause library is:

Provided further that the Seller may continue to offer the property for sale and, in the event the Seller receives another Offer satisfactory to the Seller, the Seller may so notify the Buyer in writing by delivery to the Buyer personally or in accordance with any other provisions for the delivery of notice in this Agreement of Purchase and Sale or any Schedule thereto. The Buyer shall have <XX> hours from the giving of such notice to waive this condition by notice in writing delivered to the Seller personally or in accordance with any other provisions for the delivery of notice in this Agreement of Purchase and Sale or any Schedule thereto, failing which this Offer shall be null and void, and the Buyer's deposit shall be returned in full without deduction.

So the seller gets to continue to market their property for sale and potentially accept another offer from a different buyer (with a condition on the seller getting out of the previous sale).  If this happens, then the buyer will have "XX" hours from the time the seller gives them notice to either firm up or back out.  The time given varies, typically between 24 and 72 hours.  The seller naturally wants less time, the buyer wants more. I find 48 hours to be a pretty usual compromise, but market conditions may dictate one way or the other.

When this happens, the buyer can waive their sale-of-property condition and enter into a firm sale.  The obvious risk is that you don't sell your house in time to close on the agreed closing day.  If you can't finance the purchase without the funds from selling, this puts you into a breach of contract with all the related problems that brings. 

But the other way, you're backing out of the sale and letting the other buyer have it (with your deposit being returned just like any other condition falling through).  Not an appealing option, but better than not closing, losing your deposit, and getting sued.

In a situation like this, it is important to discuss your options with your real estate professional and maybe even your lawyer.