TopicThe Canadian Economy, Politics and Housing Policy
What Ottawa, Queen's Park and Washington mean for your home.
Housing in the GTA moves with decisions made a long way from your street: federal budgets, immigration targets, tax rules, trade disputes with the United States and elections. Moe Asgarian explains each one as it happens and ties it back to one question: what does this change for someone buying, selling or holding a home here?
Canadian Politics and Housing Policy
- Who Is Mark Carney? The Banker Who Could Lead Canada
Mark Carney is the front-runner to replace Justin Trudeau. Here's the banker who steered Canada through 2008, the rate cuts that set him apart, and the leadership fight ahead.
- Foreign Buyers Are Back on the Table: What History Tells Us
Ottawa is weighing an Australia-style rule that would open pre-sale projects to foreign buyers. Here is what Vancouver's and Ontario's foreign-buyer taxes already taught us, and why the market reacts every time the policy shifts.
- Why We Should Treat the Trudeau Government as Finished
Freeland resigned, the NDP pulled its support, and a Conservative government now looks likely within months. Here is what the political shakeup means for Canada's economy and housing.
- Open Bidding vs Blind Bidding: Does Ontario's New Law Change Anything?
Ontario now lets sellers run an open bid where rival offers are visible. Sounds like it should cool prices, but does it? Here is how the law works and what really sets a home's price.
- The New Capital Gains Tax Increase and Three Predictions for Toronto Real Estate
Ottawa raised the capital gains inclusion rate for the first time since 2001. Here is what changed, who pays more, and three ways it could hit the Toronto housing market.
- Canada's New Plan to Support Renters: Three Key Points
Moe Asgarian breaks down Ottawa's new proposal to help renters: a national lease standard with rental price history, rent payments counting toward credit scores, and a $15 million fund to protect tenants.
- Toronto's New Property Tax Hike: What It Means for the Market
Toronto's 2024 budget raises property tax by 9 percent plus a 1.5 percent building levy. Here is what is behind it and how much it really affects the housing market.
- Everything About Toronto's New Airbnb Rules
From 2024, short term rental hosts in Toronto face tighter rules and a key tax change. Here is what changed and whether it will really move the rental market.
- Trudeau's Half-Billion Dollar Housing Help for Toronto
Ottawa sent Toronto $471 million for housing at the end of 2023. Moe Asgarian explains what the Housing Accelerator Fund does and what it means for buyers and investors.
US Tariffs and Trade
- Trump's 25 Percent Tariff: What It Could Do to Canada and the Housing Market
A 25 percent tariff on Canadian goods could cost the average Canadian around $2,000 a year and put real pressure on mortgages and home prices. Here is how it plays out.
- Canada Cut Rates to 3%, but Trump's Tariffs Changed the Mood
The Bank of Canada cut its overnight rate to 3% at its first meeting of 2025, but a 25 percent tariff threat from the U.S. turned a good news day into a nervous one. Here is how to think about your next move.
- US Tariffs and the Canadian Housing Market: What a Trade War Would Mean
The Canada-US tariff fight is paused for 30 days. If it restarts, here is what it could do to Canada's economy, your cost of living, and the housing and construction market.
- Trump's Tariffs and Canada: The 5 Questions That Matter
Trump is back and the word in Canada is tariffs. Here are the five questions that matter most for our economy: how big, how fast, why, which laws, and what could stop him.
Immigration, Population and the Economy
- Ontario's HST Break, Record Gas Prices, and Canada's Job Market
Ontario dropped the HST on new homes and prices went up, not down. Add a record gas jump and a soft job market, and here is what it all means for rates and your next move.
- The Iran War and Canada's Economy: What to Expect
The war involving Iran is rippling through Canada's economy, from the Strait of Hormuz to your grocery bill and your mortgage renewal. Here is what to watch, and where Canada actually gains.
- Canada's International Student Cap, Explained in Numbers
Canada is capping international students for two years, with a 35% cut to undergraduate study permits. Here is what the official numbers say, and what it means for Toronto rent and home prices.
Frequently asked questions
How does immigration affect Toronto home prices?
Newcomers need somewhere to live as soon as they arrive, so immigration shows up in rents first and in purchases a few years later. When the federal government raises or lowers its targets, the rental market and the condo market feel it before detached homes do.
How do US tariffs reach the Canadian housing market?
Through three channels: jobs in the industries that export, the cost of building materials, and interest rates, because the Bank of Canada weighs a weaker economy against higher prices. The effect on confidence is often faster than any of them, as buyers wait to see what happens.
Are these posts still accurate if they are from an earlier year?
Each post describes a policy or an event as it stood on the date shown beside it. Rules change, governments change, and some proposals never became law. Treat the older posts as the record of what was announced and why it mattered then, and check the newest entries for where things stand.
Talk it through with Moe
Tell us what you are weighing up and get straight, no-pressure advice, in English or Farsi.
Book a Consultation