Canada’s leading national-advertised rates were mostly unchanged in the last seven days, which is typical in the quiet last week of December.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press
Mortgage Rates Hit the Snooze Button
Canada’s leading national-advertised rates were mostly unchanged in the last seven days, which is typical in the quiet last week of December.
Meanwhile, the mortgage industry has its eyes glued to government bond yields. Yields, are the main puppet masters pulling the strings on fixed mortgage rates, and they’re approaching seven-month lows.
That’s dragged down fixed rates by an average of 60 bps these past few months. And because there’s still an abnormally wide gap between the rates you see and what banks pay for their funds, fixed rates should ease even further.
Of course, where we go from here depends mainly on the path of inflation and inflation expectations. It may be relatively calm on that front amid a dearth of economic data – at least until next Friday’s Canadian and U.S. job reports. Employment data always has the potential to shake up yields and move mortgage rates.
Rates were sourced from the MortgageLogic.news Canadian Mortgage Rate Survey on Dec. 28, 2023. We include only providers who advertise rates online and lend in at least nine provinces. Insured rates apply to those buying with less than a 20 per cent down payment or switching a pre-existing insured mortgage to a new lender. Uninsured rates apply to refinances and purchases over $1-million and may include applicable lender rate premiums. For providers whose rates vary by province, their highest rate is shown.
Robert McLister is an interest rate analyst, mortgage strategist and editor of MortgageLogic.news. You can follow him on Twitter at @RobMcLister.