A new apartment complex being built in Alhamba, California on September 6, 2023.FREDERIC J. BROWN/AFP/Getty Images
Mortgage rates at a standstill
Canada’s leading nationally advertised mortgage rates didn’t budge an inch this week.
Government yields, which drive fixed mortgage rates, have been zig-zagging sideways since July. Bond traders have no idea what’ll happen in the next few quarters. Will inflation surprise higher? Or will we charge headfirst into that slowdown/recession the economists project? Or both?
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Looking forward to the far-off lands of 2024, most bets are on the latter. Markets are almost pricing in one Bank of Canada rate cut of 25 basis points by the end of next year and more than three such Fed cuts. That’s curious, given Canada is much more sensitive to high interest rates than stateside.
Either way, if we end this year without a big oil- or crisis-driven inflation spike, rate-cut expectations will start to percolate. At that point, mortgage shoppers may rekindle their affection for the flexibility of variable rates.
Rates were sourced from the MortgageLogic.news Canadian Mortgage Rate Survey on Sept. 14, 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.
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