I am here to tell you that we are seeing a light at the end of the tunnel! Most real estate agents would agree that home prices are falling, and overbidding is reduced. Mind you there are still pockets where a home in the most desirable area is still seeing the bidding wars but for the most part, things have settled down also thanks to the Bank of Canada with the 2022 rate hikes to Prime the market is cooling off. What is prime you ask? Well, prime is the benchmark that the Bank of Canada has set for interest, this controls most financial things in Canada, such as mortgages, Lines of credit etc. Why is this important you ask? Well to cool the housing market and reduce inflation among other things, I am sure. So, with all of this happening I can see why first-time home buyers are getting discouraged and not knowing where to start, so I will lay out a plan that could get you back on your feet and into your dream of home ownership! What the Banks want to see when they receive an application and understanding what they are looking for is super important in the approval process. Banks well any lender for that matter, want to see you can pay your debt, simple. Do you have a steady job, making a consistent income and how do you manage your money for debt repayment? This is the main objective for any financial institution.
FIRST-TIME HOME BUYERS
THE STRUGGLE IS REAL!
by Tamara Vallis
I thought long and hard about what to write for this article and I thought I would share my tips and tricks for First-Time Home Buyers, especially in this market. True these last few years have been challenging or some would say frus- trating. Writing multiple offers, getting outbid over and over or paying a crazy amount of money for a modest home. It is a fact that the housing market and prices of homes in Nova Scotia are insane, however neces-
sary to continue to boost this beautiful place we call home. The Maritimes has seen some drastic changes with the pandemic and how that impacted property values in the market. We were at one time the safest place in North America, how crazy is that to say! So naturally, we became a hot destination for people to move to, which should not be surprising considering we had low property values, pandemic safety (for a minute) and one of the most beautiful coasts and places to live in the world. All of this and many other factors played into creating a buying frenzy and sadly first-time home buyers were pushed out of the marketing in most cases. Now we are seeing a lot of buyer fatigue and disappointment plus this has caused havoc on the rental market as many that were looking to purchases homes are staying renters and with more and more people needing rental properties it is now driving those prices up also and causing another big issue which is affordable housing especially in the HRM.
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JULY/AUGUST 2022 • SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE
SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE • JULY/AUGUST 2022
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