Real Estate

Luxury Toronto condo The One put into receivership and more Canadian real estate news for October 21

25/10/2023
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Home of the Week, 659 Avondale Rd., Newport, N.S.Sherman Hines/Sherman Hines

Here are The Globe and Mail’s top housing and real estate stories this week, with the lowest mortgage rates available in Canada today, commentary from our mortgage expert and one home worth a look.

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Canada’s bank regulator says it won’t relax stress test on mortgage renewals

The Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) says it will not exempt uninsured borrowers from the mortgage stress test if they switch to a different lender at renewal time, writes Rachelle Younglai. Calls from the real estate industry to relax the stress test have been growing, as the spike in mortgage rates has made it harder for borrowers to qualify for a mortgage.

The regulator said exempting all renewals from the stress test “could cause lenders to

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Real Estate

LACKIE: September numbers reflect grim time in Toronto real estate

12/10/2023

Eighteen months of rising interest rates have pummelled affordability and eliminated a large swath of buyers from the market place

Published Oct 07, 2023  •  Last updated 4 days ago  •  3 minute read

Real estate for-sale sign. Photo by Stock art /Toronto Sun

September was not a good month in Toronto real estate, no matter the spin you might be privy to on social media.

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Real Estate

Toronto real estate class-action could affect billions of dollars in commissions

08/10/2023

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A Federal Court judge on Sept. 25 allowed a class-action lawsuit alleging home sellers in the Toronto area have been forced to pay artificially inflated commissions for years. The lawsuit alleges major brokers and real estate organizations in Toronto implemented rules that essentially stifled competition for buyer brokerage services, leading to higher prices. But what exactly is buyer brokerage and what is its role in the potentially landmark lawsuit? The Financial Post’s Shantaé Campbell explains.

What does ‘buyer brokerage’ mean?

Buyer brokerage refers to a real estate agreement where a broker represents the buyer in a property transaction, in contrast to the traditional setup in which brokers primarily represented sellers. The shift toward buyer representation began in the 1990s in Canada, leading to the development of buyer agency agreements, allowing buyers to have exclusive representation in the homebuying process.

This transformation prompted the creation of specific legislations and regulations

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Real Estate

Class action on Toronto real estate industry commissions gets go ahead

01/10/2023

After two years of deliberations, the Federal Court has granted approval for a class-action lawsuit alleging price-fixing and anti-competitive practices to proceed against the real estate industry in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).

The lawsuit, filed in April 2021 on behalf of Toronto resident Mark Sunderland and anyone who sold a home in the GTA after 2010, alleges misconduct by several of the nation’s leading brokerages, including Century 21, Remax and IproRealty Ltd. The Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) and the Toronto Regional Real Estate Board (TRREB) are also named in the lawsuit.

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The allegations within the lawsuit assert that the brokerages conspired to artificially increase buyer brokerage commissions, which were shouldered by home sellers in the GTA. It is also alleged that CREA and TRREB facilitated and contributed to the execution of this arrangement.

On Sept. 25, Chief Justice Paul Crampton permitted the case to

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Forec

Clean-cut condo and honest pricing a winning combo in Toronto sale

21/07/2023
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25 Fontenay Crt. No. 1605, Toronto

Asking price: $529,900 (May, 2023)

Selling price: $535,000 (June, 2023)

Previous selling price: $496,500 (May, 2020)

Taxes: $2,074 (2022)

Days on the market: 14

Listing agents: Natercia Cacador, Nigel Denham and Penny Brown, Sotheby’s International Realty Canada

The action

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The unit had an estimated value of about $529,900, so it was simply listed for that amount and deep cleaned.Handout

In a high-rise across from the Humber River and Scarlett Woods Golf Course, this one-bedroom unit had an estimated value of about $529,900, so it was simply listed for that amount and deep cleaned. The condo, located in a building that had three other units for sale, attracted two offers, including one that was $5,100 above asking.

“At that moment of time, with higher interest rates, I didn’t think it would sell over the

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