Home of the Week, 27 Bannockburn Ave., TorontoSamantha Keay Photography
This week, developers are calling for policy makers to help incentivize investors back into the condo market. Plus, the renters trying to save up for a down payment without parental help and one property worth a look.
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Listings and lockboxes
Rental listing ‘hijacking’ raises security concerns
Condo lock boxes at a Toronto property.
Homes for rent that have been “hijacked” and the loose enforcement of rules over who has access to them are raising concerns about security gaps in the residential property market. As Shane Dingman writes, some real estate agents in Toronto say the practice of hijacking a listing – someone copying the properties of the agent contracted to sell a property onto their own website – has become almost commonplace. After a hijacking incident involving a realtor’s assistant allegedly accessing properties using keys in lockboxes, industry experts are questioning their use in keeping sellers’ homes safe.
Dingman told me that realtors can make money by hijacking someone else’s rental listing by posting it on social media or other sites and finding a tenant who wants to rent. If they make a deal with a tenant, they can share the lease commission, which could be thousands of dollars, depending on the monthly rent.
Aggressive leasing tactics are becoming more commonplace as the housing market continues its slump, and sellers turn to renting homes they can’t offload.
“Real estate agents with seller or landlord clients often have a clearer path to making money,” Dingman said. “Realtors representing buyers or tenants have to do a lot more hustling (and in some cases hijacking) to make money. ”
Parental help
For renters, saving for down payments is a struggle – unless they have help from their parents
Brenna Castaño of Winnipeg says she would love to buy a house, but it feels like a lofty goal without financial help from family.Shannon VanRaes/The Globe and Mail
Statistics Canada figures released in March show the median renting family under age 35 held $12,000 in liquid assets, which it defines as money in bank accounts, term deposits, treasury bills, tax-free savings accounts, stocks, bonds and registered retirement savings plans. The median for all renting households under 45 is only $600 more. That makes a down payment out of reach for many renters in most Canadian cities, where home ownership is increasingly the domain of people who have support from their families, the Statscan report said. It warns that being unable to buy a home can have a ripple effect for future generations, since homeownership “has long been critical for wealth accumulation, particularly among younger households and middle-class families.” Frances Bula spoke to Canadians who are trying to save up for homeownership without help from their parents.
This week’s lowest fixed and variable mortgage rates in Canada
Markets have priced in a 67-per-cent chance of a 25-basis-point rate cut when the Bank of Canada meets on Sept. 17.Darren Calabrese/The Canadian Press
Five-year mortgage terms have offered some of the lowest fixed rates for much of 2025, but that is starting to change, writes Salmaan Farooqui. Experts say many lenders are now offering promotional rates on three-year fixed terms at around 3.6 per cent. That compares with some of the cheapest five-year fixed rates being in the low 4-per-cent range. Meanwhile, markets are anticipating much higher chances of an interest-rate cut from the Bank of Canada this month.
Rates shown are the lowest available for each term/type and category (insured versus uninsured) as of market close on Thursday, Sept. 4.
Opinion
With new condo market in a slump, debate rages over investors and foreign buyers
Government regulations, such as the federal foreign buyer ban have turned foreign investors away from Canadian real estate in recent years.DARRYL DYCK/The Canadian Press
As the Vancouver and Toronto condo markets continue to languish, the major role of the investor, both foreign and local, is coming into focus. In the city of Vancouver, 50 per cent of newly built condos were investor owned, according to Canadian Housing Statistics Program data looking at the market between 2016 and 2022. In Toronto proper, 58 per cent of new condos were investor owned. As we hear about investors are fleeing the preconstruction condo market, developers are pressing policy makers to encourage them back to the market, writes Kerry Gold. However, housing experts are pushing back, arguing that an investor-driven housing market, particularly from outside wealth, pushes housing out of reach for locals.
Home of the Week
Home planned for an empty nest, but life intervenes
Home of the Week, 27 Bannockburn Ave., TorontoSamantha Keay Photography
27 Bannockburn Ave., Toronto – Full gallery here
Owners Brad and Tanya Henderson sought to downsize as they prepared for their future as empty nesters. So they bought a property in Toronto’s Ledbury Park and hired Peter Higgins Architect Inc. to design a contemporary new home on the deep lot. Ten months later, their four-bedroom home was complete. At the owners’ request, the house featured lots of open spaces and glass. On the main floor, a lounging area overlooks the street, with a dining area in the centre and a combined kitchen and family room at the rear. On the upper level, the house has a large primary suite with a bedroom opening to a balcony overlooking the backyard. There’s a large walk-in closet and a bathroom with a soaker tub, walk-in shower and double sink vanity. After all the work spent downsizing their space, a few of their sons ended up moving back home – which put the home’s many spaces for entertaining to good use.
Guess the price
b. The asking price is $4.65-million.