Steady interest rate could encourage buyers, transit issues fuelling housing crisis, the Home of the Week and more top real estate stories
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The Home of the Week is nestled in a former industrial area in Toronto.Unique vtour Ltd.
This week: Why the steady interest rate may mean a spring thaw for the housing market, and how inadequate public transit may make it harder to afford a home. Plus, the industry being hammered by the home-sales slump and one property worth a look.
Before we dive in, we want to hear your thoughts about the rise of AI-generated and edited images on rental and real estate listings. Reporter Salmaan Farooqui wants to hear from buyers, renters and industry professionals about whether you use this tech and any concerns you have. You can e-mail him at [email protected].
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Interest rate
Steady interest rate may bring buyers off the sidelines despite uncertainty
With the Bank of Canada holding interest rates steady at 2.25 per cent this week, Canada’s housing market could see a spring thaw – so long as U.S. trade negotiations appear to be on track. As Erica Alini reports, many prospective buyers who have held back in hopes of even lower borrowing rates and home prices may finally take the plunge in the wake of the BoC decision.
But just how many will actually come out of hibernation may depend on how Canada’s renegotiation of the USMCA with the United States and Mexico goes (it’s scheduled for a review in July). “A further degradation of the relationship with the U.S. or a clear indication that there would be no reasonable renewal of our trade agreement … could actually act as a damper on the spring market,” Royal Le Page CEO Philip Soper told Erica. Still, barring any significant trade shocks, Mr. Soper expects homebuyers to come off the sidelines once the typical winter market lull is over.
Collateral damage
Furniture sales fall victim to real-estate slump
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Furniture stores like Leon’s are used to weathering the booms and busts of the housing market.Fred Lum/The Globe and Mail
As the Canadian real estate market struggles to regain momentum, a closely-tied industry is also feeling the strain. Furniture sales in Canada have been treading water for years and are currently more than $200-million below peak months in 2020 and 2021. As Bianca Thompson reports, the retailers are used to riding the boom-and-bust cycles of the housing market, such as when home sales hit record levels and consumers upgraded their spaces during the pandemic.
But some have struggled to adapt to the sluggish market, with giants losing billions of dollars in market value and small and medium-sized firms scrambling to make it at all. That could mean lower prices for those looking to decorate their spaces in the short-term, but also less choice and possibly higher prices in the longer term.
This week’s lowest fixed and variable mortgage rates in Canada
Rates shown are the lowest available for each term/type and category (insured vs. uninsured) as of market close on Thursday, Jan. 29.
Transit woes
Public transit could become latest wedge between housing haves and have-nots
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Public transit is essential for housing affordability, but inadequate service could fuel inequity.Carlos Osorio/Reuters
Gridlocked highways, crawling buses and squeeze-yourself-in subway cars aren’t just commuter frustrations and productivity killers. They’re also a sign of another brewing crisis that promises to worsen Canada’s housing crisis – inadequate transit. Experts warn major cities are running up against the limits of their existing transport networks, reports Erica Alini, and that will further increase inequality between those who already have housing and those trying to secure it.
Despite recent home price declines in some of Canada’s priciest markets – and a shrinking price gap between cities and suburbs – finding cheaper housing now often requires substantially longer commutes. But without improving public transit, and quickly, clogged urban arteries will make settling in a far-flung suburb, a traditional solution for affordability, virtually impossible.
Design corner
Where design is headed in 2026
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Heidi Earnshaw, who designed this chair, thinks 2026 will bring a focus on craftsmanship.Alexa Mazzarello/The Globe and Mail
Everything from tariffs to technology will shape how we live in 2026, including design. Take a peek at the trends and principles six designers think will guide the year ahead.
Home of the Week
A magnet for families in a former industrial area
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Home of the Week, 51 Foundry Ave #55, Toronto.Unique vtour Ltd.
51 Foundry Ave., unit 55, Toronto – Full gallery here
The area around Lansdowne Avenue and Davenport Road was known for sturdy Edwardian buildings where workers fabricated railway cars, fire hydrants, ornamental gates and other components of a burgeoning society in Toronto’s industrial past. But twenty years after its residential revitalization, the neighbourhood has become a sought-after urban alternative for families who would otherwise be looking in the suburbs. This end-unit townhouse at The Foundry echoes its surrounding architecture with stone cladding and a brick façade. Inside, a den lived many different lives as a home gym, playroom and later a home office for the owner’s growing family, but could be turned into a bedroom to make four in the two-level unit. But the neighbourhood is owner Lynne Atkinson’s favourite feature: kids play in their yards or at Earlscourt parks, parents get together in the evenings, and new art galleries, cafés and restaurants are popping up on nearby Geary Avenue. “It feels like a community,” she said.
What do you think is the asking price for the property?
a. $809,500
b. $869,900
c. $989,900
d. $1,049,000
d. The asking price is $869,900.
