This week, the federal Housing Accelerator Fund is under scrutiny, as it succeeds in getting more developments made but falls short on its intended purpose. Plus, what to know when considering swapping mortgage lenders and one property worth a look.

Calgary and Edmonton have been the poster children for the Housing Accelerator Fund, a federal incentive program launched in the spring of 2023 to bolster the supply of housing across the country by eliminating red tape and improving efficiency. The Fund has helped speed up the approval of almost 30,000 residential building permits in the Alberta cities, comprising 70,000 homes. But, as Ximena Gonzalez writes, some experts believe the Housing Accelerator Fund misses the mark on its original intended goal – creating more adequate housing in Canada. A lack of requirements related to unit size, accessibility, and affordability, among others, means that the bulk of the supply being built doesn’t meet the needs of those who might need it most. Read more about how Calgary and Alberta are at the forefront of the push for affordable housing.

Over a million Canadians are renewing their fixed-rate mortgages this year, and as they consider their options, one of the main questions is whether they should move to a new lender. As Penelope Graham writes, switching to a new mortgage provider at renewal time comes with plenty of benefits. As a new client, you’ll typically be offered a lower rate than what your current lender will give you. But making this change isn’t always straightforward. Depending on the type of mortgage you have, you may incur costs as part of the requalification process. Here’s what you need to know when considering swapping lenders.

Weak economic data in Canada is drastically changing mortgage rate outlooks for both variable and fixed rate mortgages, writes Salmaan Farooqui. Drops in bond yields is a result of higher expectations that the Bank of Canada will cut its headline interest rate next week, after Canadian gross domestic product numbers came back weaker than expected. Markets are now pricing in 80 per cent odds of a quarter percentage point cut on Sept. 17, according to data from LSEG. If rate cuts materialize, variable rate mortgages could once again become notably cheaper than fixed rate mortgages. Currently, five-year fixed and variable rates are at similar levels.

Rates shown are the lowest available for each term/type and category (insured versus uninsured) as of market close on Thursday, Sept. 11.

Speculators and investors have lost interest in the current market amid a regulatory environment that restricts short-term rentals, foreign property purchases and flipping properties for quick profit. Instead, those now in the market are first-time buyers, upsizers needing space for a growing family, or downsizers entering retirement, writes Kerry Gold. That means areas in the Vancouver region that are livable and central, with family-friendly housing, are doing far better than areas that had seen major development of new, small condos intended for rental or luxury condos not geared to local incomes. One expert said they believe the government policy that has cut most of the investor capital from the Vancouver region isn’t the foreign buyer ban or foreign buyer tax, but the federal and provincial taxes on flipping.

Only a year ago, Toronto office tenants were being wooed by brokers and landlords, as demand slowed and space rose. But now, power is starting to shift away from office tenants and back to landlords in downtown Toronto as demand for space accelerates. As Rachelle Younglai writes, Toronto office tower landlords are reducing the host of valuable incentives they had been offering for years to lure tenants to empty offices, including several months of free rent and extra cash to build out empty space. Now that some of the largest employers are mandating staff back in the office, more buildings in the financial sector are becoming coveted again. Younglai talks to downtown building owners about the big shift in demand.