Skip to main content

Home/ Fall 2012 Challenges Assignment/ Group items tagged housing

Rss Feed Group items tagged

lebiez piranaj

Canada Household Debt Much Higher Than Previously Thought; Housing Bubble Bust-Out Now ... - 2 views

  • Canadians, you’re more indebted than you think.
  • StatsCan now says household debt amounted to 163.4 per cent of household income in the second quarter, up from 161.8 per cent in the first
  • Canadians are now carrying more debt than Americans and Brits were at the peak of their housing bubble half a decade ago
  • ...1 more annotation...
  • A recent Capital Economics report estimated a construction slowdown would cost 115,000 jobs across Canada
  •  
    Canadians are more than ever drown in debt. When it comes to comparing with the neighbor (US) we are carrying more debt than them. Market observers argued that Canadian consumers will no longer be able to hold up rising household debt.
A SN

Tom Thorne's ejournal: Economic stagnation in US means whoever wins the US Presidential... - 1 views

  • The real threat to Canada is not who is in the White House but what they do about the mounting US Government debt now at $16 Trillion plus. To this point there is no will apparent to cooperate for a solution.
  • The real threat to Canada is not who is in the White House but what they do about the mounting US Government debt now at $16 Trillion plus. To this point there is no will apparent to cooperate for a solution.
  • The real threat to Canada is not who is in the White House but what they do about the mounting US Government debt now at $16 Trillion plus. To this point there is no will apparent to cooperate for a solution.
    • A SN
       
      Represents the real threat to Canada; USA's economic stagnation
  • ...8 more annotations...
  • The real threat to Canada is not who is in the White House but what they do about the mounting US Government debt now at $16 Trillion plus. To this point there is no will apparent to cooperate for a solution.
  • If the US literally prints its way out of its economic mess, the mess will be compounded. 
    • A SN
       
      Problems caused by overprinting money
  • Such an action is guaranteed to create inflation and a rise in interest rates charged to service the debt and also generally for business and lenders of all kinds.
  • Lenders will want more interest to cover the risk of carrying US Government debt loads expressed in diluted valued bonds and currency.
    • A SN
       
      The proves that the USA is in really bad debt.
  • Serious debt reduction is needed in the US Congress and Administration.  And there is very little wiggle room to cut US government expenditures. However failure to do so will mean in the middle range of time that the US will become more and more an economic lightweight and hence its world presence will be diminished. That is bad for Canada.
    • A SN
       
      If USA falls into a deeper economic stagnation Canada will be widely affected.
  • The US is making itself militarily and financially vulnerable. Canada, no matter how well we manage our financial affairs, will be forced into the same situation as our major trading partner.
    • A SN
       
      The US is losing it influence throughout the world. This is a problem.
  • It will be tougher for Canada to retain our natural resources.  Potential deals like the Chinese State taking over Nexen in our oil sands, will become more likely if we want to maintain our own economic performance independent of a financially errant US.
    • A SN
       
      problems caused by USA economic stagnation.
  • It really is time for the United States Government and its politicians to bite the economic bullet. Failure to do so means a downsizing of the United State’s influence on the world stage and that can only mean that Canada will need a more independent economic policy as China grows in influence. In short the lack of action on the economic front by our major trading partner is taking us more to Europe and into the arms of the Chinese Government’s hegemony.
    • A SN
       
      The consequences if the USA does not change.
  •  
    Questions: 1. Do you think that eventually Canada will have no choice but to sell its natural resources to the other world powers? Can this be a good change? 2. Canada and the USA share a lot of history and do a lot of activities together, do you think that being financially independent will make us rely less on the US ?
Ms Cuttle

Are Canada's financial institutions in perfect shape? Don't bank on it - Business - Mac... - 1 views

  • Less than 24 hours after Lagarde put down her dessert fork, debt rating agency Moody’s put six of Canada’s biggest banks under review for a possible ratings downgrade, citing high consumer debt levels and a frothy housing market.
  • Household debt-to-income ratios now stand at 163 per cent, higher than in the United States before its housing crash and up from 147 per cent two years ago.
  • RBC last week revealed plans to spend $1.4 billion to buy auto lender Ally Financial while TD said it was buying retailer Target’s credit card business. The Bank of Nova Scotia also recently purchased the online bank ING Direct for $3.1 billion.
  •  
    Should Canadians be worried about the financial stability of our banks?
Cristina Raileanu

Bank of Canada's Tiff Macklem warns on soft economic momentum | Economy | News | Financ... - 0 views

  • “The strength and durability of the pick-up in growth through 2013 and beyond will depend critically on how successful we are in regearing our growth to exports, investment and innovation.”
  • Bank of Canada senior deputy governor Tiff Macklem said Thursday the economy is expected to pick up this year, but sounded a note of caution amid a soft housing market and weak export demand.
S C

Canadian consumer debt level reaches record high | Debt | Personal Finance | Financial ... - 4 views

  • In the July-September period, households borrowed $27.3-billion, $18.4-billion of that in mortgages, while consumer credit levels increased by $7-billion to $474-billion.
  • “Given the prospects that interest rates will eventually rise, households must cool their spending and borrowing further.”
  • household debt to annual disposable income reached a new high at 164.6%
  •  
    The new report shows household debt to annual disposable income reached a new high at 164.6%, from 163.3% the previous quarter. In the July-September period, households borrowed $27.3-billion, $18.4-billion of that in mortgages, while consumer credit levels increased by $7-billion to $474-billion. As well, household net worth rose 1% to $197,800 in the July-September period, mostly due to gains in holdings in stocks, including mutual funds, and increased value of pension assets.
  •  
    On a national accounting level, Canada's net worth increased by more than $9-billion in the third quarter to $6.8-trillion. That translates to $194,100 per person.
  •  
    Canadians are taking on more debt than ever before, approaching US debt levels just prior to the housing market crash.
burmangabriel

Fiscal cliff: Obama, Boehner trade proposals - 1 views

  • prevent economy-damaging tax increases on the middle class at year's end, conferring by phone after a secretive exchange of proposals.
  • to reduce his initial demand for $1.6 trillion in higher tax revenue over a decade to $1.4 trillion
  • The longer the White House slow-walks this process, the closer our economy gets to the fiscal cliff," he said, declaring that Obama had yet to identify specific cuts to government benefit programs that as part of an agreement that also would raise federal tax revenue
  • ...14 more annotations...
  • attempts to avert a "fiscal cliff," across-the-board tax increases and cuts in defense and domestic programs that economists say could send the economy into recession
  • numerous proposals Obama has made to cut spending, including recommendations to cull $340 billion from Medicare over a decade and an additional $250 billion from other government benefit programs
  • Republicans "sent the White House a counteroffer that would achieve tax and entitlement reform to solve our looming debt crisis and create more American jobs
  • a deal to prevent damage to the economy,
  • Republicans struggle with Obama's demands to raise taxes, but Reid has privately told his rank and file they could soon be feeling the same distress if discussions grow serious on cuts to benefit programs
  • we need to strengthen Social Security, we need to strengthen Medicare for future generations, the current path is not sustainable because we've got an aging population and health care costs are shooting up so quickly
  • Republicans want to curtail annual cost-of-living benefits for Social Security and other government benefits, as well as raise the age of eligibility for Medicare from 65 to 67 beginning at some point in the future
  • president seems to think that if all he talks about are taxes, and that's all reporters write about, somehow the rest of us will magically forget that government spending is completely out of control and that he himself has been insisting on balance,
  • Obama's plan would raise $1.6 trillion in revenue over 10 years, in part by raising tax rates on incomes over $200,000 for individuals and $250,000 for couples. He has recommended $400 billion in spending cuts over a decade.
  • seeking extension of the Social Security payroll tax cut due to expire on Jan. 1, a continuation in long-term unemployment benefits and steps to help hard-pressed homeowners and doctors who treat Medicare patients
  • Obama last year signed legislation to cut more than $1 trillion from government programs over a decade, and was proposing $600 billion in additional savings from benefit programs.
  • health care law that Obama signed into law showed savings of $100 billion. Much or all of that funding came from Medicare, even though Obama's aides insisted during his successful campaign for re-election that he had not made any cuts in that program
  • Boehner's plan, in addition to calling for $800 billion in new revenue, envisions $600 billion in savings over a decade from Medicare, Medicaid and other government health programs as well as $300 billion from other benefit programs and another $300 billion from other domestic programs.
  • It would trim annual increases in Social Security payments to beneficiaries, and it calls for gradually raising the eligibility age for Medicare from 65 to 67, beginning in a decade
  •  
    1) Which proposal do you think is better? More cuts or more taxes 2) Do you think that going off the "cliff" is less detrimental than picking the other parties proposal?
  •  
    1.) More taxes because people in the lower bracket income won't get affected as much. Thus, not further hardening their way of life. 2.) No. they believe the measures negatively affect them. It would affect defense spending, domestic spending and taxes negatively. All the citizens of america will get affected. No exceptions.
  •  
    1. I believe more taxes would benefit the economy more because it would be geared more towards the higher income earners that have the foundation to deal with the taxes opposed to the lower incomes earners that already struggle. 2. Not exactly because going off the "cliff" affects several important factors such as federal tax, boarder tax, domestic spending, etc. Thus, it would seem that going off the "cliff" serves the economy and citizens more negatively than siding with the other parties' proposal.
Brijesh Patel

Canadian consumer debt soars 53 per cent - 1 views

  •  
    - In the past 5 years, consumer debt has increased by 53% - The most borrowing occurring in the two years right after the global financial crisis. - Canada's household debt to income ration jumped to 163.4% - Canada's debt-to-income ratio has now reached a record high, topping levels seen in the U.S - Currently, the Canadian housing market is in a state of decline, with home sales dropping 15 per cent in September.
  •  
    #2 what is causing the debt ratio to increase drastically ?
faseehthemoonman

Consumer Debt - 7 views

Question #1 As the holiday season approaches, will consumers be able to go back to the old ways of gift giving, or will the Grinch (monkey) on their back, make them over spend and increase consume...

consumer debt

Rohan Zahur

US economic growth rate revised up to 2.7% - 0 views

  •  
    Questions 1) Do you think it is the beginning of the recovery from a recession or a temporary sigh? (Explain) 2) In your own words, how does housing market depends and at the same time affects economy of the U.S?
lebiez piranaj

Canada must address growing income inequality: Broadbent Institute - 1 views

  • Canada is moving in the wrong direction and must address its extreme and growing income inequality, according to a new discussion paper from the Broadbent Institute
  • affordable housing, improvements to Employment Insurance, “fair” taxes and a national prescription drug program — is needed to address the problem.
  • “It’s not as if we don’t have the wealth, but it’s the distribution of the wealth that really matters.”
  • ...5 more annotations...
  • between the mid-1990s and the late 2000s, Canada had the fourth-largest increase in income inequality out of 17 peer countries. Canada was ranked 12th out of those countries, a slip to “below the average.”
  • a commitment to equality must come from all levels of government, leadership must come from the feds,
  • There is no “single magic bullet,” to achieve greater equality
  • Most Canadians grew up with the expectations that their son or daughter could be whatever they want to be, whether it’s a hockey player or a brain surgeon … now the reality is, if you want to live the ‘American dream’, you should move to Sweden
  • The federal government has many of the key levers — especially income security programs, a progressive tax system, and transfers to the province — needed to combat inequality,
Erica Yeo

Federal Budget 2012: It's time to address income inequality, think-tank says - thestar.com - 0 views

  • Income inequality in Canada is at a 30-year high, rising at a faster pace than in the U.S.
  • The group urges the government to tackle this situation with wide-ranging reforms to the tax system.
  • to address poverty through improved education, pension, affordable housing and pharmacare programs. It also urges Ottawa to adopt a national child care plan.
  • ...2 more annotations...
  • The CCPA’s proposals include raising the income tax rate for those making more than $250,000 a year, repealing corporate income tax cuts, reducing capital gains tax breaks
  • scrap costly programs like new prisons and fighter jets that don’t reflect the priorities of mainstream Canada.”
Nikita Klyuev

David Rosenberg's 5 reasons Canada's household debt panic is overblown - 0 views

  •  
    Canadian debt/income ratio isn't as bad as it looks. Because Canadians pay for their health care through their taxes, their disposable income is distorted relative to the U.S. In terms of personal income, the ratio is actually closer to 118%, rather the scary 165%. Canadian household debt relative to assets (19%) and net worth (24%) is below prior peaks of 20% and 25%, respectively. Rosenberg estimates Canada would need to see a 20% drop in the housing market to get net worth/income ratio down to the U.S. level. Canadians have more equity in their homes - 69% of the value compared with 43% in the U.S. "This equity gap is a prime reason why Canadian household net worth/income ratio (at over 500%) is some 35 percentage points above U.S. levels," Rosenberg writes. Canadians are better able to service their debts. Canadian wage growth at 4% a year is about double what it is in the U.S. - a rise that pretty much matches the average interest rate they are paying. The debt-servicing ratio in Canadian households is now just over 7% - a level it has only been below in the past 15% of the time. So even though Canadian interest rates are 75 basis points higher than in U.S, it is not hampering our ability to handle debt.
Nikita Klyuev

TSX moves higher as commodities strengthen - 0 views

  •  
    The S&P/TSX composite index rose 70.06 points to 12,404.40, as key commodities prices moved higher. The TSX Venture Exchange gained 2.11 points to 1,178.11. March copper declined about four cents to US$3.61 a pound while February gold bullion moved ahead $3 to US$1,673.70 an ounce. In Europe, the FTSE 100 index of leading British shares was up 0.6 per cent at 5,968 while Germany's DAX rose 0.2 per cent at 7,667. The CAC-40 in France was 0.4 per cent higher at 3,661.
Rohan Zahur

Stats Canada Discusses household debt - 0 views

  •  
    Consumer debt as a percentage of income is highest in BC, Alberta, and Ontario where house prices are highest
S C

Household debt - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia - 0 views

  • Household debt soared in the years leading up to the Great Recession
  • Twenty years ago, the average American household’s debt was 83 percent of its income; by a decade ago, that had crept up to 92 percent; but by late 2007, debts were 130 percent of income
  • All this borrowing took place both because banks had abandoned any notion of sound lending and because everyone assumed that house prices would never fall. And then the bubble burst
  • ...3 more annotations...
  • Household debt can be challenging to reduce. Major approaches include: 1) Paying down debt over time from income or accumulated savings, if available; 2) Debt write-down or refinancing via negotiation, bankruptcy or government bailout; and 3) Inflation.
  • Debt can be reduced via negotiation with creditors or a legal bankruptcy process
  • If wages increase due to inflation, but debts remain fixed, the debts can be more easily retired
  •  
    Household debt contributes to recessions and depressions, one major cause is banks lowering their lending requirements to make more money. Household debt can be reduced through income and savings, debt negotiations and inflation.
ShiyuandCristina SC

Rich-poor gap could spark financial crisis in Canada: Report | Money | Toronto Sun - 1 views

  • The gap between the rich and the poor in Canada is getting wider and could eventually lead to an economic collapse, according to a new report by a left-wing think-tank.
  • Income for middle-class Canadians has remained stagnate since the 1980s, while the income of the richest 1% has increased dramatically
  • When the rising savings of the rich are parked in the financial markets, but everyone else falls deeper into debt, a house of cards is created, producing the kind of economic instability that led to the 1929 financial sector crash and the market meltdown of 2008."
  • ...1 more annotation...
  • As a result, Canada's income inequality has reached a level not seen since the 1920s, says Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
  •  
    The problems created by income inequality in Canada could possibly lead to a financial crisis. 
1 - 16 of 16
Showing 20 items per page