Committee presents industry recommendations to government

The housing committee has submitted its recommendations for future housing policy, which was compiled in consultation with many members of the broker industry.

The Standing Committee on Finance has submitted its report, Canada’s Housing Markets: Benefits, Barriers, and Bringing Balance, to the federal government, following numerous meetings with industry players regarding the impact of last year’s mortgage rule changes.

The 65 page report, which was obtained by MortgageBrokerNews.ca, contains five recommendations to the government.

They include recommendations that;

•The government work with provinces or territories before implementing additional housing policies
•The government examines increased support for first-time homebuyers
•The government use Statistics Canada to address housing-related data gaps by creating a national database
•The government does not implement further rule changes until the full effects of October 3’s changes are fully assessed
•The government endeavours to ensure that mortgage regulations treat all mortgage lenders fairly

The committee assembled the recommendations in consultation with a number of industry organizations, including; channel networks and lenders, various real estate associations, Mortgage Professionals Canada, and the Canadian Mortgage Brokers Association.

For its part, CMBA views the report as a win for the channel.

“I think it’s put mortgage brokers on the map. Where this will go … nothing may change at this point. On the other hand, it’s on their radar,” Ajay Soni, president of CMBA, told MortgageBrokerNews.ca. “We said don’t make changes without consulting us and I think they will have trouble making any further changes. We put pressure on the government to at least consult with us.”

A number of recommendations made by CMBA were mentioned in the document, including exempting buyers of homes costing less than $499,000 from having to qualify at the benchmark rate, and allowing first-time homebuyers up to 30 years amortization.

Another recommendation, which was provided by Mortgage Professionals Canada, also made it into the document: That the government pump the breaks on further policy until sufficient time has passed to assess the impact of the latest round of rules.

MBN

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