86% of real estate professionals said they worry.

Realtors polled in a recent cross-Canada survey indicated that the country’s real estate market is both highly competitive and provides the necessary safeguards to protect consumers. 

 

Eighty-six percent of real estate professionals said they worry that severe deregulation in the real estate industry would erode standards of customer service for Canadians who are buying or selling a home.

 

According to the online poll of 1,726 realtors by Royal LePage Real Estate Services, the proposed changes to the Multiple Listing Service (MLS) will do little to improve an already competitive industry.

 

Eighty-six percent of agents surveyed said they are “concerned that the push to foster increased competition in the industry will result in lower customer service standards.” When asked about the state of the current marketplace, 76% of respondents said the industry is “highly competitive.” 

 

Click here to read more from the Royal LePage survey.

 

Neither recession, global uncertainty nor growing joblessness appears to have stayed Canadians’ appetite for spending money they don’t have.

 

A new report by the Certified General Accountants Association of Canada shows that household debt in the country kept rising through the recession and peaked in December at $1.41 trillion.

 

That’s $41,740 on average per Canadian, or debt to income ratio of 144%, which is the worst among 20 advanced countries in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development.

 

“This report is another indication of Canadians’ readiness to consume today and pay later,” said association President Anthony Ariganello. “The concern is do they understand the full cost of paying later?”

 

The Bank of Canada has also voiced similar concerns, with Governor Mark Carney having repeatedly advised Canadians to ensure they will be able to meet their mortgage commitments once rates increase. Ottawa has put that cautionary principle into effect by stiffening the means test chartered banks must apply when issuing open-ended mortgages.

 

Most Canadians don’t yet share that concern. The accountants’ survey found that almost 60% of Canadians whose debt had increased still felt they could manage it or take on more obligations.

 

Click here to read more from CBC.