Buying a home remains out of reach for many families struggling to break into Canada’s booming housing market as home prices continue to soar alongside inflation and a higher cost of borrowing.
Among frustrated prospective buyers is Mac Ross, an assistant professor at Western University’s School of Kinesiology in London, Ont. He tells Global News that he’s struggling to find a home big enough for his growing family, even on a professor’s salary.
The family of four has been renting a two-bedroom home for the past few years, but the addition of a new baby pushed Ross and his wife to put together a down payment in search of a three-bedroom home five months ago.
Though he says they’ve found a couple of bungalows listed for just under $500,000 that fit their budget and would accommodate the family, the properties were scooped up for more than $200,000 above asking.
“At that point, there’s nothing we can do. It just kind of boggles the mind that people were willing to pay that much,” he says.
The family has adopted a holding pattern in their house hunt now, and is waiting to see if the spring brings any calmer conditions. Rent is stable at their current home and Ross says they’ve been able to absorb the hit from rising prices and interest rates, though their buying budget is maxed out.
They can’t wait forever, though, as the baby is quickly growing to need a bedroom of her own, putting the pressure on to make their current space work or rent a more expensive home that will quickly burn through their downpayment savings.
“This was like our last chance, it was all we could possibly get. It’s just impossible,” Ross says. “We won’t be able to get a home, I don’t know, until the bubble goes or something.”
4:46 Canadian home prices soar to new heights, averaging $800K
Canadian home prices soar to new heights, averaging $800K
Housing affordability eroding
The Ross family is not alone in their dim outlook on the Canadian housing market.
A recent report from Mortgage Professionals Canada (MPC) showed 29 per cent of respondents felt now was a good time to buy a home in their community — the lowest that figure has hit in the 12 years of the survey.
MPC’s survey captured impressions from more than 2,000 people, the vast majority of whom were already homeowners, however. The market outlook is even worse among the roughly one in five respondents who don’t own property: only three per cent said now was a good time to buy a home.
A slew of factors are coming together now to put homes out of reach.
Inflation levels, meanwhile, are at a more than 30-year high, Statistics Canada said Wednesday, putting particular pressure on consumers at the gas pump and the grocery store.
2:10 Economists say inflation hit 5.7% in February, but hasn’t peaked yet
Economists say inflation hit 5.7% in February, but hasn’t peaked yet
The Bank of Canada began increasing its key interest rate target at the start of this month, a move that looks to tamp down surging inflation and calm the housing market but simultaneously raises the cost of borrowing and reduces house hunters’ buying power.
Though wages are also generally growing in Canada’s tight labour market, Kyle Dahms, economist with National Bank of Canada, says home price growth is “outpacing” compensation for most Canadians.
Though the first quarter of 2022 has yet to wrap, Dahms says rising interest rates, alongside other factors hitting Canadian pocketbooks, will not help prospective buyers like Ross.
“That’s going to be somewhat biting for homebuyers,” Dahms says.
He adds that the spring market, typically a busy time in Canadian real estate, could see some relief with additional listings coming to market as owners look to “offload” properties to minimize mortgage payments or maximize returns.
A National Bank report from Tuesday showed new listings surged 23 per cent in February, though total inventory remains low at only 1.6 month’s supply.
It’s too soon to say whether the growing stock will become a sustained trend, Dahms says, but a surge of new listings could ease competition and provide an entry point into the market for prospective buyers.
“If it does that, (the market) could open up.”
House hunters changing tactics
Some real estate watchers are already seeing a change on the horizon of Canada’s real estate market in response to rising interest rates.
Toronto realtor Pritesh Parekh with Century 21 says he’s already seen the “psychological” shift tied to interest rates affecting his clients.
He says the initial 25-basis-point hike isn’t enough to grind the market to a halt.
Parekh pictures it more like the market was running at 150 km/h and the central bank’s announcement saw buyers ease off the accelerator to bring it to 120 km/h — still speeding, but to a lesser degree.
A few clients have come to him recently, however, and told him they’re putting their search on hold for the foreseeable future, so fed up are they by bidding wars and unattainable properties in Toronto.
2:26 Kingston, Ont. sees highest housing price increase in Canada in 2021
Kingston, Ont. sees highest housing price increase in Canada in 2021 – Feb 8, 2022
Even with some pausing the search, Parekh believes current pressures on Canadian’s pocketbooks are not lessening the demand for housing, but changing it.
“With all these factors, the rate increases, the price increases, the inflation … I’ve seen the demand change versus flooring,” he says.
While the past year of the pandemic has seen him work largely to find detached homes for his clients, he’s seeing some demand shift back towards Toronto’s more affordable downtown condo market.
He’s also increasingly doing deals outside the GTA for those who can’t afford the Toronto real estate market. He says he recently helped a client get a $600,000 side investment in Kingston to get an affordable stake in the housing market and passive income while continuing renting back in Toronto.
Parekh cites another example of a client who, forgoing plans of buying a detached home in the GTA, bought a condo in Burlington, Ont., and set out to renovate the bathrooms and other fixtures immediately in hopes of moving up to a townhome in the next few years.
“I’ve seen a shift from saving for your dream home to stepping up to your dream home,” he says.
Some buyers seeking cheaper pastures
Parekh says that in the past three months, three clients have told him that they no longer need his help to find a home.
It’s not because they’re giving up the hunt or found a property in Toronto — instead, they tell him they’re moving to Calgary.
Calgary is one of the major cities that remains a bit more affordable than surging markets such as Toronto or Vancouver.
The median price of a home in Calgary was just below $500,000 in the second week of March, according to the city’s real estate board. In National Bank’s most recent housing affordability report, the household income needed to afford the median home in the city was just over $106,000 — roughly half the same income needed to buy a home in Toronto.
Dahms adds Quebec City, Winnipeg and Edmonton as a few other standouts that have seen prices appreciate at a slower rate.
Indeed, Ross has found his frustrations amplified seeing three-bedroom homes going for half the price in other parts of the country as they do in London.
The Nova Scotia native says he’s seen east coast real estate remain an affordable option for Maritimers back home, and says that if the housing market in Canada doesn’t improve in the next two years, it’s inevitable that he might have to move his family to more welcoming harbours.
“It gets to the point where you have to consider if you can continue on,” he said.
“Even though this is my dream job … I’ll never, ever, have another opportunity, probably, to get hired at a school like Western. But if I can’t afford anything, it becomes a discussion you have to have.”
4:21 Lack of listings impacting real estate market in Manitoba
Lack of listings impacting real estate market in Manitoba
Speaking from personal experience, a bad hire isn’t a good look. The last thing you want is to hear, “Who the hell hired Bob?” and have your hiring judgment questioned.
The job seeker who’s empathetic to the employer’s side of the hiring desk, which controls the hiring process, is rare.
One of the best things you can do to enhance your job search is to practice perspective-taking, which involves seeing things from a different perspective.
It’s natural for employers to find candidates who have empathy and an understanding of their challenges and pain points more attractive. Candidates like these are seen as potential allies rather than individuals only looking out for themselves. Since most job seekers approach employers with a ‘what’s in it for me’ mindset, practicing perspective-taking sets you apart.
“If there is any one secret of success, it lies in the ability to get the other person’s point of view and see things from that person’s angle as well as from your own.” – Henry Ford.
Perspective-taking makes you realize that from an employer’s POV hiring is fraught with risks employers want to avoid; thus, you consider what most job seekers don’t: How can I present myself as the least risky hiring option?
Here’s an exercise that’ll help you visualize the employer’s side of the hiring process.
Candidate A or B?
Imagine you’re the Director of Customer Service for a regional bank with 85 branches. You’re hiring a call centre manager who’ll work onsite at the bank’s head office, overseeing the bank’s 50-seat call centre. In addition to working with the call centre agents, the successful candidate will also interact with other departments, your boss, and members of the C-suite leadership team; in other words, they’ll be visible throughout the bank.
The job posting resulted in over 400 applications. The bank’s ATS and HR (phone interview vetting, skill assessment testing) selected five candidates, plus an employee referral, for you to interview. You aim to shortlist the six candidates to three, whom you’ll interview a second time, and then make a hiring decision. Before scheduling the interviews, which’ll take place between all your other ongoing responsibilities, you spend 5 – 10 minutes with each candidate’s resume and review their respective digital footprint and LinkedIn activity.
In your opinion, which candidate deserves a second interview?
Candidate A: Their resume provides quantitative numbers—evidence—of the results they’ve achieved. (Through enhanced agent training, reduced average handle time from 4:32 mins. to 2:43 minutes, which decreased the abandon rate from 4.6% to 2.2%.)
Candidate B: Their resume offers only opinions. (“I’m detail-oriented,” “I learn fast.”)
Candidate A: Looks you in the eye, has a firm handshake, smiles, and exudes confidence.
Candidate B: Doesn’t look you in the eye, has a weak handshake.
Candidate A: Referred by Ariya, who’s been with the bank for over 15 years and has a stellar record, having moved up from teller to credit analyst and is tracking to become a Managing Director.
Candidate B: Applied online. Based on your knowledge, they did nothing else to make their application more visible. (e.g., reached out to you or other bank employees)
Candidate A: Well educated, grew up as a digital native, eager and energetic. Currently manages a 35-seat call center for a mid-size credit union. They mention they called the bank’s call centre several times and suggest ways to improve the caller experience.
Candidate B: Has been working in banking for over 25 years, managing the call center at their last bank for 17 years before being laid off eight months ago. They definitely have the experience to run a call centre. However, you have a nagging gut feeling that they’re just looking for a place to park themselves until they can afford to retire.
Candidate A: Has a fully completed LinkedIn profile (picture, eye-catching banner) packed with quantifying numbers. It’s evident how they were of value to their employers. Recently, they engaged constructively with posts and comments and published a LinkedIn article on managing Generations Y and Z call centre agents. Their Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter/X accounts aren’t controversial, sharing between ‘Happy Birthday’ and ‘Congratulations’ messages, their love of fine dining, baseball, and gardening.
Candidate B: Their LinkedIn profile is incomplete. The last time they posted on LinkedIn was seven months ago, ranting about how the government’s latest interest rate hike will plunge the country into a deep recession. Conspiracy theories abound on their Facebook page.
Candidate A: Notices the golf calendar on your desk, the putter and golf balls in the corner, and a photograph of Phil Mickelson putting on the green jacket at the 2010 Masters hanging on your wall. While nodding towards the picture, they say, “Evidently, you golf. Not being a golfer myself, what made you take up golf, which I understand is a frustrating sport?”
Candidate B: Doesn’t proactively engage in small talk. Waits for you to start the interview.
Which of the above candidates presents the least hiring risk? Will likely succeed (read: achieve the results the employer needs)? Will show your boss, upper management, and employees you know how to hire for competence and fit?
Nick Kossovan, a well-seasoned veteran of the corporate landscape, offers “unsweetened” job search advice. You can send Nick your questions to artoffindingwork@gmail.com.
Though I have no empirical evidence to support my claim, I believe job search success can be achieved faster by using what I call “The Job Seekers’ Trinity” as your framework, the trinity being:
The power of focus
Managing your anger
Presenting evidence
Each component plays a critical role in sustaining motivation and strategically positioning yourself for job search success. Harnessing your focus, managing your anger, and presenting compelling evidence (read: quantitative numbers of achieved results) will transform your job search from a daunting endeavour into a structured, persuasive job search campaign that employers will notice.
The Power of Focus
Your job search success is mainly determined by what you’re focused on, namely:
What you focus on.
Your life is controlled by what you focus on; thus, focusing on the positives shapes your mindset for positive outcomes. Yes, layoffs, which the media loves to report to keep us addicted to the news, are a daily occurrence, but so is hiring. Don’t let all the doom and gloom talk overshadow this fact. Focus on where you want to go, not on what others and the media want you to fear.
Bonus of not focusing on negatives: You’ll be happier.
Focus on how you can provide measurable value to employers.
If you’re struggling with your job search, the likely reason is that you’re not showing, along with providing evidence, employers how you can add tangible value to an employer’s bottom line. Business is a numbers game, yet few job seekers speak about their numbers. If you don’t focus on and talk about your numbers, how do you expect employers to see the value in hiring you?
Managing Your Anger
Displaying anger in public is never a good look. Professionals are expected to control their emotions, so public displays of anger are viewed as unprofessional.
LinkedIn has become a platform heavily populated with job seekers posting angry rants—fueled mainly by a sense of entitlement—bashing and criticizing employers, recruiters, and the government, proving many job seekers think the public display of their anger won’t negatively affect their job search.
When you’re unemployed, it’s natural to be angry when your family, friends, and neighbours are employed. “Why me?” is a constant question in your head. Additionally, job searching is fraught with frustrations, such as not getting responses to your applications and being ghosted after interviews.
The key is acknowledging your anger and not letting it dictate your actions, such as adding to the angry rants on LinkedIn and other social media platforms, which employers will see.
Undoubtedly, rejection, which is inevitable when job hunting, causes the most anger. What works for me is to reframe rejections, be it through being ghosted, email, a call or text, as “Every ‘No’ brings me one step closer to a ‘Yes.'”
Additionally, I’ve significantly reduced triggering my anger by eliminating any sense of entitlement and keeping my expectations in check. Neither you nor I are owed anything, including a job, respect, empathy, understanding, agreement, or even love. A sense of entitlement and anger are intrinsically linked. The more rights you perceive you have, the more anger you need to defend them. Losing any sense of entitlement you may have will make you less angry, which has no place in a job search.
Presenting Evidence
As I stated earlier, business is a numbers game. Since all business decisions, including hiring, are based on numbers, presenting evidence in the form of quantitative numbers is crucial.
Which candidate would you contact to set up an interview if you were hiring a social media manager:
“Managed Fabian Publishing’s social media accounts, posting content daily.”
“Designed and executed Fabian Publishing’s global social media strategy across 8.7 million LinkedIn, X/Twitter, Instagram and Facebook followers. Through consistent engagement with customers, followers, and influencers, increased social media lead generation by 46% year-over-year, generating in 2023 $7.6 million in revenue.”
Numerical evidence, not generic statements or opinions, is how you prove your value to employers. Stating you’re a “team player” or “results-driven,” as opposed to “I’m part of an inside sales team that generated in 2023 $8.5 million in sales,” or “In 2023 I managed three company-wide software implementations, all of which came under budget,” is meaningless to an employer.
Despite all the job search advice offered, I still see resumes and LinkedIn profiles listing generic responsibilities rather than accomplishments backed by numbers. A statement such as “managed a team” doesn’t convey your management responsibilities or your team’s achievements under your leadership. “Led a team of five to increase sales by 20%, from $3.7 million to $4.44 million, within six months” shows the value of your management skills.
Throughout your job search, constantly think of all the numbers you can provide—revenue generated, number of new clients, cost savings, reduced workload, waste reduction—as evidence to employers why you’d be a great value-add to their business.
The Job Seekers’ Trinity—focusing on the positive, managing your anger and providing evidence—is a framework that’ll increase the effectiveness of your job search activities and make you stand out in today’s hyper-competitive job market, thus expediting your job search to a successful conclusion.
Nick Kossovan, a well-seasoned veteran of the corporate landscape, offers “unsweetened” job search advice. You can send Nick your questions to artoffindingwork@gmail.com.
TOKYO (AP) — Japanese technology group SoftBank swung back to profitability in the July-September quarter, boosted by positive results in its Vision Fund investments.
Tokyo-based SoftBank Group Corp. reported Tuesday a fiscal second quarter profit of nearly 1.18 trillion yen ($7.7 billion), compared with a 931 billion yen loss in the year-earlier period.
Quarterly sales edged up about 6% to nearly 1.77 trillion yen ($11.5 billion).
SoftBank credited income from royalties and licensing related to its holdings in Arm, a computer chip-designing company, whose business spans smartphones, data centers, networking equipment, automotive, consumer electronic devices, and AI applications.
The results were also helped by the absence of losses related to SoftBank’s investment in office-space sharing venture WeWork, which hit the previous fiscal year.
WeWork, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 2023, emerged from Chapter 11 in June.
SoftBank has benefitted in recent months from rising share prices in some investment, such as U.S.-based e-commerce company Coupang, Chinese mobility provider DiDi Global and Bytedance, the Chinese developer of TikTok.
SoftBank’s financial results tend to swing wildly, partly because of its sprawling investment portfolio that includes search engine Yahoo, Chinese retailer Alibaba, and artificial intelligence company Nvidia.
SoftBank makes investments in a variety of companies that it groups together in a series of Vision Funds.
The company’s founder, Masayoshi Son, is a pioneer in technology investment in Japan. SoftBank Group does not give earnings forecasts.
