Wide-ranging search engines are proving to be vital resources for many would-be buyers
Amid the surging national housing market, more and more Canadians are inquiring online if it’s the right time to buy a house, according to an analysis by Better Dwelling.
Culling recent data from Google, Better Dwelling found that search engine activity for the question, “Should I buy a house?”, reached an unprecedented high in April, garnering a search index score of 85. A score of 100 means that Google activity for the search term has reached a record high, Better Dwelling said.
And while the index for the search term saw a sudden drop to 33 in May, preliminary June data is indicating a comeback with a score of 59 in June. For perspective, the peak prior to the red-hot April reading was March 2017, which had a score of 66.
Read more: RBC on housing market conditions
The home-buying momentum built up over the pandemic year might have something to do with these anomalous highs, if recent figures from TransUnion are any indication.
Historically low rates and greater refinancing demand have boosted mortgage originations by 25.8% year over year as of the end of 2020, TransUnion said in its latest Industry Insights Report.
Read next: The cheapest places to buy a house in Canada
However, a combination of demand tapering off and the stricter mortgage qualification regime is provoking fears of weaker overall activity during the second half of this year.
“I am concerned about loan growth going forward,” James Shanahan of Edward Jones told Reuters earlier this month. “There’s a fair amount of uncertainty in Canada about the strength and magnitude of the economic recovery due to repeated pandemic-related lockdowns.”
