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This has prompted another celebrity appearance for the city of Toronto, with hip hop singer Pharrell Williams announcing he is making his foray into residential development. Pharrel is partnering with two local firms to help design a dual-tower condo project in Canada’s most populous city. The 750-unit project, dubbed “untitled,” will start sales early next year. “From music to fashion and footwear, some design, working with amazing visual artists, now we’re talking about physical structures,” Williams said in a separate statement. “I’m going into the realm that I’ve never gone into before, on a commercial level.” Let’s hope the timing works out for Mr. Williams. Celebrity appearances are infamous for marking the tops of bull markets. However, Canadians lust for debt remains strong. A new report from CMHC highlights the growth in Mortgage Investment Corporations (private lenders) continues to grow. In a sample of 100 Mortgage investment Corporations, mortgage credit outstanding ballooned by 51% over the past two years. 
While the private lending space serves a valuable purpose, they ultimately supply loans to borrowers who are, for the most part, not credit worthy enough to be approved at large financial institutions. Some might prefer to call it subprime. These loans are typically less than 18 months in duration, with an average lending rate of 9.8% as of 2018 per CMHC. In other words, they are a short term fix to satisfy ones appetite for real estate. But, alas, to quote Citigroups bossman Chuck Prince who was made famous for remarking the following in 2007, “When the music stops, in terms of liquidity, things will be complicated. But as long as the music is playing, you’ve got to get up and dance. We’re still dancing.”
Structural Issues
Happy Monday Morning! As expected, the Bank of Canada held interest rates at 5% for the second consecutive time. BoC’s
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Happy Monday Morning! As expected, the Bank of Canada held interest rates at 5% for the second consecutive time. BoC’s
Happy Monday Morning! At the beginning of the year I was part of a real estate pannel with REW on the state
