In St. John's Newfoundland, a local lender, Mr. John Woodford with the Royal Bank of Canada just sent me an email last evening to say that interest rates have moved up for the major lenders in Canada.  It appears that he knew this was coming since Monday but was not permitted to release it to the public.  I always knew John was a man of principal.  Turns out he is actually a man of principal and interest.  OK, bad pun. 

Here is the latest news according to John.  "The 5 year fixed closed rate is now 4.54%.  The 5 year variable open rate is prime + .70 (2.25 + .70 = 2.95%) and the 5 year variable closed (the shining star!) is prime + 0...ie: 2.25%.  The latter is proving to be very popular these days!" 

Yes, I should say so.  A five year floating rate at prime is very nice indeed!  I just might like to take advantage of that myself.  I wonder if the prime rate will float past 5% in the next five years.  Hmmm.  I must ask John as he probably has an opinion about that.

There is no doubt that the rising home prices in St. John's, Newfoundland can be attributed in part to the strong economy in the province and as well to the very low interest rates that we have been enjoying for the last couple of years.  How long the low interest rates will last is for smarter analysts than I.  The bigger question I am interested in is, "Have interest rates bottomed?"  If so, then buying a home sooner than later would make a lot of sense, at least for those who are intending to buy a home.

If you have any desire to find and purchase a home as a residence or one as an investment property, simply get in touch with me at your earliest convenience.  I would be happy to be of assistance.  John Woodford will no doubt be happy to "lend" a hand too.  OK, I will stop with the puns now.  

R. Greg Osmond is a Platinum Award winning Realtor serving St. John’s and surrounding areas, Newfoundland and Labrador for over 20 years and can be reached at 709-895-2500. Visit http://www.rgregosmond.com/ for further information.