I really don’t get this at all.
On one hand, I get that inflation is just the expression of the supply/demand curve and that increasing interest rates makes it more expensive to borrow money and therefore lessens demand and should, theoretically drop inflation.
But…
Anyone with half a brain knows that this round of inflation wasn’t caused by overheated demand. It was driven by supply chain issues caused by the pandemic, avian flu, climate change and the Ukraine war. The price of oil alone drove much of the inflation numbers, both directly and indirectly by increasing the cost of production and shipping of other goods.
Does anyone at the BOC seriously think that 10%+ inflation in groceries was caused by overheated demand? Do they seriously think that people should be buying less food to lower grocery demand and reduce prices? Do they think that people will?
Does anyone think that the 6-12 month waits for a new car that are typical now is because gazillions of people are suddenly wanting to buy all at the same time? OK, there probably is pent up demand due to the fact that virtually no new cars were available during the pandemic, and lots of people want EV cars now, but the truth is that availability is way down compared to pre-pandemic times.
I see talking heads from the finance sector on TV all the time saying stuff like, “We need to tame an overheated economy…”. DO WE? And then claiming that the interest rate hikes are working because inflation has come down. Yeah, right. Far more likely is that the supply chain issues are getting resolved, and supplies are increasing.
The truth is that the BOC has only one knob that they can turn, and that’s the interest rates. So they’re going to turn it. And the prevailing wisdom says that it takes close to 18 months for interest rates hikes to have an impact. So the downturn in inflation that started at the beginning of the year has virtually NOTHING to do with the big jump in rates that happened last spring.
As to that 18 month lag, it’s probably even longer this time around because of the mortgage situation in Canada. Those people with huge mortgages have, to large degree, 5 year terms. So a comparatively small number of those people have had to renew under the new rates. And even if rates start to come back down next year, we’re still going to see an increasing proportion of those mortgagees get hit with huge increases to their payments. And that’s going to suck money out of the economy - big time. Are those people already tightening their belts, before they renew? Probably to some extent, but there’s nothing like seeing an extra $2K-3K come out of your bank account each month to make it real.
Certainly some of inflation is caused by a decade of rock bottom rates. Our real estate bubble is probably partially caused by this
Ultimately, the BOC has a mandate to fight inflation, and very few levers to use. They cannot fix the supply chain issues, but they can quash demand, so that is what they will do
but they can quash demand
Can they? Remember, it is interest costs that are driving inflation.
The mortgage interest cost index (+29.9%) remained the largest contributor to the year-over-year CPI increase. Excluding mortgage interest cost, the CPI rose 2.5% in May
https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/230627/dq230627a-eng.htm?indid=3665-1&indgeo=0
We’ve entered this interesting feedback loop where the higher the interest rates go, the higher the interest costs go, the higher inflation goes, the cheaper it becomes to service debt (debts shrink in an inflationary environment), the more compelling it is to carry such debt, the higher the interest rates go, the higher the…
While it is incorrect to say that the BoC only has one lever, it is true that they have few tools to work with. It is unlikely that any of their tools are appropriate for the situation we face now. Raising interest rates certainly won’t solve the problem – it is the problem.
I’m sure there’s an argument to be made about not buying things you can’t afford, but looking at the graph in that article, people are going to get fucked on mortgage renewals. Anyone that locked in for 3/4/5 years are going to be renewing between now and the next couple of years and going from BOC rate of 0.25% to 5% or more is going to hurt.
Someone I know is looking at renewing their mortgage in the next couple of months and they’re already looking at a jump from 3% to >6%.
Look on the bright side. If enough people default on their loans, I might be able to buy a house one day.
That won’t go on your favour. That will go VERY badly.
Why not? Genuine question. If a bunch of people go under and their houses hit the market, supply increases, homes get cheaper.
All those people have to live somewhere. Or there will be a massive increase in homelessness.
With a flood of houses on the market, they will snapped up by… people with a good cash flow… like… corporations. Who will then turn around and rent them out to you and me and all those people forced out of their homes… at whatever rental rate they desire… while raking in the cash.
I assume you can’t afford a house now and couldn’t afford a house when rates were as low as 1%. Even if a house is foreclosed on and dramatically drops in price, do you think you will actually be able to pony up and pay a downpayment and manage a mortgage rate at say… 8 percent? I seriously doubt it. A $1.8 million home (at today’s valuation) isn’t going to pop onto the market at $150,000 in 2 years when the renewal hits.
The reality is that the banks will do whatever they can to keep people in their houses. I checked my bank today to estimate what my mortgage renewal will look like when it comes up and they are offering mortgage terms up to 59 years. I can afford my renewal even at the new rate because I bought a bit over at 1/3rd of what they approved me for… I knew rates would go up, and I knew what I could afford at more typical rates. I’d rather pay the lower rates of course… but…
If my family of four can live cramped inside a one bedroom apartment for years, then overleveraged folks can downsize from the large houses they bought during the pandemic. And, if nothing else, it will feel a little like justice.
That’s not the discussion here though. It was about how the sharp rise in interest rates will flood the market with foreclosed homes… somehow making it magically affordable for people who couldn’t afford a house at the low interest rates.
And now your family of four in your cramped apartment will be competing with a LOT more people for that same number of cramped spaces… supply/demand… it’s going to hurt EVERYONE not just the overleveraged. Meanwhile corporate housing companies will be playing Scrooge McDuck.
At the same time banks get more cautious about who they lend to. If you’re rich and a cash buyer is great as you can snap up a few houses at discount to add to your portfolio. Normal people, not so great.
I’m concerned the BoC is eating gummies for the first time. Me thinks they should increase lead times with each subsequent rate hike, lest the compound impact hits all at once, which it already will. I’m wondering if this is all going to slam into a wall, forcing them to rapidly and dramatically slash rates.
Diamond hands on variable rate hoping for exactly this to happen so I can lock in when they do slash lol
Godspeed to you - I hope you’re not feeling regarded in a couple of years
I’m a little confused on the BoC’s decision-making here. Don’t interest rate changes take ~12 months to permeate the market? It’s like these rate changes are being fired from a machine gun, won’t this lead to an over-correction in achieving inflation targets?
BoC is helping rich people and corporations with their wealth transfer as regular people who bought in the last 3 years will be forced to sell their house to someone else so they can rent it at a higher price than their mortgage was while losing their asset.
Please start to get loud about this.
REITS need to be banned. People owning multiple homes should face a heavy tax that only increases with each property you hoard. Fuck this noise.
I agree with you. Maybe I’m wrong, but people who own even one home are an older demographic that votes in significant numbers. I feel like the fact that no federal party is seriously talking about fixing the housing issue is a reflection of that.
Sadly the situation will get way worse for millennials and gen z, who are already dealing with bad wages, eye watering tuition rates and a depressing job market. My dad was frugal, but earned 2 university degrees, bought a house and two cars while working as a lifeguard and then a teacher. Today, that would not be possible. Right now, students taking education in post secondary (& probably working a job or two to pay for it) are likely to graduate with crippling debt, and aren’t even certain to get a job in their field. Sad state of affairs.
Damn, will they stop?
Yo, I don’t know
Turn off the lights and I’ll glow!
To the extreme I rock a hike like a vandal.
