Episode 57: Affordability by Amortization: The 50-Year Mortgage Era?

Canada’s housing chessboard is shifting again. Alex & Alex break down OSFI’s proposed loan-to-income limits and why they could sideline small “mom-and-pop” investors while empowering institutions. They weigh amortization creep (30… 50 years?), collapsing pre-con condo sales, and why prices—not just rates—are driving affordability. Then they connect the dots between immigration policy whiplash (international student clampdowns, asylum spikes) and rents, jobs, and even mobile phone activations as a population proxy. Rants included: white-collar crime (trust account blowups, mortgage Ponzi-style schemes), CRA income-verification reform, and tariffs south of the border. It’s a jam-packed, candid update on what’s actually moving Canadian real estate, lending, and the broader economy.

Key takeaways 

OSFI is floating rules that could block using personal income on 2nd/3rd rentals—tilting the field toward corporates.

Affordability is being “fixed” by letting people borrow more/longer (30→50 years?), not by cheaper homes.

Pre-con condo market is freezing; many projects are cash-flow negative without huge rent increases.

International student curbs (e.g., Conestoga) show instant knock-on effects to local rents and jobs.

Canada’s weak fraud enforcement + stalled CRA auto-verification keeps mortgage fraud too easy.