Your statement was that Quebec real estates stats were amazing and you were encouraging people to invest in Quebec. If you look at the stats there were increases in Montreal and the figures don’t include 4th quarter. The stats also show that there were a lot less transactions so supply and demand conditions are also pushing up prices. If is impossible to determine how much the lack of houses on the market lead to increases in pricing. The lack of supply had a big impact on the higher sale prices in Toronto. When it comes to economic shocks people use savings, receive government support, use mortgage deferral programs, etc. first and once savings have been depleted and programs end we will see the true picture so we haven’t see the real economic effect of covid. I suggest that people look at there situation very carefully before investing in real estate at this moment. I’m not suggesting people try timing the market. Unless you have a very good cushion financially this is not the time to be investing in real estate. There will be more job losses. Are people prepared to hold a properly for 10 years if needed. If they can’t rent out a property or end up in a situation where you can’t evict a tenant, as is the case right now, would they be able to cope financially. How stable is there industry although even some traditionally safe jobs, like in governments, may have lay offs due to less tax revenue. This may be a good time to invest for some people but if, for example, people are really dependent on rental income to carry the property and if a family doesn’t have a 6 month emergency fund to cover all their costs if they both lose their jobs investing in real estate in uncertain economic times is not what I would suggest.
