Canada’s Unemployment is Down - Or Is it?

Today we cover:
00:27 Canada Unemployment Stats
02:30 CMHC Rental Market Report
04:08 Rent Control
05:53 Calgary's "Missing Middle" Data
07:23 Real Estate Industry on Affordable Housing Plans
10:50 RBC on Quantitative Tightening

Includes some throwback discussion of Calgary's affordable housing plan, which I discussed last year. Now that the individual items are coming up for votes at Calgary city council, groups like the Calgary Real Estate Board are starting to fight against certain items - but is it about affordability, or profits?

The Millennial Moron Friday Updates are a brief weekly news digest with commentary on Canadian housing, real estate, and economics stories.

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Sources:
Statcan Labour Force Survey (Statcan)
Statcan Labour Force Table (Statcan)
Canadian retailers insist labour shortage is real (Toronto Star)
Economists on “mixed” jobs report (Financial Post)
BAX market implied interest rate expectations (M-X)
CMHC Rental Market Report (CMHC)
Bank of Canada monetary policy report, January 2024 (Bank of Canada)
CMHC Rental Market Survey Data Tables (CMHC)
CHBA calls for longer mortgage amortizations
CMHC insurance-in-force, historical (Ron Neal)
CREB says up-zoning is not the right solution (CTV Calgary)
CREB news release (CREB)
Land use reforms and housing costs review paper (Yonah Freemark)
Calgary Housing Affordability Task Force Recommendations (City of Calgary)
RBC predicts an early end to quantitative tightening (Financial Post)

[KrikitKaos]

I've lived in a rent controlled two bedroom in Toronto for 15 years. For about 10 of those years I had a roommate, but for the last five I've lived here alone. The system should incentivize me to seek out a one bedroom, but it only incentivizes me to never leave this place.

[bathtubrenew]

One of the best real estate financial channels on YouTube.

You should have 500k subs. Keep going!

[tylermacneill]

That you can pump out a video with so many citations and resources every week is incredibly impressive. You're a voice of reason in this space and we are grateful for your content.

[Not.a.bird.Person]

Ah yes, I remember when I was manning a cash register at McDonald's. It was such a high skill job that we were forced to rotate part time with about 20+ employees a week. I'm sure there are no conflicts of interests involved at all here to be pushing for more of these part time employees. None whatsoever. Nothing to see here folks, just a labor shortage.

[mski]

"Don't blindly listen to realtors on social media telling you when rates are going to come down"
100%

I see too many social media realtors/brokers go "the market is doing X, therefore interest rates are going down, but I'm the ONLY ONE that knows this, so that means you should BUY NOW before this knowledge becomes public"

[pBIggZz]

There is no labour shortage. Capital simply doesnt want to pay employees, feels entitled to a certain return on investment, and is slashing itself to the bone to extract every bit of cash it can. In other words they're ripping the copper wire out of the walls to sell. There is no thinking for any kind of future here.

[infamousgamer]

People like you give me hope for the planet

[jonathan__g]

Definitely does not feel like unemployement is down while I try to look for work. It's hard out there!

[MotWIsildur]

Maybe fast-food places and grocery stores can't find workers because it has be come impossible to live on the meager wages those jobs pay.

[Gronmin]

I feel like the labor shortage claims are something people said was happening in the US so companies thought they could just say the same thing is happening in Canada

[merevial]

I don't blame spineless garbage corporations to want to push workers into the floor. I blame the Government for accepting and even allowing these corporations to dictate policies even though were hitting MAXIMUM diminishing returns.

[Rmo]

Here in Owen Sound, there is tremendous pressure on the lower quartile of rental units. Young people with high paying jobs like Nurse's, teachers or trades are forced to rent these apartments. Pushing prices up and anyone with lower paying jobs out

[smelly]

Oooo An outro now. Stepping up the game

[DylanBerry]

Thanks for the excellent info, as always! And good luck with trying to preserve your sanity.

[megadethwok]

Thanks for all the work and effort put into editing

[vamgi]

this is pure gold like always. Your content just keeps on getting better and better. Thank you so much

[alexsmith-oblu]

Fabulous video as always!

God damn, what a mess we find ourselves in. Big developers, realtors, government and smaller contractors all fighting for a bigger share of the pie while us ordinary folks are the ones suffering.

[EmilyHamsterLover]

Skills needed to stick shelves eh, don't you mean they can't find cheap labor?? Is it maybe because minimum monthly bills are $3000 plus. ???

[DB-qtkh]

So realistically, how fucked is our youth? Why should any of us even bother anymore?

[d.m.w.v.b.]

don't stop, you are a force to be reckoned with!!