Rough Seas Ahead?

There has been speculation, talks, meetings, discussions (whatever they may call them) about changes occurring in Canadian real estate as of late. Notably, two major blips on the radar have revealed themselves as being potently newsworthy; the first being numerous changes that the CREA have given a "thumbs up" to, and the second, a the speculation of a housing crash in the near future. Let's get right to it, shall we?!First up to bat are the changes that the CREA have recently approved, 23 in total, the largest of which being technologically related. These main changes are the exploration of 3rd party operation of Realtor.ca, as well as taking the 80+ data feeds involved in the MLS system, and to make one national data feed. The cause for these technological changes is the CREA's feel that consumers are becoming more and more educated, meaning that they should be provided with nothing short of the most accurate information.Secondly, there is speculation from an Arizona-based accountant by the name of Ben Jones. Now, most of us haven't heard of this man, however this does not mean we should disregard his opinion, as others have done in the past. He in fact predicted the US housing market crash before it happened, and nobody listened. A recent Globe and Mail article interviewing Mr. Jones has now made it clear (from his standpoint) that Canada's "booming" housing market is in fact in troubled waters, and should not be underestimated. One of the main reasons he believes the market will fail is related to the banks withholding many unlisted properties and foreclosures to inflate the market so the properties currently listed can receive higher sale prices. His speculations are most certainly worth a read.What do you think is to become of Canada's housing market? Will it flop as Ben Jones predicts? Will the unification of the MLS data-feed be detrimental or productive for realtors and supporting businesses? Join the conversation with us on Twitter. photo courtesy of http://freeaussiestock.com/free/Queensland/slides/currumbin%20beach_goldcoast.htm