Toronto housing market may need Vancouver-style cooling

Toronto

TORONTO may require measures to cool its red-hot housing market similar to moves taken in Vancouver if interest rates don't increase, said Royal Bank of Canada chief executive officer David McKay.

The head of Canada's largest lender said that Toronto housing is "running hot" and is fuelled by a "concerning mix of drivers" that include lack of supply, continued low rates, rising foreign money and speculative activity. Similar circumstances in Vancouver prompted the British Columbia's government last year to impose a 15 per cent tax on foreign buyers.