A slower month for data dumps but here are the highlights: Interest Rates unchanged:Bank of Canada has left interest rates unchanged.  Prime Rate stays at 4.45%Bond yields up slightly over the past month Economic Indicators:Bank of Canada projects Canada GDP in 2026 to fall 1.5% below pre-tariff trajectory2026 economic growth for Canada expected to be 0.7%2027 & 2028 growth expected to be 1.8%  Job Market:Employment little changed (up 0.1% in June)Unemployment dropped from 6.6% to 6.5% Inflation:CPI jumped to 3.2% (up from 2.8% in April)Core inflation measures stayed anchored (Trimmed-mean 2% + median 2.1%)inflation expected to ease from recent spike & avg 2% in 2027 & 2028 Forecasts:Markets pushed the next expected rate hike (+0.25%) ​to January 2027 with 1 additional hike mid 2027 Next Bank of Canada Meeting:Scheduled for Sept 2nd, 2026

The Bank of Canada left rates unchanged again at this morning’s interest rate announcement.  If you’re tired of hearing, “the Bank held again,” you’re not alone.  Six announcements, no move on the policy rate — but that doesn’t mean nothing’s happening under the hood.   Here’s what actually shifted this month, and what it means for your rate. Why The Bank Did This The Bank kept it’s foot off the gas as May’s inflation reading came in hot — 3.2% year-over-year, up from 2.8% in April, largely due to a gas price spike tied to Middle East supply fears.  With inflation running well above the 2% target & the Canadian dollar losing value against USD, cutting further would have risked reigniting price pressures & further depreciating the loonie, even as growth stays soft.

​What This Means For Your Mortgage​ Variable rate & HELOC holders: no change to your monthly payments Fixed rate shoppers: fixed rates track Government of Canada bond yields, not the Bank of Canada moves directly.  The 5-year yield has already drifted higher over the past month as markets priced in a cautious Bank.

Whatever the Bank did today, here’s a reminder that the rate itself is rarely where the real savings are:I wanted to highlight how powerful mortgage structure can be in materially improving your financial situation, without changing your overall cash flow.  Recently, a client came to us wanting to shop their bank’s mortgage offer for their presale purchase.  The purchase was going to be a rental & the clients had been setting aside the required 20% down for the purchase.  Like EVERYONE they were just thinking about lowest rate but not thinking through what they were really after — saving money.  The clients wanted this rental purchase to help bring them closer to retirement.  They didn’t like debt & had done a good job of reducing the mortgage on their primary residence to a relatively small figure. THEIR PLAN:Use the deposit already given + savings for the 20% down payment. RESULT:Mortgage the remaining 80% of the rental purchase, write off interest on that portion only (interest is tax deductible on income generating properties)Leave their current mortgage untouched It’s situations like these, which I LOVE, because there is a real opportunity to meaningfully improve their situation without changing their overall debt load.   PROPOSED PLAN:Instead of applying their deposit + savings to the rental purchase, use it to pay off their primary mortgage (eliminating non tax deductible debt).Take out a small mortgage against their primary home to use for the down payment on the purchase (effectively financing 100% of the rental purchase & increasing their interest deduction from 80% to 100% of the rental purchase) RESULT:mortgage free on family home (psychological win)income tax savings (financial win)no change to overall debt load (mortgage win!) If you own (or are considering) a rental property, this kind of restructuring is worth a conversation even if you’re not renewing anything right now.  Book in a call to talk today.