Greater Victoria鈥檚 robust economy and low unemployment rate translated into few mortgage holders falling behind in their mortgage payments, according to numbers released Thursday by sa国际传媒 Mortgage and Housing Corporation.
The CMHC鈥檚 quarterly report on mortgage and consumer credit trends said the delinquency rate remained low at 0.13 per cent in the first quarter of 2019.
Last year at the same time, they were 0.12 per cent.
The average delinquency rate in the province was 0.17 per cent in the first quarter of this year.
The delinquency rate in Victoria has been steadily declining since 2014, when it hit 0.37 per cent.
A mortgage is considered delinquent when the borrower is more than 90 days late on scheduled payments.
The relatively positive news may be a sign of a cautious consumer, said CMHC senior economic analyst Pershing Sun.
鈥淢ortgage holders in sa国际传媒 maintained low and stable delinquency rates. Home- equity line of credit holders are reducing their utilization of their loan limit as well,鈥� she said. 鈥淚n Victoria, both mortgage holders and non-mortgage holders became less likely to be delinquent on their credit card and line of credit loans.鈥�
Sun also noted that despite increased interest rates, the credit scores of sa国际传媒 residents are at an excellent level compared with the national average.
鈥淸It] suggests that consumers in sa国际传媒 tend to be more stable financially and possibly more cautious about their credit activities in general,鈥� she said.
The report also noted the number of mortgages being taken out is on the wane, likely due to the recent slowdown in certain segments of the resale housing market.
鈥淔ewer British Columbians applied for new mortgage loans in the first quarter of 2019 due to rising interest rates and tighter mortgage rules,鈥� said Sun.
鈥淎s a result, mortgage balances and monthly obligations became higher on average.鈥�
Sun noted the share of mortgage holders remained about the same in Victoria compared with the first quarter of last year, though the average monthly mortgage payment increased.
