Ask pretty much anybody about mortgages and the first, sometimes only thing they want to talk about is the interest rate. In my business as a Mortgage Professional, my job is to educate clients that while interest rate is definitely a cornerstone of your mortgage decision, it is not the only factor to consider when […]

With 47 per cent of homeowners scheduled to renew their mortgages this year, 2018 is a year of change for lots of Canadians. Here are the top 8 things you can do to get the best renewal: 1. Pull out your mortgage renewal now, and start early. When you are proactive instead of reactive you […]

There have been a lot of discussions around the new mortgage rules and I have had a few clients ask about what that means for them. Since stress testing on mortgages began last year, the biggest change this January will be for people who are putting more than a 20% down payment on their new […]

Not surprisingly, borrowers often default to their own Banker. And why not? It’s an established and comfortable relationship. Perhaps it’s viewed as the path of least resistance. But is it the right lender for the borrower’s current specific needs? Perhaps not. More sophisticated borrowers may be of a size or scale that they have their […]

Every year Canadian families are caught in unexpected bad circumstances only to find out that in most cases the banks and the credit unions are there to lend you money in the good times, not so much during the bad times. This is where thousands of families have benefited over the years from the services […]

Did you know that 60 per cent of people break their mortgage before their mortgage term matures? Most homeowners are blissfully unaware that when you break your mortgage with your lender, you will incur penalties and those penalties can be painfully expensive. Many homeowners are so focused on the rate that they are ignorant about […]

The premier of British Columbia has rejected calls for a ban on foreign buyers of real estate in the province. John Horgan has reacted to the Green Party’s leader Andrew Weaver who has been calling for a ban similar to that implemented in New Zealand. “I just don’t believe, in an open economy, that’s an […]

This week, OSFI (Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions) announced that effective January 1, 2018 the new Residential Mortgage Underwriting Practices and Procedures (Guidelines B-20) will be applied to all Federally Regulated Lenders. Note that this currently does not apply to Provincially Regulated Lenders (Credit Unions) but it is possible they will abide by […]

You might think you would be rewarded for toiling away to save a down payment of 20% or greater. Well, forget it. Your only prize for all that self-sacrifice is paying a higher interest rate than people who didn’t bother. Once upon a time we had high ratio vs conventional mortgages, now it’s changed to; […]

This month, the Bank of Canada increased their lending rate for the 2nd time in as many months. The changes in the Prime Lender Rates means that those with a variable mortgage rates will have seen that their mortgages rates adjusted alongside the changes to Prime Rate. For those of you with variable rates, the […]