Be prepared, make sure your closings costs account for all the ‘little’ things. You don’t want to be shocked on the closing day. We recommend budgeting 2-3% of the purchase price for your closing costs. You will need to budget additional amounts because ancillary expenses can arise, and without a proper cushion, you could find [...]

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After the Bank of Canada decided to leave its rate unchanged, banks have slowly started to increase mortgage rates. CIBC started off on Wednesday with relatively small increases, but many are following with increases as much as 85 basis points!
Wow, first gas prices, now interest rates?
Check out: The Toronto Star Article

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For those of you who were hoping that the interest rates will lower again, sorry to disappoint, but the Bank of Canada decided against it, leaving it at 3%. Many were expecting another quarter percent slash and were hoping to take advantage of the lower rate, especially for those variable rate mortgage holders before [...]

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June is prime real estate season with for sale and open house signs springing up like dandelions. With this traditional buzz in real estate activity comes specials and discounts from different lenders trying to maximize market share during this busy time of year. So this is a great period to use the services [...]

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Assuming a lender has approved your mortgage after reviewing your credit bureau and your current monthly debt payments, you need to get the required documentation together. This documentation provides support for the information you have provided in your mortgage application. In other words, it is the due diligence that lenders require their employees to complete. [...]

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That’s probably the single, most important question every home buyer asks prior to purchasing a home.  Scott Henson, our mortgage agent, gives us the down low:
“The Bank of Canada has made unprecedented cuts to its overnight lending rate during its past two meetings. The overnight rate was slashed by 50 basis points in March and [...]

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Here is a bit of clarity on a variable rate OPEN mortgage versus a variable rate CLOSED mortgage. The open version gives you more flexibility.
‘Open’ refers to the homebuyer being able to switch terms at the same bank or even to move to another bank. In other words, the homebuyer is not tied down. So, [...]

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The first rule for anybody wanting to buy is to get pre-approved. Many make the mistake of looking for a house before they know what they can afford.
So, what exactly is a pre-approval?
It’s the first step in the home buying process where the applicant will submit an application (name, employer [...]

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Many of you may or may not have heard of The Smith Manoeuvre. If you haven’t heard of it, it’s essentially a way to shorten the amortization of your mortgage while increasing your financial investments. Let’s put it this way, it can essentially help you pay off your mortgage faster while putting you in a [...]

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A mortgage consumer survey conducted by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation shows that 78% of new home buyers intend to pay off their mortgage as soon as possible.  This study also shows that Canadians are taking actions wherever they can to pay down their mortgage by making accelerated payments. 
Good on Canadians!  Being more responsible and being [...]

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