Maximize the Benefits of Your Credit Card
One of the keys to successfully qualifying for a mortgage or any other type of credit is learning how to use your credit card. Credit cards can be a very useful tool when used properly but unfortunately credit cards don’t come with instructions. When I work with first time home buyers the most common ...
How to Qualify for a Variable Rate Mortgage
On April 19th 2010 new mortgage rules came into effect which have made it a little bit more challenging to qualify for a variable rate mortgage. Traditionally lenders qualified your maximum mortgage amount based on their current 3 year fixed rate. However, today it is a little bit more complicated and this post will ...
New Merix Fixed 5 Year with 90 Day Ratehold
The problems over seas in Europe are already hitting close to home as bond yields have dipped for the last couple of days indicating that investor confidence is shaken. This bodes well for borrowers looking to get into fixed rate mortgages as there may be a reversal to the sharp steady increases to fixed ...
Monday Mortgage Minute May 3rd 2010
Mortgage interest rates continue to climb for the 4th week in a row. There is a lot of discussion between observers and economists who think that the banks are prematurely driving rates up as highlighted in Rob Carrick’s Globe & Mail article, “Are Big Banks Jumping the Gun?”. With each passing week the variable ...
What Is Cmhc Mortgage Insurance Good For?
I have observed recently that both first time home buyers and seasoned owners alike struggle to understand CMHC insurance. From a borrower’s perspective the insurance premium paid up front for the benefit of a mortgage lender seems heavy handed and unfair. However, without CMHC you wouldn’t be able to buy or refinance your homes ...
Toronto Monday Mortgage Minute April 26th 2010
After a very quick increase to fixed rate mortgages over the past 2 weeks mortgage lenders have started to compete for the new fixed 5 year. The standard rate is 4.59% however some lenders have introduced their quickclose rate at 4.39%. The dilemma of deciding to go fixed over variable is on every borrower’s ...