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Chapter 10 – Common Required Documents

Although you don’t need to provide documents during the pre-approval process, you will eventually need to confirm the information on your application. The exact documents required vary from lender to lender, but there are a few that you can expect to provide each time.   Mortgage Commitment: The mortgage commitment is the contract that the … Read more

Chapter 11 – BC Home Buyer’s Plan

The Home Buyers’ Plan (HBP) is a first time home buyer program that allows you to withdraw up to $25,000 from your RRSP for a down payment. Conditions for participating in the HBP Only the individual who is entitled to receive payments from the RRSP can withdraw funds from an RRSP. You can make withdrawals from … Read more

Chapter 12 – Special Tax Discounts

Home Owner Grant: The basic grant can reduce your property tax by as much as $570 per year. To be eligible for the grant, you must meet the following criteria: 1. You are a Canadian citizen or landed immigrant and ordinarily reside in British Columbia. 2. You are the registered owner or eligible occupant of the … Read more

Chapter 14 – Extra Costs to Consider

When you are buying a house, you will need to have additional funds set aside for closing costs. These costs can add up to a substantial amount. The following is a list of the most common costs, with an indication of their price.   APPRAISAL $150 – $250 Lending institutions usually require an appraisal to … Read more

Chapter 15 – Prepayment Options

Depending on the lender, you will have a variety of prepayment options available to you.  Using these options is a great way to reduce the principal on your mortgage and save money.  Check with your mortgage broker to see which ones are available to you. Here are some of the standard prepayment options: Anniversary Lump … Read more

July 2012 Mortgage Rule Changes in BC

The new mortgage rules came into effect in early July. Basically the government is taking extra precautions on mortgage financing to make sure Canadian borrowers are not over extending. Now that the dust has settled, let’s take a look at some of the changes. They are fairly straight forward, but here are the main differences. … Read more

BC First Time Home Buyer $10,000 Tax Credit

UPDATE: This credit is no longer available effective April 1 2013 The government is in the process of introducing a new incentive for first time home buyers. This is a major benefit that’s only available on new properties (or properties where HST is charged) . THE B.C. FIRST-TIME NEW HOME BUYERS’ BONUS Effective February 21, 2012, … Read more

Fixed Rate vs Variable Rate: Go Fixed

One of the questions I get asked frequently is whether to choose a fixed product or a variable product.  Which route to take ultimately depends on the borrower’s preferences.  The widely quoted number is that 77% of the time, variable borrowers end up paying less.  But that means that 23% of the time, they pay … Read more