Vancouver Mortgage Blog

14

Nov 2023

Optimize Your Mortgage Renewal: The Strategic Advantage of Early Consultation

Elevate Your Financial Appeal: Your Key to Better Mortgage Terms In the quest for the best mortgage renewal terms and rates, an often-overlooked strategy is ensuring your financial profile is attractive to competing lenders well ahead of the renewal date. This is where early discussions with your me, you broker become invaluable. These discussions don't just open doors to better rates and terms; they position…

06

Dec 2019

Leaving the City, but Keeping the Job

by Iain in Vancouver Mortgage Blog

Hi Everyone, I have recently been coming across a large number of clients in this situation so I thought I’d dedicate a blog entry to it. Wanting to buy a house and willing to move, but tied to their current job. Like many of my generation (and others), the large gains to be made from Lower Mainland property inflation has passed us by and is…

20

Jul 2019

Mortgage Stress Test Becomes (Slightly) Less Stressful

by Iain in Vancouver Mortgage Blog

You might have seen the recent Benchmark Rate Decrease announcement in the news. What does this mean for Buyers and Refinancers? Will this revive the slumping Vancouver Housing Market? Let's Revisit the Stress Test In 2018 the Stress Test took affect and change how ALL Canadian Mortgages are now qualified. Before the Stress Test you would be qualifying a conventional 5 year fixed at the…

14

Jun 2019

Buying A New Home and Keeping Your Current Home As A Rental

by Iain in Vancouver Mortgage Blog

I thought I’d dedicate a blog post to this topic as I have many inquiries from clients looking into doing this as well as there being great difference between lender policy. Why Not Rent Out Your Apartment For Long Term Gain? I am contacted regularly by second time (move up) buyers who want me to find a way for them to keep their first property…

02

Nov 2018

Cutco Knife Giveaway – My Lifetime Mortgage Referral Program

by Iain in Vancouver Mortgage Blog

[big_title]Do you LOVE to cook?[/big_title] While I’m not a great cook, I enjoy it much more when cooking with the best equipment. That is why I am giving away Cutco Knives. These high quality - lifetime guarantee knives will surely be a welcome addition to your kitchen. I have owned many other brands of knives and they eventually break, bend or deteriorate and I still…

25

Oct 2018

Prime Rate Increases to 3.95%

by Iain in Vancouver Mortgage Blog

The Bank of Canada decided to increase the overnight lending rate to 1.75% on October 24th 2018. This is the interest rate that the Bank of Canada charges the Chartered Banks to borrow money, which they need to do frequently in order to balance their books at the end of each day. The costs of this rate increase are inevitably passed on to consumers as…

12

Oct 2018

Fixed Mortgage Rates Heading Higher Again

by Iain in Vancouver Mortgage Blog

Hi everyone, I usually wouldn’t Blog about rates increases, but there's an acceleration of the frequency of increases this Fall. Two weeks ago, there were across the board increase across several major lenders and I managed to get several existing clients into rate holds to hold the rate for about 4 months. Well, it looks like the Banks are at it again. Fixed Mortgage Rates…

25

Sep 2018

Is Your Variable Rate Optimized?

by Iain in Vancouver Mortgage Blog

There are many great arguments for and against entering into a Variable Rate versus a Fixed Rate, but I won’t be chiming in on that debate today. Today’s post is for those who are in Variable Rates and are happy to remain. One of the greatest benefits of a Variable Rate Mortgage is the Low and Predictable penalty to break it, which is typically 3…

03

Apr 2015

Higher CMHC Mortgage Insurance Premiums on the Way

by Iain in Vancouver Mortgage Blog

If you’re currently in the market for a home, June 1, 2015 is a day you’ll want to circle on your calendar. On this dubious date, CMHC is set to increase mortgage insurance premiums; not surprisingly, first-time homebuyers are expected to be hit the hardest. How much more will you pay in mortgage insurance? Let’s take a closer look. What Mortgage Insurance and Why Do…

27

Feb 2014

BC First Time Home Buyer Grant Increased

by Iain in Vancouver Mortgage Blog

Good news for first time home buyers in British Colombia. The BC provincial budget increased the maximum eligible purchase for the property transfer tax exemption from 425k to 475k. Property transfer tax (PTT) is a one time cost paid on any purchase of real estate in BC. It's an often overlooked cost of purchasing real estate in Vancouver. Here's how to calculate property transfer tax:…

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