Often new clients call us and ask. “What is your best rate?”

A few years ago, this was a pretty straight forward question. But since the government has changed the mortgage rules, the best rate offered by our 95 different lenders is now a very complicated question. Best rate is now limited to high ratio purchases or people buying homes for less than 20% down. This is confusing for most clients. You mean ,if I put less money down, I get a better rate. Yes, that is correct. These mortgages are insured through CMCH, Genworth or Canada Guaranty so there is a premium paid by the borrower and added to the mortgage amount for receiving this fantastic rate.

So, any switches or transfers also qualify for best fixed and variable rates. So that is essentially waiting until your maturity or it can be done before with penalty for existing amount of the mortgage.

Now refinances have different rates attached to them. If you had an insured mortgage on your last renewal or purchased prior to November 2016 you will qualify for rock bottom rates. That’s an if, you have a beacon score about 700. More and more lenders are wanting pristine credit for any type of mortgage transaction. So, guard your credit carefully by keeping balances and making all payments time. Now most lenders are charging a slightly higher rate for a 30 year amortization.

We always say beyond rate, there is always the fine print. Banks especially are bad for not disclosing the bad and the ugly. Onerous penalties come with fixed rates with major banks. They earn 6 billion dollars every quarter on mortgage penalties alone. As well, there are products out there that give a better rate but you need to sell or refinance with that lender and we are not a fan of products that restrict clients. And speaking of restrictive watch those collateral mortgages many banks where all unsecured debt becomes secure in the far reaching parameters of the mortgage charge.

No matter what, we are transparent with our rates and terms. They are available and updated daily on our website at Priceteammortgages.ca. You can even sign up to get them weekly if you want.

Joan came to us from the City of Guelph after being turned down by her bank.

She had big plans to renovate her house and wasn’t about to give up after the branch she had been dealing with said it couldn’t be done. Joan and her husband had excellent credit and good incomes. But they had a lot of debt because banks love to roll out all kinds of credit to people to with good incomes and great credit.

We looked at her situation and found a way to pay off all their debt and get Joan enough money for the new kitchen. The couple were in shock when we told them their total payments were going down by over 1500 dollars per month. And funny enough, her new kitchen would be tongue in cheek, FREE.

“There must be a catch,” they said. We told them,” no catch”. The difference between us and the banks is we work in the client’s best interests first and foremost. The bank works for their profits…billions of dollars of your money. So we told them it made absolutely no sense for the bank to pay off your higher cost debt because that’s how banks make their money.

Well still not convinced, Joan and husband went back to the bank, to give them one last chance to do their new mortgage. Once again, the bank told them, it cannot be done.

So the clients refinanced with us, paying all their debt off and coming out with a $150,000 in cash for their new renovations.

We hear the new kitchen is just about complete.

Yes, you can buy a cottage!

Most people do not realize how easy it is to purchase a waterfront property in Ontario.  There is so much variety in Ontario and really across Canada.   I grew up with a cottage on a lake near Parry Sound.  Every weekend, my parents would load us 5 kids into our station wagon and make the 3-hour drive to the cottage.    Cottage life is so great for children.  Baiting your first fish, with the worm squiggling, feeding the chipmunks peanuts, jumping off cliffs and of course board games.   So many great memories of canoeing, paddle boating and we had a big party pontoon boat we cruised around on at sunset.  As I became a parent, the cottage became the only vacation I could afford for my four children.  Again, a time to slow down life and experience the outdoors. They had so much good fun there.  My children are grown and thankfully my parents who are now in their 80ies still have the cottage.  The newest generation, my grandchildren are now experiencing cottage life.

We have helped many clients achieve the dream of owning their own cottage.  It only takes a down payment of 5% if it is a four-season property.  Some of our clients are purchasing up north or some even out east in Nova Scotia.    Usually with a little restructuring of the current mortgage we can find the funds or lower the payments on the current mortgage to make room for people to easily pay for both properties.   If you want to own a cottage, we will find a way to help you. Come in and discuss your options.

Right now, Ron and I are looking for a cottage, well it’s mostly me because it provides such great times for family.   So, we will see who wins.  I will let you know.

Never thought I would see it in my lifetime but it has happened. The reality of all the measures the government has taken is now impacting first time home buyers and even people considering moving up to a better home.

I stress tested our area and it will take over 90 k in income with no debt to afford the most basic home in Fergus and Guelph. Well that’s a big problem because our average household income is only $70,000. A good income is around $50,000 and if you are a single income earner forget about buying here.

Honestly, what was the government thinking. There was no reason or pressing issue to bring in all these measures to stop prices from escalating in Toronto and Vancouver. Yes housing is unaffordable there because salaries have not kept pace with rising prices. So now the government is creating the exact same problem across Canada. Still globally Toronto lags other global cities at 48 around the world with Hong Kong being most expensive city to own real estate. So again WHY? Most of us could not afford to buy in Toronto and most of us don’t want to live there anyway.

Here are the statistics you won’t see. 40% of homeowners in Canada are Mortgage free. 33% of households are debt free. And only 25% of households have less than $25,000 in debt. Mortgage deliquencies have never been a problem even during 2008 meltdown. So over-extended households are a very small segment, yet governments (the worst of deficit spenders) keep sounding the alarm of high household debt. (Reminds me of the old weapons of mass destruction) Last time I checked mortgages were a good debt because there is an appreciating asset attached to it.

Most of us who own houses are fine but what are about our kids. Thanks to the government they will not be able to buy here without significant help from us.

READY TO BUY A HOME? HOW IS YOUR CREDIT? WE CAN HELP!

Purchasing a home can be a very daunting experience.  For many it feels like going back to school to educate yourself on the whole picture. Did you know your credit score has a major impact on your ability to purchase a home, and a weak beacon score can be detrimental to your future borrowings? That’s where Price Team Mortgages can help you by changing the way you handle your credit.  Do you know what affects your credit score and how to fix it? When was the last time you checked your credit score? This is where we can help, we have educated many clients on how to improve their score.

Here is a direct response from someone who approached us on our Price Team Mortgages Facebook page, as she was looking for some help with her credit. This is a great example of a client who was educating herself on a purchasing a home in an ever-changing market.

First Time Home Buyer- Age 25 – Female. Poor credit score, and lack of tradelines.

“It’s a shame they don’t teach this stuff when it counts back in high school even!! I didn’t have a clue and when I was 18 I got my hands on two credit cards and just spent frivolously while living at home with my parents. I’ve turned my position around, paid them all off and have learned the real value of money and responsibility. I’m ready to try again. You’ve really given me some helpful tips and much needed insight!”

It’s extremely important to educate yourself on your full financial picture and your credit score is the first place to look. Most feel ashamed going into their bank for help. STOP. We can help you, there’s no need to go somewhere that makes you feel intimidated or worthless. We will empower you and help carve out a strategy to get you on track and ready to purchase a home. We truly care about our clients and their future. We always do what’s right for you.

Let’s change lives together. Price Team Mortgages, now open in Guelph at 1467 Gordon St, Suite 204. Come by and say Hi!

Never Move Your Kids Again!

YES, you can purchase for 5% down. Even if you own now, you have the ability to sell and jump back into market, purchase again with the minimum down payment. Most people believe 5% down payment is limited to purchasing their first home. Not true. And with the recent government changes many people get very confused thinking bigger down payments are required.
Selling and purchasing a new home can unlock equity to pay off debt. If you are feeling under pressure financially this may be one way to get rid of high cost debt. Refinancing is another way to get access to extra cash but is limited to 80% of your property value.

And… did you know if you own a home, you can purchase a second home or a cottage for a minimum of 5% down payment. A second home could be a house for an aging parent or an adult child attending university or college. We personally purchased many years ago in London where our children were attending Fanshawe College. It was financially draining to pay out 500 per month per child for a small room in someone else’s home -especially when three were attending post secondary at once- so we decided to purchase a condo townhouse close to the college. Turned out to be a fantastic experience! Properties are quite a bit cheaper in London and we found the perfect property. If you have ever gone through moving kids into school every year, you will understand exactly why this was such a good decision. We kept the townhouse for 7 years and ended up selling for a good profit and didn’t have to move any kid again.
So, bottom line, call us for expert advice on your next purchase. We are here to help.

Scenario for Today…
Purchase Price              $250,000
5% down                           $12,500

 Mortgage amount       $237,500
CMHC Fee                       $9,500
Monthly Payment at
2.5%, 25 yr am               $1106.48

Everyone believes that being a general contractor is easy, I thought so too until I recently acted as the GC for my house.  I didn’t work in any construction field going into it but I love challenges and learning, so why not have a little project -it’ll be easy- 😉 ?   What did I do first? Well the same thing most people do these days ‘google’.  I learned enough from google to get by while building my house, but by no means was I an expert.  The trades/ professionals that build houses everyday of their life are the true experts and that’s why I hired them. I put trust in the people that built businesses in this small community because I knew that they would do it right and I am very proud that I let them do what they do well!  All careers are the same in that there are professionals in each field for a reason. They live and breathe their careers every day, they are submersed daily in the experiences, knowledge, and information only available to their fingertips because that is their career something ‘google’ has yet to replace.

I’ve been involved in my family’s business for 15 years but only recently chose to submerse myself in this new career path of mortgages, I’m truly fortunate to be mentored by highly experienced mortgage professionals and I am very proud to be part of a small town business that is top of the industry.  In a short time I learned, just like I learned while General Contractor my house that there is so much more complexity and layers to this industry than ‘google’ leads you to believe.  There is a whole industry of mortgage professionals for us Canadians to utilize for their FREE knowledge and expertise that allow us to have competitive options for purchases, refinances, and renewals.  Call us first, we are here to work for you!

We were astounded to see media headlines last week stating that “1 in 3 Canadians threaten to go bankrupt if interest rates keep climbing.” This was reported on the heels of the Bank of Canada’s decision to increase the overnight rate by 0.25% for a third time since July 2017. (The media did exaggerate slightly, the real numbers are that over 40% of Canadians recently surveyed are worried they will be in financial trouble if interest rates keep rising. 1 in 3 of those 40% are afraid they may face bankruptcy.) Regardless, the bottom line is too many Canadians are deep in debt and feeling helpless. It’s not low interest mortgage debt that’s the problem, it’s high interest rate lines of credit, credit cards and loans.

According to the nation-wide survey executed by IPSOS on behalf of MNP Chartered Accountants, 48% say they are within $200 of not being able to meet their monthly financial obligations, up from 42% in September. Does this sound like you or someone you know? What can be done, you ask? CONTACT US, WE CAN HELP!

Many people think their options are limited when drowning in debt. They think they’ll either have to sell their homes and property, go into Consumer Proposal or file for Bankruptcy in order to get back on track. Contact us first. We will do everything possible to make sure the equity in your home does not slip through your fingers. We have a number of tools that can help you in your individual situation. From alternate mortgage solutions to debt negotiation to refinancing vehicle loans, we will consult with you, look at your big picture and develop a plan specifically for you.

There are many reasons life gets ahead of people. Maybe you needed a new roof or emergency car repairs and were forced to put these expenses on credit cards or a credit line. Perhaps there was an illness in your family and as a small business owner, you now find yourself in tax arrears. Maybe you’ve been through a divorce and have struggled ever since. Whether you are suffocating from high interest consumer debt, property tax or income tax arrears, we can help.

Contact us today.