This letter will also appear as a full page ad in the Oct. 3 Globe and Mail.

Dear Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Finance Minster Bill Morneau;

One year ago, your government introduced new mortgage rules that put the dream of home ownership out of reach for many Canadians. Although well intended, the changes have reduced the average Canadian family’s purchasing power by upwards of 20 per cent, and have had the unintended consequence of making housing less affordable for Canadians. Instead, Canadians who were once able to purchase or re-finance their home are being shut out of the market or forced to pay more interest to traditional lenders as competition in our sector declines.
The new stress test that requires all new mortgages to qualify at the greater of either the Bank of Canada benchmark rate or the contract rate offered, means that Canadians who previously could reasonably afford a mortgage payment at the standard rates no longer qualify. Additionally, changes to portfolio insurance requirements have resulted in some monoline lenders being unable to insure mortgages, thus reducing overall competition, which hurts consumers, regardless of what solution they use for their homes.
Canadians who are now unable to fulfill their dream of owning a home have been telling us their stories and we’ve been listening. We’ve documented their stories and we think it’s important for you to see them. We’ve posted these stories at www.NewRulesHurt.ca and are sending every Member of Parliament a printed copy so they can read firsthand how the new mortgage rules have impacted the lives of hard working individuals and families in their constituencies. Please take the time to read these stories and seriously consider changing mortgage rules to make them fair and equitable for all Canadians trying to purchase, or keep their home.

Contact me for your best mortgage options 705.669.7798 or trina@ndlc.ca

#trinamortgages #mortgages #ndlc #freedomofchoice

#bestmortgageforme #executive #firstimehomebuyer

If you found this information valuable, I only ask that you share with your friends and family.

Copyright DLC

A lot of people get into hot water when they assume that because they’ve qualified for a mortgage in the past, they will qualify for a mortgage in the future.

This article has one point to make and it’s this:

Don’t assume anything when dealing with mortgage financing!

And if that’s all you take away, that’s enough!

Just because you’ve qualified for a mortgage in the past, doesn’t mean you will qualify for a mortgage in the future, even if your financial situation has remained the same or gotten better. The truth is, things have changed over the last year, and securing mortgage financing is more difficult now than it has been in recent memory.
The latest changes to mortgage qualification by the federal government has left Canadians qualifying for about 20-25% less. On top of that, a lot of the “common sense” guidelines that lenders would use in determining your suitability have been replaced with non-negotiable hard and fast rules.
As a mortgage professional who arranges financing for clients everyday, I keep up to date with the latest changes in the mortgage world, understand lender products, and have my fingers on the pulse of what is going on.
From experience, I can tell you that having a plan is crucial to a successful mortgage application. Making assumptions about your qualification, or just “winging it” is a recipe for disaster.
If you are thinking about buying a property, contact me your Dominion Lending Centres mortgage specialist  I would love to talk with you about all your options, and help you put together a plan.

Contact me for your best mortgage options 705.669.7798 or trina@ndlc.ca

#trinamortgages #mortgages #ndlc #freedomofchoice

#bestmortgageforme #executive #firstimehomebuyer

If you found this information valuable, I only ask that you share with your friends and family.

Copyright DLC

This month, the Bank of Canada increased their lending rate for the 2nd time in as many months. The changes in the Prime Lender Rates means that those with a variable mortgage rates will have seen that their mortgages rates adjusted alongside the changes to Prime Rate. For those of you with variable rates, the first thing that probably crossed your mind was “should I lock in?”

Even though your interest rate may have increased, it does not mean that you should immediately lock into a fixed rate mortgage. An associate from B.C, Dustan Woodhouse had this to share about the increase:

“If your discount from Prime (now 3.20%) is 0.50% or deeper – then the variable rate product remains a really great place to be.

If your discount from Prime is 0.25% or less, then depending on which lender you are with you may consider converting to a fixed rate, BUT…

Keep in mind the penalty to prepay (i.e. refinance or sale of property) a variable early is ~0.50% of the mortgage balance, whereas if in a (4yr/5yr or longer) fixed rate mortgage the penalty can be closer to 4.5% of the mortgage balance ***depending upon which specific lender you are with and how long of a term you lock in for.

It is usually to the lenders greater benefit that you lock into a fixed rate, rarely is it to your own benefit.”

I could not have summarized it any better myself, so I won’t try.

So what should you do?
The first thing that you should be doing is avoiding the immediate draw or feeling of “I need to lock in”. There are several different aspects of your mortgage and personal financial situation that should be considered prior to locking in. There are many questions to ask yourself prior to locking in and most of which the lenders are unlikely to ask you. Your lender is re-active, not pro-active – you need to be pro-active. And sometimes being pro-active results in no action being taken at all.

Simply because the Bank of Canada increased interest rates twice, this does not immediately mean that they will do it again. There are many economic factors outside of their control that will impact their decisions regarding future potential increases.

Presently, the key is not to react quickly. If you have questions about your specific situation and how the increase may impact you, feel free to give me your Dominion Lending Centres mortgage specialist a call to chat about things in more detail. Allow me the opportunity to ask the questions that need to be asked prior to making a quick switch.

Food for thought…
Back in 2010 rates increased 0.25% three times, and that sat stagnant for nearly five full years before two 0.25% decreases back downward.

In other words the last time Prime was pushed as high as it stands today, it sat there for five full years. And was then cut.

The next Bank of Canada meeting is October 25, 2017.

Contact me for your best mortgage options 705.669.7798 or trina@ndlc.ca

#trinamortgages #mortgages #ndlc #freedomofchoice

#bestmortgageforme #executive #firstimehomebuyer

If you found this information valuable, I only ask that you share with your friends and family.

Copyright DLC

Very often, the first question is “what can I afford”. To answer this for a person getting ready to buy, we need to know about what is happening now, income, bills, savings, credit score etc. There are many positive things that you can do in the year or two prior to buying.

It is always best to consult with a Mortgage Broker well in advance to get started on the right path to becoming a home owner. If you already have some savings set aside, then you already have a great head start!

Here are some simple notes and tips to get you well on your way.

Special Income Note:

If using commission, lenders want to see a 2 year average income for commission/bonus income to use it at all. So file your Taxes each year and keep your NOA, Notice of Assessment that is mailed to you.

Down Payment:

You need to have a minimum 5% of the purchase price Down Payment and 1.5% of purchase price in your own funds. This CAN be gifted from an immediate family member.

Ex.

$300,000 home = $15,000 minimum Down Payment, plus $4,500 for Closing costs

$200,000 home = $10,000 minimum Down Payment, plus $3,000 for Closing Costs

Co-signer or Co Borrower:

IF you can have a parent with good income and credit go on as a guarantor for your mortgage, then we can add their income to the file to strengthen your position.

IF you have a partner/co borrower, then their income, credit score etc. can be added to the mortgage as well to strengthen the file.

Budgeting – Try Mint.com – Free:
www.mint.com

Start tracking your expenses, start with what you think you spend and see/track the reality (1-2months!) Set up bill date reminders and get notifications on your cell phone when you go over budget!

Find and stop the bleeding; unnecessary spending that can add to your savings.

NOTE: 3% of all unsecured debt has to be used as payment – even though reality payment is lower. $10K on a credit card = $300.00 payment and nearly $75,000 less mortgage buying power!!!

Crazy…..pay them down as much as possible!

Saving in RRSPs :

Save on Income Tax for filing next spring, lock it away!

Able to use up to $25,000 each TAX FREE as a First Time Home Buyer on a qualifying home value. Once you know what you can save per month, we can make it automatic (like a bill payment) OR you can save organically and then deposit every month or two into your RRSP account.

CALL ME – I have access to full line of Bank Products; RRSPs, TFSAs, Lines of Credit, Visa etc.

Check your Credit Score:

Equifax Customer Inquiries 1-800-465-7166

Pull your own credit bureau. Identify any errors or issues and fix now. You can call me when you get it, we can review and I can provide some tips on how to improve if need be!

Pay all bills on time, more than minimum payments!

Use NO MORE than 50% of available limit on cards – Going over 65% of limit reduces your score – EVEN if you are NOT over limit! Easy TIP: Pay on time and pay down debt a bit over next few months….then call to increase your limits! This will lower your % of credit utilization immediately for free and be a plus to your credit score.

Become a Rock Star that any lender will want to work with!

I really hope that this helps you in starting forward progress – starting is the hardest, but then it quickly becomes normal. Remember – Im here at Dominion Lending Centres to help!

Contact me for your best mortgage options 705.669.7798 or trina@ndlc.ca

#trinamortgages #mortgages #ndlc #freedomofchoice

#bestmortgageforme #executive #firstimehomebuyer

If you found this information valuable, I only ask that you share with your friends and family.

Copyright DLC