Should You Keep a Small Balance on Your Credit Card?
Recently the good people over at Nest Wealth published an article called "The Worst Money Advice We've Ever Heard". On the list was "Always keep a small balance on your credit card". What they have to say on the subject is spot on: Someone, somewhere, starting telling...
read more
Bank of Canada Rate Announcement July 12th, 2017
The following is the latest Bank of Canada rate announcement, if you have any questions about what this rate increase means for you and your mortgage, please don't hesitate to contact us anytime. If you're a fixed rate mortgage holder, this change doesn't impact you,...
read more
Advice for Single Homebuyers
More than a third of first-time homebuyers in Canada are single. If you’re thinking of joining this group, here’s what you need to do and know before jumping into homeownership. Study the market. Identify neighbourhoods you want to live in and check to see how much...
read more
Are There More Mortgage Rule Changes Coming?
Recently, the Bank of Canada released its semi-annual Financial Systems Review (PDF document), which identifies some of the major risks that the Bank foresees on the economic horizon. Unsurprisingly, the Bank pinpoints increased levels of Canadian household debt and...
read more
Don’t Forget to Claim your Home Owner Grant
Just a friendly reminder that your property taxes are due in the next couple of weeks! Now, for many of my clients, this isn't a huge deal as they have opted to have their taxes collected by their lender as part of their regular mortgage payments. Equalized payments...
read more
Your Work Makes You Happier Than You Think
While we may think we dislike our work, research shows we’re considerably less happy doing nothing. The great paradox of working for a living, according to a recent longread by Derek Thompson for The Atlantic, is “that while many people hate their jobs, they are...
Finding the Right Home Without Blowing Your Budget
If you have been looking to find the right first home within your budget, it's a matter of mind over money, here's some tips from Genworth Financial that will help you keep perspective! It’s hard to say “goodbye” to your dream home. But if you fall for a house that’s...
I Missed a Credit Card Payment… Now What?
If you've missed a payment on your credit card (or line of credit) and you're wondering how this will impact your creditworthiness down the road, this article is for you. But before we get started, if you have an overdue balance on any of your credit cards at this...
Watch What I Do, Not What I Say
Is the government being reckless and irresponsible or will rates be this low forever? Here's a great article that compares the recent changes to mortgage qualifications imposed on Canadians (what the government says) and the government's own borrowing (what they are...
Bank of Canada Rate Announcement May 24th, 2017
The Bank of Canada is maintaining its target for the overnight rate at 1/2 per cent. The Bank Rate is correspondingly 3/4 per cent and the deposit rate is 1/4 per cent. Inflation is broadly in line with the Bank’s projection in its April Monetary Policy Report (MPR)....
Can I Give Someone The Downpayment to Buy My House?
Although it might not always be this straightforward, the question "Can I give someone the downpayment to buy my house?" presents itself in many different ways. And the answer to all of them is no, well... except in one circumstance, but we will get to that later....
If You’ve Ever Tried and Failed at Budgeting
This article was written by Sandi Martin from Spring Personal Finance and was originally published on Spring the Blog July 21st 2015, but it was so good we wanted to share it on our blog as well! If you've ever tried and failed at budgeting, or if you've never tried...
Understanding Downpayment | Part 4 of 5
As part of a short series that aims to “Understand the Mind of a Lender” we've identified 4 key areas a lender will look at to decide if you're a "good risk" to provide mortgage financing. They are income, credit, downpayment, and property. Here are links to the...
Deposit vs Downpayment
As part of the mortgage and real estate processes, there’s a lot of confusion around the differences between the deposit and the downpayment. It's important to understand what sets them apart so you don’t get confused when it’s time to secure financing on a property...
Mortgage Affordability
Genworth Canada is the largest private residential mortgage insurance company in Canada. They have an excellent education website over at homeownership.ca. Recently, Genworth published an article discussing the recent changes to mortgage rules and how they impact...
As Simple as Porting Your Mortgage!
As simple as porting your mortgage! Said by no one ever. The truth is, there is nothing simple about porting your mortgage. "Porting your mortgage" involves transferring the remainder of your existing mortgage term, outstanding principal balance, and interest rate to...
Bank of Canada Rate Announcement April 12th, 2017
The Bank of Canada today announced that it is maintaining its target for the overnight rate at 1/2 per cent. The Bank Rate is correspondingly 3/4 per cent and the deposit rate is 1/4 per cent. Global economic growth is strengthening and becoming more broadly-based...