Buckle Up

So most of the economists in Canada are predicting a 25 to 50 basis point increase to the over night lending rate tomorrow. This will mean that prime rate which effects our variable rate mortgages and home equity lines of credit will also go up by the same amount.

When you know something unpleasant is coming up around the corner does that make it any easier to bear? Stand still while I punch you in the face. You know it’s coming so anxiety of the anticipation may be worse than the actual damage itself. Sure we have had our share of increases in the past year so what’s one more. You have already punched me in the face 6 times this year, so what’s one more?

So the best advise is to buckle up and prepare for the worst, if you prepare for 50 bps and it only end up being 25 bps then that’s a win. Let’s take our punishment for the sake of high inflation and carry on the best that we can. Just like low rates could not last forever, neither can high inflation. This is only temporary and we can get through it.

Today I am thankful for lacing up my shoes and going for my 1st run in a month, that all the expected pains in the past were much less than the anxiety lead me to believe and chocolate covered peanut butter balls as a post run recovery snack.

I look forward to hearing from you in regard to your mortgage needs.

Patrick

p.s- You can click on this link to start the process whenever you are ready. Schedule your meeting with me here.

p.s.s- I should tell you that I am licensed in Nova Scotia Brokerage (2022-3000179) Broker (2022-3000180), Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

p.s.s.s You can download my new mortgage app here

Soap Box

Just because you have the biggest soap box and are the CEO of several large firms ( which shall remain nameless) does not mean that the financial regulators in your country have to listen to and follow your advice. Yes these recent rate hikes have been painful to business owners and consumers alike, but it does not mean that they were unwarranted.

The US Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell is due to address the state of the US economy and the effects of all the recent rate increases later today. As much as we all want the rate increases to stop and to even reverse course with some decreases, this is highly unlikely to happen. What is most likely is language addressing the continued need to move the rates higher to finely get control of inflation.

So criticize, condemn and complain all you want from your oversized soap box it is not going to change things. Inflation rates are still at record levels even though they have started to come back down, they have not come down fast enough or by margins that would dictate a reversal of course by the Federal Reserve or our central bankers.

Today I am thankful for the fact that our electrician showed up much earlier than expected, that we now have working under cabinet lights in the kitchen and functioning security lights.

I look forward to hearing from you in regard to your mortgage needs.

Patrick

p.s- You can click on this link to start the process whenever you are ready. Schedule your meeting with me here.

p.s.s- I should tell you that I am licensed in Nova Scotia Brokerage (2022-3000179) Broker (2022-3000180), Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

p.s.s.s You can download my new mortgage app here

Slow Progress

Slow progress is still progress. The latest economic figures are out and the Canadian GDP grew by .7% in the third quarter compared to the estimate of .4%. At an annualized rate the economy grew by 2.9% in the third quarter. While still not a recession the rate of growth has been shrinking over the past few months. This is down from an estimate of 3.2%, which was driven by strong exports of oil & gas products.

The key to the reports was the changing demand from Canadian consumers which was down 1% and business investment dropped 5.1%. Both key figures which point that we are heading towards negative territory very soon. The silver lining may be that these pullbacks may give the Bank Of Canada the data they needed to start softening the interest rate hikes so we may get the soft landing that they talked about.

As things stand right now, the market has priced in a .25% interest rate increase durning the next meeting on Dec 7th. This is significantly toned down from the 100 bps and 75bps increases that we have had recently.

I look forward to hearing from you in regard to your mortgage needs.

Patrick

p.s- You can click on this link to start the process whenever you are ready. Schedule your meeting with me here.

p.s.s- I should tell you that I am licensed in Nova Scotia Brokerage (2022-3000179) Broker (2022-3000180), Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

p.s.s.s You can download my new mortgage app here

Cookie Cutter

There is no cookie cutter or one size fits all solution when it comes to your mortgage requirements. Just like all clients are not suitable for the same mortgage product, I am equally not suitable with all clients. What works for one person may not nor will not work for another. This is why it is best listen and find out what is important to each client.

However products or services can not be recommended until all documents have been received and reviewed for each client. To quote someone a rate or product prior to reviewing any and all of their supporting documents would be unfair for the client and unwise for myself the broker.

As the saying goes, you never learn anything when everything goes smoothly the first time. It’s when it goes sideways or badly that you learn to do things differently for the next time. What will not change is that I can not commence underwriting your file or recommending mortgage products to you until all supporting documents have been received.

Today I am thankful for feedback from clients regarding my process, a great game by our Canadian men yesterday and my bank for blocking then unblocking ( I had to call them to do that part) my credit card while I was Christmas shopping.

I look forward to hearing from you in regard to your mortgage needs.

Patrick

p.s- You can click on this link to start the process whenever you are ready. Schedule your meeting with me here.

p.s.s- I should tell you that I am licensed in Nova Scotia Brokerage (2022-3000179) Broker (2022-3000180), Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

p.s.s.s You can download my new mortgage app here

Know your number

For this post I am not talking about your SIN number or your age, phone number, work or student ID number. For this I am taking about your credit score. In order to qualify for a mortgage you must know your credit score and if it is poor how to improve it quickly.

Although you are way more than a number in so many ways, when it comes to mortgage lending there are hard stops when it comes to getting you approved based on your credit. Because the products I have available are so diverse I am not going to focus on one number for qualification but just to say that the higher the number the better the credit and the lower the risk of default for the lenders and easier to get you approved.

If you are reading this and you are new to Canada then you need to establish your credit as soon as possible. Opening a credit card, line of credit or getting a car loan will all help as they will report to the credit bureau’s. According to Equifax the new to Canada people are scoreable within 4 months of having a credit file created here in Canada with 80% over 660 beacon score.

In terms of the make up of your score, 35% comes from your payment history ( so make your payments on time and in full), 30% comes from utilization ( so the lower your balance is in relation to your limit the better), 15% from your history ( how you have paid your bills in the past), 10% from new credit ( takes time to develop a history) and the last 10% from the type of credit that you have. Knowing this you should pull your own credit ( this will not lower your score when done from the provider) once a month so you know exactly what is going on as your creditors report to Equifax monthly. So click on this link to go Equifax Canada and pull your own report today. If you find something that is not right then contact Equifax or your friendly broker so we can help you get it fixed.

Today I am thankful for the cool crisp morning and all the stars that were still out as Augie ( my dog) and I did our morning walk, new knowledge gained from a seminar this week and zoom meetings where I told my cousin that pants are optional.

I look forward to hearing from you in regard to your mortgage needs.

Patrick

p.s- You can click on this link to start the process whenever you are ready. Schedule your meeting with me here.

p.s.s- I should tell you that I am licensed in Nova Scotia Brokerage (2022-3000179) Broker (2022-3000180), Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

p.s.s.s You can download my new mortgage app here

Down Payment Assistance

Sometimes clients have the desire, the income, the credit but not the means to make home ownership possible. It’s for this reason that Nova Scotia created the down payment assistance program. Through this program they will lend you interest free a down payment up to 5% of the purchase price of your new property.

There are some requirements for the borrower:

  • You must be pre approved by a recognized financial institution and have a strong credit rating.
  • Have never purchased property before
  • Have a combined household income less than 145K
  • Be a citizen or permanent resident of Canada
  • Have been a resident in Nova Scotia for a minimum of 12 consecutive months
  • Are unable to come up with the down payment by any other means
  • Yet still have the capacity to come up with the closing costs

These are the requirements for the property:

  • Property must be here in Nova Scotia
  • This needs to be your principal residence, no rentals, cottages or commercial properties.
  • Needs to be on a foundation on your own land. So no mobile homes in parks or tiny homes on wheels.
  • Have a purchase price that does not exceed 500K in Halifax & East Hants, 375K in Annapolis Valley, West Hants & South Shore and 300K everywhere else.

If this sounds like the path that will finely lead you to home ownership then reach out to me so I can get you pre approved to start the process.

Today I am thankful for the opportunity to attend my 1st industry event since the start of Covid, all the great people I got to meet even while wearing my mask and the chance to learn so many new things.

I look forward to hearing from you in regard to your mortgage needs.

Patrick

p.s- You can click on this link to start the process whenever you are ready. Schedule your meeting with me here.

p.s.s- I should tell you that I am licensed in Nova Scotia Brokerage (2022-3000179) Broker (2022-3000180), Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

p.s.s.s You can download my new mortgage app here

Language

I am not talking about you being a potty mouth but the actual language and words that you use to communicate. More precisely I want to reference to what the US Fed chair Jerome Powell said at their most recent meeting this week. While Canada and the US are two distinct countries, we are pretty much joined at the hip economically.

When the US Federal Reserve met this week they increased their overnight lending rate by 75 basis points vs the 50 basis points increase from the Bank of Canada recently. The important part is what the Fed Chair said as part of his announcement, he said ” There is significant uncertainty around that level of interest rates & we still have some ways to go, and incoming data since our last meeting suggests that the ultimate level of interest rates will be higher than previously expected”.

So while the inflation rate in both are countries is dropping, we are currently at 6.9% here in Canada vs the high of 8.1% back in June and the US is at 8.2% vs their high of 9.1%. These are both off the target rate of 2%. The next key measure will be when the US announces their inflation rate for the month of November next Thursday. A large decrease will take the press of any oversized rate increases and if it still remains stubbornly high then more drastic measure may be in order.

While I love the flexibility of the variable rate, it may soon be time to lock in for some stability to prevent any future rate increases. Give me a call and see if it is something that you should consider.

Today I am thankful for a very productive week and all the great people I got to meet face to face, receiving great reviews online from my clients and for my Dad who always made sure that we used proper grammar as he said that proper use of language is important to being understood.

I look forward to hearing from you in regard to your mortgage needs.

Patrick

p.s- You can click on this link to start the process whenever you are ready. Schedule your meeting with me here.

p.s.s- I should tell you that I am licensed in Nova Scotia Brokerage (2022-3000179) Broker (2022-3000180), Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

p.s.s.s You can download my new mortgage app here

Take your lumps

Well the Bank of Canada gave us our lumps yesterday, another rate increase of 50bps. It’s our medicine and we have to take it so we can start to win this war against inflation. The increase wasn’t as bad as many had expected, I don’t think that it was due to any outside political pressure but the fact that the inflation rate has been dropping. It is just not shrinking as quickly as the Bank needs it to as it is still quite the distance from the 2% target.

While it is true that many people survived the lock downs with much higher cash reserves and then went out and bought new homes and new cars and went on vacations. While so many did this it created a market frenzy and drove up prices on homes, back orders for vehicles and long lines at airports and passport offices. While much of this is now over, the results of all this activity which is prolonged inflation is still hanging with us.

The sooner that we can take our lumps and reduce our discretionary spending the faster the inflationary rate will return to normal. The truth is that spending money is so much easier than saving it, as we don’t get the same feeling when we are cutting back and saving as we do when we are putting the key in the door to our new home or driving off the lot with our new vehicle. However the satisfaction we will get when we all do our part will be worth it.

Today I am thankful for the run that was completed when I really didn’t want to do it today, lenders that go the extra mile so we can make things happen for clients and a little pain today for a long term gain.

I look forward to hearing from you in regard to your mortgage needs.

Patrick

p.s- You can click on this link to start the process whenever you are ready. Schedule your meeting with me here.

p.s.s- I should tell you that I am licensed in Nova Scotia Brokerage (2021-3000179) Broker (2021-3000180), Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

p.s.s.s You can download my new mortgage app here

The Fine Print

The Bank of Canada will come out with their latest interest rate announcement at 10am eastern or 11am here in the Maritimes. While many of us are expecting at least a 75bps increase to the overnight lending rate, the real meat and potatoes will be in the press release from the meeting.

The devil truly is in the details, as the fourth quarter monetary policy is also announced today. The Bank will give details on whether it thinks that the current and past rate increases are doing what they were supposed to do and if more are necessary. While it is true that the overall inflationary rate is decreasing, it is just not coming down fast enough. It decreased by .1% to 6.9% this month, while the target rate is 2%. We still have a ways to go to get there.

Many economists are predicting a recession for 2023 and more rate increases will defiantly be pushing us in that direction. What we don’t know is the length or severity of the pull back to our economy and other major economies as well. We need to proactively cut back our discretionary spending before spending cuts and job losses are thrust upon us. What the Bank of Canada is doing is beyond our control but whether we decide to eat out or make supper at home is totally up to us.

Today I am thankful for the chance to connect with friends that I haven’t spoken with in months, new connections with new idea’s to improve my effectiveness and helping people see the best way forward.

I look forward to hearing from you in regard to your mortgage needs.

Patrick

p.s- You can click on this link to start the process whenever you are ready. Schedule your meeting with me here.

p.s.s- I should tell you that I am licensed in Nova Scotia Brokerage (2021-3000179) Broker (2021-3000180), Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

p.s.s.s You can download my new mortgage app here

Expectations

Does the expectation of an unpleasant event make the experience worse? Does the boxer feel it less than the guy who got sucker punched at the bar? Having emergency surgery any less painful than the one that has been planned months in advance? Getting let go from your job that you have worked at for years any less painful than suddenly quitting?

The economists have been talking the impending rate increase by the central bankers since the last big one in September. Will this make it any less painful if we expect at 75basis point increase vs it coming out of the blue! Will we feel any different about a recession if they have been talking about it for months?

Either way it will be best is we prepare for the worst case scenario. Hope for the best but prepare for the worst. Start now by cutting back your expenses, fund your emergency reserve and lower your debt payments as much as possible. The anxiety and expectation of a pending unfortunate event may be worse than the event itself but it’s still better to be prepared.

Today I am thankful for the sound of the rain when I got up this morning, the ability to be able to continue to share my thoughts with you and the opportunities of a new week ahead.

I look forward to hearing from you in regard to your mortgage needs.

Patrick

p.s- You can click on this link to start the process whenever you are ready. Schedule your meeting with me here.

p.s.s- I should tell you that I am licensed in Nova Scotia Brokerage (2021-3000179) Broker (2021-3000180), Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

p.s.s.s You can download my new mortgage app here