Tag Archive for: Halifax Mortgage Broker

Eat That Frog!

it’s a figure of speech, I don’t actually mean for you to eat the frog. What is meant by that is to do your difficult task first. Don’t put it off get it done and the rest of your day will be piece of cake. If you are in sales, do you call’s first. Want to get in shape, do your workout first thing in the morning. This will allow you to start your day with a sense of accomplishment.

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

Cheers,

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, Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

Mortgage Emergency!

What is a “Mortgage Emergency”? Well the easiest way to describe it is when a mortgage request lands on your desk after having been declined with other brokers or lenders and they have a very tight deadline to get the file completed. While it is still possible to get these files completed, my preference is to avoid having “Mortgage Emergencies” at all.

This is how I do it. I require a full and complete document package upfront and upon submission of your file. This way it can be completely reviewed prior to submission and any potential issues can be addressed prior to sending your documents to the lender. You see we live in a stressful enough world we don’t necessarily need any more stress around what is commonly your biggest lifetime purchase or transaction. When we work together I set the expectation up front that my goal is to have your file broker complete one month prior to your closing date.

Problems invariably arise when documents are submitted too close to the closing date which could trigger your file to being subject to a more thorough internal bank audit. Make it easier on your self and everyone involved in your financing transaction by getting your documents together in a quick and timely manner.

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

Cheers,

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, Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

How bad do you want it?

With that you should also be saying, “what are you willing to do that nobody else is willing to do” to achieve your goal? If your goal is to be fitter. Are you watching what you eat? Are you doing your workouts? Are you getting enough sleep? Are you consistent with what needs to be done?

If your goal is to some day soon move out of your parents place and buy a place of your own. Are you putting money away from every paycheque towards your down payment? Are you monitoring your credit report? Are you looking at all your expenses for ways to save some money towards your down payment? Are you paying down your debts? Are you taking extra shifts, working overtime or starting a gig on the side to make some more cash?

Where there is a will there is always a way. To help you get control of your debt and your money I highly recommend YNAB. Focus on your end result and be relentless and you will get there in no time.

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

Cheers,

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, Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

Be a Detective

We all know the expression that a picture is worth a 1000 words and that William Shakespeare wrote in Hamlet that “Brevity is the soul of wit”. However when it comes to mortgage financing we need not be brief nor just provide a picture without the 1000 words. We must be like a Dective and flush out the details and tell a compelling story about why you’re a good person and how you can afford to pay back the loan. Let’s leave the one word answers to the unimportant stuff like the weather or politics.

So while some questions may seem quite personal, when it comes to getting your financing approved they are very relevant. Here is one example, during the mortgage application process I ask all clients their marital status. Now saying single can leave some important questions unanswered. Single could be never married or it could also mean recently divorced but now single. To a potential mortgage lender this is a big difference. Whereas the latter could potentially be responsible for support payments. 

You may also not think that it’s important that you co signed for your 2nd cousin twice removed in another province but the lender will care. The more we know about your financial history the better chance we will have of getting your mortgage request approved.

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

Cheers,

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, Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

Got time to chat?

As much as mortgages are about numbers, debt service ratios, pre approval amount and interest rates, they are at the end of the day a people business. If you have any questions about your mortgage whether I did it or not, feel free to give me a call and I would be more than happy to help you out.

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

Cheers,

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, Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

Real Estate Bubble???

We are in the midst of a crazy real estate market from coast to coast here in Canada. Properties are selling very quickly and in some cases there are multiple offers and they are selling not for thousands of dollars over list but hundreds of thousands of dollars over the listing price.

Here in Nova Scotia in particular where we are used to only modest gains in values of only single percentage points. There was recently a transaction in my subdivision, single family home, bungalow, 4 bedrooms, 1 bathroom and unfinished basement. The property had not been on the market since new 54 years ago. My Realtor told me that this home had 28 offers and sold for just under 300K over list price.

Now unless you have been under a rock lately you have heard some of the financial pundits talking about a possible real estate bubble here in Canada. While that headline does get a lot of attention, I don’t believe that is the case nor will we experience the pains that the US felt back in 2009.

A few facts to consider, since we are still in the midst of a pandemic our borders have essentially been closed to all except for necessary travellers. Normally Canada welcomes about 500K people per year to immigrate here but now it is down to just a trickle. Real estate inventories on the market are down compared to past years. So with low interest rates, record levels of immigration prior to the lockdown and general population with money to burn has only poured fuel on the fire that was already present.

Knowing this I don’t think we are on the brink of a similar bubble the American’s faced in 2009. We don’t have lenders making loans with low or no documents, nor do we have people qualifying for their mortgages on teaser rates like they did. Our mortgage stress test was implemented in 2016 and has served us well. With discounted AAA rates now at 2.24% and the qualifying rate still at 4.79% I would say that we still have a great buffer in place to protect consumers from rates rising too quickly.

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

Cheers,

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, Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

Don’t put all your eggs in one basket

Warren Buffett is famous for saying this in regards to your investments, as it opens you up to greater risk. However I want to also tell you that it applies to your banking relationships as well.

We have some great banking institutions here in Canada. There are lots of great options for your personal banking, your investments, your mortgages and your commercial banking. However it’s best if they were not all with the same lender. Let me give you an example of why in regards to your mortgage.

The majority of lenders these days are securing your mortgage as a collateral charge. What this means is that they are registering the loan for the value of the property or the value + 25% depending on the market. The advantage of this is that it allows the lender to offer you a line of credit without you having to incur additional legal or appraisal fee’s. While that is convenient but what if you also have all of your savings, chequing and credit cards with the same lender and for some unforeseen reason you missed some credit card payments, because all of your lending is with the same source you could have your mortgage foreclosed upon because of a credit card default.

The solution is to make sure that your personal baking ( checking, saving & investments) are with lender ABC while your mortgage is with lender DEF, and your credit cards could be with lender XYZ. Diversify your personal banking as much as you diversify your investments.

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

Cheers,

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, Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

All your ducks in a row

When you leave for a vacation do you scramble around the morning of your departure cramming suitcases and trying to think if you have everything and then invariably arrive late to the airport and almost miss your flight. I am sure there are some of you that do that but I assure you that is not the best way to go.

If you want the smoothest experience as possible it’s always best to plan ahead. That is the same way that I approach getting your financing for your property in order. For most of us this is the single biggest financial transaction in our lives. Wouldn’t you rater that it be as stress free as it can be for all involved.

The way that we do this is to work with you and gather all the pertinent documents upfront and then thoroughly review them prior to submitting them to the prospective lender. Thus allowing for your financing to get approved as quickly as possible so then you can focus on the other important things in your life.

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

Cheers,

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, Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

Shack Happy

Shack Happy, Cabin Fever or whatever you want to call it you’re feeling cranky from being stuck inside with the same people for way too long. March Break is almost over, just be thankful that it didn’t last as long as the March Break that never ended in 2020. Now that the weather is finally starting to warm up and Spring 2021 is officially here today, to put yourself in a better mood go for a walk or better yet a run. Change your surrounding and just get out and move your body for at least 30 minutes. It will do yourself some good as well it will be beneficial for those you live with.

If you in fact desire to change where you live, please touch base with me so I can work to get you pre approved so you can be well on your way to your next property.

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

Cheers,

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, Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).

Snow shovelling

Just a quick post to make sure that you are shoveling safe today .

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

Cheers,

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, Ontario(M18001555) & in British Columbia(BCFSA #504098).