Tag Archive for: mortgage broker

Stressed?

What do you do to when you’re feeling stressed? We don’t all have the perfect lives and things don’t always go according to plan so you should have structures in place to help you cope. Some of the great strategies I use are starting my day with a 20 min meditation thanks to the Headspace app and other than it’s regular daily exercise. A nice 5K run or 30 clean & jerks for time are great ways to clear my head. I also find that listing to classical music particularly relaxing when going for a run is not possible, and who doesn’t live a great piece by Rossini???

Whatever you do to cope with life’s stresses just make sure it’s constructive and doesn’t make your life overall worse. Chances are someone has already gone though what you currently find yourself struggling with. Having friends or family members to speak with always helps as well.

Today I am thankful for the fact that my teenaged girls have summer jobs to get them out of the house, great friends and family who are there to check in with when the road seems rough and the delayed onset muscle soreness from a great workout.

“The greatest weapon against stress is our ability to choose one thought over another.” William James

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

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

Square pegs into round holes

They say that trying to get someone to do something that they didn’t intend on doing is like trying to fit square pegs into round holes. I view my position as a mortgage broker the same way. I am not doing this to convince you to get a mortgage or heck to even convince you to work with me. Both of these things you must decide to do on your own.

Lots of people ( less now actually given the price of real estate) buy homes with out mortgages, and there are plenty of other people doing the same thing I am doing. My role as I see it is to provide the potential clients with the best information possible so they can make an informed decision about this process. If they decide that they need a mortgage and they want to work with me then fantastic otherwise I am off to help the next clients.

Today I am thankful for the support and encouragement of close friends as I faced a surprising challenge recently, for seeing deer on my walk with the dog last night in the middle of Halifax and for always having options for solutions to current problems.

“Defeat is a state of mind; no one is ever defeated until defeat is accepted as a reality.” Bruce Lee

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

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

Learning

If things went right the 1st time you did them how would you ever learn. We crawl before we walk, and walk before we run and frequently we fall in the process. It’s by failing and getting up and doing it again that we learn to perfect our approach.

Today I am thankful for all the learning experiences that have brought me to where I am today, the rejuvenating nature of a mid afternoon nap and the smile that comes from hearing someone’s big bell laugh.

“Every champion was once a contender who refused to give up.” – Rocky Balboa

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

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

Mind over matter

Minor annoyances tend to grow much larger when attention is put towards them. Someone cuts you off in your morning commute and suddenly you are in a bad mood all day. Your team loses the big game ( sadly it happened) or the injection site of your vaccine is sore. You could focus all your energies towards what didn’t go as you planned or you can acknowledge it and get on with your day.

This is my frame of mind today. Yes they lost, that happens and I was still immensely proud of their performance during this year’s playoff run. There was also a brief time when I got up this morning and noticed that my shoulder was sore. I just acknowledged it and got on with my day. Ran 5K and just got back from donating blood and feel awesome actually.

Don’t dwell on what didn’t go your way, focus instead on where you want to go. Your day and your life will be much better as a result if you think about what you want rather than what you disagree with or what causes you some discomfort. Cause if you don’t mind it doesn’t rally matter.

Today I am thankful for the great people at Canada Blood Services who always make me feel comfortable and special, the arrival of my new barbell so I can show my kids how to lift and just generally feeling unstoppable.

“Rule your mind or it will rule you.” Buddha

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

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

90 Days History

This is just a short post to remind you that when applying for a mortgage the lender will require 90 days history to show your down payment. If you have more than one account, then 90 days from all your accounts. This is to prove that you did not borrow it and also did not obtain it through nefarious means.

A word of advice about your bank statements, redacting anything on the statements will cause them to be rejected. Honestly the potential lender does not care if you purchased medicinal marijuana or spent your last pay check at the strip joint, both are legal. You are potentially borrowing hundreds of thousands of dollars, everything will be checked and double checked.

Today I am thankful for reminders for appointments so they will not be forgotten, my girls who were rock stars on their exams and waking up to find out that my team had won the nigh before.

“It is well enough that the people of the nation do not understand our banking and monetary system, for if they did, I believe there would be a revolution before tomorrow morning.” Henry Ford

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

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

Creating your own down payment

Normally down payments can not be borrowed. However there are a few ways around this legally and ethically. So let’s first state that the down payment must be in your possession for 90 days and you must be able to provide bank statements to support that.

  1. You can borrow it from an existing line of credit. This should not be from the same source that is providing your mortgage, and you must be able to debt service for the payment.
  2. It can be gifted from a blood relative. A gift letter is required and you will then need to provide a statement showing that you are in possession of the funds.
  3. You can borrow it from your RRSP’s under the Home Buyer’s Plan. For a single applicant this amount is up to 35K and for a couple it is 70K. This is a tax free withdrawal and you have 15 years to pay it back.

However there is a better way to do the last step, and it’s best to start it as tax season is kicking off in February. Firstly consult a certified financial planner to find out your unused contribution room. Determine how much you need for your down payment. Take out an RRSP Loan for the amount of your unused contribution room. Then put this money in your RRSP for at least 90 days. Record this RRSP contribution on your tax return to get a refund. After the 90 days have passed take out the money from your RRSP and repay the loan. Lastly use your tax refund for your down payment.

Today I am thankful for the ability of exercise to clear my head, quiet early mornings while everyone else is still asleep and getting a peek at British farming life on the new Amazon Prime show Clarkson’s farm.

“Agriculture is our wisest pursuit, because it will in the end contribute the most to real wealth, good morals and happiness.” Thomas Jefferson

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

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

New House or new car?

The good weather if finely here and also now that phased reopening plans have started, this means that more and more people are out and about. I have noticed lately that lots and lots of people are shopping for a new vehicle, this is also coinciding with our current hot real estate market where it seems that everyone is also shopping for their first home or their dream home.

However I must caution you that as nice as those new wheels are, I would hold off on that purchase until after you have closed on your home. This is because that for every $400 in vehicle payments, it is effectively taking away $100,000 worth of purchasing power for your home. In the way that real estate has risen in the past year this is more like 200K as what was selling for 400K last year is now selling for 500K.

Finding out that your significant other is expecting does not mean that the 1st major purchase should be a mini van. Get the house sorted away first, keys in the door and closed BEFORE you even consider getting the vehicle. Just because you have received your mortgage approval does not mean that you can now put appliances on credit or finance a new vehicle. Lenders do a soft credit check prior to closing and if anything has changed prior to closing they will pull the financing. If a new vehicle is absolutely necessary prior to getting your home, buy used, buy cheap and pay cash.

Today I am thankful for another beautiful Sunday morning run on the trail, my favourite team sill in the hunt for the Stanley Cup and prospects who call on the weekend cause the banks are closed.

“Waiting is painful. Forgetting is painful. But not knowing which to do is the worst kind of suffering.” Paulo Coelho

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

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

Back to Normal?

Whenever massive changes happen to us as individuals or as a society there is always a pull to return to the previous norm or the baseline. Take weight loss or weight gain in terms of muscle mass. Sometimes people who have undergone radical personal transformations whether through losing massive amounts of weight or gaining muscle mass often return to their previous state once the catalyst is no longer present. People get married, or divorced, get promoted and or lose a job or a thousand other things thus causing them disruptions to their previous habits and returning them to their previous state.

Now that our daily infection rates have been steadily dropping and vaccinations rates have been steadily increasing are we going to return to exactly how we have lived before? Are people going to continue to wear masks out in public or at least doing the flu season? Is the current real estate market going to return to what it was like in 2019 prior to the pandemic? As for the last question this will entirely depend on new listings coming to the market as we are currently experiencing a severe lack of supply thus causing the outrageous demand and multiple offers on almost every listing.

Only time will tell how things unfold. I suspect there will be more listing on the market but not sure if it will be enough to quell the pent up demand. As for mask wearing I am all for wearing one in crowed spaces or during flu season however most people may not want to stick out being to only one wearing one.

“There is light at the end of the tunnel, but the way out is through”. David Allen

Today I am thankful the kids going back to school, beautiful morning so my son could walk to his school and Teachers who adapted quickly to the remote learning then back to the classroom.

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

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

Go for the easy win

After a year and a half into this pandemic many of us are feeling burnt out, overwhelmed or just plan run down. The good news is that the end is in sight with more people getting vaccinated and new infections steadily decreasing. Nova Scotia and many other provinces are entering a phased reopening so things will slowly get back to normal.

In the meantime a few simple things to lift your spirits and give you a sense of accomplishment that may help you feel less stressed out. Try a 5-10 minute meditation to help change your state of mind. Go for a good 20-30 minute walk in the sunshine, the endorphins and the sun will definitely improve your mood. Make your bed immediately upon getting up as this is will put the first check in the win column for the day. Reach out and call an old friend as the conversation will do you both good.

So if you are in the real estate market like myself and many others just take a deep breath and take it one task at a time. I remind my pre approved clients that it may take several tries to find the offer on the property that sticks. This is a game of patience more than anything else. Knowing that it will all workout eventually is the best attitude to have.

Today I am thankful for a beautifully sunny walk with my dog, a great podcast ( 10% Happier) to listen to while we walked and to be able to workout outside in the warm June sun.

“In dealing with this who are undergoing great suffering, if you fee “burnout” settling in, if you feel demoralized and exhausted, it is best, for the sake of everyone, to withdraw and restore yourself. The point is to have a long term perspective.” Dalai Lama

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

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

Rainy days and Monday’s

These are a few of the things that should not get you down. In fact no outside influence should have any effect on your overall mood. It should not really matter if it is rainy or sunny, your team wins the big game or looses, you get the date with your crush or they turn you down, you got the job or not or if your offer was accepted or not on the home you wanted to purchase.

The only one who decides your current mood is you. So when you get up in the morning, decide right away that it is already going to be a great day irregardless of what happens. Just having the right attitude will tend to make more of the great things come your way in the first place.

Today I am thankful for how great I feel after running 15K yesterday, clients who maintain a positive attitude in this challenging market for buyers and the therapeutic effect of writing every day.

“People may hear your words, but they feel your attitude”. John C Maxwell

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

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