Tag Archive for: mortgage broker

Gratitude

To say that we are in the midst of a challenging time in our lives is without question. However when you really think about it, there is still so much to be thankful for. My friend Steve Foran has a company called Gratitude at work. He works with companies helping them incorporate gratitude into their daily operations. He also sends out a wonderful day newsletter with new things to be thankful for everyday.

In no particular oder here are just a few things I am thankful for today:

I am thankful for the health of my family and friends specially during this challenging time.

I am thankful for the ability to work from home as well as my wife.

I am thankful for waking up to the sounds of the birds.

I am thankful for rewarding and meaningful work.

I am thankful for a 50K bike ride with friends on Saturday ( yes less than 5)

I am thankful for seeing such a large turnout for asymptomatic testing this weekend in Nova Scotia. All our family got tested. Together we can all do our part to beat this virus.

I am thankful that we do have vaccines that will help end this pandemic.

I am thankful for my dog, when ever I may not be in the best mood he always smiles and wags his tail at me.

I am thankful for kind and compassionate people that I have met in the mortgage finance industry here in Canada.

I am thankful for my clients who have entrusted me to help them finance their current home or their dream home.

I would love to hear what you are thankful for as well.

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).

Condition free offer’s

In a normal world real estate purchase and sale agreements come with conditions. Typically there are conditions for a property inspection, window coverings, air conditioning or heating equipment and of course financing. However since 2021 real estate market is unlike any other year, many people are writing condition free offer just to improve their changes of becoming the winning bidder.

However as I wrote about back on March 11, this may not be the best idea for most people. There are exceptions to this when your net worth far exceeds the amount of your new purchase. However other than that I would not advise it as there are too many potential landmines.

So when clients and or Realtors ask if they can submit a condition free ofter, my answer is the same if they asked to play blindfolded in traffic. I can’t make that call for you, nor will I be held responsible if you place a condition free offer. Just because you are pre approved does not mean that the lender will in fact like the property that you have picked out. While I can’t prevent you from going condition free, all I can do is help you get your financing secured as quickly as possible.

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).

Blah

Sometimes for whatever reason you just feel blah. It could be that you’ve not gotten enough sleep or that you have realized that you have worked the last 21 days straight with out taking a break. It happens to the best of us, and today just happens to be one of those days. Like everything in life, this too shall pass.

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).

Consistency

Some people say the key to success is massive action. While I think that massive action is definitely a contributing factor, I would rather think that the overwhelming attribute is consistency.

Just because you did a crossfit class this week on Tuesday does not make you fit. The same goes if you became inspired by a weekend seminar and bolted out of the gate on Monday and polished off 75 cold calls to prospective clients. You are no further ahead in both cases if you’re either too sore or too tired to do anything the following day.

It’s best if you start small, make it a daily ritual or pattern then work on adding to it with more intensity and focus as time goes on. You won’t get fit by working out intently once or burning yourself out with massive action over a short period of time. It’s more sustainable to do it consistently by starting small and repeating it every day until you achieve the target that you were aiming at. Crawl first, then walk then run. Master each step by doing it consistently and you will hit your goal in no time flat.

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).

Screentime

Each Sunday morning my iPhone gives me a report telling me how much time I’ve spent staring at my phone. Last Sunday it came up that I was spending on average 4 hours a day. Now that blew me away as I though that I being fairly productive with my time. Since then I have made a concerted effort not to waste time on my phone and to use it only when necessary. So when the report came up this morning saying that I’ve reduced my Screentime by 80% I was very pleased.

Weather you are rich or poor, young or old we all have only 86,400 seconds in a day. Once spent you will never get them back, so spend them wisely. Even though most people treat money as a finite resource, it really isn’t as you can always make more. Your only true finite resource in your life is time. Those on their deathbeds never wished they could of spent more time scrolling Facebook, Instagram or playing candy crush. They don’t even think they should of spent more time at the office. It is always that they wish that they could of spent more time with family and loved ones.

Let me help you re-finance your current home or help you finance your dream home so you can spend more quality time with those you love. Remember make some efforts to convert your screen time into quality time instead.

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).

Game of Patience

Today’s hot real estate market is not for the faint of heart. Not for buyer, Realtor’s or us Brokers. If anything it requires a game of patience. It is now almost commonplace for listings to receive multiple offers and end up selling for much higher than the listing price.

People who are pre approved at 500K have to start house hunting around the 375K mark if they hope to be the successful bidder on the property. Also if the broker or mortgage specialist was smart that would mean that they are pre approved at the maximum amount so putting in an offer at 515K is not going to be approved.

Once becoming the successful bidder now the real work begins for us brokers. Yes we do underwrite up front and our clients all have pre approvals before starting shopping but the lenders are all overwhelmed and back logged. What was a 4 hour turn around time on our files is now turning into 4-5 days.

So let’s all take a deep breath, say Namaste and practice some patience and know that we will get there soon.

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).

Hard at work

Financing your dream home or refinancing your current home is important work. Let me work hard for you.

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).

Sunday Runday!

For as long as I can remember my Sunday tradition has been to strap on the trainers and go for a nice long run. I know lots of people exercise with the intention of getting into better shape. However for me it has alway been a passion and an outlet to let off my steam and help me forget about what else may be happening in my life. The fitness aspect has just been a great side effect.

What do you do to help you deal the stress in your life? Some great ideas are but not limited to, going for a walk, meditation, weight training, cycling, skiing, reading, cooking or as I have shared, one of my favourites which is running.

We all need an outlet to help us let go whatever may be stressful in our lives. There are tons of bad ones which I won’t list here, try to find one that helps you clear your head and helps you move in a positive direction. If it’s running maybe we may cross paths some day out on a run.

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).

Happy Dance!

When things start to go well, no matter how small, you need to take some time and do a little “Happy Dance”. Celebrate the victories along your path to much larger successes. This is what living is all about. It’s not about the destination of some way off big goal, it is about enjoying the process along the way.

Have an excellent Saturday.

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).

Stress Test Changes Ahead

Well not really surprisingly, yesterday the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) proposed changes to the mortgage stress test in an attempt to cool the hot housing market. While theses proposed changes would only effect those putting down 20% or more, they are totally the incorrect approach to dealing with the hot housing market. It is true that almost every market across Canada is experiencing high demand, this is not due to speculation this is because of a lack of supply that is driving up prices.

Think about it we have had several years prior to the pandemic of record levels of immigration. As well as the past year with people working remotely with nowhere to spend their money as they can’t travel nor eat out so they are sitting on record levels of savings. So what are people doing is that they are looking to purchase real estate or move up from their current home.

The challenge is the housing supply has not really changed. It is still taking developers extraordinarily long time to get their projects started, yet now we have more people in the market looking for a place to call home. So the knee jerk reaction is to the move the stress test from 4.79 to 5.25%. Yes they may slow things temporarily but it does noting to address the actual cause of the problem which is a lack of supply. As soon as that is addressed and that will take years, my advice to you is keep saving up and be patient.

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).