Tag Archive for: Mortgage solutions

August inflation numbers

The inflation numbers for August 2022 for both Canada & the United States came out over the past week. In Canada our inflation rate dropped from 7.6% to 7%, and in the US it decreased from 8.5 to 8.3. While both are retreating from the highs of a few months ago, we are still well off the comfort level of 2%.

As a result of the still too high inflation rate, the US Federal Reserve delivered it’s third straight 75 basis point increase to their interest rates yesterday. To many economists this bakes in with pretty much certainty that the Bank of Canada will follow suit with another large rate increase when it meets next on October 26th. The only thing that could change the amount of the rate change would be the CPI (inflation) numbers that will be coming out on the 19th of October.

So while we are improving and prices of goods and gasoline are coming down, according to the central bankers it is just not retreating fast enough. A lot could happen in the next month to determine the size of the next rate change from the central bankers.

Today I am thankful for a warm muggy fall day which was perfect for a run this morning, the idea’s that come from reading great books and opportunities that come from working long hours.

“Inflation is when you pay fifteen dollars for the ten-dollar haircut you used to get for five dollars when you had hair.” Sam Ewing

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


Not Shrek’s Fiona

Batten down the hatches as Fiona is heading our way. She is scheduled to make landfall early Saturday morning and right now she is aiming towards CBRM. Given her arrival is still a few days away, it’s best to take the time now to prepare.

Here are a few things to take into consideration as we prepare for the arrival of the storm.

  • Be prepared to spend a few days with out power
  • Make sure vehicles are full of gas and BBQ propane tank is topped off
  • Charge up all your electronic devices and if you have battery back ups make sure they are charged as well.
  • Move to higher ground if you are in an area that is prone to flodding
  • Have supplies of food, water & medicine that will last you at least a week.
  • Have a battery powered radio
  • Make sure that your first aid kit is stocked up
  • If you need to use a generator, please do it safley
  • Last but not least, make sure that you check on your friends & elderly neighbours

Today I am thankful for files that took longer than I expected to close and are finely funded, my girls getting time to spend with family in Ontario and the calm before the storm.

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

Switching

Over the course of the pandemic when the real estate market was on fire and everything and I mean everything was selling for well above the list price, the majority of people opted to go with the variable rate as opposed to the fixed. You see it was simple math at the time, as fixed rates were about 1% percentage point more expensive.

Well now thanks to soaring inflation and recent moves by the Bank of Canada, that rate disparity has all but disappeared. So if you are getting a bit nervous with your variable rate, then just reach out to your lender and ask to switch to a fixed rate for the remaining term. This is one of the advantage of the variable rate, you switch to a fixed with the same lender with out a penalty. If this will give you more peace of mind, then do it.

Today I am thankful for a quick fix for a credit card issue, a morning call with one of my girls at university and the shorter days of fall which is perfect for sleeping.

“You can only exceed your limits if you’ve discovered them.” Roel van Sleeuwen

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

Clarity

When doing something as important as your mortgage and complex regarding the paperwork, then clarify definitely helps. Also the details matter. Getting all the details right the first time allows your file to be approved faster and will also help with answering any of the clients questions the first time around. So be clear, be concise and pay attention to all the little details and everything will go much better.

Today I am thankful for the 70 years of service that Queen Elizabeth gave to Canada and the rest of the commonwealth nations, patient clients who helped with the details while I clarified their questions and the slower pace of the day as some of the banks were closed to mark the Queen’s funeral.

“The world is not the most pleasant place. Eventually, your parents leave you and nobody is going to go out of their way to protect you unconditionally. You need to learn to stand up for yourself and what you believe and sometimes, pardon my language, kick some ass.” ~ Queen Elizabeth II

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

High Standards

Whether personally or professionally, something that you should never ever do is to compromise your high standards. Not for friends, family, a neighbour, an old school friend or a potentially high commission. Once broken it is a slippery slope and if you do it for one then now you have to do it for everyone.

You have developed and maintained a high level of standards to a reason. You’re a professional and your reputation with your current and future clients is the life blood of your business. This is exactly how I feel and why I felt it was necessary to lose a file than have to make a concession for the standards on how I operate my business.

Today I am thankful for the good friends who have offered to help my daughter with a technical issue, an amazing handy man who came over at very short notice for some projects at our house and Sunday morning bacon for breakfast.

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

Parity

par·​i·​ty | \ ˈper-ə-tē  , ˈpa-rə- \plural parities

Definition of parity

 : the quality or state of being equal or equivalent

Women have fought for parity with men in the workplace.

This is the topic of the day as we have reached the point where the fixed rates and the variable rates have reached parity. With the many increases to the Bank of Canada overnight lending rate, this has now given us a prime rate of 5.45. With the available discounts to prime of between prime -.55 to prime -.90 this takes us to pretty much parity with the fixed rate.

That being said you will still need to consider the various pro’s and con’s of each product before you make your final decision of where you want to go. Here are a few things to keep in mind.

The benefit of the fixed rate right now is that your payment will not change over the term (1-5 years) of your loan. The potential downside is a higher penalty if you were to break it prior to maturity. As for the variable rate, right now you are starting off pretty much the same as the fixed and it only comes with a 3 month interest penalty if you break it. However the downside is the talk from the Bank of Canada is that they are not done with the rate increases. At the end of the day pick the product that you are most comfortable with after seeing both sides.

Today I am thankful for a long bike ride with my friends this morning, deer on my lawn at 6am to eat the fallen apples and my wife’s eye for home decor deals.

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

Friends & Flowers

I come from a big extended Cape Breton family, and growing up almost every weekend we would have some members of the family over to visit. You see my Mom was the glue for the family and they all flocked to her as she was a great listener and since we had a big house in the country the rest of the family used us as their vacation spot. Which was fine with us as we got to hang out with our cousins.

Brest cancer took my Mom 17 years ago on the 9th of Sept. This is the main reason I am doing the ride for cancer. So hopefully the funds that we raise will allow someone’s Mom to fight a little longer or possibly receive the cure or treatment that is needed. You can sponsor me here.

After Mom passed away we all got busy with our lives as most of us had young children at the time. However since the pandemic and that most of our kids are now grown up and at University or started their careers, we have had the opportunity to reconnect. Which brought me back to thinking of my Mom who would gather friends & family like flowers and cultivate the relationships over her lifetime. This is because the true joys of life are not the new TV, latest phone or fancy car but the deep connections that we develop with friends & family. If your Mom is still with you then give her a hug for me.

“Don’t walk in front of me… I may not follow
Don’t walk behind me… I may not lead
Walk beside me… just be my friend”
― Albert Camus

Today I am thankful for the great conversations I have with my brothers and cousins every Friday morning, a short hill run even when I didn’t want to do it and the completion of the renovations at my home.

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

Preconceived Limits

We all have preconceived limits to our abilities. Who put your limits in place, your family, friends, teachers, employers, coaches or heaven forbid yourself. You are capable of so much more than you could ever imagine. It is when you are able to finely push past them that you truly discover what you are really made of.

The first step is to believe that you can do it and then follow it up with massive action and persistence until you have achieved your goal. I have been inspired to write this as a personal testament of what is happening with me. You see I have been running for years. Normally my pace was in the high 4’s low 5’s per KM. I ran much less often over the past winter and when I started up again in the spring I was averaging at the best 5:25. So I thought that’s it I might as well get used to it as I am never going to improve. That all changed when I started to run with a new neighbour who happens to be 20 years younger and 3 inches taller. So this week I finally over came my preconceived limits and am now back to consistently running in the high 4’s for the 1st time in years.

What are you not achieving because you don’t think that you can do it? The world is littered with people who have given up before they were able to achieve their objective. Don’t think that you will ever be able to afford a home. Start saving now so you can make that happen. Take advantage of credit monitoring services to make sure that your credit is perfect when the time is right and use budgeting tools like YNAB so you can finely take control of your money instead of it being in control of you. Almost anything is truly possible if you really believe in it strongly enough.

“f you always put limits on what you can do, physical or anything else, it’ll spread over into the rest of your life. It’ll spread into your work, into your morality, into your entire being. There are no limits. There are plateaus, but you must not stay there, you must go beyond them. If it kills you, it kills you. A man must constantly exceed his level.” Bruce Lee

Today I am thankful for the morning run that pushed me past my preconceived limits, the great books I have been discovering lately and the cool almost fall like morning which made it perfect for outside activities.

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

Higher Standard

If you want to achieve anything noteworthy in life then you must begin to hold yourself to a higher standard. Doing things as you have always done will only get you the same results or lack thereof. Don’t even think for one second that’s it is impossible due to external people or events in your life. Events and people happen to everyone, both good and bad. What you are ultimately responsible for is your attitude or reaction to those external events. Nobody can tell you how to respond but you.

Doctor’s, Lawyer’s, Accountant’s, Engineer’s & Business Owners also come from lower economic area’s as well as higher ones. You are only limited by your thinking and the actions that you take. So if you want to achieve great things, then focus all your thoughts and actions on moving in that direction. Anything that doesn’t serve you in helping you achieve that goal, then cut it out.

Get up early, put in the effort, read the books, go to the classes, do the homework, make the calls. Whatever it takes to move you in the direction of your goals.

“Keep your eyes on the stars, and your feet on the ground”. Theodore Roosevelt

Today I am thankful for the fact that our reno’s will be complete today, the daughter I worried about the most is throughly enjoying her university experience and great conversations with my referral network.

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

My promise to you

My promise to you as your mortgage broker is that I will bring more value to you during your transaction than anyone else in the marketplace. I can say this as I have been in this business for 20 years and have assisted clients funding a wide range of transactions. Everything from AAA credit clients, Alternative lending, private mortgages and large commercial multi residential mortgages.

Sure other brokers or lenders may offer you a slightly lower rate ( but not always). However remember what is priceless in this process is getting the seasoned advice rather than someone who is just chasing a commission. The commission is the reward for a job well done, and my primary role is to secure the financing for you that suits your requirements. I work for you, not a large national brokerage house or any of the lenders. I believe in a fiduciary responsibility which means that I work only for your best interest.

If I am not helping you with your mortgage, then you are paying too much and not really being valued.

Today I am thankful for the amazing run I had this morning, the amazing people I get to work with who put their trust in me and the ability to look for solutions where others only see problems.

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