Tag Archive for: Mortgage solutions

Tis the season

Ready or not we are now prime into the Holiday season of 2021. The Jewish Holiday of Hanukkah started yesterday and continues through Monday December 6th. So I want to wish all those celebrating the Jewish “Festival of Lights” a very Happy Hanukkah. Then we have Christmas and Kwanza not far behind.

So with all the festivities and parties with friends and family coming up, give the gift that means the most your presence. Be there for your friends and family. Listen, learn and help them if needed. This is way more important than finding and buying the perfect gift. The gift of your time and attention to a loved one is far more important. Leave the actual presents for the kids.

Today I am thankful for the ability to work at home so I can drive my kids to school when we have inclement weather, the excitement and the traditions of the Holiday season and that I was able to help out a new broker this weekend.

“The best way to spread Christmas cheer is singing loud for all to hear.” – Will Ferrell

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

The rate game

When the first thing that you talk about with clients is rate, then you have just limited yourself to being a rate broker. I told another broker on our national facebook group that if you do this you have to be prepared to live by the sword and die by the sword.

Actually rate will not dictate your final payment as much as amortization. If you are buying with 20% down or more you have the choice to extend your amortization out to 30 years. This is also available if you are refinancing. Doing this will help lower your overall monthly payments as well.

There is more to a great mortgage than just the rate. You need to consider flexibility like pre payments privilages, portability, and potential penalty to break the contract.

Today I am thankful for the slower pace on the weekends, being able to take a nap and still get what I want done accomplished and it was cool and crisp for an early morning run.

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

Mitigate your risk

With all the talk about possible impending interest rate increases in the new year, there is still a way to have your cake and eat it too. As it stands today lender are still offering deep discounts on variable rates. For example a AAA client purchasing and putting down less than 20% may get access to prime ( 2.45%) less 1.3%. This means your new mortgage would start at 1.15%. This is pretty sweet considering the same 5 year fixed rate is around 2.59%. So you start off at a discount of 1.44% compared to those who take the fixed rate.

While I have no crystal ball and can not predict what the governor of the bank of Canada may do. It would take quite a few interest rate increases to even meet the current fixed rate of 2.59%. This is because when the bank of Canada has moved the rates in the past they are normally at .25% at a time.

So the best way to mitigate your risk and get access to the best rates on the market ( for those who qualify), is to go variable and set your payment as if you took a fixed rate. So for example a 400K mortgage at 1.15% will give you a payment of $1,534.30 ( 25 year amortization as well). By setting your payment at the fixed rate of 2.59% you will pay 1,809.84. The $275.54 extra that you are paying goes directly towards your principal further reducing your mortgage by 4.3 years and saving you $10,726 in interest. There is a link to my mortgage calculator below, where it says mortgage app.

Today I am thankful for warm chocolate challah bread which was the best post workout snack ever, the opportunity to practice my french yesterday which always makes me feel better and Christmas music in every store.

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

Meeting Request

Earlier this week on the regular mortgage mastermind group that I attend with Dustan Woodhouse. He asked the group what are you doing different now vs prior to the pandemic. The most common response was that we are not doing any more face to face meetings. 20 years ago when I started it was the common practice. However with that practice comes the down side of lost productivity time.

To meet someone in person requires that you leave the home office up to 30 minutes beforehand to allow yourself to arrive on time and so you can find a place to park. Showing up late is not in my vocabulary. Take a few minutes for chit chat and then talk about the important stuff and lo and behold the meeting takes about an hour. So now with the commute back in possibly rush hour traffic has now resulted in a loss of 2 to 2 and half hours of time. All of which could be accomplished by meeting virtually or over the phone.

I am more productive staying in the office and working on getting my clients files approved and finalized than running all over town. I mean no offence to say this as my clients and referral are wonderful people, it’s just that in 99% of the time we don’t have to meet in person. To meet virtually is actually a very easy process, just click here and pick a time that works for you and make sure that your camera is on so we can connect.

Today I am thankful for meeting up a friend that I have not seen in a very long time yesterday, neighbours homes starting to look festive and options for clients when others had said no.

“The least productive people are usually the ones who are most in favour of holding meetings.” Thomas Sowell

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

Google it

If you don’t know something you Google it. Yes the company with the same name has also become a verb describing the action of searching for information online. If you want to learn how to cook, you Google it. The same for working out, learning a new language, buying insurance, buying a new home or getting a mortgage. It ( and countless cat videos ) are all on line for your browsing pleasure.

However like in Captain America Winter Soldier, your life is a digital book and most of it now is online. Your prospective employers don’t just call your references, they also check you out online. The same can be said for your prospective romantic partners. Only the naïve will take what is presented on the dating app or site at face value. If they are smart they are also confirming the details by doing their own research.

All of this brings us to mortgage lending. We frequently know more about our clients lives than their employers, friends or even spouses as we have to have the complete financial picture in order to secure them financing. All of this requires full disclosure on the client’s behalf about their past. So if you think that redacting out parts of your bank statements as you don’t want lenders to know where you have spent your money will help you, it won’t and usually results in an automatic decline. These same lenders are also checking into you online. Sadly Google, Facebook and Twitter don’t forget your past indiscretions, so please disclose them upfront so they can be dealt with properly, and not surprising us at the end when the lender does it.

Today I am thankful for frank and honest discussions with clients, great conversations with other dog owners on my morning walk and to my American friends their Thanksgiving.

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

What a relief

What a relief is what you say to yourself after the completion of an important or stressful event. It could be your recent wedding or divorce, a big race or sporting event that you spent a long time preparing for or the recent closing or your mortgage. Celebrate that the event is now over and the stress that came with it was almost all self induced.

In hindsight you now realize that you stressed out and worried about nothing. The event came and went and nothing tragic happened. So getting worried and stressed out only succeeded in stopping you from really enjoying life. Nothing is really good or bad unless you label it as such. So drop the labels, see events, people and things just as they are, neither good, bad or indifferent. You will then realize that life has so much more to offer you when you do.

Today I am thankful for the recent book I read which was “Awareness” by Anthony de Mello, a coating of snow when I got up this morning and a situation that I had stressed myself about last night is finely over and nothing really came of it so I worried for nothing.

“We have nothing to fear but fear it’s self.” Franklin D Roosevelt

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

Know your numbers

When buying a property which is often your single largest invesment in your life, it’s a good idea to know your numbers backwards and forwards. In this article I am going to talk about deposit on purchase.

Deposits are required on purchase & sale agreements when you become the successful bidder on the property. It shows that you are serious about buying the property and illustrates what you are willing to lose should you break the legally binding contract. While there is no fine line about the amount of deposit required, generally it is between 5-10K and is due shortly after you have become the successful bidder.

These deposits are held by the vendors (seller) agent’s brokerage in a trust account. These deposit are not used by the brokerage for any expenses and are frequently audited to confirm this. Brokerage are required to insure the deposits up to 100K to prevent lost due to the unlikely event of the insolvency of the brokerage.

Lastly your deposit forms part of your down payment and closing costs upon closing. Please confirm this with your solicitor upon closing and check to make sure that it has been recorded as part of the statement of adjustments.

Today I am thankful for underwriters who have gone above and beyond to insure that file close, clients who are patient with the process and the sound of rainy days.

“Nature is written in mathematical language.” Galileo Galilei

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

Triple check

For accuracy and when it’s important please double check then check again the accuracy of your information that you are submitting on your mortgage application. Purchase and sales are time sensitive so an undiscovered error at the last minute could potentially delay your closing. This is why we review everything then we check it again and again to make sure that there are no error’s or missing paperwork.

Your home purchase is one if not the largest single investment in your lifetime, this is why we want everything to go smoothly as possible. However we are all human so by checking multiple times lessens the risk of anything slipping through the cracks.

Today I am thankful for the fact that the rain held off this morning so Augie and I could squeeze in our morning walk, a quiet house with my girls having 1st period off and another client becoming homeowners today.

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

Practice Patience

Easy to say, somewhat difficult to do on a consistent basis. It’s easy to be zen and relaxed while meditating at 5am and the house is quiet. It is quite another to maintain the same level of zen stuck in stuck in rush hour traffic taking my daughter to see the parade of lights in Halifax last night.

I fully admit that I am a work in progress. However I try to improve each and every day so mistakes of the past are not repeated the following day. Instant gratification only happens in movies. So if you are stuck in traffic, shopping for Christmas on Black Friday weekend or putting in what maybe your 9th offer to purchase a home. Stay patient as things always have a way of working out.

Today I am thankful that my kids did not inherit my impatience, that the tools are readily available to help me improve in this area and anything I have stressed about in the past has always worked out.

“The enemy is the necessary condition for practicing patience.” 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

Saved by routine

We all have those days that we don’t feel like doing X or Y. However if it’s Tuesday and you normally run 5K on Tuesday, guess what you’re doing. That’s right you are going for a 5K run as that is what you normally do. The run gets you out of your funk and also helps you clear your head.

Sometimes routine saves you. It saves you from having to decide what to do. Steve Jobs notoriously wore the same outfit everyday, this was because he could save his cognitive energy for more important things than deciding what to wear. Routine allows you to be more creative because it cuts out so many monotonous decisions that you no longer have to make.

Productive routines are actually good for you and allow you to get more done and remain creative and productive. Gone are the days when it was thought that routines were limiting for you. So just remember that runners run, writer’s write and saver’s save. Those are all productive habits, we all have days where we don’t really feel like it but just continuing your productive habit with make you feel so much better.

Today I am thankful for my daily exercise and writing routines, my wife’s homemade chocolate chip cookies and calls that were made weeks ago that lead to some new business.

“You will never change your life until you change something you do daily. The secret of your success is found in your daily routine.” 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