Tag Archive for: Vancouver Mortgage Broker

Obstacles or Opportunities

I am a glass half full kind of guy. I prefer to look for opportunities rather than obstacles. Not everything goes according to plan every time but if all you focus on is obstacles then you will fail to see the opportunities or the options available to you. As it is how you deal with what happens in life that truly defines you. We all go though failures, breakups, job loss and death in the family. Nothing about any of that is unique to one individual, it’s how you respond to what’s happening to you that determines who you become.

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

New Normal?

For the first time in many years the discounted 5 year fixed rate is now just under 5%. The insured rate is 4.59% while the uninsured rate is 4.89%. This is quite the change from over a year ago when it was 5 year rate was just over 2%. This latest rate increase is due to the fact that bond yields ( which are the basis for fixed mortgage rates) have soared over 30 basis points in the last 5 days alone. Up 34 basis points in the last 30 days, with the biggest spike in the last week.

The days of rock bottom low interest rates is now gone. In fact we haven’t had bond yields and interest rates at this level since 2007-2008. Variable rates while still much lower than fixed rates, with the current prime rate at 3.20%, has also been steadily increasing and is expected to increase again at the next Bank of Canada meeting in July.

All this means that we better start to expect that interest rates will be and will stay much higher over the next couple of years. The days of pretty much free money with the low interest rates are gone. It is a good thing that we had the stress test in place over the last couple of years to prepare us for what’s happening now.

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

Affordability

affordability

noun

  1. The extent to which something is affordable, as measured by its cost relative to the amount that the purchaser is able to pay.

The last few months our affordability has definitely taken a hit. Everything from gas, housing and food is up. There are recent news reports that people are eating less in order to save some money. Yet our pay checks have not kept up with the steady increase of the cost of everything.

In terms of housing and mortgage affordability, things are vastly different over the last 24 months. We have had a stress test for mortgage qualification, this is in order to protect us from rising rates so we will still be able to afford to make the payment. Not sure that they had this current market in mind when they came up with them.

At the start of last year our qualification rate was 4.79%. This changed last spring when the housing market went into overdrive and they increased it to 5.25%. The thought was that this increase would cool the market, in my mind there was no effect. Now there is another part of the stress test which says that the qualification rate will be either the stress test rate or the benchmark rate +2%. Now that we are in a much higher interest rate environment, it is now the latter as 5 year fixed rates are starting at 4.29%, so this makes the qualification rate now 6.29%.

With these higher qualification rates and still high housing prices, this has now priced many out of the housing market. For example people who have lived here in Halifax all their lives can not afford to buy in the neighbourhoods where they grew up. Yet there is still more talk about future interest rate increases by the Bank of Canada to help curb inflation.

So with our current inflation rate still sky high, talks of more rate increases and the Russian invasion of Ukraine still dragging on, we may have to do our best keep our spending in check until this all starts to settle down.

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

Unmotivated

We have all had times in our lives when we have been unmotivated to get anything accomplished. When I don’t want to or I don’t feel like it seems like the perfect answer to almost any question. However if you spend too long in that mindset you will get nothing accomplished.

Because it’s days when you feel unmotivated but do it anyway that will make you feel the best. When you didn’t want to get up but ended up having an awesome day. When you didn’t want to do your workout but did it anyway and now you feel incredible. When you didn’t want to make your sales calls but ended up having some amazing conversations.

The magic happens when you just put one foot in front of the other and just keep moving. Psychology follows physiology, meaning if you want to feel better than start to move your body. Get funky to get out of your funk. Sooner or later you will forget why you were unmotivated in the first place.

I didn’t want to go for a recovery run today after doing 15K yesterday, but I did it anyway and I am glad that I did.

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

Hair of the dog

Hair of the dog usually referrs to having a drink while still hung over. I confess that I don’t drink, never have as my family already had too many alcoholics. What I am writing about here is going back to the original activity without being 100% recovered.

So while I ran 15K today and am quite sore from the effort, I will probably go for a small recovery run tomorrow.

If you fall flat on your face from failure, it’s best to get back up immediately and get back at it.

Have your heart broken, we have all been there. You can wallow in your misery or you can make some new friends, I know which feels better.

If your offer on that beautiful house get rejected, it’s not failure it’s a learning experience. Keep looking and and find another one to bid one and sooner or later you will be succesful.

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

Decide to be

While doing a 75 min peloton class this morning the instructor threw out a few quotes during the brief intervals of rest. The one that stuck with me was a Wayne Dyer quote, ” You can either be miserable or you can be motivated”. It’s like we can either complain or we can do something about it. You can’t do both.

We have all had moments of misery and when we look back on them they turned out to be highly motivating. It is in the moments between misery and motivation that are the most dangerous. Being comfortable is the antithesis of motivation. The key is to be never satisfied with your current results and always striving to do better.

I am not saying that you should be ungrateful, you need to appreciate all that you have but continually strive to do and be better. The motto for Nike says it best “There is no finish line”. Just do it is their slogan. Learn to see that life is just a process rather than the attainment of any one goal. Learn to enjoy the struggle of the process and you will have found true happiness.

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

Everything is up

Everything is up but the paycheques. From food, gas, housing and even Netflix. Central banks around the world have been raising rates in the hopes of consumers putting the brakes on their spending. However if we stop spending too quickly it will put us into a recession. On the other side of it we still need to spend money just to live so something has to give.

The economy relies on consumers and businesses spending money but if rates and products rise too quickly then everyone will cut back on the spending all at once. The balance they say is a slow and steady change but that has not been happening with interest rates nor gasoline. It feels like a big game of chicken, someone has to give first and from all indications it seems like us cutting back on spending will happen well before prices and rates start to come back down.

The Bank of Canada raised it’s overnight lending rate this week by 50 basis points and further indicate that another rate increase maybe coming with the next meeting in July. Also with Russia showing no signs that is is through with their invasion of Ukraine so world oil prices will continue to stay high. So until these two things signal a change of course, tighten the purse strings as higher prices may be around for a while.

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

Bad Habits

There is an expression in fitness, “You can’t out train a bad diet”. I think that the same applies to finances, whereby you can’t out earn bad spending habits. Thinking that if you just made a little more money that you would then be able to get control of it and have enough to meet all your needs is blatantly false and a gross exaggeration.

The internet full of stories of celebrities, professional athletes, lotto winners and business owners who have gone bankrupt yet were by most accounts rich. There are also plenty of stories of people who by most accounts made a modest living yet when they passed away where quite wealthy. The main difference is that one group knew how to manage their money and the other group did not.

The first rule of money management is to spend less than you make. And if you are a proponent of YNAB as I hope that you are, their rule #1 is to give every dollar a job. Go beyond living from pay cheque to pay cheque and master this greatest stress that most people will ever have which is running out of money before the end of every month.

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

BOC June Meeting

The Bank of Canada is widely expect to raise interest rates again this morning. If they come through with another 50 basis points increase, this will be the 3rd increase in a row, amounting to 125 basis points in increases this year.

Yes it is true that inflation is at 30 year highs, the cost of housing has increased dramatically recently and the price of oil is through the roof. However the increase to the over night lending rate which then increased the prime rate that we see as consumers just further increases our housing costs. All of this is supposed to cause consumers to spend less money as the costs of borrowing has increased.

There is only so much discretionary spending that we can cut back as the costs of everything has gone up recently from food, to gas and now higher borrowing costs for housing. All this is blamed on supply chain problems due to Covid shut downs and more recently the war in Ukraine.

One of the best ways to insulate yourself against any other further prices increases is to learn how to better manager your money. The single best program out there is called YNAB, which stands for You Need A Budget. Instead of X amount into the future for Y, you give ever dollar you make a job and budget only what you make.

As expect the Bank of Canada increased the over night lending rate by 50 basis points, thus increasing the prime rate to 3.70%. However those of us on a variable rate mortgage are still better off then those who have switched to a fixed.

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

Past performance

Your past performance does in no way equal your future results. Companies frequently market mutual funds by touting their past performance but that in no way guarantees what it will do when you invest your money.

As individuals we too often get caught up in how we did yesterday to predict or think about how we will do tomorrow. Just because you failed or did poorly at something the last time out in no way predicts that your results will be the same the next time around.

Focusing only the moment and forgetting about any past failures or poor performances takes a certain level of mental toughness. I think of this every time I watch our Canadian girl Layla Fernandez play a major tennis tournament. This girl is incredible, she never lets dropping a game or a set get to her, she always focuses on what she has to do in the moment and grinds all the way to the end. Win or lose she is an inspiration for how she always strives to stay in the moment and make the best of every opportunity.

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