SAVING FOR A DOWN PAYMENT What prevents many potential homeowners from buying a home is the lack of a down payment. Many first-time home buyers are receiving down payment gifts from family. Unfortunately, many are not in this position and need to plan to save their own down payment. When you can visualize the benefits […]

HOW TO INVEST IN CANADIAN REAL ESTATE-FROM ABROAD Just because you are a Canadian citizen living abroad doesn’t mean that you are exempt from the rules for foreigners buying real estate in Canada. Foreign ownership applies if: • You don’t reside in Canada for more than 6 months a year (even if you are Canadian) […]

Imagine that, a few years from now, the time has come to renew your mortgage. Several years back, you got a $350,000 at the then great rate of 2.24%. Your mortgage payments are $1522 per month. Because we are now in what the financial brainboxes call “ an escalating rate environment “ – normal people […]

MORTGAGE REGULATION Open this photo in gallery: A real estate sign is pictured in front of a Vancouver home. BEN NELMS/THE GLOBE AND MAIL JANET MCFARLAND AND JAMES BRADSHAW 5 HOURS AGOOCTOBER 17, 2017 Canada’s banking regulator has modified its controversial new mortgage stress-testing rule, ensuring home buyers will not have an unintended incentive to sign up […]

The mortgage rule changes that were passed by the Ministry of Finance in October 2016 are still having their effect one year later. Higher qualification requirements and new bank capital requirements have split the industry into two segments – those who qualify for mortgage insurance and those who don’t. Mortgages that qualify for mortgage insurance […]

This story appeared in the Fall issue of Our House Magazine. The Fort McMurray fire and subsequent reconstruction demonstrates the necessity—but also the limitations—of home insurance in the face of natural disasters Tuesday, May 3, 2016, isn’t a day Lisa Reesik will soon forget. It started out beautifully, without a single cloud in the blue […]

This month, the Bank of Canada increased their lending rate for the 2nd time in as many months. The changes in the Prime Lender Rates means that those with a variable mortgage rates will have seen that their mortgages rates adjusted alongside the changes to Prime Rate. For those of you with variable rates, the […]

BOOMING GROWTH IN CANADA TAKES A BREATHER Canada’s second-quarter gross domestic product (GDP) growth of 4.5 per cent triggered two back-to-back rate hikes by the Bank of Canada. But today, Statistics Canada released data showing a slowdown in the monthly industry data for July. Canadian GDP held steady in July ending an eight-month streak of […]

Deciding to borrow money to launch your small business startup is a big decision. It’s the second biggest decision after deciding to start the business. Since it is a big decision, it requires much thought and research before taking the leap. There are multiple ways to fund a small business startup, and it’s important to […]

A mortgage in its simplest form is a contract. It has terms, conditions, rights and obligations for you and the lender. When you sign on the dotted line, you are agreeing to those terms for the length of time laid out in the contract. However, sometimes life throws us an unexpected event that brings around […]