The downpayment on a home can start as low as 5% of the purchase price.  Less than 20% downpayment must be insured which is an additional cost to the borrower.  Regardless of the downpayment amount, those funds are under the scrutiny of anti-money laundering laws. That could mean a lot of paper work for borrowers seeking a mortgage. Funds can be gifted or partially borrowed on credit, but that's a specific program that has its own process and requirements.  Most lenders do... [read more]

Should you break your variable-rate mortgage? We spoke to mortgage professional Deepak Bansal from Dominion Lending Centre about this. He strongly suggests that everyone get a “mortgage checkup” to evaluate the best options that compliment your financial wellbeing.  In the Globe & Mail article below dated Jan 27, 2023, Robert McLister (Interest rate analyst, mortgage strategist and editor of MortgageLogic.news) share his thoughts and ideas on... [read more]

In this post Frank Basile from Blue Spring Financial outlines the differences between Mortgage Insurance & Life Insurance. He also shares a web-link to the Canada Life that dives deeper into the differences. If you have any questions and want to connect with Frank please send him an email at: frank@bluespringfinancial.ca Here are the basic differences: Mortgage life insurance covers the balance of your mortgage, which decreases as the mortgage is paid down. Personal life... [read more]

While BoC stands pat, interest rates are starting to change fast. Mortgage relief is starting, even as the Bank of Canada continues to leave its benchmark overnight rate untouched. But alongside change comes a marked decline in rates guaranteed investment certificates. Now is the time to zero in on what’s happening with the interest rates that interest you. Note…other rates are indirectly influenced by the overnight rate, but move independently. For example, the cost of fixed-rate... [read more]

Hello my friends :) As we have all heard by now, Canada’s inflation rate has increased in the month of December to 3.4% from 3.1% in November  Before we freak out, let’s take a deeper dive into what that really means… WHAT CAUSED THE INCREASE? The headline inflation rate ticked up from 3.1% in November, largely because of a sharper decline in gasoline prices a year ago compared with last month. Economists were widely expecting this rise due to a base... [read more]