Cash in on your property values with a refinance!

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If you have followed my blog for a while, I think you would understand me saying that I find it difficult

mortgage refinance
By: Damian Morys

to come up with interesting original material to provide.  I mean…I am selling getting into the biggest DEBT that most people will ever likely incur, and I talk about a local housing market that appears out of control but actually is NOT.

The product I offer is intangible, and is the “nasty” part of a transaction that people otherwise enjoy.  No one goes out shopping to purchase that hot sexy mortgage, there is no Gucci or Prada branded mortgages I can put in the window that anyone will be interested in buying.  There’s an idea to justify a higher interest rate! “Yeah, I paid double what everyone else is paying, but it’s so worth it, the paper that I signed was so soft and smooth, and the quality of the printer was amazing!”

Anyways, rather than just write my grievances with the current situation, I tried to think differently.   (more…)

Toronto home prices “push the boundary”: BNN

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Vancouver house prices
By: JamesZ_Flickr

There is a video on the BNN website in which they interview an economist with Mortgage Brokers Canada.  He talks about the hot housing market in Toronto (which is the second hottest home market in Canada to Vancouver) among other things.  One of the primary aspects of the hot market that he talks about is that low interest rates are driving price increases.  The foreign ownership issue is raised and he stated even 5% of buyers being foreign buyers would affect the market significantly also.  (I suspect that the number is much higher, but no one has firm data on this.) (more…)

Real estate board instates 2016/2017 president

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The Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver (REBGV) is pleased to introduce Dan Morrison as its 2016/2017 president. Morrison replaces outgoing President Darcy McLeod.

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Watch out for the wolves!

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I was meeting with my business development manager for Canadian Home Income Plan (CHIP) about their reverse mortgage product today, and he shared with me an experience with a client of his bank that is at once shocking but also, unfortunately, not uncommon.

There is a private mortgage lender who advertises on the radio that did a mortgage for a client who was terminal with cancer.  The mortgage amount was $500,000.  Do you know how much the fees were?  $65,000!  That is insane!  CHIP was able to take care of him in a way that he could enjoy his remaining days with his family in comfort, and provided a much more fair solution, but that is not really the point of the story.  It is technically legal to charge those kinds of fees, but it does not make it fair, equitable or correct. (more…)

BC Property Transfer Tax

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New property transfer tax changes affect BC home buyers

The latest BC government budget announced changes in how the property transfer tax is charged.  Here is a summary of the changes:

  • -The property transfer tax will remain the same until the purchase price exceeds $2 million.  Currently, the tax rates are 1% of the first $200,000 and 2% of every dollar above $200,000.  Now, at the $2 million threshold, the rate will be 3% of every dollar over $2 million.
  • -There is a new program for Canadian citizens and permanent residents purchasing a new home with a value of less than $750,000.
  • -The first-time homebuyers program remains unchanged with a full exemption up to $475,000 and a partial exemption up to $500,000.

What impact will this have on the real estate market?

Virtually none.  Those buying new homes will save some money.  Those buying homes for more than $2 million will have to pay slightly more, but it will surely not affect their ability to buy the home that they want.

Mortgage down-payment changes

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home sweet home
By: Diana Parkhouse

Mortgage down-payment requirements increase

The Canadian government recently made a change that has now come into effect regarding the minimum down-payment required to purchase a home.  Previously, 5% was the minimum down-payment required to buy a home under most normal circumstances.  (more…)