CANADIAN HOME SALES AND NEW LISTINGS RECOVER ONE-THIRD OF PANDEMIC LOSS IN MAY Record Gains in Canadian Home Sales and Listings in May There was good news today on the housing front. Home sales surged by a record 56.9% in May from April’s unprecedented collapse. Data released this morning from the Canadian Real Estate Association […]
CMHC MAKES IT HARDER TO QUALIFY FOR AN INSURED MORTGAGE Once again, the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) is tightening the criteria to get a mortgage with less than a 20% down payment. Any potential home buyer with less than a 20% down payment must purchase default insurance on their loan and have a […]
BANK OF CANADA PUTS THE ECONOMY ON LIFE SUPPORT Bank of Canada Stands Ready To Do Whatever It Takes On the heels of a devastating decline in the Canadian economy, the Bank of Canada is taking unprecedented actions. With record job losses, plunging confidence and a shutdown of most businesses, this month’s newly released Monetary […]
INTEREST RATES NOSEDIVE AS BANK OF CANADA CUTS RATES 50 BPS The Bank of Canada Brings Out The Big Guns Following yesterday’s surprise emergency 50 basis point (bp) rate cut by the Fed, the Bank of Canada followed suit today and signalled it is poised to do more if necessary. The BoC lowered its target […]
TD LOWERS QUALIFYING MORTGAGE RATE 35 BPS TO 4.99% CANADIAN QUALIFYING MORTGAGE RATE LOWERED TO 4.99% Market interest rates have fallen sharply since the coronavirus-led investor flight to the safety of government bonds. The 5-year government bond yield–a harbinger of conventional mortgage rates–now stands at 1.34%, down sharply from the 1.60+% range it was trading […]
Bank of Canada Holds Steady Despite Economic Slowdown In a more dovish statement, the Bank of Canada maintained its target for the overnight rate at 1.75% for the tenth consecutive time. Today’s decision was widely expected as members of the Governing Council have signalled that the Bank still believes that the Canadian economy is resilient, […]
HOW TO VERIFY YOUR DOWN PAYMENT WHEN BUYING A HOME Saving for a down payment is one of the biggest challenges facing people wanting to buy their first home. To fulfill the conditions of your mortgage approval, it’s all about what you can prove (hard to believe – but some people have lied in the […]
FIRST TIME HOME BUYERS INCENTIVE PROGRAM The new First Time Home Buyer Incentive program from CMHC (Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation) was officially released on September 2. This program was met with mixed reactions across the mortgage industry, but we wanted to take a minute to give you the facts regarding the program. Below are […]
OCTOBER DATA CONFIRM THAT HOUSING IS IN FULL REBOUND Statistics released today by the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) show that national home sales rose for the eighth consecutive month. Activity held steady in October at the relatively robust September pace following a string of monthly increases that began in March. Existing home sales are […]
Principal and interest are the two components that make up a mortgage payment. Principal is the portion of your payment that goes towards paying down the outstanding balance of your mortgage. Interest is the other portion of your payment which goes directly into the pockets of your lender and does not contribute to paying down […]
“Charlene was great to work with! My husband and I bought our first home last year and we had a lot of questions and Charlene was so easy to talk to. She never made us feel like we asked too many questions and encouraged us to ask many because this was a first time experience.
Thanks Charlene!”
