Mortgages in Canada can be a murky subject – one that we hope to shed some light on with a series of highly informational articles.
Latest News
Mortgage industry reps provide feds with proposals to address housing affordability Nov 13th
Representatives from Canada's mortgage industry presented the federal government with several proposals they say will help address the country's housing affordability crisis..... More »
What You Should Know About Collateral Charge Mortgages + MORE Aug 7th
I recently had clients who were refinancing their mortgage completely reject a very attractive offering from one of the big chartered banks. Their reasoning? All of this bank’s mortgages are registered as collateral charges, and all of their online research into this topic spooked them complet.... More »
Latest in Mortgage News – Industry Announcements Nov 26th
There’s been a number of big mortgage industry announcements in recent weeks, ranging from reverse mortgage offerings to a new broker tech partnership and a key appointment at one of the country’s top brokerages. Here’s a look at each… Equitable Raises Allowable Equity Takeou.... More »
Latest in Mortgage News – More Research on Stress Test Impacts May 6th
The stress test continues to be the focus of much research, with new data released recently on the full extent of its impacts on the housing market. We’ve summarized the latest findings, which look at the stress test’s impacts on home sales and prices over the past year, as well as the c.... More »
Kerzner: Your Involvement is Vital to the Mortgage Industry Dec 6th
We are all learners; as parents, as students, as leaders, as employees. An important part of learning, for me, is reflection. We can only really grow and improve when we take a good, hard look at what’s working and what’s not. My time has ended as Director of Ontario, and Executive Member of t.... More »
The best way to help your child buy a home
– moneysense.ca
Q: I am in the process of helping my daughter buy a condo, here is what we have done so far:
We signed the mortgage with her as primary and me as co-signer, I will be giving her the down payment and she is going to be living there and she will be the one paying the mortgage and all expenses.
My question is what would be the best way to do this transaction looking it at both a legal and tax perspective. From the tax perspective: How should I arrange/declare that I am gifting her the down payment on this condo? And when do we claim the tax breaks for her as a first time buyer? Would that be at time of paying the lawyer for land transfer etc.? Also, I would like to still be able to have some room on my credit as to buy another property so we were thinking if her owning 90% of the condo and me keeping just 10% would work for this purpose. According to the lawyer, we both have to have some percentage assigned because we are both on the mortgage.
From a legal perspective, we are thinking about joint tenancy as the best way to protect the asset if one of us passes away unexpectedly…
We signed the mortgage with her as primary and me as co-signer, I will be giving her the down payment and she is going to be living there and she will be the one paying the mortgage and all expenses.
My question is what would be the best way to do this transaction looking it at both a legal and tax perspective. From the tax perspective: How should I arrange/declare that I am gifting her the down payment on this condo? And when do we claim the tax breaks for her as a first time buyer? Would that be at time of paying the lawyer for land transfer etc.? Also, I would like to still be able to have some room on my credit as to buy another property so we were thinking if her owning 90% of the condo and me keeping just 10% would work for this purpose. According to the lawyer, we both have to have some percentage assigned because we are both on the mortgage.
From a legal perspective, we are thinking about joint tenancy as the best way to protect the asset if one of us passes away unexpectedly…
Home Capital’s shares fall as mortgage originations drop 85 per cent
– theglobeandmail.com
Shares of the company fell as much as 7.7 per cent to $13.26
How Canadian homes became debt traps
– moneysense.ca
(John Lund/Getty Images)In 1998, Ann bought a one-bedroom condo in the Kitsilano area of Vancouver. Gainfully employed at a printing company, she found the monthly mortgage payments were within her budget (Ann and others quoted in this story asked that Maclean’s not use their full names). The building was on the older side, and eventually she got the itch to update the decor. She intended to replace only her bathroom sink; she ended up renovating the entire bathroom. “I remember thinking, ‘Well, now that I’ve started…’ ” The kitchen came next, then the living room and finally the bedroom. Ann thought the renos, funded partly on credit and spaced out over a few months, would boost her condo’s value. She also wanted to keep up with her neighbours. “Everyone was doing something,” she says.
Finances became tight afterwards, and she only paid the minimum on her credit card each month. Every year, her condo fees rose while her salary at the printing company (where she still works) stagnated…
Vancouver bans short term Airbnb rentals in laneway homes, basement suites
– canadianbusiness.com
Vancouver has banned short-term rentals in basement suites and laneway homes, after a heated debate that saw some city councillors warn that homeowners would not be able to pay their mortgages without income from Airbnb.
City council approved new regulations for vacation stays through websites such as Airbnb and Expedia on Tuesday in a 7-4 vote. The rules prohibit hosts from listing units that are not their principal residence, including any secondary suites on the property.
Mayor Gregor Robertson, along with councillors from his Vision Vancouver party, defended the rules as necessary in a time of crisis. The vacancy rate is just above zero and the city must do everything it can to free up housing for long-term renters, said Robertson.
“I’m stunned to hear that some councillors don’t believe there’s a problem here. We have 6,000 illegal short-term rentals in the city,” he said just before the vote.
“Hundreds of cities around the world are regulating short-term rentals…
City council approved new regulations for vacation stays through websites such as Airbnb and Expedia on Tuesday in a 7-4 vote. The rules prohibit hosts from listing units that are not their principal residence, including any secondary suites on the property.
Mayor Gregor Robertson, along with councillors from his Vision Vancouver party, defended the rules as necessary in a time of crisis. The vacancy rate is just above zero and the city must do everything it can to free up housing for long-term renters, said Robertson.
“I’m stunned to hear that some councillors don’t believe there’s a problem here. We have 6,000 illegal short-term rentals in the city,” he said just before the vote.
“Hundreds of cities around the world are regulating short-term rentals…
