New IMF Warnings For Canada’s Housing Market + MORE Mar 14th

Company: True North Mortgage Position: Salaried Mortgage Agent Location: Burnaby BC, Vancouver BC, and Calgary AB Salaried Mortgage Agent True North Mortgage is looking for Mortgage Agents for its new Burnaby, BC Metrotown Mall location. We are also looking for our Vancouver and Calgary Downtown locations.   Mission Statement:  To offer Canada-wide mortgages at best rates with friendly, informative and rapid service. Our locations enable clients to interact with our agents face to face. We offer a friendly work environment with a team based approach and team based bonuses.   Job Description: Essential abilities: Willingness to work mall hours (only READ MORE

We’ve seen the headlines about the softening housing market in Alberta and Saskatchewan. But how much of a threat do declining home prices there pose to the rest of the country? Little, according to a report from National Bank of Canada (NBC). While the Canadian Real Estate Association reports that seasonally adjusted home sales in Alberta and Saskatchewan are down 33% from November (compared with a 3% decline nation-wide), report author and Senior Economist Marc Pinsonneault says, “To date there is no indication that the hit to the Alberta and Saskatchewan housing markets has propagated to large centres elsewhere in Canada, such as Toronto READ MORE

My husband and I have started looking for a house. We love our current  townhouse, but with a growing child and no backyard for her to play in, we want to see if we can afford the move up.
Last weekend was the first time we seriously did some house hunting in the GTA. Here are two things I observed: Real estate prices are very high, and non central-area homes that require renovations are going for hundreds of thousands more than the first time we bought a house in 2009. The same house we saw for $600,000 five years ago is now well over $1 million dollars. As well, home buyers are getting desperate. The number of people I saw at the open houses we visited was astonishing. Fear is setting in that home prices will continue to skyrocket out of reach for many Canadians and buyers want to get in as soon as possible.
International Concern
The concern over buying frenzies isn’t just limited to open houses. Now, the IMF is sounding fresh alarm that the Canadian housing market is overheated by as much as 20 per cent and that recent rules to tighten mortgage lending standards have not done enough to prevent risky borrowing…

(mstay/Getty Images)
Q: I want to buy a rental property, but don’t have enough for the 20% down payment required. If I buy it for personal use with a 5% down payment, how long do I have to live in it before I can rent it out?
A: Allowing a child to play with matches is a really bad idea. This plan is also a really bad idea. The 5% down option is intended for people who plan to reside in their home and “should never be used as a way to circumvent the required 20% down payment for a rental property” says Sue Pimento of Mortgage Alliance. She goes on to say that moving in just temporarily “could constitute this mortgage transaction as fraudulent” in the eyes of your lender and insurer. A relocation for work or a marriage breakup might require that you rent out your existing home, but it comes down to your intention at the time of purchasing the home. There is no period of residency that will suffice. If you intend on renting it out, you need to come up with the required down payment, and if you flout the rules you risk getting burned…

Mortgage penalty calculations continue to mystify Canadian consumers.  For years, I’ve posted numerous articles on penalties…  how they affect us… how they are calculated…..why you need to understand them.. and most importantly, HOW TO AVOID THEM!! Today, I’ll give you explicit details on the great mortgage penalty mystery… I’ve shared dozens of horror stories about […]