Tuesday, April 23, 2013

Woman almost loses her home due to bank oversight.

 There's a reason why people go to mortgage brokers to get home financing. That's all a broker does 40 hours a week, process loans. However, many people still feel tied to their banks and credit unions for all their financial transactions. The difference is that when you go to a bank, Tom, the teller, may be opening bank accounts, transacting RRSP orders, helping people with their safe deposit boxes and you are his first mortgage in several weeks.
     In the attached article, it turns out that the lady fell ill and was off work. She couldn't make her mortgage payments and was in danger of losing her house. As an important part of arranging a mortgage, I always offer life and disability insurance to my clients. If something happens to them, I can refer back to the file and tell them that they are covered. It turns out that this woman had coverage but no one at the bank knew.
   Remember this the next time your mortgage comes up for renewal or you are considering buying a home. The article can be found here.
 David Cooke is a Calgary mortgage broker serving the province of Alberta. His website is http://davidcooke.ca
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Thursday, April 4, 2013

What's happening to the Calgary Spring Home Buying Market?



The newspapers have been telling us that it is now more difficult to qualify for a mortgage. Housing sales have dropped by 20% in Vancouver. So, what's happening in Calgary?  Many homes are now receiving competing offers from purchasers. Why is this? 
Well if you check with the Calgary Real Estate Board, (CREB) website you will see that the number of active listings for this time of year are down 20% from last year. As a result the most desireable homes are selling quickly. What does that leave for you if you missed the house of your dreams?
   Make another home , the house of your dreams with the Purchase Plus Improvements  program from CMHC and Genworth Financial. These are the people who insure your mortgage against default and they want you to have a nice house. 
     How does this work? If you find a house in an older neighbourhood you may love the location but not care too much for the house. You know the place, it's right across the street from a school and a park, within walking distance of public transportation but it was built 40 years ago and it has lime green wall to wall carpeting combined with a basement with fake wood paneling. 
   If you think that you will have nightmares waking up to this 70's creation, don't worry.
 Take a trip to a home renovation store like Home Depot and get a quote on new Burber carpeting.
Make an offer on the house and then have your mortgage broker submit your offer with the new carpeting quote to a mortgage lender under the Purchase Plus Improvements program.
 If it is approved your real estate lawyer will receive 2 cheques. One for the purchase of the home and a second one to cover the renovations. When they are complete, the lawyer will pay out the renovations. Sound simple? It is . If you want more information on the program you can check it out here. If you want to know if you would qualify for this program contact me at my website.

David Cooke is a Calgary mortgage broker with Dominion Lending Centres Westcor in Calgary Alberta.

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