Richards Mortgage Group Articles

"Smart renovations not only improve the utility and value of your property, they can also protect the value in a declining market or make it easier to sell." - Scott McGillivray Why Renovate Your Property? There are a number of reasons to renovate a property, including: to increase it's utility hence enjoyment for you, to make it easier to sell, or to retain or increase its value. Increasingly, Canadians prefer to relax, socialize and work at home. Renovation offers tremendous opportunities to create a home that reflects the way you like to live and contributes to your enjoyment of life, whether utility or comfort features, energy-saving modifications, or even to achieve a grander sustainable living objective.

Words to Know When Buying a Home Courtesy of CMHC

How to Buy a House in Canada Last Updated: May 2019 In the past few weeks, I have had a number of first time home buyer clients purchasing a home, some with the aid of a Realtor and others without on a For Sale By Owner (FSBO). With the aid of a real estate professional, a lot of the following questions get answered, but not always. When you are pursuing a FSBO, it's a lot tougher to figure the steps out, especially for the rookies. Here's an overview on the house buying process and steps in Canada. Mortgage Pre-Approval House Shopping and Price Discovery Offer to Purchase, Deposit and Home Inspection Mortgage Approval Process Closing, Get the Keys!

Last updated: May 2019 Mortgage Down Payment - What is Permitted in Canada? A question that often comes up with clients is about permitted sources of down payment and how long the money has to be sitting in the client's account. Here's the list I send to my mortgage customers:

Or How to Become a Stay-at-Home Mom I had a client call the other day looking for information on a debt consolidation mortgage loan. They had a number of consumer debts the woman caller told me. She was pregnant and concerned about being able to afford all their payments on just her husband's income. She really wanted the option to be a stay-at-home mom without feeling compelled to return to work after the baby was born; could I help them reduce their monthly payments? To find out if I could help, I had some questions for her; Shawna was her name... The first question I asked Shawna was: do you already own a house (because a debt consolidation mortgage requires a house!) The second question I asked was: how much is the house worth? The third question I asked was: what do you currently owe on your mortgage? The final questions was: what consumer debts do you want to get rid of?

Last updated: May 2019 So You Want to Get a Mortgage with Bad Credit? One of the mortgage clients I am working with right now has a Telus Mobility collection that is preventing her from getting a mortgage approval. The hard to swallow part is it looks like Telus Mobility and their collection agency may have broken the law, yet my client is the one to straighten up the mess! As you are likely aware, your ability to get a mortgage, loan or credit card depends on having a good (enough) credit repayment history in your credit report. As a mortgage broker, I have seen a lot of credit reports and I have seen a lot of reporting errors and damaged credit scores. Luckily, and with some effort, errors can be corrected and your credit score will improve dramatically. To make these fixes, however, you need to understand the rules and how to approach resolving the problem. Interested? Read on ...