Richards Mortgage Group Articles

Last month in my blog, I talked about new Canadian Government rules coming into effect and how they might impact the mortgage lending landscape. Besides explaining the new mortgagequalifying stress test, I touched on CMHC’s (Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation) soon-to-be-gone role as a provider of “bulk” or “low-ratio” mortgage insurance to the mortgage lending industry, and how it provided stability and promoted competition. As of Nov 30th, 2016 CMHC officially no longer provides that and certain other services, hence many mortgage lenders who had previously relied on these categories of mortgage insurance to manage their lending operations have been forced – over the last 30 days – to dramatically scale back their offerings.

New housing mortgage policies are coming into effect (again) and leaving many Canadians unclear about how their finances have been affected. The Government of Canada is introducing these new rules in two phases. This article is a quick summation of how you may have been affected. First, however, to understand the new rules it is important to understand the classification of mortgages and the previous rules.

Michael & Ginny had done their time... years in University, then hard at it in their careers. Ginny had become pregnant and stepped out of the work force when Tyler was born. Mike continued working long days in the Calgary city core, up the corporate ladder, and making good money. But with the job came stress, fighting with traffic daily, and Tyler - the boy was growing up so fast...

Updated by Chris Richards on Jan 21, 2021 As a licensed mortgage broker, the question often gets asked what do we do, and how are we different from a bank. In this blog, I am going to briefly talk about being a mortgage broker in Alberta, however most lenders in Canada have a national focus, so arranging a mortgage in Edmonton or Calgary is the same process and the same rules as working with a borrower in Toronto, Vancouver or Halifax as examples. Happy to help, wherever you are! 1. What is a Mortgage Broker? In a nutshell, they are independent, trained specialists licensed to represent and provide you with the best advice for your home or property financing needs. They are retained by the client to shop the mortgage market (including banks, trust companies and other financial institutions) and to provide independent advice in choosing a mortgage commitment to fit the client’s particular needs. It is a similar service as that of an insurance broker or travel agent in that the professional is highly trained within a very complex industry. Often they can obtain home loan commitments with better terms, options and interest rates than the client can obtain on their own; Saves you considerable time and effort; and Potentially save thousands of dollars over the term of a mortgage. The mortgage broker is typically paid a fee by the lender upon successful funding (no charge to client). If the broker intends to charge you a fee, as would be the case in commercial, agricultural, business and non-bank (private) lending, this must be disclosed up front to the client.

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!

Updated Feb 17, 2021 One of the things about getting a mortgage in today's mortgage market is the amount of documents you have to provide your broker or lender to prove your income, down payment, property details, etc. I guess when you're borrowing hundreds of thousands of dollars, the lender has a right to make sure everything is legit!