The BC Minister of Finance has announced several changes to the Property Transfer Tax program, effective Wednesday, February 17, 2016, which include: 1. a property transfer tax exemption for Canadian citizens and permanent residents who purchase newly-built homes, condos and townhouses under $750,000. Purchasers must live in the property for at least one year. This […]

Today Finance Minister Bill Morneau announced changes to down payment requirements. Effective February 15, 2016, the minimum down payment for new insured mortgages will increase from five per cent to 10 per cent for the portion of the house price above $500,000. The five per cent minimum down payment for properties up to $500,000 remains […]

If you are self employed and haven’t taken a mortgage in a few years, be prepared for a different process than what you are used to.  Lenders have tightened up on what they will allow and want to see that you have a viable business before approving your loan.   Here are the most typical […]

NOA stands for Notice of Assessment.  It is an assessment that the CRA completes after personal income taxes are filed.  Once your tax return is reviewed by the CRA, they will send out the Notice of Assessment to confirm if you either have a balance due to CRA or if you are getting a refund.  […]

Banks allow home buyers to have a gifted down payment from an immediate family member.  Immediate family member is considered mother, father, sister, brother or grandparents.  When receiving a gift from a family member, the funds must be deposited into the home buyers bank account 15 days before closing of the mortgage.  Once funds have […]

Be reminded that if you are purchasing a home, all banks require a 90 day history of bank statements or investment statements confirming the funds have been in your account for the past 3 months.  If there are deposits over $2000, be prepared to provide further paper trail to those deposits.  If you are getting […]

Canada’s three most watched real estate boards reported January results last week. Vancouver saw strong sales and price growth and a reduction is listings which increased competition among buyers while Toronto also saw strong sales and continued rising prices but with an increase in listings which provided buyers with more choice. In Calgary, prices have […]

The Week in Economic and Real Estate News Last week brought little in the way of new housing market data but there was no shortage of economic news which was important for the Canadian real estate and mortgage markets. After the Bank of Canada’s surprise rate cut on January 21st, Canadian banks lowered their Prime […]

It’s always asked if one should consider a refiance or wait for their current term to mature.  Here’s a few tips to help you decide: *If your current mortgage rate is more than .50% higher than todays current rates *If you have equity in your home and high interest debt that you are no where […]

Get Pre-Qualified FIRST!  – Before you even start looking at homes, ensure you are pre-qualified by a mortgage broker.  This way you get advice, knowledge and experience from someone that has access to more than just one bank. Get your Finances in order – At this point you will want to pay down as much […]