As a First Responder we want to thank you for your service and dedication to your community by helping you with some of the costs surrounding purchasing or refinancing your home!   If you are a First Responder, contact us to find out more about this program.

Both the provincial and federal governments are announcing daily changes and enhancements to the benefits being offered to households and businesses across the province and the country.  While there are still many unknowns, it seems many are continuing on adjusting the new way of life from a distance.  Today there were two new announcements from the provincial government pertaining to the BC Emergency Benefit for workers and Temporary Emergency Funding Program.

Provincial Government Update

BC Emergency Benefit for Workers

• Benefit: The BCEBW is a one-time, tax-free $1,000 payment for British Columbians whose ability to work has been affected as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Eligibility: people must:
  • have been a resident of British Columbia on March 15, 2020;
  • meet the eligibility requirements for the CERB;
  • have been approved for the CERB, even if they have not received a benefit yet;
  • be at least 15 years old on the date of application;
  • have filed, or agree to file, a 2019 B.C. income tax return; and
  • not be receiving provincial income assistance or disability assistance.
  • Most people who are eligible for the new federal Canada Emergency Response Benefit (CERB) are also eligible for the BCEBW, including those who have run out of employment insurance (EI) benefits and subsequently qualify for the CERB.

Starting May 1, applications can be made online, at any time, and a link to the application portal will be available at: www.gov.bc.ca/workerbenefit

Temporary Emergency Funding Program

• Funding for licensed providers at a rate of seven times their average monthly child care operating base funding.
• Child care centres receiving this funding continue to be eligible for the Child Care Fee Reduction Initiative and the Early Childhood Educator (ECE) Wage Enhancement. The fee reduction helps parents by providing funding for licensed child care providers to reduce and stabilize their monthly child care fees. The wage enhancement has provided nearly 12,000 ECEs with a $1-per-hour wage enhancement, which increased to $2 per hour on April 1, 2020, to better recognize the work they do.
• Families accessing care from these providers may be eligible for the Affordable Child Care Benefit.

We will continue to update with new announcements and information to help during these times.  Stay safe everyone!

TD is offering mortgage payment deferrals for up to six months. 

How does a TD Mortgage Payment Deferral work? 

Mortgage Deferral: Customers who are experiencing financial hardship can request to defer the equivalent of up to six monthly payments. Interest will continue to accrue and is capitalized (i.e. added to the outstanding balance)on each payment date. This will increase the outstanding balance. Mortgage payment deferrals will not impact the customer’s credit bureau if the account was in good standing at the time of the deferral and remains in good standing. 

Insurance: Customers have the option to defer their Critical Illness and/or Life Insurance premiums (if applicable). At this time, this option is available by phone. 

Property Taxes: If TD pays property taxes on the customer’s behalf, the customer can choose to include taxes as part of the deferral or continue to have the property tax payment amount taken from their account. Note: Deferred property tax payments will be adjusted during the annual property tax billing change and regular payment amounts will increase. 

Rental Properties: The option to defer mortgage payments also applies to rental properties. 

How can customers request a TD Mortgage Payment Deferral? Brokers are not permitted to request a mortgage payment deferral on a customer’s behalf.

Customers can reach out to TD in the following ways: Visit our TD Website atwww.td.com/covid19 to submit an online mortgage payment deferral request via EasyWeb online banking.
Customers will receive an email response notifying them of the outcome of their application. This is the most convenient option to request a TD Mortgage Payment Deferral.

Reach out to us by phone at 1-888-720-0075. We know you may be receiving an increased number of customer inquiries.

We thank you for your patience and ongoing collaboration during these challenging times. 
Contact:For more information and updates on COVID-19 and how TD is ready to help customers, visitwww.td.com/covid19

To say that rates have been a roller coaster these past 3 weeks is an understatement. We have seen 3 rate cuts by the Bank of Canada leading to a large drop in the Prime rate to Fixed Rates dropping, then rising and some now slightly dropping again.

Banks borrow money for mortgages and to simplify it, the cost of those funds have gone up. Despite our economy being unstable world wide, the banks are now paying more for mortgage funds that they lend to us as the traditional home owner. The reason behind that is that mortgages are now considered higher risk loans due to lower property values with higher loan amounts, unemployment rates on the rise and the overall uncertainty surrounding mortgage loans. Dr. Sherry Cooper, our Chief Economist at DLC wrote this article today that may help explain in more detail as well.

To read Dr. Sherry Cooper’s full report, CLICK HERE to get more understanding of the current market conditions.

Dominion Lending Centres head office team has put together a fantastic webpage dedicated and updated constantly with COVID-19 updates and how they are affecting home owners and the mortgage industry. Stay tuned for regular updates and to access resources to help you and your family. Click on the Blue Bar at the top of my page “Learn More”

It was announced last week that the Bank of Canada is finally easing the stress test for home buyers with less than 20% down payment. This is great news that we are heading in the right direction after having mortgage rules tightened a few years ago. They have not yet confirmed that we will see a lower qualification rate for conventional mortgages (those with more than 20% down or wanting to refinance). We are hoping to see that change come soon as well. It’s not having a huge impact so far from what we are seeing but a little is better than none. Example would be on a client that was pre-approved for a purchase price of $485,000 under the old stress test rate and now they qualify to purchase for $520,000. In the Greater Vancouver market, any improvement at all is better than none. For more information, please call us at the office at 604-552-6190 and one of us would love to help you through.

For further insight, have a listen to the interview of our very own economist Dr. Sherry Cooper on her take of the changes and where we are heading.

CLICK HERE

Have you ever wondered what the plan is for your parents? Or you even once you retire and maybe have a fixed income? So many families don’t realize the options they have to keep aging parents in their homes. If you are wondering how to do this and still afford in home care, contact us. There are products like Reverse Mortgages that still seem to have a negative opinion from many on this type of mortgage. They are not like they used to be. Rates are excellent, there is no qualification issues like many pensioners have in today’s mortgage market. It’s as simple as an appraisal and then a final appointment with a lawyer to get it set up. You can pay out a current mortgage so that they no longer have monthly payments. They can take a certain amount of money each month to allow them to travel and live their best life. Or they can take a certain amount of money each month to pay for home care and have someone come and help around the house. Or… you can take large lump sums of money at certain times when needed. There are so many options! Minimum age is 55 and the bank will lend up to 55% of the property value so if you are curious what you or your parents qualify for, call us, we can do a simple calculation right over the phone to give you an idea. This is a growing product and remember what ever bank you speak to about this, they will all end up at the same lender. We will give you that unbiased advice that you will need to make the best decision. You can reach us at support@primexmortgages.com or 604-552-6190. Cheers to a stress free retirement!

We are getting back in the saddle with our blogging! Stay tuned for more frequent updates to the mortgage world and all things home ownership! 2020 is off to a good start!

Last week the Bank of Canada announced that they would leave rates unchanged.  This is great news for Variable Rate Mortgage holders as everything will remain the same as the Bank feels that they have have made the impact they wanted to so far with increased rates and the stress test.  This has brought the market back in line and with the recent announcement about Canada’s oil production and overall growth not meeting expectations, the Bank has decided to leave things unchanged at this point.

Today’s Prime rate is at 3.95% and your Variable Rate Mortgage or Line of Credit will be based on that.  At this time, there will be no change.  With the Variable Rate Mortgages still being lower than the Fixed Rates, it is still the more popular product at this time for new and existing home owners.  If you would like us to assess your current situation, feel free to reach out for a no cost Mortgage Review.

CLICK HERE to read the full article.