Mortgage Broker Insights: How to Get Clarity and Control with Industry Expert Angela Calla
Angela Calla shares valuable insights about mortgage brokers and the help they can provide.
As exciting as real estate purchases are, they can be very tricky, especially on the financial side. British Columbia real estate is no exception, especially given the large price differences between various areas.
The help of a mortgage expert is becoming a necessity in this hectic market. We’ve turned to Angela Calla, resident of Port Moody BC and a highly successful mortgage professional with over twelve years of experience, to let shed some light on financial issues.
What does your job as a mortgage professional entail?
Our position as a mortgage professional is very simple. It’s to provide clarity with the power of choice, with being unbiased to particular lenders. This delivers the lowest cost of borrowing and guidance not only when you sign a mortgage, it assists you navigating any changes in your personal life or the mortgage market.
We understand home ownership is an important cornerstone of wealth when managed properly, so we protect your investment with different strategies, accordingly and proactively, as you would expect from any relationship where a large amount of money is involved.
What do you love most about your job?
I love delivering the clarity on the costly mistakes to avoid. You can only do better for yourself when you have clarity. Dealing with any lender on your own is financial suicide, as they clearly have a bias to themselves. Once borrowers gain this clarity, they are able to make better, more profitable decisions for their families, instead of a lender.
What is the single most difficult part of a mortgage professional’s job?
It’s important for mortgage professionals to help borrowers understand that using our services is free.
We get compensated once the mortgage is completed with the selected lender. It also protects the clients’ credit score, as multiple lenders can be shopped, or a change can be made after signing and before completion, with only 1 credit check. If the client did it on their own, it could impact their credit score and ultimately what offers would be available to them as a result.
How should buyers prepare for the home buying process?
Prepare by consulting a professional, so you have complete clarity on what everything means to you specifically. If you look at averages, you will miss local opportunities. When it comes to preparing to buy, your mortgage professional can advise you based on your income, goals, credit and down payment, to guide you through the process properly. This makes sure there are no delays in reaching you goals, that could have been prevented.
Don’t be fooled by flashy advertising on low rates. Understand there is a reason behind all offers, and it’s often what they are not telling you about something that will cost you deeply in future.
Did you notice a preference for buying in the suburbs, and if so, what are the reasons for that?
When one is looking to make a purchase, it’s common to say, for example: “I can afford to rent a condo for $1,200, so I can afford to purchase a condo for $250,000, once I incorporate my strata and taxes into my monthly expenses that come with home ownership”.
Well when you look at where you can buy for that value, generally the places most suited for the borrower pending lifestyle and occupation have been in the suburbs. The suburbs provide more space for the price, so those who value space gravitate there. It all comes down to affordability.
Is taking out a mortgage an option used also by the rich in British Columbia?
Contributing to lenders’ and insurers’ advisory panels for the past decade has given us the opportunity to really be at the forefront of mortgage changes and to give our clients real time advise on how to understand and optimize the market.
Utilizing a balanced approach with clarity is how educated investors make decisions. If taking a mortgage works for their goals, it will be an option they will take.
Any other insights you’d like to share?
When it comes to your mortgage or real estate transaction, the decisions you make about who you align yourself with makes all the difference in your future financial success. Take it very seriously, and ensure they are practicing what they preach, and that they have a system and strategy, specifically in respect to how they will continue to help you after the initial deal is complete.
It’s that ongoing management that makes the difference in your financial success. Mortgages are much more than interest rates. It’s possible to have a lower rate and a higher cost of borrowing, which is why you need an unbiased professional to guide you through getting the lowest cost of borrowing, at all times.
Angela Calla has been a licensed mortgage broker for 12 years – since she was 22 years old. She has been with Dominion Lending Centres since its inception in January 2006. Residing in Port Moody, British Columbia, Angela is a regular expert guest for several news stations, television shows, radio programs and local and national publications.
She was the AMP of the year in 2009, has consistently been one of DLC and the industry’s top performers since 2006.
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