20 TERMS THAT HOMEBUYERS NEED TO KNOW

General Angela Calla 17 Jul

Buying a home is one of the most important financial decisions you will make.

It’s common for a first-time homebuyer to be overwhelmed when it comes to real estate industry jargon, so this BLOG is to help make some of the jargon understandable.

To help you understand the process and have confidence in your choices, check out the following common terms you will encounter during the homebuying process.

  1. Amortization – “Life of the mortgage” The process of paying off a debt by making regular installment payments over a set period of time, at the end of which the loan balance is zero. Typical amortizations are 25 years or if you have over 20% down payment – 30 years.
  2. Appraisal – An estimate of the current market value of a home. A property is appraised to know the amount of money that a lender is willing to lend for a buyer to buy a particular property. If the appraised amount is less than the asking price for the property, then that piece of real estate might be overpriced. In this case, the lender will refuse to finance the purchase. Appraisals are designed to protect both the lender and buyer. The lender will not get stuck with a property that is less than the money lent, and the buyer will avoid paying too much for the property.
  3. Closing Costs – Costs you need to have available in addition to the purchase price of your home. Closing costs can include: legal fees, taxes (GST, HST, Property Transfer Tax (PTT) etc.), transfer fees, disbursements and are payable on closing day. They can range from 1.5% to 4% of a home’s selling price.
  4. Co-Signer – A person that signs a credit application with another person, agreeing to be equally responsible for the repayment of the loan.
  5. Down Payment – The portion of the home price that is NOT financed by the mortgage loan. The buying typically pays the down payment from their own resources (or other eligible sources) to secure a mortgage.
  6. Equity – The difference between the price a home could be sold for and the total debts registered against it (i.e. mortgage). Equity usually increases as the mortgage is reduced by regular payments. Rising home prices and home improvements may also increase the equity in the property.
  7. Fixed Interest Rate – a fixed mortgage interest rate is locked-in and will not increase for the term of the mortgage.
  8. Gross Debt Service Ratio (GDS) and Total Debt Service Ratio (TDS)
    a) GDS – Typically mortgage lenders only want you spending a maximum 35-39% of your gross income on your mortgage (principle & interest), property taxes, heat and 50% of your strata fees.
    b) TDS – typically, lenders want you spending a maximum 39-44% of your gross income on your GDS – PLUS any other debt obligations you have (credit card debt, car payments, lines of credit & loans).
  9. High-ratio mortgage / Conventional Mortgage – a high ratio mortgage is a mortgage loan higher than 80% of the lending value of the home. A conventional mortgage is when you have more than 20% down payment. In Canada, if you put less than 20% down payment, you must have Mortgage Default Insurance (see below) and your mortgage affordability (GDS & TDS) is “stress tested” with the Bank of Canada’s qualifying rate (currently 4.64%).
  10. Interest Rate – This is the monthly principal and interest payment rate.
  11. Mortgage – A legal document that pledges property to a lender as security for the repayment of the loan. The term is also used to refer to the loan itself.
  12. Mortgage Broker – A professional who works with many different lenders to find a mortgage that best suits the needs of the borrower.
  13. Mortgage Default Insurance – Is required for mortgage loans with less than a 20% down payment and is available from Canadian Mortgage & Housing Corp. (CMHC) or 2 other private companies. This insurance protects the lender in case you are unable to fulfill your financial obligations regarding the mortgage.
  14. Open / Closed Mortgage
    a) An open mortgage is a flexible mortgage that allows you to pay off your mortgage in part or in full before the end of its term, because of the flexibility the interest rates are higher.
    b) Closed mortgages typically cannot be paid off in whole or in part before the end of its term. Some lenders allow for a partial prepayment of a closed mortgage by increasing the mortgage payment or a lump sum prepayment. If you try and “break your mortgage” or if any prepayments are made above the stipulated allowance the lender allows, a penalty will be charged.
  15. Pre-Approval – A lender commits to lend to a potential borrower a fixed loan amount based on a completed loan application, credit reports, debt, savings and has been reviewed by an underwriter. The commitment remains as long as the borrower still meets the qualification requirements at the time of purchase. This does not guaranty a loan until the property has passed inspections underwriting guidelines.
  16. Refinance – Refinancing is the process of replacing an existing mortgage with a new one by paying off the existing debt with a new, loan under different terms.
  17. Term (Mortgage) – Length of time that the contract with your mortgage including interest rate is fixed (typically 5 years).
  18. Title – The documented evidence that a person or organization has legal ownership of real property.
  19. Title Insurance – Insurance against losses or damages that could occur because of anything that affects the title to a property. Insurance Title insurance is issued by a Title Company to insure the borrower against errors in the title to your property.
  20. Variable Rate Mortgage or Adjustable Rate Mortgage (ARM) – A variable mortgage interest rate is based on the Bank of Canada rate and can fluctuate based on market conditions, the Canadian economy. A mortgage loan with an interest rate that is subject to change and is not fixed at the same level for the life of the loan. These types of loans usually start off with a lower interest rate but can subject the borrower to payment uncertainty.

-Kelly Hudson

Angela Calla is a 15 year award-winning woman of influence mortgage expert. Alongside her team, passionately assisting mortgage holders get the best mortgage, and educating them on The Mortgage Show on CKNW for over a decade and through her best-selling book The Mortgage Code available on Amazon. To purchase the book click here: The Mortgage Code. Proceeds from a sales will help build a new emergency room at Eagle Ridge Hospital. Angela can be reached at callateam@dominionlending.ca or 604-802-3983.

The highest- and lowest-priced homes sold in B.C.: July 7 to 13

General Angela Calla 17 Jul

BCBusiness’s weekly snapshot of what’s selling around the province

Vancouver and Victoria had the priciest residential real estate sales last week. Both Vancouver properties sold quickly: a Point Grey townhouse went for $1.7 million in a single day, while a Yaletown condo fetched its asking price of $1,271,900 in three days.

The most-expensive single-family home was in Victoria’s Oak Bay. With more than 4,300 square feet of living space, including four bedrooms and five bathrooms, it was on the market for 21 days before selling for $4.63 million, just over 87 percent of list price.

At the other end of the scale, last week’s least-expensive sale was a $31,500 townhouse in the Kimberley/Alpine Resort area of the Kootenay. It was purchased for 70 percent of list price after 141 days on the market.

Details of these and other properties sold across the province last week are below: list and sold prices, days on market, size of home and property.

Read more: BCBusiness’s Weekly Snapshot

Angela Calla is a 15 year award-winning woman of influence mortgage expert. Alongside her team, passionately assisting mortgage holders get the best mortgage, and educating them on The Mortgage Show on CKNW for over a decade and through her best-selling book The Mortgage Code available on Amazon. To purchase the book click here: The Mortgage Code. Proceeds from a sales will help build a new emergency room at Eagle Ridge Hospital. Angela can be reached at callateam@dominionlending.ca or 604-802-3983.

Bank of Canada Maintains Overnight Rate and Raises 2019 Forecast

General Angela Calla 10 Jul

The Bank of Canada held the target overnight rate at 1.75% for the sixth consecutive decision and showed little willingness to ease monetary policy, as stronger domestic growth offsets the risk of mounting global trade tensions. There has been ongoing speculation that the Bank of Canada would be pushed into cutting interest rates by the Fed. I do not believe the Bank will let the US dictate monetary policy when the Canadian economy is clearly on the mend. To be sure, trade tensions have slowed the global economic outlook, especially in curbing manufacturing activity, business investment, and lowering commodity prices. But the Bank as already incorporated these effects in previous Monetary Policy Reports (MPR) and today’s forecast has made further adjustments in light of weaker sentiment and activity in other major economies.

The Governing Council stated in today’s press release that central banks in the US and Europe have signaled their readiness to cut interest rates and further policy stimulus has been implemented in China. Thus, global financial conditions have eased substantially. The Bank now expects global GDP to grow by 3% in 2019 and to strengthen to 3.25% in 2020 and 2021, with the US slowing to a pace near its potential of around 2%. Escalation of trade tensions remains the most significant downside risk to the global and Canadian outlooks.

The Bank of Canada released the July MPR today, showing that following temporary weakness in late 2018 and early 2019, Canada’s economy is returning to growth around potential, as they have expected. Growth in the second quarter is stronger than earlier predicted, mostly due to some temporary factors, including the reversal of weather-related slowdowns in the first quarter and a surge in oil production. Consumption has strengthened, supported by a healthy labour market. At the national level, the housing market is stabilizing, although there remain significant adjustments underway in BC. A meaningful decline in longer-term mortgage rates is supporting housing activity. The Bank now expects real GDP growth to average 1.3% in 2019 and about 2% in 2020 and 2021.

Inflation remains at roughly the 2% target, with some upward pressure from higher food and auto prices. Core measures of inflation are also close to 2%. CPI inflation will likely dip this year because of the dynamics of gasoline prices and some other temporary factors. As slack in the economy is absorbed, and these temporary effects wane, inflation is expected to return sustainable to 2% by mid-2020.

Bottom Line: The Canadian economy is returning to potential growth. “As the Governing Council continues to monitor incoming data, it will pay particular attention to developments in the energy sector and the impact of trade conflicts on the prospects for Canadian growth and inflation.” With this statement, Governor Poloz puts Canadian rates firmly on hold as Fed Chair Jerome Powell signals openness to a rate cut as uncertainty dims the US outlook.

The Canadian central bank is in no hurry to move interest rates in either direction and has signaled it will remain on hold indefinitely, barring an unexpected exogenous shock.

Dr. Sherry Cooper
Chief Economist, Dominion Lending Centres

Angela Calla is a 15 year award-winning woman of influence mortgage expert. Alongside her team, passionately assisting mortgage holders get the best mortgage, and educating them on The Mortgage Show on CKNW for over a decade and through her best-selling book The Mortgage Code available on Amazon. To purchase the book click here: The Mortgage Code. Proceeds from a sales will help build a new emergency room at Eagle Ridge Hospital. Angela can be reached at callateam@dominionlending.ca or 604-802-3983.

 

MILLIONAIRES AND REAL ESTATE

General Angela Calla 5 Jul

Andrew Carnagie was one of the richest men in America over 100 years ago. Today his wealth would be worth $4.6 billion dollars. He was a shrewd businessman. While he made most of his money in oil and iron, he understood the value and importance of real estate in building wealth.

Leveraging your money is the key. Leveraging is using someone else’s capital to make a larger purchase. Let’s say you have money to buy a house. You have 2 options:
1- You can use your $100,000 cash and buy a home for this amount free and clear.
2- You can use your $100,000 as a 20% down payment and borrow the rest and buy a $500,000 home.

A year later, if house values have gone up by 5%, a very reasonable amount for many Canadian cities and towns, what would you have?
If you took Option 1, you would have made $5,000 or a 5% return on your money. If you took Option 2 you would now have made $25,000 on your house purchase.
If you are like most Canadians, you don’t have $100,000. You can get into a home with only 5% down. Purchase a $300,000 home with a 5% down payment or $15,000. After a year, with property values going up by 5%, your house is now worth $315,000. You have made a 100% return on your money! Now you can see why people invest in real estate as soon as they can.

Are there any downsides to buying a home as an investment? Yes, if the main industry in your town is announcing layoffs, houses on the market could drop in price and wipe out your profit. But let’s face it, by buying a home you are making yourself your landlord. When you pay your mortgage balance down you are paying yourself. It’s like forced savings. You have to pay the mortgage, so you are forced to save for the future. If you were paying rent, you pay a similar amount of money what do you get in the end besides your damage deposit back? Nothing. We are not all going to become millionaires but we can become wealthier. It’s within the grasp of most Canadians to become homeowners.

If you are considering purchasing a home, be sure to speak to your favourite Dominion Lending Centres mortgage professional first to discuss what’s best for you.

-David Cooke

Angela Calla is a 15 year award-winning woman of influence mortgage expert. Alongside her team, passionately assisting mortgage holders get the best mortgage, and educating them on The Mortgage Show on CKNW for over a decade and through her best-selling book The Mortgage Code available on Amazon. To purchase the book click here: The Mortgage Code. Proceeds from a sales will help build a new emergency room at Eagle Ridge Hospital. Angela can be reached at callateam@dominionlending.ca or 604-802-3983.

How to get a down payment for a purchase

General Angela Calla 20 Jun

We have seen a return of the buyers’ market and many people are asking, how long will this last? While some renters without a down payment might be asking, how can I put a plan in place to own?

With the cost of living so high, and student debts coming out of school, many consumers question how they’re going to come up with a down payment for a home

Here are some ways you can get it done:

1.  Decide how much you can save and pick a plan that works for you.

a) A 36-month plan saving $700/month will get you $25,200 (you will need about $2,000 for closing costs if you qualify as a first-time homebuyer)

b) A 24-month plan savings $600/month for $14,400

2. Get a gift from a family member

3.  Borrow the down payment or a portion (which may also help with credit building)

4.  A combination of all of the above

For those of you that want to partner with the government for a down payment and profit of home ownership, a new government program can be a helpful tool provided it stays past the October election. https://www.cmhc-schl.gc.ca/en/nhs/shared-equity-mortgage-provider-fund

You might be reading this and thinking, ‘yeah right, that is not reality.’ Or for some people, you know it might just be exactly what will help them move forward.

Perhaps you have graduated from school and your parents don’t charge you rent. Imagine if you could put one of your pay cheques every month aside and try living within those means and budget accordingly.

Or say you have a partner and one of you just started work in a specific trade and the other’s pay cheque went towards the “home purchase plan.”

Also, if you are within the qualifications to buy, you will be earning a combined household income of $125,000-plus per year, so taking those funds right from your pay cheque into your RRSP will have additional tax benefits too where you can use the refund for closing costs or amp up your down payment.

Here’s an example of how this worked for a lab technician and chef with a two-year old daughter.

They did a combination plan as they moved up to Canada from the U.S. two years ago, both got stable jobs and had no outside debt. They were paying $1700 a month rent. They used a $10,000 line of credit they took to put into investment to help establish Canadian credit. After getting the line of credit and placing it into a safe investment, they:

  1. Set up an RRSP and placed $600 a month on the loan and $700 a month into their RRSP
  2. Now this family is used to having a cash outlay of $3,000 per month which will be the actual expectation they have for when they buy a home
  3. With this plan, they take a mortgage for a test drive, save money on taxes, establish a great credit score and worked away toward their goal.

Are there holes in the plan? Yes, home prices may go up, there was interest on the loan they paid and they may have to adjust or modify their plan. Their employment can change, however, this practice will only benefit them no matter what life brings their way and there is a sense of empowerment when you have a plan and can see how you can get there.

Do you or someone you care about want to know how they can be set up with a multifaceted plan to help them move forward with a goal of owning a home?

Reach out today!

Angela Calla is a 15 year award-winning woman of influence mortgage expert. Alongside her team, passionately assisting mortgage holders get the best mortgage, and educating them on The Mortgage Show on CKNW for over a decade and through her best-selling book The Mortgage Code available on Amazon. To purchase the book click here: The Mortgage Code. Proceeds from a sales will help build a new emergency room at Eagle Ridge Hospital. Angela can be reached at callateam@dominionlending.ca or 604-802-3983.

3 THINGS YOU MAY NOT KNOW ABOUT CASH-BACK MORTGAGES

General Angela Calla 24 May

About twice a year, one of the big Canadian banks likes to run an advertising campaign for their cash back mortgages. These are mortgages usually with 5 year terms where you receive a certain percentage back in cash. The percentage varies from 1% to 5% in most cases. You can use these funds to build a fence, landscape, buy window coverings etc. The idea is to be able to pay for some things that you would not be able to as you put all your money into the down payment and closing costs and need some help to get started.

  1. There are multiple lenders who have cash back mortgages. Don’t jump at the first one you see. They all have different terms and conditions.
  2. You are really getting a loan on top of your mortgage. The interest rate is calculated so that by the end of the term you will have paid the lender back the money they gave you and a little bit extra. Sometimes this little bit extra may be twice as much as you got in cash back.
  3. The average cash back mortgage is a 5 year term. Most Canadians move every 30 months. Therefore when you break a cash back mortgage you have to pay a penalty as per usual but you also have to pay back a portion of the loan that they gave you. If you are 36 months into a 60 month mortgage, you have to pay them back 2 years’ worth or 40% of the cash back. Combined with the penalty this can be a hefty sum. In addition, there are some lenders who require you to pay back 100% of the cash back if you want to break the term.

Before signing for a cash back mortgage it’s better to discuss your needs with your local Dominion Lending Centres mortgage professional. They can advise you on cash backs, line of credit, Purchase plus Improvements or Flex Down mortgages which may be better for your situation.

-David Cooke

Angela Calla is a 15 year award-winning woman of influence mortgage expert. Alongside her team, passionately assisting mortgage holders get the best mortgage, and educating them on The Mortgage Show on CKNW for over a decade and through her best-selling book The Mortgage Code available on Amazon. To purchase the book click here: The Mortgage Code. Proceeds from a sales will help build a new emergency room at Eagle Ridge Hospital. Angela can be reached at callateam@dominionlending.ca or 604-802-3983.

GET TO KNOW TITLE INSURANCE

General Angela Calla 9 May

Are you officially Mortgage Free? CONGRATULATIONS! That is a monumental milestone to achieve!

With that significant accomplishment, you should look at obtaining a Title Insurance Policy. What most people don’t realize is that when you had a mortgage, the lender will likely have had this in place for you. Once your mortgage is paid out in full the insurance is no longer in place. It is crucial that once your final payment is made that you, as a home owner, now get a policy.

What is Title Insurance? Good question!

Title Insurance protects you, the homeowner. It’s not like traditional insurance in that it does not ONLY cover things that might happen, but it also covers things such as property defects that have already occurred in the past.

A title insurance homeowner policy will cover:

  • Forgery – If someone forges your signature on a registered document that entitles them to sell or mortgage your home.
  • Duty To Defend – If you experience title risk, the policy will cover the legal fees and costs associated with restoring and protecting your title.
  • Lack of Building Permits – Prior to purchasing the home, if there were renovations performed without the proper building permits you may be required to remove or fix the structure.
  • Fraud – If someone fraudulently transfers your property without your consent.
  • Encroachments – If a structure built by a previous owner is outside the property boundaries, or if a neighbour builds a structure that is on your property.

Title Insurance offers you peace of mind if anything should happen to your property once you are the owner. It is relatively low cost, on average coming in at $200-$400. It is a one-time purchase and does not need to be purchased each year. More than reasonable right?

If you are still on the fence about obtaining title insurance, we’ve recently had a client who experienced title fraud:

A woman went to her bank to make a payment on a line of credit that was secured by a mortgage on her property. When she arrived, she was told that her $30,000 line of credit had been paid in full and that according to the lawyer who sent the funds, her house had been sold.

This left her quite perplexed, so she followed up with the land registry office. They confirmed the sale of the property for $350,000 and that a new mortgage was registered on the property for $325,000. The woman was stunned to find out that she had been the victim of a title fraud scheme—and that the fraudsters had collected $350,000 on the deal.

Thankfully, in the above case the woman was covered by a Title Insurance Policy which fully covered all her legal fees to remove the mortgage from title and rightfully transfer it back to her. Having the coverage saved her approximately $12,000 in legal fees, time, and stress.

Your home is a sizable investment and one you worked hard to purchase! Title Insurance can protect you and your property should there be anything that comes up. For the $200-$400 it costs, we feel that’s a low-price tag for peace of mind. Ready to get a quote? Let us help you by contacting The Angela Calla Mortgage Team to set up your Title Insurance Policy!

-Geoff Lee

Angela Calla is a 15 year award-winning woman of influence mortgage expert. Alongside her team, passionately assisting mortgage holders get the best mortgage, and educating them on The Mortgage Show on CKNW for over a decade and through her best-selling book The Mortgage Code available on Amazon. To purchase the book click here: The Mortgage Code. Proceeds from a sales will help build a new emergency room at Eagle Ridge Hospital. Angela can be reached at callateam@dominionlending.ca or 604-802-3983.

 

HOW TO IMPROVE YOUR CREDIT SCORE

General Angela Calla 9 May

When applying for any sort of loan, one of the most important metrics a lender is going to look at is your credit score.

But what really is a credit score, who keeps track of it, and most importantly, how can you improve yours?

There are a few simple ways to keep your credit score in good shape.

First off, prioritize paying your bills on time. Missing payments on your credit cards, lines of credit and so on, can have a very negative impact on your score.

You can spend an entire lifetime building up for good credit. All it takes is one mistake to negatively impact you.
Second, try to keep your credit cards at no more than 65% of their limit. This is the sweet spot that credit scorers are looking for.

Thirdly, you should avoid the “free credit score” services out there because they’re just looking to sell you credit, or sell your information to someone who does.

When you’re looking for credit, what they’re going to ask you is, ‘What are you looking for credit for?’ And you’re going to say, ‘Well, I’m looking to get a mortgage, or I’m looking to get a car loan.’ And then what they’re going to do is they’re going to sell your information to banks and mortgage brokers and people out there who are able to supply you with credit.

Instead, what you should do is go directly to the credit scoring companies. They’re required by law to give you your credit information directly, without affecting your score. TransUnion offers an online form. Equifax has multiple types of credit reports..

You also want to try to limit the number of credit inquiries by different lenders. When you’re shopping around at different banks, the number of inquiries can add up as each bank makes an inquiry to see what they can offer you.

But as a mortgage broker, we have access to multiple lenders all at once.

You could effectively come see a mortgage broker, get one inquiry done, and that inquiry is good for 20 financial institutions, as opposed to having to go directly to every bank. If you have any questions, contact The Angela Calla Mortgage Team today.

-Terry Kilakos

Angela Calla is a 15 year award-winning woman of influence mortgage expert. Alongside her team, passionately assisting mortgage holders get the best mortgage, and educating them on The Mortgage Show on CKNW for over a decade and through her best-selling book The Mortgage Code available on Amazon. To purchase the book click here: The Mortgage Code. Proceeds from a sales will help build a new emergency room at Eagle Ridge Hospital. Angela can be reached at callateam@dominionlending.ca or 604-802-3983.

Today’s Underwhelming Budget

General Angela Calla 19 Mar

While many in the industry thought we might see increases to amortization or relief from the previously imposed stress test, none of those were taken into consideration in today’s underwhelming federal budget.

The announcements we saw in relation to home purchasers were:
RRSP’s
1. An increase to the amount accessible from RRSP’s from $25,000 (where it’s been for nearly a decade) to $35,000.
2. Easier access if a borrower has been through family crisis (looking forward to seeing more details on this).
Partnership program
1. Up to 10 per cent for Canadians earning less than $120,000 from CMHC for brand new construction (this is based on new home construction declining over the next 2 years)
2. 5% for resale homes
Example: If a first-time buyer wants to buy a home that costs $400,000, they’d have to come up with a $20,000 down payment, under both the new rules and the old ones.

Normally, they’d have to take out a loan for $380,000 to cover the rest of the purchase price — but under the new program (if it’s a newly constructed home), CMHC could kick in $40,000 toward the purchase price, in exchange for a 10 per cent stake in the home. That brings the buyer’s mortgage down to just $340,000 for the home, instead of $380,000. On a standard mortgage at 3.5 per cent interest, that translates into a monthly mortgage payment more than $200 lower than it would have been for the 25-year life of the loan. More clarity to come out in the fall, as no details were provided related to repayment terms and how the registration of the loan would take place. This area of the budget is far from clear.

Items to note:
• Provincially, B.C. had a similar program that had ended once the NDP were elected.
• In order to use the RRSPs, you still have to save it! Hard to do when most Canadians are feeling the burden of increased costs of living.
• RRSP’s still have to be paid back within 15 years

Here is an article further to today’s Budget
If you have any questions- We’re here to help.

Angela Calla is a 15 year award-winning woman of influence mortgage expert. Alongside her team, passionately assisting mortgage holders get the best mortgage, and educating them on The Mortgage Show on CKNW for over a decade and through her best-selling book The Mortgage Code available on Amazon. To purchase the book click here: The Mortgage Code. Proceeds from a sales will help build a new emergency room at Eagle Ridge Hospital. Angela can be reached at callateam@dominionlending.ca or 604-802-3983.

ZERO DOWN PAYMENT MORTGAGE–DOES IT EXIST?

General Angela Calla 6 Mar

Did you know that you can buy a home with ZERO down payment?? If a home purchase is your goal this year but you aren’t able to save up enough of a down payment, you may qualify for a low or zero down payment mortgage. One of our Lenders is offering a great zero down program.

What is a Flex-Down Mortgage?
A Flex-Down Mortgage is a mortgage product that has a flexible down payment amount. There is still a down-payment required, but it will vary based on the property value.

-For a property valued under than or equal to $500,000, 5% down payment is required (sources available below)
-For a property valued at greater than $500,000 and less than $1 million –5% down payment is required up to $500,000 with an additional 10% down payment on the portion of the home value above $500,000.

Flex-down mortgages can only be on first mortgages, not second or third or used in refinance situations. As noted above, the total property value has to be less than $1 million. This type of mortgage will also have insurance included with it—the premium will be lesser of the premium as a % of the total new loan amount or the premium as a % of the top-up portion additional loan based on the rates at that time.

Those that choose to go with this type of mortgage product will have to meet requirements, just like any other mortgage. There are a few specifications with this product:

-You must show that you have standard income and employment verification papers
-A credit score of 650 or higher is highly recommended
-You must have no previous bankruptcies
-Some lenders may still require you to have some of the down payment from your own resources

Those considering this type of mortgage are recommended to have very little debt and be able to accommodate the additional cost of higher mortgage insurance (due to the higher risk to the lender on this type of mortgage). Typically, the insurance premium would be 0.2% higher on a flex down mortgage.

How it Works
You can borrow your 5% payment from a Line of Credit or even a credit card. This can then be used for your down payment. You have to disclose this to the Insurer and it will be on the application that goes to the Lender.

This is perfect for someone just getting into a new high paying job or for someone who is renting and can afford higher monthly payments but would take forever to save up the 5% down payment. This type of mortgage product can be an excellent option if you don’t quite have enough for the down payment. Are you interested in learning more about this mortgage product? Contact The Angela Calla Mortgage Team to show you how a Flex mortgage can make the home of your dreams happen sooner than you think!

-Geoff Lee

Angela Calla is a 15 year award-winning woman of influence mortgage expert. Alongside her team, passionately assisting mortgage holders get the best mortgage, and educating them on The Mortgage Show on CKNW for over a decade and through her best-selling book The Mortgage Code available on Amazon. To purchase the book click here: The Mortgage Code. Proceeds from a sales will help build a new emergency room at Eagle Ridge Hospital. Angela can be reached at callateam@dominionlending.ca or 604-802-3983.