December 2009   Angela Calla Dominion Lending Centres Phone: (604) 802-3983 Cell: Fax: E-mail Website   DID YOU KNOW… While most Canadians spend a lot of time, and expend a lot of effort, in shopping for an initial mortgage, the same is generally not the case when looking at mortgage term renewals. Omitting proper consideration at the time of renewal costs Canadians thousands of extra dollars every year. Homeowners should never accept the first rate offer from their existing lender. Without any negotiation, simply signing up for the market rate on a renewal is unnecessarily costing the homeowner a lot of money on their mortgage. It would be my pleasure to have the lenders compete for your mortgage business at renewal time to ensure you receive the best mortgage options and rate catered to your specific needs. HOMEOWNER TIPS Ceiling Fan Tips: Some ceiling fans can turn either clockwise or counter-clockwise. In the summer, you want the air to blow directly downward, to create a cooling effect. Reverse the ceiling fan in the winter so it blows upward. This will help move the warm air from the ceiling and down the edges of the walls for more even comfort, without a draft. About DLC Leasing Inc * DLC Leasing is the leasing division within Dominion Lending Centres Inc. * Our leasing programs provide up to 100% financing on business-related equipment. * Leasing options include new equipment leasing; used equipment and vehicle leasing; customized solutions through vendor finance programs; and lease-backs –where the lender buys equipment from a business owner and the owner leases it back. * Technology, heavy equipment and trailers, furniture and hospitality equipment, and manufacturing and industrial equipment are just a few examples of available leasing options. * With access to multiple lending sources, Dominion Lending Centres’ Lease Professionals can cater to leasing deals for a variety of credit scenarios ranging from A to C credit quality. * Because many of our Lease Professionals are also licensed mortgage agents, we can offer standard equipment leases and creatively structured solutions for seasonal, new or growing companies. * Working with someone who is both a lease and mortgage expert enables you to even use commercial and residential mortgage and property credit line products, alone or in combination with lease financing, to help achieve the best solutions for your equipment acquisition needs. * Our Lease Professionals can even break up large-dollar transactions into multiple leases across a number of funders to ease and simplify the approval process.   Don Welcome to the December issue of my monthly newsletter! This month’s edition helps you plan ahead for holiday spending, as well as discusses the results from an annual Canadian mortgage market report. Please let me know if you have any questions or feedback regarding anything outlined below. Thanks again fo Having trouble viewing this email? Click here   r your continued support and referrals!   Many people have faced tough times in lieu of the recession, and with the high-cost holiday gift-buying and entertaining season quickly approaching, this may be the perfect time to refinance your mortgage and free up some money instead of relying on high-interest credit cards. You may find that taking equity out of your home will help bring joy back into your holiday season – and start the New Year off on a debt-free note, as you may also be able to use some of the equity in your home to pay off high-interest debt such as your credit card balances. This will enable you to put more money in your bank account each month. And since interest rates are hovering near historic lows, switching to a lower rate may save you a lot of money – possibly thousands of dollars per year. There are penalties for paying your mortgage loan out prior to renewal, but these could be offset by the lower rates and extra money you could acquire through a refinance. I can sit down with you and work through all of the equations to ensure this is the right move for you. With access to more money, you will be better able to manage both your holiday spending and existing debt. Refinancing your first mortgage and taking some existing equity out could also enable you to do many things you’ve been longing to accomplish – such as purchasing an investment property, taking that well-deserved vacation, renovating your home or even investing in your children’s education. By refinancing, you may extend the time it will take to pay off your mortgage, but there are many ways to pay down your mortgage sooner to save you thousands of dollars in interest payments. Most mortgage products, for instance, include prepayment privileges that enable you to pay up to 20% of the principal (the true value of your mortgage minus the interest payments) per calendar year. This will also help reduce your amortization period (the length of your mortgage), which, in turn, saves you money.   You can also increase the frequency of your mortgage payments by opting for accelerated bi-weekly payments. Not to be confused with semi-monthly mortgage payments (24 payments per year), accelerated bi-weekly mortgage payments (26 payments per year) will not only pay your mortgage off quicker, but it’s guaranteed to save you a significant amount of money over the term of your mortgage. If, for instance, you have a $100,000 mortgage, an interest rate of 5% and an amortization period of 25 years, your monthly mortgage payment would be $581.60 and your total payments for a year would be $6,979.20 ($581.60 x 12). To understand the savings accelerated bi-weekly mortgage payments can make, take the monthly mortgage payment of $581.60 and divide it by two ($581.60 ÷ 2 = $290.80).  Next, take that payment and multiple it by 26 to arrive at your total payments for the year ($290.80 x 26 = $7,560.80). As you can see, by using the monthly mortgage payment plan, you’ve made payments totalling $6,979.20 for the year, while using the accelerated bi-weekly mortgage plan you’ve made payments totalling $7,560.80 – a difference of $581.60.  By opting for accelerated bi-weekly mortgage payments, you’re making one additional monthly payment per year. Using this example, you would reduce the amortization on your $100,000 mortgage from 25 years to just over 21 years and your total savings on interest over the life of the mortgage would be just over $12,000. By refinancing now – before the holiday season is in full swing – and planning ahead, you can put yourself and your family in a better financial position. As always, if you have any questions about refinancing, reducing debt or paying down your mortgage quicker, I’m here to help!   Canadians are emerging from the recession confident that the value of their homes is rising and optimistic about their local housing markets. The Canadian mortgage market is rebounding and will surpass the $1 trillion mark in 2010, reports the Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals (CAAMP) in the fifth edition of the Annual State of the Residential Mortgage Market, released in late November. Canadians are positive about house prices, and attitudes about whether this is a good time to buy a home have never been higher in the three years that CAAMP has surveyed on that question. The overwhelming majority of those surveyed (40%) expect house prices to go up, which is more than double the opinion of those surveyed in spring 2009 (18%). In past surveys, negative house price sentiments were most evident in British Columbia, Alberta and Ontario – provinces that, in retrospect, were hardest hit by the economic downturn. On a 10-point scale (where 1 is very negative and 10 is very positive), attitudes in these provinces have sharply rebounded to 6.44 from 4.77 in fall 2008, 6.24 from 5.00, and 6.30 from 5.11, respectively, and are now in line with the 6.25 national average. Most Canadians are optimistic and believe now is a good time to purchase a home, setting a record-high national average of 6.56 out of 10, up almost a full point from 5.58 last fall. Ontarians are most positive at 6.82, while Saskatchewan residents, who have seen house prices increase rapidly, are most negative at 6.05. As interest rates remain low, it is not surprising that Canadians continue to be satisfied with their mortgages. Of those who renewed in the last year, 73% received lower rates than their original mortgage term. “Mortgage consumers have been busy, and have effectively capitalized on low interest rates to shop and renegotiate,” said Jim Murphy, President and CEO of CAAMP. “CAAMP’s survey found that, on average, negotiated rates were discounted by 1.23 percentage points lower than typical advertised rates for five-year   mortgages, and we see this discounting trend continuing. ”In spite of continued job loss concerns, Canadians’ mortgage debt load remains reasonable. Homeowners have close to three-quarters (74%) of the value of their properties in equity and for those with mortgages, equity is more than one-half (52%) of the value of their homes. Fewer Canadians took equity out of their mortgages this fall (down to 18% from 22% last year). The primary motivator was, once again, debt consolidation or payment (approximately $17 billion), followed by home renovations (approximately $12 billion, down from $14.5 billion in 2008). One third of respondents who took out equity to fund home renovations said the Home Renovation Tax Credit had influenced their decision. Significant Statistics from the Study Overall, Canadians remain very satisfied with their current mortgage, with 77% either completely satisfied or satisfied. The top reason cited is the mortgage rate, which averaged 4.55% this past year – a dramatic decline from 5.41% last year. Canadians in provinces that have felt the greatest effect of the recession are also the most optimistic about the increase in house prices – 42% of people in Ontario, 43% of people in Alberta and 47% of people in British Columbia feel that house prices will increase in the next year. Two-thirds of all mortgages are fixed for terms of four or more years, with five-year terms remaining the most popular at 56%. But many people who took out a mortgage in the past year chose a shorter term, with 20% at one year or less. 68% of mortgage holders have fixed-rate mortgages, while 27% have variable- and adjustable-rate mortgages. Fixed-rate mortgages are the most popular among people between the ages of 18 and 34, while those in the 55+ age group are more likely to opt for variable-rate mortgages. Click here to download the full report.     We are Canada’s premier online mortgage company, and one of the fastest growing mortgage brokerages nationwide! We have more than 1,500 Mortgage Professionals from more than 200 locations across the country! Our Mortgage Professionals are Experts in their field and many are ranked among the best nationally. We work for you, not the lenders, so your best interests will always be our number one priority. We have more than 100 mortgage programs, making it easy to choose the best fit for your unique situation. We close loans in all 10 provinces and 3 territories. We can process your mortgage in as few as 7 days. We are the preferred mortgage lender for several of Canada’s top companies. Dominion Lending Centres’ Mortgage Professionals are available anytime, anywhere, evenings and weekends – and we’ll even come to you!   2189 Austin Ave Coquitlam BC V3K 3R9

 

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