Happy Holidays
From our familes to yours, wishing you the best of the season.
Happy Holidays!
Steve
Honoured to be rated among Top 3 Best Mortgage Brokers in Burlington!
I truly love what I do, so being recognized as a top performer is just icing on the cake for me!
I’m honoured to be named among the Top 3 Mortgage Brokers in Burlington by Three Best Rated®, which identifies a city’s top three local businesses, professionals, restaurants and health care providers.
Continue reading “Honoured to be rated among Top 3 Best Mortgage Brokers in Burlington!”
Mortgage tricks… and treats!
Happy Halloween! And before the kids knock on your door.. just thought I’d send a quick mortgage trick and trick..
TRICK.. ‘Stress Test’ for mortgage qualifying. The Finance Minister, Bill Morneau, blindsided Canadian Banks, Financial Experts and consumers when the govt introduced mortgage rules making qualifying even tougher. The new rules mean consumers must qualify at the posted bank 5 year fixed rate.
TREAT... The reality of the new mortgage rules is that it’s not going to affect that many. One of Canada’s biggest mortgage lenders told me, confidentially, that over 95% of their portfolio would easily pass the new stress test. The REAL devil here is the Canadian Press. Unfortunately, they are making this latest change sound like a death-blow for the real estate market. Gauging my own clients profiles, I would say that even fewer than 5% would be affected.
If you’ve followed my site, you’ll know I’m a huge Variable rate advocate. More than 90% of my clients have been in a Variable rate product. And guess what? They’ve always been able to qualify using the posted 5 yr fixed rate.
The govt wants to slow the housing market and property value increases. I agree, we don’t want to see house prices continue unsustainable increases. Not sure this latest change is the correct move. Perhaps, this rule could have apply for higher priced homes only..? Exclude homes less than $600k or $700k? Just a thought.. I’m also unsure the lack consultation or input from industry experts, was a wise move. More open discussion is needed. Just my opinion..
Happy Halloween.
Your best interest is my only interest. I reply to all questions and I welcome your comments. Like this article? Share with a friend.
Steve Garganis 416 224 0114 steve@mortgagenow.ca
Not about Mortgages… Cut the crap!
It’s rare that I talk about something that isn’t directly related to mortgages, real estate or finances. Today is one of those days. I want to share this pretty cool podcast channel I stumbled upon. Maybe you’ll find it as useful as I did.
Yup, that’s the name of this podcast channel. Ok, at first, I thought, what can this be about? Maybe it’s a spinoff from the old Penn and Teller show?? But then, I saw the headline at the bottom “Never read a book again”. I thought, okay, let’s check this out. And I’m glad I did. Continue reading “Not about Mortgages… Cut the crap!”
Paris attacks won’t change human kindness.. Maybe this story will help to brighten your day.
Last week, I started writing this article.. but just couldn’t find time to finish.. And then, the Paris terrorist attacks happened. How tragic and senseless. Well, maybe this article will lift your spirits just a bit.
About a month ago, I had an interesting experience… I was parked downtown… was walking back to my truck and noticed a note on the windshield. It read, “I hit the front corner of your truck!! I’m so sorry. You can contact me… 416 123 4567 (I’m blocking out the true number) Shannon”.
I had a look at the front of my truck and sure enough the bumper had been pushed in. I’ll admit, my first reaction was anger and bit of self pity… you know, ‘why did this happen to me?’.. That sort of thing.
But then I started to wonder… was this phone number real or did someone just write a note to make it look like they were doing the right thing? I quickly called that number … sure enough, Shannon was real. She answered and was so apologetic. She felt very bad about what happened.
I quickly stopped her and said, “it’s ok. Accidents happen all the time. You did what many others wouldn’t do. You stepped up and took responsibility. I’m so thankful that you did. Honesty and honor are just words to some people. You are clearly a person of honor. Thank you for being honest.”
Shannon turned a bad situation into a good experience. As strange as this sounds, I actually felt pretty good the rest of the day.
Last week, I brought my truck in for the repair. Shannon was true to her word and paid the autobody shop and also paid for my car rental.
Thank you Shannon…. for showing me there are still good, honest people in this world.. taking responsibility for their actions. Thank you for making me believe in the human spirit. I hope I can pay it forward one day.
Hope this brightens your day, just a little.
Your best interest is my only interest. I reply to all questions and I welcome your comments. Like this article? Share with a friend.
Steve Garganis 416 224 0114 steve@mortgagenow.ca
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