CategoryMortgage News

Posted December 14, 2015 Mortgage News

Higher minimum down payment coming.. relax, it’s just political posturing.

As expected, and as I had predicted back on October 21st, the Federal govt made their first major announcement last week. All new govts want to make a major announcement early… It shows they are doing something….So, here it is.

The new Federal Minister of Finance, Bill Morneau, broke the news on Friday. A change to the minimum down payment rules. That’s right, the minimum down payment to buy a house is going up…. well, sort of… Okay, that’s the headline … but now, keep reading for the real facts. Here’s a link to The Star’s article by Susan Pigg quoting yours truly…. Continue reading “Higher minimum down payment coming.. relax, it’s just political posturing.”

Posted November 24, 20154 Comments Interest rates

Mortgage rates went up…. but why? And will they continue to go up?

A month ago, I said Fixed mortgage rates probably hit the bottom. A week later, fixed mortgage rates started to go up… around 0.20% over the past 3 weeks. Variable rate mortgage pricing has gone from Prime less 0.65% to Prime less Prime less 0.40%.

Now, here’s the thing…. I don’t think rates will skyrocket over the next 6 or 12 months, like the pessimists would have you believe. I think mortgage rates hit the bottom….BUT, they probably won’t go up very quickly.

In fact, the forecast now is for the Bank of Canada rate to stay the same until 2017. This is just another example of how the world has become a smaller place. If someone sneezes in Germany, we catch a cold. With most of the global economies just getting by, there isn’t much reason for mortgage rates to go crazy. They should remain low.

The key driver for rates going up recently is nothing more than profit taking. Banks have had a great year… In case you didn’t know. That’s right.. we seem to forget that 2015 was one of the best years on record for real estate and mortgage volume… and house prices have never been higher. Funny how that seems to get lost in the media reports.

Look for Variable rate pricing to fall in the new year… Fixed rates could also come down slightly, but don’t count on them hitting the record lows that we saw this summer. Hey, that’s not to say rates are bad. We are still well under 3.00%. These are ridiculously low mortgage rates. Enjoy them while you can.

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

Posted November 5, 20152 Comments Interest rates

Trudeau sworn in as new PM, and bond yields jump leading to higher fixed mortgage rates!

Yesterday, our new Prime Minister gets sworn in. Justin Trudeau is Canada’s 23rd Prime Minister. Some interesting facts… Bond yields have gone up significantly in the last 2 weeks, since the election. Fixed rates are priced directly from the Govt of Cda Bond yields. If the yields go up, then fixed mortgage rates go up. If they go down, then fixed mortgage rates go down.

Since the election on Oct 19, the bond yields have made a steady climb upwards. Going from around 0.80% to 0.97% today.. Investors seem to think the Trudeau govt will keep it’s promise and spend our way to prosperity. The concern is that if the govt of Canada increases its borrowing, the borrowing costs will go up. Meaning it will cost the govt more, which in turn affects personal borrowing costs. That’s you and I.

Watch for fixed mortgage rates to climb over the next month or so. Right now, the increase is expected to be minimal…. but that could change.

I’ll be watching and reporting how this plays out. Let’s hope the campaign promise of increasing the deficit was one of those promises that doesn’t get honored. If you want to keep borrowing costs low, then you also want less govt, not more.

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

Posted October 30, 20151 Comment Mortgage News

Today is your last chance to stop DOUBLING of Land Transfer Tax.

As this is such an important issue, I’m gonna repeat my last article. Today is the last day to voice your opinion to our Provincial govt and tell them how you feel about the possibility of DOUBLING your Land Transfer Tax. The govt is accepting all opinions until today.

The Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing is Ted McMeekin… You can email his office through Mark Cripps at Mark.Cripps@ontario.ca and by phone at 416 585 6842.

In case you don’t know what Land Transfer Tax is… the province charges a tax to the purchaser, every time a home is sold. Yup, another cash grab. It’s kinda like when you buy a new car… when you buy it, you are charged sales tax (today, that’s 13%… remember when it was 7% and 8%? seeing a pattern here anyone?). And when you sell that car, the sales tax is levied once again to the new purchaser…when they sell it, the new purchaser must pay this sales tax again… and so on, and so on. But why? Why should a sales tax be charged over and over again? Can anyone explain this?

If you buy a house, and sell in 2 or 3 or 10 yrs, the govt charges this Land Transfer Tax. It’s ridiculous and it’s not a fair system of levying a charge.. Yet, it’s something that has been accepted as the norm.

In Toronto, the mayor couldn’t balance the budget so he seeked special powers from the Province to introduce a Toronto Land Transfer Tax in 2008. Yup, they just created a new tax out of thin air and slammed all property buyers with a double tax.. Nice, eh?

Look, if you are as upset with this as I am, then take 2 mins and send an email to the govt. It’s one thing to bring into a major city like Toronto, but to bring into all communities across the province would be disastrous. Not all of Ontario is experiencing prosperity. This is shameful. I don’t like making strong statements like that. But I can’t help myself.

Stand up Ontarians! Have your say.

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

Posted October 28, 20152 Comments Mortgage News

New Land Transfer Tax for ALL of Ontario??!! Ms. Wynne, stop the madness!

Did you know that in 2008, the city of Toronto was given special powers by the Provincial govt to bring their own municipal land transfer tax? Since then, homebuyers in Toronto have had to pay 2 land transfer taxes. The Provincial one and the municipal one.

On a $500,000 home, Land Transfer tax in Toronto is $12,200. In the rest of Ontario, it’s $6475. On a $750,000 home, LTT in Toronto is $22,200. The rest of Ontario, it’s $11,475. It’s a sliding scale with the % going up the more your home is worth.

Yesterday, October 27th (remember this date), we saw news reports that the Ontario provincial is considering extending those same special powers to the rest of Ontario. I’ll repeat that… the Provincial govt, led by Ms. Kathleen Wynne, is considering extending special powers to allow the rest of Ontario to add their own municipal land transfer tax. Continue reading “New Land Transfer Tax for ALL of Ontario??!! Ms. Wynne, stop the madness!”