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Posted Real Estate news

Trump’s George Ross says Canada’s Housing market is undervalued….

George RossGeorge Ross is Donald Trump’s Executive VP.  He’s Trump’s senior advisor and has worked with Trump for 30 years.   You’ve probably seen him on TV on ‘The Apprentice’.   This week, he was quoted as saying Canada’s real estate market is undervalued, not overvalued.    That’s quite the opposite of what the so-called experts have been saying for 8 or 9 years.  (by the way, where are those experts now?)

If you listen to his interview, he makes some good points.   Office properties have more upward potential than residential properties.  But the residential market follows the Office or commercial market.   He also says that buying a house for a quick flip isn’t a good strategy.    It may sound good on the TV shows, but it’s a risky game to play.   Mr. Ross says more fortunes have been lost in real estate than have been made.   Continue reading “Trump’s George Ross says Canada’s Housing market is undervalued….”

Posted 1 Comment on Bond Yields are up… will Fixed Mortgage rates follow? Interest rates

Bond Yields are up… will Fixed Mortgage rates follow?

graph trend upFixed mortgage rates are tied closely to the Govt of Cda bond yields.   And bond yields are up…  Since mid April, the 5 yr Gov of Cda bond yield has gone from 0.75% to 1.07%.   That’s a 0.32% jump.   Normally, we would see fixed mortgage rates go up.

So far, no increase.  But that’s probably more to do with a competitive Spring housing market.   This is when most house sales and mortgage transactions take place.   The Banks need to maintain certain market share levels in order to keep shareholders happy.    They are willing to sacrifice a little profit margin (and I do mean little… they seem to make up for this with higher service fees as was recently reported, but let’s not get into that now…).

If the bond yields continue to increase, we will see fixed mortgage rates rise.  That’s an automatic.   The real question is how long will the bond yields continue their climb?   It will be interesting to watch the next few months.   We can expect to see some rate increases as the Spring market ends and Banks look to increase their profit…. A pattern that repeats itself year after year..   but here’s what you can do to protect yourself… Continue reading “Bond Yields are up… will Fixed Mortgage rates follow?”

Posted Case study

Online shopping for Stocks, Vacations and Mortgages. An In-depth comparison…

which mortgageIS CHOOSING A MORTGAGE IS AS EASY AS BOOKING A TRIP OR TRADING A STOCK?…LET’S FIND OUT!

Sure, you can book a flight online or a buy a stock through the web.   But, can you really choose the right mortgage product on your own?  Can you really find the absolutely lowest cost mortgage financing option?  I’ll bet some consumers can. I’ll also bet the vast majority cannot…. and there’s a steady stream of horror stories, on this news site and others, that show just how costly and financially dangerous it is to be in the wrong mortgage product, with the wrong lender.

I’ve shared dozens of those experiences on this site.    Consumers who were directed into the wrong mortgage by their Banker or by some web site claiming to offer ‘the lowest rate’.   I empathize with these consumers as I believe they were just trying to save some money but instead ended up paying far more than they had to. Continue reading “Online shopping for Stocks, Vacations and Mortgages. An In-depth comparison…”

Posted 1 Comment on CMHC increased insurance premiums… again.. but still cheaper than 10 yrs ago. Bank News

CMHC increased insurance premiums… again.. but still cheaper than 10 yrs ago.

CMHC Last May, CMHC increased all their insurance premiums.  The move wasn’t really a surprise to industry insiders.  CMHC’s product line has been reduced.  No more rental property mortgages.  No more refinancing mortgages.  No more secured lines of credit mortgages.

That’s a big chunk of business gone.  And when revenues go down for this crown corporation, what do they do?  They do what every reputable govt corp does.  They raise fees  and make the consumer pay more!   (check out my charts below) Continue reading “CMHC increased insurance premiums… again.. but still cheaper than 10 yrs ago.”

Posted Mortgage News

RBC announces ’employee pricing for mortgages’.. and it’s April Fools day.

RBC-BankRBC is coming out with their employee pricing program for mortgages… yet again.   And like last year’s promotion, it deserves a closer look.. or at least some exposure.

Last year, the program promised to “break through the clutter of price wars within the mortgage marketplace”, to quote Sean Amato-Gauci, Senior VP at RBC.    It was a twist on the auto industry.

And like last year, they aren’t putting their actual interest rate isn’t going to be advertised in any print.  They are hoping Consumers will be intrigued enough to call or walk into a branch to get the actual rate.   Well, I’ll save you the suspense.  Rumors say it could be as low as 2.69% for a 5 yr fixed rate product.  Hey, that’s a good rate.  It’s a competitive rate.  But it’s not the best mortgage out there!   Check out these facts… Continue reading “RBC announces ’employee pricing for mortgages’.. and it’s April Fools day.”