UNBIASED AND INDEPENDENT SINCE 2009

Posted March 8, 20124 Comments Interest rates

BMO NO FRILLS mortgage 2.99% is back… but please don’t read the fine print…

Ladies and Gentlemen, here’s a quote from Mr. Frank Techar, head of BMO’s domestic retail bank as published in The Financial Post “We believe these products will allow our customers to borrow smartly,” I couldn’t agree more… After you spend some time reading the product details, you are sure to turn around and run.

BMO’s NO FRILLS mortgage is back…2.99% for 5 yrs fixed and 3.99% for 10 yrs fixed until March 28. Both come with the same restrictions and limitations as before… We give this product a BIG THUMBS DOWNS! We recommend you stay away from this type of product.

Even thought I don’t like the product, I do like seeing these product announcements… they create a buzz and get competitors to react. It’s great for business.

First off, let me say, there are LOWER unadvertised rates out there…you can get another NO FRILLS 5 yr fixed at 2.95% and a REGULAR 10 yr fixed for 3.94%…..Now that I have your attention, I strongly recommend you read the details before making a decision…. mortgages can be complicated. Don’t make the wrong a decision.. speak with a Mortgage Broker.

What makes this product different from their regular line of mortgages are the restrictions and limitations. In January, BMO made headlines when they first announced this so-called ‘special offer’. It’s special alright… READ THE PRODUCT OVERVIEW… In January, I warned against taking this product…. my warning has been reactivated…. Once you read the fine print, you will realize this product is not suitable for most of us..it’s just a lot of smoke and mirrors trying to get you in the front BMO door.. a good marketing ploy… and I’m sure they’ll gain market share because of it. But let’s make sure you understand the fine print…

YOU STILL WANT THAT BMO NO FRILLS RATE?

But let’s say you’ve read all the fine print and still want this product… I’ve got news for you…. There are BETTER PRICED NO FRILLS PRODUCTS…. As a Mortgage Broker I have access to better unadvertised rates… Only problem is, I don’t have a $500million advertising budget… So I have to rely on providing my clients with good advice…Fortunately, my good advice has served me well and 95% of my business comes from repeat clients and referrals.

MY ADVICE

No Frills products came out around 8 years ago and my advice has been the same. DON’T TAKE these products. If you do, chances are you will not come back to me as a satisfied client. I can kiss your future business and future referrals good-bye. And I can’t afford to do that. That’s why you’ll NEVER see me promote or recommend these products. Yes, I have access to them but I’m going to do everything in my power to steer you clear of them.

WHAT’S AVAILABLE TODAY

Interest rate is probably the most important part of a mortgage but it’s not everything. Did you know that there are excellent 5 year fixed rate products hovering between 3.19% and 3.29%? and 10 yr fixed rates of around 3.94%? Why are these better? You don’t have to give up your options. You don’t have the restrictions of a NO FRILLS product, like BMO’s ‘low-rate mortgage’. You have full prepayment privileges.. you can payout the mortgage without having to sell your home.. you can refinance with any lender and not just your original lender… meaning you will be able to negotiate a competitive rate should you need to refinance. On average, Canadians refinance their mortgage every 3 years… This happens for a number of reasons.. selling their home, debt restructuring, family issues, work issues, etc…. Mortgage penalties charged on these NO FRILLS mortgages can be outrageous… we’ve seen penalties of up to 14, 16 and even 20 months worth of interest… Don’t put yourself in that situation…

Get all the facts and then make a decision.

Posted March 5, 20122 Comments Mortgage News

Mortgage penalty rules change… finally.. well, sort of…

The Federal govt announced some changes to protect Canadian Consumers… including rule changes to credit cards and mortgage prepayment information. Here’s a link to the entire news release.

For our purposes, we are focusing more on the mortgage prepayment announcement. Here’s a link to that portion of the news release.

There are 5 Elements to the Code of Conduct for Federally regulated institutions. The changes must be implemented within 6 to 12 months. In short, the new Code of Conduct rules will require these lenders to provide clear disclosure on how penalties are calculated, along with online calculators and access to knowledgeable staff that can be contacted through a toll-free phone. Continue reading “Mortgage penalty rules change… finally.. well, sort of…”

Posted March 5, 20122 Comments Money saving tips

Banks are at it again… calling mortgage clients before maturity..

With all the recent talk in the media about ‘rate wars’ and ‘mortgage market share’, it was only a matter of time before we saw this happening. Yes, the Banksters are at it again.

We’re getting reports that Banks are contacting borrowers 4, 5 and even 6 months prior to maturity. Supposedly, they are calling to ‘offer a great rate, if you sign now!’ Hey, that sounds great. Except the interest rates that we see being offered aren’t really that great. In fact, they are higher than what is available in the wholesale market.

This isn’t anything new. We saw this happen in late 2008 and early 2009. The Banks were telling clients to lock into Fixed rates if they were in Variable (and we told our clients to stick with Variable as interest rates were heading down… sure enough, they did go down)…. And they were offering supposed ‘special rates’ 4 to 6 months prior to maturity. The only problem is that the interest rates being offered were not as good as the Banks made it seem. And the timing of the product offerings were clearly wrong.

What makes this problem even more complex today, is that some of the Banks are offering NO FRILLS mortgages with limited prepayment privileges and NO option to pay the mortgage out in full unless you sell the house. They dangle an attractive interest rate but forget to tell you about the product limitations. STAY away from these products. They will come back to bite you in your bottom….. bottom line, that is.

Here’s some advice… Before signing any renewal offer, speak with your Mortgage Broker… find out if that offer and product are really as good as the Bank makes it seem. The stats tell us that most Canadians will not bother shopping and just sign their renewal offer… and that’s too bad. A 0.40% difference in rate on a $250,000 mortgage will cost you $4774 in the first 5 years alone. Don’t be so quick to sign what the Bank offers you… don’t be complacent….you could pay dearly for it.

Posted February 22, 20125 Comments Money saving tips

RRSP, RESP, TSFA or Mortgage prepayment? Which has the best returns?

HOW TO GET THE MOST OUT OF YOUR MONEY

Trying to decide what’s the best move can be difficult…. and I must admit, this is not an easy subject to tackle. There are so many opinions…. But it’s important enough that I’m going to put my 2 cents in. My final recommendations are listed at the bottom if you want to fast forward…

First, let’s come to an understanding that we are all different and have different needs…. you must ask for professional opinions and make up your own mind. Having said that, I think that for me, this is actually a very easy decision. Continue reading “RRSP, RESP, TSFA or Mortgage prepayment? Which has the best returns?”

Posted February 16, 2012 Interest rates

CMHC forecasts a healthy housing market for 2012-13…. but fixed mortgage rates have started to climb.

CMHC issued a report that says the economy will expand at a moderate pace over the next few years, as reported in The Spectator. The Bank of Canada should also keep it’s trend setting rate low until mid 2013. This means Variable mortgage and secured lines of credit rates will remain low.

The report also says the average house price in Canada is expected to hit $368,900 this year. But, a closer look at the Greater Toronto Area market shows that house prices are climbing much faster. A lack of supply and a pent up demand, together with record low interest rates are fueling price increases. Reports of homes being sold above asking are popping up outside of Toronto.. including Milton, Georgetown, Oakville, Burlington and Hamilton.

If you’re in the market for a home, my advice would be to not wait til the Spring market. The market is now. Experienced realtors are telling me they have priced a 5% increase in the first 2 months of 2012. Waiting could cost homebuyers $18,000 or more.

FIXED MORTGAGE RATEShave started to climb. Earlier this week we saw RBC and TD pull their special mortgage rate offers… BIG SIX Banks don’t like to compete in the wholesale mortgage market with mortgage brokers… when these 2 banks realized no other BIG SIX bank was offering this rate, they quickly withdrew the offer… read this article... the BIG SIX banks are calling a truce? What does that mean…? Don’t you want your banks to compete? And that last paragraph by BMO’s Frank Techar is priceless.. “We went to 2.99 per cent to draw attention to the benefits of having a mortgage with a maximum amortization of 25 years”. This does make me a laugh a little… BMO’s NO FRILLS mortgage was a way to gain market share and entice borrowers into a restricted and closed mortgage product… Mortgage Brokers already had access to this rate and a NO FRILLS product through another lender… but it’s not a great product and the restrictions are costly…Most brokers will not recommend or even offer this product to their clients.

The ripple effects of this ‘truce’ are that wholesale mortgage rates have started to climb… ING and National Bank have also increased their rates. This could be temporary but if the Greeks get their act together and the U.S. economy starts to improve, we will see rate hikes…. My advice is get your mortgage preapproval now…. These are historical low interest rates… I’m not sure they will be here for much longer.