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Tagcollateral mortgage

Posted Money saving tips

Scotiabank to buy ING….how will this affect you?

Earlier this month, ING Groep, the Dutch financial services giant, announced they were looking to sell their Canadian and UK operations in order to raise cash.   ING received a $10billion euro bailout from the Dutch govt during the 2008 Financial crisis and they want to start paying it back.

It didn’t take long to find a buyer for the Canadian operations.  Scotiabank will buy the Canadian division of ING for around $3billion.   The press release hinted at some good news for the Canadian public.  Scotiabank will continue to run ING as a separate entity.  For mortgage clients, this is mainly good news…. but we do have some concerns… Continue reading “Scotiabank to buy ING….how will this affect you?”

Posted 10 Comments on ING collateral charge in 2012.. hand-cuffs included Mortgage News

ING collateral charge in 2012.. hand-cuffs included

You’ve seen the ads…  That fellow with the Dutch accent and the orange background, telling us to ‘save your money’.  Since 1997, when they first entered Canada, they have grown to 1.7 million clients and $37billion in assets.  ING spends millions in marketing… They’ve created a brand that is synonymous with saving or discounts.

Today, I just heard they will be counting on that trust.  It is rumoured ING Direct will begin registering ALL mortgages as collateral charges.   They join TD Bank as the second major lender to make this bold change.    A move that has great implications for the Canadian consumer.

It was almost one year ago when TD Bank announced they would register all their mortgages as a collateral charge.  (click here for the details of what a collateral mortgage is and some reactions).   Consumer advocates spoke up and warned against getting a mortgage like this…. Strangely, the media was silent.  (hmm, I wonder how much TD spends in media advertising???).

In short, the benefit is that you will be able to increase your mortgage without having to spend money on new legal fees….ok, that saves you around $800 to $1,000.  That’s your benefit.  (but even this has changed as there are some programs that will offer a discounted legal fee).

Here’s what you lose….you give up your leverage to negotiate the best rate… and that’s because if you want to leave ING, you cannot simply transfer your mortgage… Collateral mortgages cannot be transferred.     You still have to qualify for any increase… you must trust that the Bank has your best interest at heart….   Hey, remember when all the banks raised their lines of credit rates in 2008-09 without warning?

ING has been a great Lender, but this new move will drive away most advisors, mortgage brokers and clients that want options and flexibility..

I’ll continue to report more as this story breaks..

Posted 2 Comments on Your mortgage is paid? Beware of mortgage fraudsters…. Mortgage News

Your mortgage is paid? Beware of mortgage fraudsters….

“You’ve worked hard all your life… your house is finally paid off.  You decide to it’s time to get a smaller house, maybe a condo or you just want travel.  Does this sound like someone you know?  You sell your home but discover that someone has registered a mortgage on your house without you knowing it.  Sound impossible?  Guess again… this is Mortgage Fraud and it’s happening now.”

I wrote that back in 2006.  Since then we have seen some provincial governments step in with laws to protect unsuspecting homeowners….  You can also purchase Title insurance to protect you as well.    But once you have been victimized by the crooks, you still need to make a claim and go through the hassle of clearing things up…. Who wants to go through making a claim? This takes time and can be a big paid in the rear. 

What if there was a way to make yourself less of a target?   The good news is there is a better way to protect yourself….. The criminals go after homes that have no mortgage.  This is PUBLIC information.  Anyone can find out if you have a mortgage just by going to the Land Registry Office and doing a search.   So what should you do?

The solution is to register a mortgage on your home.  This doesn’t mean you need to borrow money.  By getting a secured line of credit you will have a collateral mortgage registered.  The criminals will not know if you have a balance on that mortgage or if it’s $0.   And they will probably go searching for the next home that has no mortgage.

What makes this product unique is that it is available to both salaried and self-employed individuals that cannot prove their income.  If you don’t use it, it doesn’t cost you anything.  

Let me know if you would like more details about this.

Posted Mortgage News

TD is not able to accept collateral mortgage transfers.

Last October, we reported one of the biggest changes by a major bank in recent history…. TD Canada Trust changed how they would register mortgages…  Quietly, TD announced they would now register all mortgages as a collateral charge…  Most borrowers won’t know what the difference is, but for us in the financial industry, we know this will have huge ramifications and limitations and could end up costing the average borrower $$thousands.   Click here to read what the experts say.

And then in December, we heard a rumor that TD was looking at ways to transfer in collateral mortgages…. They wanted to give us the impression that there were few limitations to taking a TD mortgage… uh, let me say that again… that’s TD collateral mortgage.

We just heard that this has been put on the shelf.   They just can’t figure out a way to transfer in collateral mortgages…  If this doesn’t make you think twice about taking a TD mortgage, then I don’t know what will.   I’ve never heard of any bank accepting a collateral mortgage for transfer……Just isn’t possible with today’s real estate and mortgage laws.

Oh and by the way, if you’re wondering.. TD will allow you to transfer in your mortgage from any other financial institution…  But be warned, once you are there, I think you’ll have a hard time getting out.

Posted Mortgage News

TD taking action with new collateral mortgage

No, the hand-cuffs are still on if you took a TD Mortgage recently.. yes, they are still being registered as a collateral charge and not the normal, conventional charge…

But I heard from a good source that TD is working on changing their policies to allow for the transfer-in of collateral mortgages.  That would mean that TD would accept collateral mortgages from other financial institutions should new clients wants to bring their mortgage to TD.

But how does this help a TD client that is up for negotiation with their mortgage when TD knows they cannot transfer that mortgage out without having to pay new legal fees to move that mortgage?   The borrower loses their leverage to negotiate…it’s really that simple…  here’s a great article from Gail Vax-Oxlade telling us what she thinks about TD’s new collateral mortgage.  Remember, collateral mortgages are not accepted by other financial institutions for transfers….

This subject isn’t going away… we will see if other Banks will follow TD’s lead and go with a collateral mortgage charge or whether they will accept collateral mortgages for transfers.  Stay tuned for more on this major shift in mortgage registration.

And who will pay that extra cost to transfer mortgages in and convert them to TD’s collateral charge?   For now, it’s TD picking up the cost, but does anyone really expect that to continue?   At some point, that cost will most likely be passed to the consumer.

TD is taking a big risk.. maybe it’s a calculated risk… they certainly have the deep pockets to pay for this.. at least for a little while…. I’m sorry to say it looks like the TD borrower is going to lose out in the end.