Taglow interest rates

Posted March 2, 2015 Case study

Rate shopping sites…tested again.. and failed again.

A few years ago, I published a study on Rate shopping sites. These sites were gaining popularity with consumers as a place to go if you wanted to get the best rates. And they attracted a lot of attention.

You know the sites… they have catchy ads like ‘shopping for the Best Mortgage rates in Canada’ or ‘comparing Canada’s mortgage brokers for the best rates’.
Hey, who doesn’t want the best rate? These ads work. Canadians were clicking these links to get more info.

Sounds great, right? Yet, it’s not.
Continue reading “Rate shopping sites…tested again.. and failed again.”

Posted February 3, 2014 Case study

Lower rate = Lower payment and a Lower balance in 5 years!

We all know that a lower interest means a lower monthly payment. But did you know that a lower interest rate means you will also owe less when your mortgage comes up for renewal? This has been overlooked by consumers and experts alike. I haven’t seen any articles covering this. And it should change how you choose your next mortgage product.

It all has to do with the effects of compounding interest. Let’s take a look at 2 borrowers, each with a $400k mortgage. Borrower 1 is Mary. Borrower 2 is Dave. Mary has today’s 5 yr fixed rate of 3.29%. Dave has the more normal rate of 5.50% (the rate most experts think we will see in the next 3 to 5 yrs). We’ll amortize both mortgage over a 25 yr term.

Dave’s mortgage has monthly payments of $2441 and a balance owing of $356,749 at the end of 5 years. Mary’s mortgage has monthly payments of $1953 and a balance owing of $343,728 at the end of the first 5 years. Notice the difference in the balance owing after 5 years. We are talking about a $13,021 difference. That’s the effects of compounding interest. Continue reading “Lower rate = Lower payment and a Lower balance in 5 years!”

Posted May 10, 2013 Money saving tips

Mortgage rates hit all-time lows….it all adds up to record savings too.

Mortgage rates are still low… In fact, they are at record lows… 5 year fixed rates for qualify products can be found at 2.89%… some No Frills products are at 2.79% (stay away from these products).. Put another way, for every $100,000 of mortgage you borrower, your payment is $468/mth.

Compare this with the average 5 year fixed rate for the past 25 years being over 7.00% and you have huge potential savings. That same $100,000 mortgage would cost you $700/mth… That’s a $232/mth difference. No wonder more Canadians are buying homes, buying rental properties or tapping into their equity to invest. Continue reading “Mortgage rates hit all-time lows….it all adds up to record savings too.”

Posted April 29, 20137 Comments Case study

So-called “Best Rate sites” are put to the test with shocking results.

There’s been a surge of ‘Best Rate’ sites popping up… Chances are, you’ve probably seen one or more of their online ads… You know the ones…‘shopping’ for the Best mortgage rates in Canada’ and ‘comparing Canada’s mortgage brokers for the best rate”. It does sound great… and it seems to be getting lots of attention… Even the media are covering and quoting these sites… And although I like that these sites promote how Mortgage Brokers can offer great rates, I’ve noticed some disturbing trends that you need to watch out for.

“I JUST WANT THE BEST RATE”

You say you want the ‘best rate’? Really? Or do you want to pay the least amount of money on your mortgage? I’ll bet it’s the latter. Make no mistake, these two things are very different and I’ll prove it. But let’s face it, the rate gets everyone’s attention.. Most people don’t want to hear anything beyond that.. until they get burned for $$thousands on the mortgage later on.

Now what if I told you that 80% of my clients were paying a rate of 1.35% during 2009 and 2010, would that get your attention? Of course. And it’s true. 80% of my clients were in a Variable Rate mortgage based on my recommendations….and almost all of them didn’t panic and lock into a fixed rate (like the BIG SIX BANKS wanted them to)…they stayed in those products based on my specific advice recommending they not lock into a Fixed rate…. That’s called being in the right product at the right time. My average client saved $6,000 during that time. Continue reading “So-called “Best Rate sites” are put to the test with shocking results.”

Posted September 25, 20121 Comment Mortgage Rates

Listings down, prices up…. housing bubble?

Latest housing stats show listings are down, sales are down… but prices are up, only slightly…. and houses aren’t on the market as long. They are selling faster. Doesn’t sound like a bubble to me. More like a soft landing.

This is exactly what the govt had in mind when it changed mortgage rules a few months ago and made it tougher to qualify for a mortgage. It’s still too early to say if these changes are just right or went too far….. We’ll need another 6 months or so to see the full effect. Best guesses are that the housing market could slow by 5%. But I haven’t seen that happen… In the Greater Toronto area, we are still seeing multiple offers and sales go above asking price…. The interesting stat for me is the fewer number of sales… We’ll be watching that stat… fewer sales over an extended period of time will stop any price increases…

This also means we should expect interest rates to remain low. The Bank of Canada will be under less pressure to raise rates with a flat housing market. Throw in the U.S. Fed’s announcement last week that they were going to keep rates the same until 2014-15, and we have the perfect setting for low rates.

RECORD LOW INTEREST ARE STILL HERE…. WHY AREN’T WE TALKING ABOUT THIS?

Speaking of low interest rates… Here’s some advice… before you put your plans to buy on hold, you should remember that we are still enjoying historically low interest rates. 5 year fixed rates at 3.09%… Variable rates at 2.65%..!! This is a fact that so many of us tend to ignore…. maybe it’s just too boring to talk about. I’ll make it more exciting…

A $400k mortgage will carry for $1912/mth based on today’s 3.09% 5 yr fixed rate…….Wanna wait for house prices to fall and save some money? Ok, but you should also expect interest rates to rise… lower house prices are caused by higher interest rates and higher unemployment… We don’t expect higher unemployment so we must attribute any house price drop to a rise in interest rates……a look back at the last housing crash in 1989 showed interest rates went up to 11% and 12% just before the crash….. make sense so far?

This is where so many of us stop thinking or analyzing…Cashflow and affordability are probably just as important or more important than rate, mortgage balance, purchase price, etc… if you aren’t comfortable with the payment, you will run into problems…. By the way, affordability is still VERY good according the RBC affordability index.

REAL MORTGAGE MATH SHOWS TRUE COST OF WAITING TO BUY

Let’s continue….Let’s say rates go to more normal levels… we’ll use 5% interest rates.. That same $400k mortgage will cost you $2326/mth.…. and if you wanna adjust the mortgage size by $40k because house prices should fall 10%, okay… a $360k mortgage at 5% will cost you $2094/mth... That’s still $182/mth more… and let’s also not forget, that you may have lost 1, 2, 3 or more years of not paying a mortgage down…. Did you know you will pay your mortgage down by around $10k per year in the first 3 yrs alone?

Real Estate isn’t always a great investment, but it usually makes more sense to buy, hold and enjoy, than it does not to buy and rent…. And with interest rates at record lows, it’s even easier to make that recommendation. Stop listening to the pessimist that say the sky is falling or the world is ending… If we listened to them, we would be renting for the last 10+ years… for that’s how long they have been saying house prices are inflated and need to drop…..

As always, if you aren’t sure where you fit in or what’s best for you, feel free to contact me to discuss… Your questions and comments are welcome.

Steve Garganis

steve@mortgagenow.ca

416 224 0114