24 Jan

Construction Mortgage Part 2 – The Budget, the Loan and the Key Points You Need To Know

General

Posted by: Cory Kline

The first of our Construction Mortgage Blogs covered the basics of what you would need to know for this complicated mortgage type. In this second part, we will cover three key areas: The budget, the loan, and key take-away points.

1. The Budget

The budget is the most important piece of information that the lender wants to see. It should include “hard” and “soft” costs. There is usually “reserve” money set aside to ensure there is enough money in the anticipated event of over budget costs. The “reserve” money is usually 10%-25% cash flow based on the budget for the project. This is on top of the down payment.

This table denotes common soft and hard costs that should be included in the budget:

24 Jan

Construction Mortgage Part 1 – Serviced vs Unserviced Lots

General

Posted by: Cory Kline

On several occasions we have had people ask us at Dominion Lending Centres about construction mortgages. Every lender has their own guidelines and rules when it comes to construction mortgages. That’s because there are many details involved in the process of construction, let alone the mortgage that actually funds it! Below is part 1 of 2 of what a construction mortgage entails and what you need to know when tackling this complex mortgage.

19 Jan

4 Steps to a Financially Fit You in 2017!

General

Posted by: Cory Kline

Well, you have likely noticed that it is time for resolutions according to the plethora of fitness equipment and organizational plastic bins on sale in every flyer you open. It seems fitting that we take a 4 step approach to positioning yourself for financial fitness in 2017 as well.

So first of all, I am going to go ahead and assume you are human. Yes? If so then please know that you are not slacker! Almost every person I have met has something in their financial world they have been meaning to get to but have not so forget the past and let’s move onward and upwards!

Step 1 – Write down your goals. Study after study proves that actually writing out what it is you want causes the synapses in your brain to reconnect to work towards the goal even when you are not thinking about it.

Step 2 – Just do it! Seems I heard that somewhere before but anyways. It is now time to actually get everything in place.

* Will – Call around and get some quotes on having your will prepared with all the necessary paperwork by a reputable lawyer.

* Financial/Insurance Planner – People who work with a qualified financial planner do much better overall than those who wing it. Meet with a few of them and learn what you need to know so that your pennies turn into a comfortable future

* Accountant – The onslaught of cheap software makes it very easy to think you can do it all yourself when it comes to your taxes but a qualified accountant is essential in my opinion. They can literally save you thousands on your tax bill. That’s your money so you should keep it.

* Mortgage Professional – Your home is your largest asset and your largest debt obligation. Have your mortgage reviewed by a Dominion Lending Centres mortgage professional to make sure you are in the best mortgage product for your situation now and to meet your goals later.

You will have noticed a theme here. You don’t need to know about the law or investments or insurance or taxes or mortgages. All you have to do is find yourself a TEAM to protect your interests.

Step 3 – Time to automate

Set up to meet your goals automatically. A regular withdrawal for your savings and other expenses is far less painful and way more likely to actually occur than if you have to sit down each month and choose to transfer the funds. If your goal is to pay down your mortgage, why not choose to increase your payments slightly rather than worrying about a lump sum later on. Bite sized is far easier.

If you are trying to keep a budget, there is an amazing app called mint.com. It is from the makers of Turbo Tax – you input all your credit/debit card info, your goals as far as savings or debt reduction, and a budget for each part of your life. Each purchase you make is automatically inputted into the correct category. You can see where you are spending and exactly how much and you will even get text notifications when you are close to your budget in a particular area.

Step 4 – Annual Review Day

So you have done the work and so now all you have to do is take 1 day a year off to review. Meet with all of your team to ensure you are where you need to be. Can you increase your mortgage? Is your will reflecting your new spouse or baby? Do you have enough insurance to protect yourself against disability or critical illness? Spoiler alert! We are all going to need life insurance, disability is the number one case of foreclosure and even out solid health care system does not cover all expenses so critical illness insurance can save your savings.

And there you have it, financial fitness in 4 steps! Your future self will thank you. As they say, the best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago, the second best is today.

Call Cory Kline at 705-794-1283 to get ‘Financially Fit’ in 2017!

Article written by Pam Pikkert, Jan.19,2017

 

 

16 Jan

Startling Gap Between the Lifestyle Expectation and Reality of Canadians 40+

General

Posted by: Cory Kline

Over the last few years, we have seen many retired Canadians outliving their retirement savings and requiring a financial solution to help them live the rest of their retirement. In the media alone, there is a constant outpouring of articles relating to retirement planning, preparing enough savings for retirement, as well as numerous articles around when to tap into your CPP. For many retirees and those approaching their retirement, these articles are a reminder of how to prepare and what to anticipate. However, Canadians continue to struggle with their finances in their retirement years.

16 Jan

Now Is the Time To Get Pre-approved For Your Mortgage!

General

Posted by: Cory Kline

So 2016 was an exciting year in the mortgage world! The problem is that we mortgage professionals really hate it when things get exciting in our world. Between the economy and the federally mandated mortgage rule changes and their ensuing fallout, it is now more important than ever to get a solid pre-approval in place. I am not just speaking to first time home owners either! Before you list your current home or refinance your mortgage or consider buying a rental, you need to make sure that you qualify under the new mortgage rules.

16 Jan

National Home Sales End 2016 On the Upside

General

Posted by: Cory Kline

This morning, the Canadian Real Estate Association (CREA) released its December national real estate statistics showing home sales rose 2.2% month-over-month in the final month of last year. This rebound retraced less than half of the decline in November, when it posted the largest monthly decline in more than four years in response to the federal tightening of mortgage regulations. 

Activity was up in 60% of all markets, led this time by Calgary and Edmonton where sales have been hard hit by the oil slowdown and the knock-on effects of the wildfires. 

For the year as a whole, the number of homes changing hands set a new record. New home sales were up 6.3% last year, reflecting strong sales in the first half of the year, slowing thereafter. Tightened mortgage regulations will however, weigh on activity this year. Housing activity will not provide the boost to overall economic growth in 2017 that it did last year as first-time homebuyers will find it more difficult to qualify for a mortgage.

New Listings Continue To Decline

The number of newly listed homes fell 3.0% in December compared to the prior month. New listings were down in about 60% of all local markets, with sizeable declines in B.C.’s Lower Mainland, Calgary and the Greater Toronto Area (GTA).

With sales up and new listings down, the national sales-to-new-listings ratio rose to 63.5% in December compared to 60.3% in the prior month. A ratio in the range of 40%-to-60% is considered generally consistent with balanced housing market conditions. Above 60% is considered a sellers’ market and below 40%, a buyers’ market. 

The sales-to-new-listings ratio was above 60% in half of all local housing markets again last month–the vast majority of which continued to be in British Columbia, in and around the Greater Toronto Area and across Southwestern Ontario. 

Number of Months of Inventory

The number of months of inventory is another important measure of the balance between housing supply and demand. It represents the number of months it would take to completely liquidate current inventories at the current rate of sales activity. 
There were 4.6 months of inventory on a national basis at the end of December–down from 4.8 months in November. 

The tight balance between housing supply and demand in Ontario’s Greater Golden Horseshoe region is without precedent (the region includes the GTA, Hamilton-Burlington, Oakville-Milton, Guelph, Kitchener-Waterloo, Cambridge, Brantford, the Niagara Region, Barrie and nearby cottage country). The number of months of inventory in December ranged between one and two months in many of these housing markets, and stood below one month in the Durham Region, Orangeville, Oakville-Milton, Kitchener-Waterloo, Brantford and Cambridge.

Prices Continue to Rise

The Aggregate Composite MLS House Price Index (HPI) rose 14.2% y-o-y last month. The rise in prices has diminished in recent months (14.4% y-o-y in November; 14.6% in October) owing to a softening in single-family home prices in B.C.’s Lower Mainland following the introduction of a new 15% land transfer tax on foreign purchasers, which markedly reduced activity. 

This price index, unlike those provided by local real estate boards and other data sources, provides the best gauge of price trends because it corrects for changes in the mix of sales activity (between types and sizes of housing) from one month to the next. 

Price trends continued to vary widely by location. In the Fraser Valley and Greater Vancouver, prices continued to recede from their peaks reached in August 2016 but remained above year-ago levels (+27.0% y-o-y and +17.8% y-o-y respectively). Meanwhile, benchmark prices climbed to new heights in Victoria and elsewhere on Vancouver Island, and in the GTA. By comparison, home prices were down 3.7% y-o-y in Calgary and edged lower by 1.6% y-o-y in Saskatoon, continuing their retreat from peaks reached in 2015.

Home prices were up modestly from year-ago levels in Regina (+5.2%), Ottawa (+4.0%), Greater Montreal (+3.3%) and Greater Moncton (+1.9%). Monthly trends suggest that prices have begun to stabilize in all of these markets except Greater Montreal, where values continue to rise modestly. 

The actual (not seasonally adjusted) national average price for homes sold in December 2016 was $470,661, up 3.5% from where it stood one year earlier. This marks the smallest y-o-y increase in nearly two years.

The national average price continues to be pulled upward by sales activity in Greater Vancouver and the GTA, which remain two of Canada’s tightest, most active and expensive housing markets. That said, Greater Vancouver’s share of national sales activity has diminished considerably over the last year, giving it less upward influence on the national average price. The average price is reduced by almost $120,000 to $352,513 if Greater Vancouver and GTA sales are excluded from calculations.

Dr. Sherry Cooper
Chief Economist, Dominion Lending Centres