There have been a lot of changes in the mortgage market over the past few months so many Canadian’s plans regarding homeownership may have shifted quite a bit from last year.

First, new qualification rules came to pass in October where even though actual contract rates are sitting at about 2.79% all Canadians have to now qualify at the Bank of Canada Benchmark rate of 4.64% to prove payments can still be met when rates go up in the future. That has taken about 20% of people’s purchase power out of the equation.

Documents, documents and more documents. Yes that’s right you will need to provide your Dominion Lending Centres mortgage broker with as many documents that we request upfront as possible. Why? Because the more supporting documentation you have available will help us as brokers to find you your best mortgage options. If you don’t have everything on hand e-mail a PDF of what you have and start digging up the rest as soon as possible.

Why so many documents you ask?

Avoid these 5 common mistakes, and you will have no problem getting your mortgage faster, more efficiently, and with a clear understanding of the process:

1. Thinking banks are the first and best place to go for a mortgage

Mortgage brokers can often beat the bank rates by using different lending institutions. The bank is limited to one lender, but if you use a mortgage broker, they have the option to shop for you with multiple lenders to find you the best product.

Are you on the hunt for a new home but can’t find exactly what you are looking for? You’re not alone. House hunters experience this scenario every day. With real estate prices increasing you may not be able to buy your dream home the first go-round.

There are many potential properties that you can put your own personal stamp on. Why not renovate something?

There is a mortgage product called Purchase Plus Improvements (PPI). With the PPI the lender is able to provide additional financing to improve the subject property. This type of mortgage is available to assist buyers with making simple upgrades, not conduct a major renovation where structural modifications are made. Simple renovations include flooring, windows, new furnace, kitchen updates, bathroom updates, new roof,  basement finishing, and more.

Your Credit Score that the lenders use, not to be mistaken by the Credit Risk Score you see when you check your own credit, is one aspect of determining your borrowing power. The better your score, the length of established credit and your payment history the better when it comes to mortgage financing.

Let’s assume that all parts of an application are equal (available down payment, income, monthly liability payments etc.) except for the Credit Score. Established credit in this case would be any credit report that has at least 2 accounts reporting with a limit of $2,000 for 2 Years.

Comparing the credit profiles of Jane and John both make a gross annual income of $50,000 the following would apply:

Are you thinking of buying your first home in 2017? If yes, contributing to your RRSP before the March 31 contribution deadline can help you increase your funds available for your purchase. Follow the 7 steps below so you can maximize your available funds to purchase your first home.