The Optimal Down Payment Amount

When you are deciding to buy your first home, one of the questions that often comes up is: how much should I pay for my down payment?
The short answer is: as much as possible.
We’ve all seen the havoc that some of the no-down payment mortgages in the U.S. have caused. Since buyers of these mortgages [...]

Fixed Rate or Variable: Which is Better?

When it is time to renew a mortgage, you are often faced with a difficult problem: should you go for a fixed rate or variable rate mortgage?
There are benefits to both. However, historically it has been the variable rate mortgages that have the edge: in the last 30 years, variable rate mortgages have outperformed fixed [...]

Mortgage Brokers Can Potentially Save You Money

Choosing the right mortgage can feel overwhelming. Although going to your bank might be the logical move, you don’t know if this will net you the best mortgage plan for your budget, lifestyle and prospects. And searching by yourself can give you the feeling that there is just too much to know.
That’s why mortgage brokers [...]

Longer Amortization Periods a Potential Advantage

Despite the recession, average home prices have been rising throughout the last decade. In contrast, wages have generally not kept pace with the rising cost of owning a home. The result has been that home buyers, particularly new home buyers, have been choosing longer amortization periods for their mortgage. Traditionally, Canadians have done 25-year amortization [...]

CAAMP study shows Canadians are witty with their mortgages!!!

The Canadian Association of Accredited Mortgage Professionals, better known as CAAMP, has released new data on a recent research outlining that Canadian home owners and lenders are both very cautious with mortgages.
The new research data released January 14, 2010 gathered information throughout 2009 on approximately 40,000 mortgages. The data represents about 1/6th residential mortgages signed [...]

Compound Interest

Image: Dominic Harness / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Compound interest is interest on top of interest. When you take out a loan with compound interest, you pay interest on the principal, and then the compounded interest is an additional rate you pay on the accumulating interest. In a savings situation, compound interest will help you get to [...]

How far will Flaherty go to avoid a housing bubble!!!

With all this talk about a possible housing ‘bubble’, even some of Canada’s leading politicians are taking notice. During a recent CTV Question Period, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said that he has been keeping close tabs on the real estate market.
A housing bubble is bad news for Canadians. Currently with record low interest rates and [...]