26 Sep

MORTGAGE PROTECTION PLAN

General

Posted by: Mike Hattim

Insurance coverage is something that everyone is “pitched” at some point or another in their life. Unfortunately, a lot of us have a negative attitude towards insurance or warranty as it is perceived as being a cash grab. Yes, if you are purchasing a flat screen T.V., that extra 2-year warranty for $100 might be […]

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25 Sep

IS YOUR LINE OF CREDIT KILLING YOUR MORTGAGE APPLICATION?

General

Posted by: Mike Hattim

Some of the last round of changes from the government regarding qualifying for a mortgage were that if you have a balance on your unsecured line of credit, then to qualify for mortgage the lenders require that we use a 3% payment of the balance of the line of credit. Simple math is, if you […]

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24 Sep

5 TIPS ON HOW TO GET OUT OF DEBT AND INTO YOUR OWN HOME

General

Posted by: Mike Hattim

To get out of debt, you need a plan and you need to execute that plan. That’s why I’ve created this simple, five-step, get-out-of-debt checklist that can help you leave that financial burden behind you. As you work on your plan, you’ll need to make all necessary adjustments to your budget along the way so […]

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21 Sep

RENT, OWN, OR DO BOTH?

General

Posted by: Mike Hattim

There are generally three different situations you can find yourself in when it comes to living situations; living with parents, renting, or owning. A lot of the times the first decision someone will need to make is whether they buy a home to live in, buy a home to rent to someone else, or buy […]

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20 Sep

A CHIP SUCCESS STORY

General

Posted by: Mike Hattim

A few years ago, I met with my Home Equity Bank representative. He was trying to encourage me to go visit my financial adviser referral partners to offer the Chip Reverse Mortgage product. I explained that I did not know anyone who had a reverse mortgage so it was hard to promote to financial advisers […]

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19 Sep

FIRST TIME MORTGAGES: EXPECTATIONS VS. REALITY

General

Posted by: Mike Hattim

First-time homebuyers are one of our favourite clients! It’s great to work alongside them and teach them the in’s and out’s about real estate, owning a home, and helping them cross “homeownership” off their bucket list. One thing that we find though, their expectations are often not aligned with reality. We are always honest with […]

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14 Sep

DON’T FORGET THE CLOSING COSTS WHEN YOU PURCHASE A HOME

General

Posted by: Mike Hattim

The purchase price you negotiate when buying or selling a home is just one part of the total cost for buying a home. In addition to the purchase price there are several other fees – known as closing costs – all of which you need to factor in to your purchase price. Closing costs tend […]

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13 Sep

MORTGAGE SWITCHES AND TRANSFERS

General

Posted by: Mike Hattim

Mortgage switches and transfers are becoming one of the more popular sources of revenue for certain lenders which means great incentives for borrowers as the banks and financial institutions fight for your business. When your mortgage is up for renewal, your lender will typically send you a letter either 6-months or 120 days before your […]

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12 Sep

KEEPING YOUR CREDIT SCORE HEALTHY

General

Posted by: Mike Hattim

There is a lot of misinformation floating around about credit bureaus, credit reports and credit scores – not only that, but a large amount of the clients I work with have never even seen their credit report or score before! I’d like to shed a bit of light, as they say, on the importance of […]

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