Calgary Real Estate Blog - Mortgages

What is a builder’s rate hold?

Instead of buying a prebuilt home, some clients decide to build their own home. When you, (or your builder), are building a home from the ground up, it could be months or even years before you need your mortgage financing.  Depending on market conditions, it could be advisable to get a “builder’s rate hold” mortgage.  This is allows you to hold a, “worst case scenario” rate for the completion date of your new home.  

Special thanks to  our impact partners at the Spire Mortgage Team for assisting with this article! Find out more (at the end of this article) about this incredible mortgage team that helps out hundreds of our clients every year. 

When would I need a Builder’s Rate Hold Mortgage?

You would need a builder’s rate hold when the…

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What is a purchase plus improvements mortgage?

Purchase plus improvements introduction

Purchasing a previously owned home, that hasn’t been recently renovated, can mean that the new owners want to put some work into freshening things up.  Home renovations have been very popular this year as Canadians moved to larger homes and set themselves up for move favourable work from home situations.

Many of our client’s who utilize our mortgage partners use what’s called a, “purchase plus improvements” mortgage to help make sure that they were borrowing the cost of the renovations at the very best rate.  Purchase plus improvements mortgages can be a super useful tool for clients but they come with a little bit of fine print as well.  Let’s take a quick look at the pro’s and cons. 

Pros of a Purchase…

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Construction Financing In Calgary

There are really 2 ways to make construction financing come together for a new home purchase.  A completion mortgage and a draw mortgage.  If you’re purchasing a new home, your builder will likely have requirements for what type of mortgage they expect you to have.

Completion Mortgages

Many production builders, like Streetside Developments, Shane Homes, , Homes by Avi or others, will expect you to have a “Completion Mortgage.”  This means that you  provide your 5% down payment funds at the time that you write the offer and then the rest of the funds at closing. 

If you’re purchasing a new build, rental property, the builder may require that you put 20% down payment down at the time of the offer and the rest at “closing.”  In this context, closing…

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New to Canada Mortgages

Cracking the Code on New to Canada Mortgages 

Despite immigration slowing due to closed borders during the pandemic, the Canadian housing market has shown unprecedented strength. Rolling into the back end of the pandemic, the "endemic," we expect to see  maximum numbers of new immigrants arriving in Canada. The Canadian government had approved many applications, and those candidates are now able to arrive. It will be more important than ever that New to Canada borrowers understand their mortgage options so that they can secure housing in their new home.  

Mortgages for newcomers to Canada

If you or your family are planning on arriving in Canada in 2021 or 2022, it's important to reach out to a mortgage broker and figure out what the mortgage…

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How to Sell Your House Fast

If you are in a situation where you’re saying to yourself “I need to sell my house fast,” you’re not alone. Homeowners often need to sell their home quickly for a variety of reasons. The good news is that it can be done - with some help. 

Here are some tips to help you find a buyer for your home quickly, without having to lower your asking price.

1. Hire a real estate agent

You have two options when it comes to enlisting outside help to sell your home. You can hire a real estate agent, or you can look into an estate service.

A real estate agent will handle contracts, provide a list of referrals (lawyers, mortgage brokers, etc) sales forms and other documents, ensuring you understand each and every piece of information relevant to the…

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Getting a Mortgage Pre-approval - Dos and Don’ts

For many Canadians, owning a home is a life-long dream. It’s a dream that requires a lot of planning and hard work if it’s going to come true, however. From finding the right realtor to sifting through home listings, fighting bidding wars and navigating open houses, buying a home is a big commitment. 

Of course, most people will need a mortgage to purchase a home. This can be a major obstacle for some, but you can improve the process by getting pre-approved for a mortgage. A mortgage pre-approval will let you know how much you can borrow with minimal risk. This will give you the confidence to get out there and see what you can afford.

How does mortgage pre-approval work in Calgary?

Whether you’re looking to buy your first home or you’re an…

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How To Buy A House With Bad Credit

The idea of purchasing a home can sometimes be daunting. If you have bad credit, getting started with the process of buying a home can be an even tougher task to accomplish. 

If you have bad credit, getting started with the process of buying your first home can seem especially difficult. There are ways of buying a home, and getting the loan that you need, even if you have a poor credit score. Bad credit home loans have been established and are available for those that qualify for them. This means that your credit score may not be as big of an obstacle that you think it is for purchasing a home.

This article will go over how to get a mortgage with bad credit, what you need to know about your credit score, what you need to qualify for a home loan, and…

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Buying vs Renting in Calgary

The rent vs buy conversation in Calgary is certainly not something "new" on the scene.  Clients ask on a regular basis if we think it's a good time to buy or if they should keep renting.  In the past 5 years in Calgary, we've seen reasonable vacancy rates and market rents have been affordable. Because of this, finding a great accommodation to rent hasn't been a difficult task in Calgary and lots of newcomers to the city have chosen to rent instead of buy.  But, the question to ask is, "What is the best for your long term financial goals?"   

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Questions to ask your mortgage broker

When you’re asking your friends, family and colleagues about their recent home purchase and their mortgage experience, often the conversation starts  and ends with “what’s your mortgage rate?’ 

Here is the truth, when you’re shopping for a mortgage, the rate is a super important piece of the conversation, but it shouldn’t be the only piece of the conversation. 

7 things to ask your Mortgage Broker if you’re getting a mortgage in Calgary

1.    What is the down payment requirement for this mortgage rate? 

Reminder, mortgage rates differ depending if your deal is insured or uninsured. It's important to confirm your down payment with your broker, some rates aren't available for all home purchases, in fact, there are situations…

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Why Do I Have Different Credit Scores?

Why Do I Have Different Credit Scores?

Oftentimes, as we move through the mortgage pre approval process with our clients, they end up confused about their credit score.  They check the score themselves using one of their banking apps or Credit Karma and the score reads 780, but when we pull their beacon score, they are so frustrated that often their score is lower.

Here are the straight goods:  Every credit information provider has a different algorithm for calculating credit scores.  They all scrape information from the internet in different ways and they all come up with a different number in the end.  It’s also super important to remember that credit scores fluctuate monthly.  My personal credit score can land between 750 and…

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