Buying a new Canadian home?

Congratulations!  Whether it’s your first home purchase, or you have bought one or more homes before, it’s important to make sure you get a solid understanding of your many mortgage financing options. Ideally, you want to do that before you start looking at properties. The mortgage financing environment in Canada is constantly changing, often with new rules and regulations that may affect you.  And as well, there are so many more mortgage lenders available to Canadians than most of us are aware of!  They offer many different mortgage products and programs that address many different needs.  And more are being introduced all the time.

How much can you reasonably afford?

That’s obviously the biggest question.  An important step is to get a mortgage pre-approval.  Talking to a mortgage professional is a smart idea.  Once you are pre-approved you will know your price range for properties, as well as what interest rate you can secure for a set period, usually 90 to 120 days (“mortgage rate-hold” period). Also consider what you can comfortably afford for a monthly or bi-weekly mortgage payment – factor in other costs such as car payments, leisure activities, savings etc.

What else is important, in addition to your mortgage rate?

There are many factors to consider in addition to getting a competitive mortgage rate.   Depending on your situation, you may need to look at a mortgage lender who’s comfortable with self-employed people, people with credit challenges in the past, or one who’s friendly to real estate investors.  Even on things like pre-payment privileges and flexiblity of options, some lenders are more appropriate than others.  Don’t just go to the first lender who springs to mind.  Doing your research may save you thousands of dollars over the life of your mortgage.

Save time, money, and stress in buying a new home

Having a thorough understanding of your mortgage alternatives will save you time, money, and stress.  If you’re buying a new home in Ontario, I would be pleased to help you figure out your options.  Please feel free to spend some time looking around the articles and blog posts on the site, and if you’d like to chat, do get in touch with me!

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