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Showing posts from October, 2013

Private Mortgages - Are They Good Investments To Make Me Money?

  With interest on bank saving accounts yielding little return many folks hear others talking about how they are getting high returns from investing their money in private mortgages. You look at your saving accounts and returns and begin to wonder - is this something I should look at?   You wonder why would a person not go to a bank for their mortgage? Sometimes good people who have worked to keep their credit in good standing run into problems:   - a person loses their job and needs the mortgage while they are between jobs   - a person has a recent bankruptcy, consumer propsal or collections and regular lenders will not look at      them for at least 2 years   - a mortgage is up for renewal and they do not qualify for another one because the debt level is too high     compare to the total income  - perhaps a divorce or separation has occured  - a person was forced to find another job but at a lower salary  - a lender has called the mortgage in and is foreclosing on a

Understanding and Keeping Your Credit Score Healthy

One of the least understood financial tools that a consumer has that affects their ability to borrow and at what rate is the credit score commonly known as the beacon score. This is a number that is assigned to you based on various criteria that a lender looks at to see if you are an applicant that they consider being financially able and credit worthy to repay a loan or mortgage. In Canada there are 2 credit rating bureaus – Equifax or Transunion. Each has their own scoring system and they may or may not contain the same financial information. Equifax has a number system from 300 to 900. A number above 700 is considered good while a number in the 300-400 range is very poor. Prime mortgage lenders look for a number from 620 to 650 to consider a candidate. There are alternate or “B” lenders that will go as low as 500 and private lenders do not look at the credit score. The   credit score is made of 5 different components: a)      Payment history           35% b)     Debt

Why Is the Lender Asking For An Appraisal As A Condition For My Mortgage Approval?

Sometimes a mortgage agent runs across a situation where the client is questioning why the lender has imposed a certain condition ie property appraisal. The client may say that their neighbor or relative or friend just got a mortgage and they did not have to pay for an appraisal on the property.   If a client qualifies, some lenders will use what is called an APV or Automated Property Valuation. This saves the cost of an appraisal along with moving the mortgage application approval process along much faster. H owever, some types of applications and properties will continue to require a full appraisal, such as but not limited to: - properties with values greater than $750,000 - mortgage amounts greater than $600,000 - construction draw financing (progress advance) - rental properties - all New Immigrant and BFS  (Business For Self) applications - restricted properties - recreational properties - unique properties including Leasehold Tenure - the p