Mortgage Rates & News April 6, 2010

This edition of Rate-Mail has our latest, best national rates for Canadian mortgages. You may qualify for even better discounts or regional specials, so be sure to contact your Invis mortgage professional to learn about all your rate options. At Invis, we work on your behalf to find the mortgage that fits your needs, and your life.

Nanaimo Daily News | Condo News

Plans for two condominium towers at Maffeo-Sutton Park may not be part of a new deal to build a downtown hotel, according to Mayor John Ruttan, who said he does not want to include such incentives to developers.

Mortgage Rates & News March 29, 2010

With many mortgage rates still at historically low levels, when reviewing their financing options some borrowers have chosen to refinance their mortgage. Refinancing a mortgage refers to paying off an existing mortgage and replacing it with a new one. Homeowners choose this strategy for a range of reasons, the most common being:

Nanaimo Foot Ferry News Story

3 Must-Do Tips for Selling that Investment Condo

Not long ago I did a TV segment for Homes and Gardens Television that featured one of my own condos. It’s one of those small spaces, easily filled with the tenants’ large-scale furniture. Take a look at the video clip, and you’ll see what I mean. The film crew got a big laugh out of the tenants’ two pug dogs who became the stars of the show. The experience made me think about condos, condo furniture, and how to make the one work for the other when you’re ready to sell. So let’s talk about condo selling today - how to make your most impressive presentation, sell fast, and get out with the best price. Determining the right time to sell is easy if you have a pre-planned exit strategy set to trigger the sale. This strategy might be: “Sell when prices rise to where only speculators and homeowners are buying” or “Sell when smart long-term investors are ‘leaving the building.’” A pre-planned exit strategy prevents selling on whim, or holding onto a property too long while you waffle over whether the time is right.

Mortgage Rates & News March 22, 2010

A Mortgage Pre-Approval – A Smart First Step When Looking for a Home Getting a pre-approval for mortgage financing before you start to look for a home is a smart move. A pre-approval assures you of a locked-in mortgage rate for a set period – so there is no risk of any interest rate increases while you are house hunting. The great news for those who turn to a mortgage broker is that a broker may be able to obtain a longer pre-approval rate hold. Also, with a pre-approval, you’ll get a clear-cut sense of how much you are eligible to borrow. Keep in mind that the property you intend to purchase – along with your supporting information (such as income, down payment and employment history) – has to meet the financial institution’s criteria to be approved for lending. Also, a pre-approval is not a guarantee of financing, and does not eliminate the need to make a conditional offer.

Realtor Keybox Solutions For Condos

In Nanaimo many stratas are switching from having multiple key boxes for Realtor access to none at all. With concerns over safety, security and the overall appearance of lock boxes, stratas are asking Realtors to take away their lock boxes and keep the keys at there office’s. Here’s a better solution from the Victoria Real Estate Board.

Mortgage Rates And News

March 15, 2010 Mortgage Market Changes Effective in April – make sure you’re in the know Home buyers and real estate investors need to keep up with some upcoming changes to mortgage rules that could affect their purchase, if they are applying for a mortgage with a down payment of less than 20% of the value of the property. Qualifying for a Mortgage Borrowers applying for a variable-rate mortgage or a fixed-rate mortgage with a term of less than 5 years must qualify based on the Bank of Canada’s five-year fixed posted mortgage rate. Rental Properties A minimum down payment of 20% will be needed for government-backed mortgage insurance on non-owner-occupied properties such as rental properties. There are also changes in how much of rental income can be used when qualifying for financing. Self Employed? Make sure you contact an Invis mortgage professional about how to show proof of income to lenders, and access mortgage products tailored for your needs.

Nanaimo First Time Home Buyer Seminar

Join us on March 31st @ 11:30 am at the Ramada Inn for an informal knowledge session aimed at realtors and first time home buyers alike. The mortgage industry is in a constant state of change, and this year is no different. Let us help you understand some of the fundamentals as well as new modifications and products available:

Mortgage Rates And News

March 8, 2010 Good day, We have received news today of some major changes from CMHC. As CMHC is the insurer of choice for most of the lenders that we use we feel that this is very important information to pass along quickly. News point Number 1 - Clarification on Qualifying Interest rate Effective April 19, 2010, the qualifying interest rate used to assess borrower eligibility will change only for loans with a loan to value ratio (LTV) greater than 80% as follows: Fixed Rate Mortgages and Variable Rate Mortgages: For loans with a fixed rate term of less than 5 years and for all variable rate mortgages, regardless of the term, the qualifying interest rate is the great of: a. the benchmark rate, and (http://www.bankofcanada.ca/cgi-bin/famecgi_fdps) b. the contract interest rate The benchmark interest rate is the Bank of Canada 5 year posted interest rate. For loans with a fixed rate term of 5 years or more, the qualifying interest rate is: a. the contract interest rate. What does this mean?

Mortgage Rates And News

March 2, 2010: The Bank of Canada announced today that it is leaving its key interest rate unchanged, and repeated its commitment to hold the rate steady until the second quarter of 2010, conditional upon inflation. In its statement the Bank judges that the factors affecting its inflation outlook are “roughly balanced” at this time. “On the upside, the main risks are stronger-than-projected global and domestic demand. On the downside, the main risks are a more protracted global recovery and persistent strength of the Canadian dollar.”

Mortgage Rates And News

On February 16, Finance Minister Jim Flaherty announced new mortgage rules intended to help ensure homebuyers can handle their debt load when interest rates rise, as well as to slow down real estate speculation. “There’s no clear evidence of a housing bubble, but we’re taking proactive, prudent and cautious steps today to help prevent one. Our government is acting to help prevent Canadian households from getting overextended, and acting to help prevent some lenders from facilitating it,” commented Minister Flaherty.

StudioNa Newsletter | March 20, 2009

A month has passed since my last newsletter and I wanted to update you with our progress at Studio NA. We’ve now poured half the lower garage floor and most of the concrete walls throughout the site. We are standing formwork above the garage floor for the floor of the commercial and live/work units along Chapel.

Nanaimo Real Estate Stats | February 09 | Nanaimo Condos

VISOA February 09 News Bulletin