The purchase price of your home is only one of the costs you’ll encounter. Here are other possible costs you need to consider:   Appraisal – $250 – $350 This is the fee for determining the property’s lending value for mortgage purposes. This value may or may not be the same as the purchase price of the home.   Home Inspection Fees – $2...Read More

  Buying a home in Canada is steadily becoming more challenging. With rising home prices and the impact of the stress test becoming more acute, more and more Canadian families no longer qualify for a mortgage large enough to support the purchase of a home. In response to these pressures, a type of mortgage that used to be reserved for income properties is gaining popularity: the jo...Read More

    Why has there been such a huge migration of extremely devoted Torontonians making the move from the city they love and living in Hamilton?  For anyone who is not in the know about Hamilton, it unfortunately tends to make a terrible initial impression. As you travel along the QEW it screams “avoid this apocalyptic land like the plague I’ve been told it has&rd...Read More

                 Are you moving to Hamilton? Well, welcome. Hamilton is one of the most under appreciated cities in the GTA and Golden Horseshoe. Unfortunately, Steeltown or the Hammer as some call it has been stigmatized by the initial view of factories belching out smoke as you crest the Burlington Skyway bridge. For many that is why they have dis...Read More

    Do you know what the mortgage pre-approval process is?  The easy explanation is that it's pretty well exactly what it sounds like. The more important question is do you know what to do and why it's so important that you go through the mortgage pre-approval process before you start your in-depth home search?  Lets start with what to do and what will ha...Read More

     Are there actually any benefits to using a realtor to buy a house? Well if you do decide to use a realtor you have a choice to make, way before we can get into any benefits or disadvantages. The two basic options most home buyers can choose from, are either using what is known as a Buyers Agent or using the Listing Representative (the name on the For Sale s...Read More

  The new mortgage stress test that was implemented in the beginning of 2018 has definitely thrown a wrench into the works. Or has it? What effects is the OFSI Mortgage Stress Test really having? I’ll do my best here to get the mortgage stress test explained for you.   So lets first answer why it was implemented. Canada and Ontario has an issue and it was getting bigger. Househo...Read More

Did you know that you can get down payment assistance in Ontario? You’ve told yourself that you’re ready to settle down, “no more renting for me, it’s time to build for the future, it’s time to start saving for a downpayment on a home” It’s an exciting time but it can also be a little overwhelming. First lets stick with the excitement and less with...Read More