There is a common myth that once you completed all your mortgage paperwork and you’ve been approved by a lender it’s all done. Yes, a lot of the hard work within the mortgage approval process has been done, but remember, the process is still in play until the closing date, and there still are risks which can impact your financing.

In a nutshell, a lender approves you based on a snapshot of your financial situation, including your income, credit, assets and liabilities. With your application at the time of submission you are saying to the lender that you promise this does not change before closing. The lender does have a prerogative to re-check the situation prior to closing. Common example include closer to closing pulling credit again, verifying employment or requesting updated documents. This in particular can occur if the closing is much farther out from the time you submit the application.

Here’s a short list of changes that could potentially impact your financing prior to closing. All this can be avoided with a proper conversation with a mortgage broker. It’s best to be upfront so there are no surprises to your financing situation and a proper plan can be formulated.

Don’t have your credit pulled by another broker or lender. The lender will often pull your credit again right before financing. If the lender sees that other brokers or lenders have pulled your credit the lender views this a credit seeking and can put your funding in jeopardy.

Don’t apply for new credit. This includes getting a new furniture store credit card (‘no payments until x years’). The lender calculates your debt based on the amount of credit you have. If you are applying for new credit, the obvious assumption is that you are planning on using it. Don’t get any new credit until the closing date is passed.

Don’t increase your debts. This includes financing or leasing a car. The lender always looks at your debt to income ratio. If you increase your debt, you can risk going over the maximum amount of debt compared to your income. Car payments can be particularly impactful to debt ratios.

For investors, don’t purchase another property in the meantime. This means having a signed back offer, even if this other property closes after the subject property. The lender has underwritten your application with the understanding of your current entire rental portfolio and your particular debt ratios. Now you are adding one more, which is a material change.

Don’t close any old credit accounts. Credit is not a bad thing…. unless you are having a hard time managing it. Old credit shows a long history of being able to handle credit. Lenders like that.

Don’t change your job situation. The lender assumes you are producing income the way you presented it at the time of application. Losing or changing your job is a material change.

Don’t wait until last minute to have lawyer review the condo status certificate and then report any discrepancies. Any issues need to be addressed upfront, during the financing condition. If unresolvable, the financing condition protects you and you can walk away.

With proper planning and communication, the mortgage process can be manageable and predictable. Ultimately it’s in your hands. You have to take responsibility and use common sense when you are in the closing process.

Most people break their 5 year fixed terms in 3 to 4 years on average.  That means your penalty will most likely be based on ‘Interest Rate Differential’ or IRD. Not all lenders are equal in that department….this is where many retail banks get you, playing around with ‘discounted rates’ and ‘posted rates’.  This could mean thousands and thousands of dollars more in penalties! Later in this blog, I show you the math and how the retail banks trick you.

Working with a good mortgage broker gives you the options of using other lenders that have simpler and less costly penalty calculations, and a broker can explain these calculations to you in everyday language.  When shopping for a mortgage, there is so much more beyond the surface than just an advertised interest rate!

Although borrowers don’t plan to break their mortgage, life may change unexpectedly. Situations like a new job location, family, divorce, illness, opportunity or need to refinance to access the equity. If you know upfront that you will not finish the typical 5 year mortgage term, consider getting a shorter term. Otherwise, you can benefit with the longer term, lock in the fixed rate and not have to worry about dealing with rising rates or complications with renewal offers.

Variable rate mortgage penalties are calculated differently.  It is simply 3 months interest. Sometimes borrowers go for variable not just because of rate, but this added flexibility of lower penalty costs. Penalties for fixed rate mortgages typically are ‘the higher of IRD or 3 months interest‘. It is prudent to assume IRD as the worse case scenario. There may be even higher penalty calculations with some niche products, for example ‘no frills’ mortgages, which lure you in with lower rate, you have to review the fine print.

Here is a sample IRD calculation, comparing the simple approach to the more convoluted approach. You can clearly see which approach is more profitable to a lender.

$300K mortgage balance at 5yr fixed 3.8% (at retail bank, posted rate is 5.3%, and you get 1.5% ‘discount’, at non-retail lender, posted rate is the same as your contract rate). Some borrowers may think, wow, I am special, I got a great discount! Then the lender uses it against you later.

2 years into mortgage, you need to break it. 3 years remaining on contract, lender looks at comparable ‘posted 3 year rate’). Assume retail bank shows 4.0% posted, non-retail lender shows 3.4%

What the retail bank does then is use 4.0% posted and deduct the original discount you received of 1.5%, giving net 2.5%, and really uses this unrealistic 2.5% as the basis for their penalty (cost of loss to them) calculation. But, in reality, no new mortgage client would be getting the 2.5% for that term if they went and got a new mortgage today.

Non-retail lender penalty calculation:
$300K  x (3.8% contract rate – 3.4% current rate matching term remaining) x 3 yrs   = $3,600 penalty

The retail bank calculation:
$300K  x  (3.8% contract rate – (4.0% current posted rate matching term remaining – 1.5% discount)) x 3 yrs  = $11,700 penalty

Note this is example only. Final penalty calculations are always confirmed by the lender.

Recently there has been a lot of noise in the news about rising fixed mortgage interest rates.  Here are my insights why fixed mortgage rates go up.  Continue reading →

Over the many years of brokering mortgages, lenders have proven to me that it is not just about the math and the debt ratio calculations on a residential mortgage application.  Money lending is Continue reading →

There are easier approaches to getting prepared for a mortgage submission and there is a harder, more stressful route.   Why not learn from the mistakes of other borrowers, Continue reading →

There are easier approaches to getting prepared for a mortgage submission and there is a harder, more stressful route.   Why not learn from the mistakes of other borrowers, Continue reading →

(July 12, 2017) Today, for the first time in seven years, the Bank of Canada raised their rate by 0.25%. This affects your variable rate mortgages and your secured lines of credit.

What will the banks do?
In the past, the banks matched their prime rate increase in step with the Bank of Canada increase, typically the 0.25% increments. We have not seen a rate increase in 7 years, so the history is old. However, during the last rate drop of 0.25% announced 2 years ago, the banks did not match it, but went down by 0.15%.
Also, somewhat out of line with the pattern, within recent history, one major retail bank set its ‘benchmark prime’ higher than other banks, bumping it up by only 0.15%.
The majority of lenders set their prime at 2.70% before today’s announcement. (Other lenders, including credit unions, may have their own ‘benchmark prime rate’ that may be different. You have to check the fine print with the lender.)
We could assume after today’s announcement that changes to 2.95%, however, we should be cautious with this assumption and continue to monitor what the lenders may do.

What will be my new payment?
Your monthly mortgage payments most likely will go up. A small number of lenders already pre-set your variable rate mortgage at a higher amount when you initiated your mortgage (or you may have set this up yourself). You need to check your documents for this information.

Lenders will mail out a notification about your variable rate change. The payment change may take a few months to take effect due to billing cycles.

Based on a $250K mortgage, 25 year amortization, with typical current variable rate offering, a 0.25% increase in rate is approximately $30/m. On a $10K interest only secured LOC (HELOC), this is approximately $2/m. For investors, this increase can multiply significantly across your portfolio, this is the time to re-evaluate your cashflow.

What next?
This is the beginning of the conversation. You can contact me with your specific mortgage questions and portfolio overview.

There are easier approaches to getting prepared for a mortgage submission and there is a harder, more stressful route.   Why not learn from the mistakes of other borrowers, experience a less stressful process and increase your mortgage options.

I am going to delve into the action items you can do to relieve your mortgage application headache.  This list continues from part 1 (see blog here).  There is lots to learn, stay tuned for future additions to this list.

Items below aren’t necessarily a deal breaker,  as there are mortgage solutions for all types of applications, but collectively these items will increase your mortgage options.   Also noted are some items unique to real estate investor applicants.  

List continued…

10.  Acknowledge that  being self-employed and documenting minimal income will most likely put you in a different rate category than the lowest advertised rates. There is a large lending space for borrowers in this group, and often it is very case specific.  Saving on income taxes is a huge benefit to a business owner, and usually trumps trying to fit into the ever-shrinking ‘most conventional’ lending sandbox.

11.  Keep your credit situation consistent between application and closing.  Avoid buying or leasing a car, buying furniture on store credit cards or applying for more credit, without consulting your mortgage broker.  The lender approves you on your credit status presented to them at application time, and expects no significant changes.  They can check credit again before close, and can cancel your application if there are significant changes that impact your debt ratios.

12.  Ask for access to money when you don’t need it.  Specifically, if you foresee in the future you will be needing funds, like for an investment property downpayment, consider doing a refinance now (this includes setting up a secured line of credit), when you are in optimal income and credit position to look best to the lender.  The most successful investors have their access to funds set up well before they submit offer to purchase, in this way, one uncertainty and risk is ironed out.

13.  Have a reasonable financing condition time and avoid extremely short closing. Working within tighter constraints is possible, it is just a more stressful route.  With short closings makes sure your lawyer can accommodate, and inquire about any rush fees.   Providing all the documents upfront and discussing the mortgage plan with your mortgage broker prior to offer submission can help reduce time needed for finance condition.

14.  Choose  a closing date that is not a Friday or the last business day of the month.  This may help, as lawyers and lenders are very busy with a lot of closings at that time.  Similarly, if you submit a live application during this time, lenders are busy with these closings and may have slower turnaround time.  Lastly, holidays also may impact turnaround time, as lenders essentially are making up the missed day.  Make sure your financing condition specifies ‘banking business days’ not ‘calendar days’ or ‘days’.  A common oversight is forgetting that Remembrance Day is a banking holiday.

15.  Always assume mortgage rules and policies can change.  We have seen enough evidence in the Canadian lending landscape of this happening in the last several months and years. Understand that only the current policies will apply once you submit a live application and receive a commitment back from lender.  Pre-approvals, rate holds and very long closings are all subject to potential policy changes at the time your application goes ‘live’.

16.  Allow your mortgage broker and lender to deal with the minute details and calculations of your file, rather than trying to overanalyze yourself.  Policies constantly change. This is what the mortgage broker will do for you and explain to you what your limitation may be, if any.  Conversely, don’t dismiss applying based on your assessment, a mortgage broker can take a proper look and provide potential options.

17.  Operate on the assumption that the lenders will NOT overlook property and price issues. Items that can raise questions include submitting MLS listing with unique  or derogatory remarks or lack of photos, a private sale, using the same realtor or brokerage as seller,  a listing price too low or too high, paying significantly over asking, adjusting the price with an amendment for home inspection items. These are not deal breakers necessarily. Prepare with explanations, and lender may decide to mitigate risk by sending out an independent appraiser.

Stay tuned for part 3.

There are easier approaches to getting prepared for a mortgage submission and there is a harder, more stressful route.   Why not learn from the mistakes of other borrowers, experience a less stressful process and increase your mortgage options.

I am going to delve into the action items you can do to relieve your mortgage application headache. There is lots to learn, so I will continue the list, across multiple posts.  So stay tuned for the next post.

Items below aren’t necessarily a deal breaker,  as there are mortgage solutions for all types of applications, but collectively these items will increase your mortgage options.   Also noted are some items unique to real estate investor applicants.

1. Do your taxes, file on time, pay your taxes owing, have the most recent Notice of Assessment (NOA).  The government is first in line for your funds, ahead of any mortgage lender. Can you blame the lender for wanting that cleared off?

2. Keep your employment situation stable.  Avoid changing jobs that involve a probation period, becoming freshly self-employed or commissioned, or, stating the obvious, becoming un-employed. Doing this after submitting to lender and before closing is a file-stopper, but even doing these things before applying for mortgage may reduce your options. With a proper discussion with a mortgage broker, an appropriate plan can be formulated

3. Understand that your credit is more than just the credit score number.  Lenders look at the entire credit history, blips and all.  Just because you are all about cash and no credit cards or loans, with super-high score doesn’t mean you are good to go.  Not having a ‘trade-line’ history affects your file.  Conversely, minor blips are not necessarily the end of the world, but this should be discussed with a mortgage broker.

4. Have or receive down payment funds that are easy to track.  With anti-money laundering rules in place, lenders need to follow the money.  Moving money around amongst your accounts is okay, but there will be just more documentation and statements you will need to provide.

5. Understand that borrowing funds for a downpayment will have to factored into your debt ratios. Also, understand that lenders may use a higher monthly loan payment in their debt calculation than your actually minimum payment (like interest only).

6. Stress test your portfolio at higher rate to see if you are comfortable with an increased monthly payment.  This is more for your assessment of budget comfort level, not so much about the intricate mortgage qualifying policies. The mortgage broker will deal with that on their end.

7. Know that generic mortgage and rate information will not always apply to you.  Lots of published rates are full of restrictions and fine print.   Now more than ever, mortgage solutions are designed based on risk.  Owner occupied, rentals, refinances amongst others, are now becoming their own categories.  An investor mistake is expecting rate and product offering for owner-occupied to be the same as rental.

8. Assume an appraisal will be required.  Depending on your situation, there may indeed be no appraisal, but assuming without context is risky.  Even with no appraisal, the lender is evaluating the property.

9. For your portfolio rentals, have leases in order, track rent deposits, have property management agreements in place (if manager is the landlord listed on the lease), report rentals on taxes, avoid having unique payment arrangements such as cash or pay by the room.  It is very difficult to count income if there is sparse documentation.

Variable rate or fixed rate mortgage – the million dollar question:  I don’t think there is one blanket answer that is right for everybody.  Let’s examine this matter in more digestible chunks. Continue reading →