Real Estate Articles
Your Home, Your Life!
Closing Costs: Commercial vs. Residential
Closing Costs: Commercial vs. Residential. Residential closing costs are usually more predictable. Commercial closing costs, on the other hand, can feel like opening a junk drawer: legal fees, lender fees, environmental reports, appraisals, accounting advice, GST/HST questions, lease reviews, zoning issues, and sometimes a few “where did that come from?” moments.
What is a Net Worth Program?
Learn what a Net Worth Program is and how it assists individuals with substantial net worth to qualify for a mortgage.
Sources of Home Down Payment
Discover reliable sources for your home down payment in Canada. Learn about savings options, grants, and assistance programs to make homeownership a reality.
Your House? Better Get Title Insurance
While most homebuyers are aware of closing costs, mortgage insurance, and property inspections, many overlook the critical role that title insurance plays in protecting their property ownership rights.
Understanding Market Rent
Understanding Market Rent: More homebuyers today rely on rental income to qualify for mortgages. If you’re one of them, you’ll often need a market rent report or rent letter to “prove” that income to the lender.
Do You Need Title Insurance for a Condo?
Learn about the special risks that come with condominium ownership and while having title insurance is important.
Canada’s Employment Crisis
Mortgage agents are boots-on-the-ground financial professionals who know what is going on in the economy in real time. As I talk to people, I often feel like a counsellor, as people share with me what is going on in their lives and what is happening with their employment situation.
10 Reasons Canadians Refinance Their Mortgage
Every year, about 15% of Canadians refinance their mortgage to take advantage of better mortgage terms (reduced rate, amortization, or mortgage feature), improve their financial condition, buy out a partner, or take advantage of an investment or business opportunity.
What is Your Principal Residence
Everybody needs a place to live, a place to call home. Legally, a principal residence is defined as a property that you, your spouse or common-law partner, or your child ordinarily inhabit at some point during the year. The property can be a house, cottage,...
4 Ways To Refinance Your Mortgage
15% of Canadians refinance their mortgage every year. Learn about the 4 ways Canadians refinance their mortgage and discover which approach is right for you.
Breaking Your Mortgage: Canada vs United States
Discover the big difference between the costs Canadians pay to refinance their homes compared to the costs paid by Americans and why such a big difference.
Is Fixed or Variable Best for You?
Discover the differences between a fixed rate mortgage and a variable rate mortgage, when one is better than the other, and which is right for you.
Buy, Reno, Rent, Refinance, and Repeat
BRRRR Analyzer: BRRRR stands for Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat.
It’s one of the most powerful real estate investing strategies available—but only when each step is executed with insight. The problem is, most people focus on the buy and the rent… and gloss over the refinance, which is where the entire strategy either succeeds or collapses.
Don’t Move Without Bridge Financing
Considering a move? Bridge financing can help you buy your dream home before selling your current property. Learn how to secure this short-term loan in Canada.
When to Use Community Trust
Community Trust:When to use Community Trust, it isn’t a private lender; it’s a structured alternative lender designed for borrwers who are viable, responsible and real.
Canada’s Missing Housing-Enabled Infrastructure
Explore how Canada’s gap in housing-enabled infrastructure impacts urban development and transportation networks for better city living.
Featured Publications
Articles
- Extended Amortizations and Hypothetical Calculations
Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) - Minimum Qualifying Rate for Uninsured Mortgages
Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) - Residential Mortgage Underwriting Practices and Procedures
Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) - Guideline on Existing Consumer Mortgage Loans in Exceptional Circumstances Financial Consumer Agency of Canada
Book: “The Program”
- Part 1 – Building Your Down Payment
- Part 2 – Mortgage Payoff Strategies
- Part 3 – Building Wealth Through Real Estate














