Personal Finance
Securing Your Today and Tomorrow
How Assets Support a Mortgage
Securing a mortgage in Canada has long been an income-driven process. Lenders scrutinize pay stubs, tax returns, and employment history to determine whether a borrower qualifies. However, in today’s evolving financial landscape, assets play an increasingly significant...
Spousal Buyout Mortgage
Spousal Buyout Mortgage: You want to keep the house, the monthly payment is manageable, but the your refinance limit says no…
Understanding Internal Rate of Return (IRR)
Understanding Internal Rate of Return (IRR): In real estate, it’s easy to get caught up in surface-level numbers—cash flow, purchase price, appreciation. But if you really want to operate like a professional investor, and guide your clients like one, you need a metric that answers a deeper question
How to Calculate Housing Cost
To ensure you do not spend more than 30% of your income on housing costs, it's important to understand how to calculate your housing expenses. In Canada, housing costs typically include: Mortgage Payments: The monthly amount paid towards the mortgage principal,...
Understanding Cash Damming
Cash damming is one of the most effective—and least understood—ways to take advantage of this gap. It’s not about taking on more risk, spending more money, or changing your lifestyle.
Calculating Debt Service Ratios (GDS/TDS)
Discover how to calculate Debt Service Ration for mortgage affordability in Canada.
Understanding Mortgage Costs: Principal, Interest, and Protection
When you take out a mortgage in Canada, you're entering into a long-term financial commitment that involves repaying both the principal amount borrowed and the interest charged by the lender. Understanding the nuances of how mortgage payments are structured, including...
The Mortgage Rate Mirage
Your interest rate is only one piece of the mortgage puzzle. In the real world, mortgages have layers. Once you start peeling those layers back, you begin to see the difference between a mortgage that merely looks competitive and one that actually is competitive.
Ontario’s Credit Lock/Freeze Law
Ontario Credit Lock/Freeze Law: Ontario has just added a powerful new consumer-protection tool to your financial toolbox: the ability to lock or freeze your credit file. Think of it like putting a digital deadbolt on your credit report. It will not stop every form of fraud, and it will not replace common sense, strong passwords, or careful monitoring, but it can make it much harder for someone to open new credit in your name.
Understanding Mortgage Loan to Value (LTV) Ratio
As a professional mortgage underwriter in Canada, I often emphasize the importance of the Loan to Value (LTV) ratio in the mortgage qualification process. The LTV ratio is a critical factor in determining the terms of the mortgage for which a borrower qualifies,...
HELOCs and Hidden Land Tax
“Wait… We’re Paying Land Transfer Tax Again?” A lot of homeowners think adding a HELOC is just paperwork. You sign a few documents, the lawyer registers a new charge, and away you go. Easy peasy, right? Well… sometimes. But every now and then, a refinance or HELOC...
Housing as Income Percentage
Financial planners generally advise spending no more than 28% to 30% of your gross monthly income on housing. This guideline is known as the "front-end ratio" and primarily covers housing expenses like mortgage payments, property taxes, homeowner's insurance, and...
Accessing Your Credit Score
In Canada, understanding and monitoring your credit score is crucial for managing your financial health. This score, a numerical representation of your creditworthiness, impacts various aspects of your financial life, from securing loans to negotiating better terms on...
Mortgages: You Better Shop Around
When shopping for a mortgage it is important to think like a bank. Don’t pay the loyalty penalty, get the advantage of having Allen Ehlert shop the market and get you your best mortgage
Property Tax Calculations
Understanding property taxes and their calculations in Canada is essential for homeowners, prospective buyers, and real estate professionals alike. Property taxes are a significant source of revenue for municipalities and directly impact local services and...
Is It a Scam to Pay a Full Year’s Rent in Advance?
Learn what is legal and what is practised when competing for a place to rent.
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