All Blog Entries by Steve Harmer

Borrower or credit costs can be outrageous.

To go get a line of credit, you are usually paying upwards of prime plus 3% or even 5%. These lines of credit can be based on interest only or principle and interest payments. This kind of loan is based on how the lender views you as a risk. In other words, they look at the amount of money you are making and the amount of debt you have and then decide how much credit they are willing to give you. Usually, these loans are not very big as there is no security. And even though a lender considers your income vs your debt for a mortgage you will not get as much as you would get through a mortgage BECAUSE….

…a mortgage is based on securing a loan against a property. If you fail in making a mortgage payment and

We know that getting ready to purchase a home can be confusing.

It is important to know the difference between a pre-qualification and a pre-approval, as one could lead you on, while the other nurtures your path to home ownership.

One of the primary steps of Buying a Home, is getting pre-approved for a mortgage. You should do this before the house hunt begins, so we (your Realtor) can show you houses that you can afford, to ensure we don’t waste any time or get your hopes up. There should be an open line of communication between your Realtor and your Mortgage Agent throughout the process, from determining the price range criteria, to putting forth an offer.

In the grand scope of things, a Pre-Qualification is a birds eye view of your ability to

For many sellers, Cash is King.

Cash is a safe bet, and you don’t have to take your chances with a buyer who needs to jump through hoops to get a mortgage loan to buy your property. But is the cash offer always the right deal for your home sale?

The Appeal of Cash

The first thing you need to address when you receive an offer is how strong the home buyer is financially and how likely they are to close. A cash offer is always worth considering, because a failure to obtain financing is the main reason why deals fail to close. In the era of strict lending criteria, some buyers no longer qualify for a mortgage. In other scenarios, lenders quash the financing because the appraisal figure comes in lower than the purchase price. There’s no lender with a

With the average price of a detached home in cities such as Toronto now above the $1million mark, for many, condos have become the new starter home and possibly the domicile option for years to come.

First time home buyers are plagued with a whirlwind of decisions when looking for the perfect place to settle down. From locations to schools and public transportation, there’s one major consideration that will determine your type of lifestyle for the years to come, house or Condo. After coming to terms with the loads of money you’ll be borrowing, you’ll have to decide on whether you want to live in a condo vs house. But there are some major differences between house ownership and owning a condo. Here are some key factors to keep in mind.

Fees For All

Whatever you do with your life, and wherever you live, you have to sort out your finances.

Having enough money to live, to pay bills, to buy treats etc… is fundamental to being independent and being able to live a comfortable life.

Being able to maximise your money (whatever your income), and knowing how to get the most out of every penny is crucial because  it frees you up to concentrate on the important things in life.

Leaving money worries behind means knowing that you have things under control. You can free up valuable time and energy so that you can get on with actually living! With all this in mind I have put together a list of my Top 10 tips to get your finances organised – starting today. I hope they will get you started and move you

You just made an offer on the house you love and it has just been accepted!

Congratulations!!

But then the panic and feeling of being overwhelmed sets in.  It’s a time filled with many different emotions, a seemingly endless To Do List, critical due dates, and a multitude of important decisions to be made. Buying a house is a tough challenge, no matter how well qualified you are, or even if you’ve done it before, and it’s pretty normal to feel stressed out.

Especially when you already lead a busy life and now have what feels like another full time job to do!  But there are some things you can do to manage that overwhelmed feeling and get done what has to be done. It's your responsibility!

1. Rely on your Buyer Agent

It’s his or her job to

Strata laws that restrict renters 'prejudicial,' says real estate analyst

Strata laws that restrict rentals do more to raise housing prices than shadow flipping or foreign buyers, says one real estate analyst.

Both the B.C. government and opposition party last week signaled their support for legislation aimed at cooling the province's housing market, including the B.C. NDP's suggestion of having buyers pay property transfer taxes at the agreement of sale and of imposing a two per cent tax on vacant homes.

But one analyst says the Lower Mainland's vacant homes are partly the result of strata councils who are unwilling to allow more than a certain number of renters into the condo building.

"You've got these small little groups of three or four

If you’re like many Canadians, you may still have a perspective of the real estate market influenced by media coverage of the 2008 crisis. However, real estate is always subject to cycles, especially around growing and expanding communities like Kamloops. The reality is this area is now facing a looming shortage of housing inventory. If your a buyer moving to the area it is key to find a local experienced realtor who can get you up to speed on your knowledge of Kamloops real estate market, its not all doom and gloom as we show in this article. IF you are a seller then the local "know-how" of a realtor is key in getting your house listed at the correct price with the best exposure possible.

From the Bank of Canada to local real estate firms, the level

Downsizing has an upside when you are talking about purging your excess when you move to a smaller home. However, it still can feel like an insurmountable task if you are not careful to follow a few simple downsizing strategies.

Emotional Energy

Downsizing is an emotional journey. Perhaps that seems like a silly statement but consider all the items in your home are there because you liked them enough to bring them home. From clothes to kitchen utensils, every item in your home has a story. As you begin to downsize you re-live those stories. As you are working through your possessions, be careful to not take on too many negatively emotional tasks at once. However when you encounter those items start asking yourself if you really want to move those

Need to sell a house underwater?  If you don’t know what this means then let me enlighten you. It means the house is not worth what you need to sell it for.

Maybe your job has just relocated you, a family member is sick, the neighborhood is declining. Whatever the reason is, you need to move, and you need to sell your house fast. You call up a realtor and they tell you all the things that you need to do to get it sold, such as cleaning up, painting the house and even what he believes it will sell for. But we have 1 problem…… The house is worth less than you paid for it. This does not mean that you made a mistake in buying the home, lots of other factors can combine to make this situation occur. In BC for example if you paid market value for a home and